Classic Tiramisu

In an age of anxiety, making tiramisu the old-school way, raw eggs and all, can be an act of resistance against modern fear culture.

I asked my Italian friend Francesca if she uses raw eggs in her tiramisu. Without skipping a beat, she exclaimed, “Of course! That is how you make it.” Followed by a look that said, Americans are so funny.

Classic Italian tiramisu is made with uncooked eggs, sugar, mascarpone, and coffee-soaked ladyfingers. And dear reader, uncooked is the polite way of saying raw.

If you’ve followed me for a while, you know: I love a traditional raw egg Caesar. I’ll happily eat a nectarine at the farmers market without washing it. I don’t always wash organic produce unless it looks or feels dirty. I let my chicken stock simmer on the stove overnight without a second thought about burning the house down. Am I some kind of insane risk taker? Not really. It’s my way of saying “no thank you” to unnecessary fear and anxiety.

After years of DM questions on Instagram, I know many of you carry some anxiety in the kitchen and this is not meant to shame anyone. It’s 2025: if there’s not something in the world making you anxious, please tell us your secret.

I’m not immune. I’ve struggled with social anxiety my whole life. I used to self-medicate with alcohol; now, 12 years sober, the anxiety still comes and goes. You can’t just turn anxiety off. I get it. But you can give yourself good information to help quiet some of those fears, as well as exposure therapy (more on that below!)

Today I enjoy actively taking a position that puts my enjoyment of life above being scared of things that are unlikely to ever happen. That applies to eggs, and to a lot more than eggs.

Salmonella is real, and you can get sick from what you eat (especially scary these days when many of our federal public safety nets like the FDA are being gutted). But because I trust science, I also trust the data: the odds of getting sick from raw eggs are incredibly low (about 1 in 20,000 eggs—and since there’s less than one egg per serving, it’s more like 1 in 50,000). Statistically, driving to the grocery store is riskier than eating tiramisu.

Perhaps talking about salmonella is the worst possible way to write about tiramisu. Or at least, not the most inspiring. But this is how my brain works. I was a serial worrier as a kid and know that misery. Today I enjoy actively taking a position that puts my enjoyment of life above being scared of things that are unlikely to ever happen. That applies to eggs, and to a lot more than eggs. Not to get too off topic but I am a fan of exposure therapy, where you gradually and repeatedly face the things you’re afraid of (in a safe, controlled way) so that over time your fear decreases.

And there’s that thing I learned in AA: 95% of what we worry about never happens, and there are far better, more productive ways to spend that time. So this is me telling you to make your tiramisu like the Italians do, with raw eggs, and tell anxiety to beat it. (Unless you’re pregnant or immunocompromised, in which case, I’ll give you an alternate version!)

a delicious tiramisu we enjoyed at a tiny “slow food” restaurant in Italy last summer

For what it’s worth: I ate unpasteurized eggs and cheese during both my pregnancies and was fine. I’ve never had food poisoning in my life. Maybe my habit of eating everything has built a robust immune system, or maybe I’ve just been lucky and will one day rue these very words. But my view is that American food safety tends to go a little overboard; and the cost-benefit ratio of worrying is terrible. You give it your time, energy, and joy to avoid tiny risks that may never materialize, and in the meantime, you miss out on a lot of good things. Like great tiramisu.

That being said, there are alternatives to using raw eggs if it’s just not for you. Some people omit the eggs entirely and use whipped cream. You’ll end up with something like tiramisu, but any Italian will tell you it’s not really tiramisu. (It also has significantly less protein, and more saturated fat and calories.) Another option: you can use pasteurized eggs, either in-shell (like Safest Choice) or in cartons (liquid whites and yolks).

If you have a sous vide machine at home, you can pasteurize your own eggs: set it to 135°F and hold the eggs for 75 minutes. No sous vide? No problem. You can do this with just a saucepan and a thermometer—here’s a wiki link that shows you how.

Another option: use zabaglione for the yolks and Swiss meringue for the whites. You’ll need a thermometer for these. For the zabaglione, whisk the yolks and sugar over a double boiler until they reach about 140°F (this creates a custard), then cool before folding into the mascarpone. For the whites, whisk them with sugar over a double boiler until they reach 160°F—then beat on medium speed until they cool to room temperature before folding into the mascarpone mixture.

Making a zabaglione and Swiss meringue for tiramisu is doable but it’s a lot more work. I choose buying good-quality fresh eggs (don’t use any that are past their expiration date or have a cracked shell) and making it the old-school way. Like nonna did. Put a spotify radio station on like Renato Carosone, Mina, or Domenico Modugno if you want to belt out Volare while you cook. Tiramisu tastes better with a soundtrack.

Photo by Marketa Wranova on Unsplash

This recipe makes a big tiramisu—enough to feed 14 to 18 people—and should be made in a 9x13” or 11x15” dish. It works for a fancy dinner party or as dessert for a casual backyard BBQ. And because it’s served chilled from the fridge, I find it fantastic on a warm day. If you’re looking for a dessert you can make ahead, it’s a great choice—you can easily make it a day or two in advance.

Here’s a video recap of all the steps. Notice I forgot to add the dusting of coca powder to the pan before the layer of lady fingers (it was still delicious!):

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Tiramisu for a summer backyard party

Traditional Tiramisu

Serves 14 to 18 people. Or, halve the recipe to feed 6 to 9 people in an 8x8” dish or a 9” square cake pan.

Keep it refrigerated, but don’t stress if it sits out for 20 minutes while you’re serving or enjoying yourself.

Ingredients:

• 8 eggs

• 1 cup sugar