The absolute best lemon tiramisu recipe is this refreshing twist on the Italian coffee classic. It’s creamy, tangy, easy to make and no-bake! It’s also decadent, elegant and totally luscious.

With real lemon flavour from lemon curd, zest and optional Iimoncello liqueur, this creamy dessert is a crowd pleaser. It’s perfect for everything from Mothers Day to Christmas, Easter and even potlucks.

You also really need to try this orange tiramisu, my strawberry tiramisu and my tiramisu cups.

❤️ Why you’ll love it

There are 1,000,000+ reasons to love this easy lemon tiramisu recipe.

  • No bake – perfect for warm weather, comforting enough for cool weather too.
  • Super quick and easy – in the fridge in less than 25 minutes or less.
  • Make ahead – making it perfect for a dinner party or potluck.
  • Sweet, rich and tangy – lemon and that creamy filling are just a divine combo.
  • Raw egg free – if you don’t like raw eggs in desserts, then this will make you very happy.
  • With or without alcohol – the Savoiardi’s are soaked in limoncello here but I have an easy alcohol free option too.
  • Feeds a crowd – easy to scale and you can serve individual portions too.

This recipe was first published here on April 14th, 2022 and has been updated with clearer step by step images.

Top down view of lemon tiramisu in a pan surrounded by lemon slices and plates.

What is lemon tiramisu?

An authentic tiramisu (an Italian word meaning pick me up) is a classic Italian dessert. It’s a no-bake dessert made with coffee, Savoiardi biscuits (ladyfinger biscuits or sponge fingers), liqueur, mascarpone, sugar and eggs that are layered up in a dish.

Is this authentic tiramisu?

This lemon curd tiramisu, while different in both it’s flavouring and it’s method, is still layered the same way with a creamy filling and Savoiardi biscuits. This one has the zingy flavour of lemon instead of coffee and is free from raw eggs.

So, if you love lemon and you aren’t a fan of raw eggs in desserts, this is the tiramisu for you.

Ingredients and substitutions

Ingredients for lemon tiramisu on a marble benchtop.

Detailed quantities and instructions in the recipe card below.

  • Cream: You’ll want a cream that whips, so look for heavy whipping cream, heavy cream or thickened cream and it must be full fat. The cream in this lemon curd tiramisu recipe takes the place of eggs. It adds flavour and whipping it adds the air.
  • Mascarpone: Mascarpone, also known as mascarpone cheese, is a light flavoured Italian cream cheese. It tastes more like cream than cream cheese and is a classic ingredient in tiramisu.
  • Sugar: Just use regular white granulated or caster sugar (superfine sugar).
  • Vanilla: Vanilla adds a balance to the flavours.
  • Lemon zest: The zest of one lemon goes into the cream filling to make it nice and zingy.
  • Savoiardi biscuits: Also known as lady fingers or sponge fingers, Savoiardi biscuits are a crisp Italian biscuit with a sugar topping that are like long fingers. You can often get small or large ones, I prefer the large in this recipe. If you can’t find these in the store, you can try making them yourself. Marcellina in Cucina has the most beautiful homemade savoiardi biscuits recipe.
  • Lemon curd: Do yourself a huge flavour favour and make your lemon curd from scratch. It takes literally 10 minutes and the flavour is genuinely so much better than store-bought lemon curd. For homemade lemon curd you’ll need fresh lemons, butter, sugar, egg yolks and whole eggs.
  • Limoncello: Limoncello is an Italian lemon liqueur. You can make this tiramisu without the limoncello though, if you can’t find it or want an alcohol free version.

What you won’t see in this recipe is raw egg white or raw egg yolks. This recipe is great for those who don’t like the idea of eating raw eggs.

How to make lemon tiramisu

Detailed quantities and instructions in the recipe card below.

1. Make the filling mixture

Whip the cream: In a medium bowl, use a handheld electric beater or balloon whisk to beat the cream to soft peaks. You want it firm enough to hold shape but not so much that it’s starting to turn grainy.

The mascarpone: In another medium bowl, whip together the mascarpone, sugar and vanilla also to the same consistency where it holds soft peaks. Now stir in the lemon zest.

The mascarpone mixture in a bowl.

Fold together: Now add ⅓ of the whipped cream to the mascarpone mixture and use a gentle folding motion to combine it. Repeat 2 more times with the remaining cream.

Folding the cream and mascarpone together.

2. Assemble

Layer 1: Dunk the biscuits into the liqueur (or lemon syrup) just briefly then line them up in a single layer into your dish.

A hand dunking a savoiardi biscuit into limoncello.
The ladyfingers in the baking pan.

Top them with half the cream mixture, followed by half the lemon curd, spreading each layer out evenly across the biscuits (an offset spatula is great for this).

The ladyfingers topped with the cream mixture and lemon curd in the pan.

Layer 2: Repeat with another layer of biscuits lightly dipped in the liqueur. This time, do the lemon curd first, then pipe or spread on the remaining cream mixture.

The top of the lemon tiramisu with the cream mixture piped in stars.

3. Chill

Now let the tiramisu set in the fridge to chill for at least 6 hours or overnight – it’s perfect made the day before you want to serve it. Place it in the freezer for an hour before slicing so you can get nice neat slices, then make sure it’s not hard before serving.

You don’t need to serve perfect slices either. This easy tiramisu is lovely served up in the middle of the table allowing everyone to scoop out their own serve.

