Easy Gingerbread Tiramisu

(Discloser: This is a sponsored post, and I received free product from Nature’s Flavors; However, all opinions and thoughts are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that keep Inspiration Apron running!)

Tiramisu is personally one of my most dreamy desserts to enjoy. Of course with me being lactose intolerant now, I can’t truly enjoy it (not to mention all the fat and calories from the mascarpone cheese.) I decided to create a healthier, dairy-free version to satisfy my craving for this creamy decadent dessert. This gingerbread version of tiramisu is perfect for Christmas or holiday parties and extremely easy to put together then store in fridge until ready to serve and dust with cocoa powder and add a small gingerbread cookie for an adorably delicious garnish.

One of the biggest fears that people have about conquering any tiramisu recipe is making an espresso or good quality strong coffee that the recipe calls for. I mean, how many people have a fancy espresso machine in their kitchen, right?!? Nowadays, you’d be hard pressed to find a drip machine in most houses instead of the popular pod coffee makers (like Keurig.) I’ve found a wonderful hack to keep on hand for recipes needing espresso: Espresso flavor extract.

Nature’s Flavors organic espresso flavor extract gives desserts a quality delicious espresso flavor with ease.I added a small amount of the espresso extract to my regular brewed cup of coffee, along with the rum, to dip the ladyfingers in for the tiramisu assembly. (see recipe below)

Let’s begin!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups Silk unsweet vanilla almond milk yogurt alternative
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp raw honey
• 1 tbsp blackstrap molasses
• 1 tbsp light or dark rum
• 1/2 cup regular coffee, hot
• 1/2 tsp Nature’s Flavors organic espresso flavor extract
• 12-14 ladyfingers
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tbsp crystallized ginger, finely chopped

Optional garnish: Small gingerbread man cookies.

Note: You can substitute the lady fingers for gingersnaps, if desired.

Instructions:

When brewed coffee is still slightly hot, add to a small bowl along with molasses and stir until molasses is dissolved and blended well. Next, add rum and espresso extract and stir to combine, then set aside to cool while moving on to the next step.

Add yogurt, lemon juice and honey to a medium bowl and mix together until well blended and whipped, about 3 minutes. Note: Before measuring out yogurt, drain any excess liquid that is pooling on top, you just want the creamy stuff.

If making individual serving sizes, you may need to cut ladyfingers in half before beginning assembly.

When ready to assembly, gather serving glasses or dish and dust bottom with 1/2 of cocoa powder using a sifter.

Next, quickly dip each lady finger into the coffee mixture and place in bottom of each glass.

Spoon half of the yogurt mixture on top of ladyfingers and sprinkle a little of the chopped crystallized ginger on each, (using it all.)

Complete with adding one more layer of dipped ladyfingers and other half of yogurt mixture. Cover and place in refrigerator to chill for at least 1-2 hours before serving, then dust each serving with cocoa powder and add a small gingerbread cookie to center, if desired.

This elegant dessert is such an easy yet impressive Christmas or holiday treat to serve guests with minimal effort. The fact that it’s healthier and dairy-free makes this a versatile and delicious dessert for all to enjoy.

Enjoy!

💜Julie