Chewy Tiramisu Cookies topped with a creamy mascarpone frosting.
Ingredients
Chocolate chip espresso cookies
- 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 90 grams (1/2 cup) brown sugar
- 50 grams (1/4 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 210 grams (1 and 1/2 cups) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 6 grams (1 level 15ml tablespoon) espresso coffee powder, finely ground (see notes)
- 110 grams (2/3 cup) chocolate chips
Mascarpone cream frosting
- 240 ml (1 cup) thickened cream or heavy cream, (see notes)
- 170 grams (2/3 cup) mascarpone cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-2 tablespoons cocoa powder
Instructions
- Line two baking trays with baking or parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced.
- In a large mixing bowl, add butter and sugars and beat using an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and creamy.
- Add vanilla and egg and beat on medium speed until combined. Add flour, baking soda, coffee and salt and beat on low speed just until a soft cookie dough forms.
- Stir through chocolate chips. Scoop out cookie dough (roughly 1.5 tablespoons each) into balls and roll smooth using the palm of your hands.
- Place cookie dough balls on baking trays, leaving room for the cookies to spread. Bake for 11-12 minutes or until golden brown.
- Leave cookies to cool completely on a wire rack. To speed up the process, place cookies in the fridge to chill.
- In a large mixing bowl, add cream, mascarpone and vanilla. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until soft peaks. Mixture should be thick and creamy.
- Use a piping bag fitted with a large round tip or just a dessert spoon to spread an even layer of frosting onto each cookie (ensuring the cookies have completely cooled).
- Use a fine sieve to lightly dust the top of the cookies with cocoa powder.
Notes
Coffee: I tested this recipe using espresso coffee powder that was finely ground. You can use any coffee you like as long as it’s finely ground – if the granules are too big, they’ll give the cookie a gritty texture. As a non-coffee drinker 2 teaspoons was my ideal, but coffee drinkers said 1 tablespoon offered a stronger coffee taste without compromising on the texture or sweetness. Too much more than that would start to add bitterness to the cookie. Omit the coffee entirely for a kid-friendly version.
Mascarpone cheese: If you don’t have access to mascarpone cheese, creme fraiche or sour cream will give you a similar result. Or you could use regular cream cheese but I’d use a bit less, say 1/2 cup.
Cream: You’ll need thickened cream or heavy cream or any cream that is high fat (35% fat) and says it is suitable for whipping.
Cocoa power: Any unsweetened cocoa powder will work. You can use natural cocoa powder or Dutch-processed cocoa powder.
Storage: Keep cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. Once frosted, keep cookies covered in the fridge.
Make-ahead: If you need to prep ahead of time, you can make the cookie dough balls and freeze them. Bring them back to room temperature and bake as per instructions. Likewise, the mascarpone cream can be made one day in advance and kept covered in an airtight container in the fridge.