Tips and tricks

  • 🍋 Zest before juice: Always zest your lemons before you juice them. It’s easier to zest a whole lemon and, even if the recipe you’re using doesn’t require the lemon zest, it can be frozen for another time to brighten up any dessert or savoury dish.
  • Folding: Folding cream into another mixture, like the mascarpone here, allows you to mix the two things without knocking the air out of the cream. Folding helps keep that light, fluffy texture.
  • Piping: You don’t have to pipe the cream mixture on, it just gives a pretty finish. I use a small star piping nozzle and but you could just use a round tip or just spread the mixture on. If piping, just pipe stars that around 1.25cm wide and high (about ½ inch), then fill in the gaps at the end with tiny piped dots so that the top is covered entirely.
Closeup of lemon tiramisu on a dessert plate.

Variations

  • Non-alcoholic: If you’d like your lemon tiramisu recipe without limoncello, use a simple lemon syrup. Just combine ⅓ cup lemon juice, ⅓ cup water and ¼ cup of sugar in a small saucepan. Heat over low heat stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
  • Lemon berry tiramisu: Keep the limoncello or lemon syrup, but replace all or half of the lemon curd with blueberry compote for a blueberry lemon tiramisu or this raspberry compote for a lemon raspberry tiramisu.

Storage

This lemon curd tiramisu will keep well in the fridge for 2-3 days. Make sure it’s covered well with plastic wrap.

Can you freeze lemon tiramisu? This tiramisu won’t freeze well over an extended period, as the texture of the cream will change. However, it is handy to place it in the freezer for 1 hour before slicing it. You don’t want it to be frozen but firm enough to cut neat slices. Once sliced it will soften to the right texture quickly.

Excess lemon juice or lemon zest can be frozen for 1-2 months.

A square slice of lemon tiramisu on a small plate with a cup of lady fingers the background.

More recipes you’ll love

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Did you try this recipe for lemon tiramisu?
Show it some love with a rating and comment below.

Hungry for more?

A slice of lemon tiramisu on a dessert plate.

Lemon Tiramisu

Yield: 12 serves
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Resting time: 6 hours
Total Time: 6 hours 25 minutes
5 from 16 ratings
Best made the day before serving. This lemon tiramisu falls somewhere between that classic Italiandessert and a lemon cheesecake. Rich, creamy and tangy, it tastes amazing andthis no-bake dessert is so easy to make.
Print Rate Pin

Ingredients

  • 300 ml thickened cream (heavy / whipping cream) (1 ¼ cups)
  • 500 g mascarpone (1.1lb)
  • ⅓ cup caster sugar (superfine sugar) (66g / ~2 ⅓oz)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 28 Savoiardi biscuits (ladyfingers / sponge fingers) (notes 2-4)
  • ⅓ cup Limoncello (lemon liqueur or notes 6&7) (80ml)
  • 1 cup lemon curd (250ml)

For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided

Equipment

Instructions
 

  • In a medium bowl, beat the cream with an electric beater to soft peak stage.
  • In a separate large bowl, beat the mascarpone, sugar and vanilla, until starting to thicken up and it also reaches soft peak stage.
  • Mix in the lemon zest with a spatula.
  • Fold ⅓ of the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture gently so as not to knock out the air and repeat two more times until all incorporated.
  • Combine the liqueur and 2 tablespoons of water. Quickly dip each biscuit into the liquid (don’t soak) and lay them side by side in a 9 inch square tin – roughly 14 in the first layer – press down lightly to make them all level and trim some if you need to.
  • Top the cookies with half the mascarpone cream mixture, spreading it over evenly with an offset spatula.
  • Spread ½ the lemon curd over the cream
  • Add another layer of savoiardi biscuits, then spread the remaining curd over the top.
  • Pipe or spread the remaining mascarpone mixture over the top of the curd.
  • Refrigerate 6 hours or overnight before serving. If you want nice neat slices, place in the freezer for 45-60 minutes before slicing. Make sure it’s not firm inside when you serve though as this should be a nice soft set dessert.
  • Right before serving, add some lemon slice quarters or zest to garnish.
  • Please take a moment to leave a comment & rating. It's appreciated and so helpful.

Notes

  1. The number of Savoiardi’s you’ll need will depend on their size. I use ones that are just over an inch wide and I fit two layers of 14 into a 9 inch tin. In the video I use an 8 inch tin and I need to trim them to fit.
  2. Savoiardis are an sweet, dry Italian biscuit about 1 inch wide by 4 long with a crusty sugar coating on one side. You’ll find them often in the biscuit / cookie aisle on the top shelf or in the international section.
  3. If you can’t find Savoiardi, use a sponge cake, cut into fingers and dried, uncovered overnight on a wire rack.
  4. For a non-alcoholic version or if you can’t find limoncello, use a simple lemon syrup. Just combine ⅓ cup lemon juice, ⅓ cup water and ¼ cup of sugar in a small saucepan. Heat over low heat stirring until the sugar has dissolved.
MORE NO BAKE DESSERTS!
Calories: 477kcal
Author: Marie Roffey
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Italian, World
Love this recipe?Add Sugar Salt Magic as a preferred Google source.
Nutrition information is approximate only and derived from an online calculator. The brands you use and any changes you make may cause variations.

Nutrition Facts
Lemon Tiramisu
Amount Per Serving (119 g)
Calories 477 Calories from Fat 288
% Daily Value*
Fat 32g49%
Saturated Fat 19g119%
Trans Fat 0.04g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 3g
Cholesterol 127mg42%
Sodium 124mg5%
Potassium 54mg2%
Carbohydrates 36g12%
Fiber 0.3g1%
Sugar 20g22%
Protein 7g14%
Vitamin A 1096IU22%
Vitamin C 0.2mg0%
Calcium 87mg9%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.