This vegan tiramisu will bring you joy

Philosophy and animal ethics professor Matthew Halteman’s latest book ends with a tiramisu recipe. It’s a surprising inclusion for a text that isn’t a cookbook, but it’s a clue about the message within “Hungry, Beautiful Animals: The Joyful Case for Going Vegan.”

If you’re a tiramisu lover, then you know it’s a perfect blend of textures and flavors, and relies heavily in its traditional form on the powers of mascarpone cheese. Halteman’s version, landed upon after much experimentation, relies instead on cashew-and-coconut cream, as he explained to me on the “What You’re Eating” podcast. His point is that going vegan can be delicious, and that it might be best approached as something that does not involve sacrifice, but instead involves … tiramisu.

RECIPE: DECADENT CASHEW COCONUT CREAM TIRAMISU (VEGAN)

From Appendix B of “Hungry Beautiful Animals: The Joyful Case for Going Vegan”

by Matthew C. Halteman

Apologies in advance that this recipe is somewhat involved. The perfect results take a little effort to achieve, but HOLY SMOKES is it worth it. And though I call this recipe “cashew coconut” tiramisu, the result of using a combination of cashews and coconut instead of mascarpone cheese and eggs does not result in a dessert that tastes like cashews or coconut. Those ingredients in this case serve more for texture than for taste, and the resulting dessert tastes just like the decadent coffee, custard, and sponge cake dream you’ve always loved!

For the Ladyfingers

1. Make a 9×13 single layer of your favorite vegan vanilla cake. I make one batch of Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s classic golden vanilla cupcake batter, pour it into a greased 9×13 baking dish, and bake for 22 minutes until the edges are pulling away from the pan and a toothpick comes out of the center clean.
2. Cool completely.
3. Cut the cake into 1x3x1.25-inch ladyfingers and then cut each ladyfinger in half horizontally to yield double the number of ladyfingers. (If you are an experienced baker and can remove the full layer and cut it in half at one go with a really sharp knife, then do that before cutting the ladyfingers; I have had more success with the cake staying intact by cutting the fingers from a single layer and then cutting the resulting fingers in half.)
4. Set the ladyfingers aside for a couple hours in open air to let some of the moisture dry out.

For the Coffee Hooch Sauce

1. In a flat dish that will accommodate dipping an entire ladyfinger, mix 4 tablespoons brewed espresso or strong coffee, 3 tablespoons coffee liqueur, 3 tablespoons light rum, and 3 tablespoons dark rum. Purists might prefer marsala wine or cognac, but I like rum better in combination with the cashew and coconut elements.

For the Cashew Coconut Cream

1. In a Vitamix or powerful blender, blend 2 cups cashews, 1 cup soy milk, and 3 tablespoons B- grade maple syrup until completely smooth (test cream between thumb and forefinger to assure there is no grit whatsoever). Set aside. (Note: If you do not have a Vitamix or equally powerful blender, it is best to soak the cashews for a few hours in water to soften them up and make them easier to blend until perfectly smooth.)
2. Remove into a separate bowl the hardened coconut cream from two very well-chilled cans of full-fat coconut cream (the same brand you might use for a curry — in a chilled can, about 2/3 of the can will be a solid but still creamy opaque white substance and about 1/3 will be coconut water with little flecks of cream). USE ONLY THE SOLID COCONUT CREAM and discard the water
3. Beat the coconut cream to peaks with 2 teaspoons of vanilla. Don’t worry too much if it is not completely stiff (like a full-on whipped cream), as the mixture will set into the ladyfingers and form a perfect texture in the refrigerator overnight.
4. Gently fold the cashew cream into the coconut cream until the mixture is a uniform color and texture, but don’t beat it or get too overzealous. Easy does it!

To assemble:

1. Choose a serving dish that reflects the aesthetics you want for serving. Do you want to do it “trifle style?” Then use a glass bowl and build it like a trifle. Do you want to be able to cut square pieces to plate individually? Then choose a 9×13 or something similar. Do you want to do individual servings in creme brulee ramekins or parfait cups? Go for it! The above elements can be combined delightfully in whatever way you like. I prefer square slices that can be plated, so I usually do a 9×13 assembly.
2. Dip ladyfingers in coffee booze so that they become about half-saturated and arrange them into a layer in the pan/bowl/ramekin/dish; if you have a few that get totally submerged, that’s OK, but too many like that can lead to standing liquor at the bottom of the pan, which can affect service and texture. Also, leave some room between fingers for the cream to seep in and fill the gaps.
3. I like three layers of ladyfingers, so pour about 1/3 of your cashew coconut cream onto the first layer and smooth it over the entire layer. (Obviously, you’ll need to adjust your approach if you’re doing individual ramekins or parfait cups, but let common sense be your guide.)
4. Put about 5–6 tablespoons of dark cocoa into a sifter or strainer and tap the side evenly to distribute generously over the entire layer so that no cream shows through.
5. Repeat steps 2–4 until you have three layers of each: ladyfingers, cream, cocoa.
6. Grate an entire 3-ounce bar (or more!) of premium vegan dark chocolate over the final layer of cocoa to cover the entire dish in a generous, well-distributed layer of chocolate shavings.
7. Cover tightly with foil (to avoid the cake and cream absorbing unwelcome flavors and smells that might be in the fridge) and refrigerate for at least 24 hours. It’s positively delicious after 24, but even better at 48 — this is one of those recipes that is unimaginably good to begin with, but somehow just keeps improving with time.

DAZZLE YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY!

Top photo by HLPhoto/Adobe Stock.