My favorite desserts (aside from cookies) fall in this order: Tiramisu, Cheesecake and Gelato. When I stumbled across this Pound Cake Tiramisu recipe from Martha Stewart, I was so curious to see if it lived up to its restaurant standard. And it was also the first time I was making my favorite dessert. The verdict: it’s delicious.
For this recipe I used Neufchâtel cheese, rather than cream cheese. You always see the two products next to each other in the dairy aisle, with Neufchâtel claiming that it has “1/3 less fat,” but what’s the difference? Ah, dear friends, TheKitchn.com explains:
- Original Neufchâtel: A French cheese dating back to the 6th century, named after a town of the same name, in Normandy. Some argue that Neufchâtel is the oldest known cheese in France. French Neufchâtel is an AOC — that is, unripened cheese, made with cow milk, and if left to ripen, it will develop a soft, bloomy rind, like brie or camembert.
- Cream Cheese: Legend has it that a French cheesemaker tried to recreate Neufchâtel in America and ended up with a product more like the cream cheese we know today. While the French version uses only milk, the American one uses milk and cream. Another point to note: Neufchâtel in France is made with raw milk, while Neufchâtel in America gets pasteurized.
The main difference is this: Cream cheese by law must contain at least 33% milk fat and not more than 55% moisture. Meanwhile, Neufchâtel weighs in with about 23% milk fat and has a slightly higher moisture content.
Is there a difference in flavor? Not really. Both are spreadable, but Neufchâtel is just slightly less creamy. Not significant in taste, so save the calories and 1/3 less fat and go French!
This tiramisu recipe is fab! And whether you use regular cream cheese or Neufchâtel, you’ll absolutely love how easy it is to make.
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 4 ounces cream cheese at room temperature (I used Neufchâtel)
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup strong coffee or espresso (I made strong coffee by using 3 cups of water and 7 tablespoons of coffee grounds)
- 2 tablespoons dark rum
- 1 loaf marble pound cake (I used Entenmann’s Marble Loaf)
- 1/8 cup shaved semisweet chocolate
- Optional: Cocoa powder
- Using an electric mixer, beat the heavy cream, cream cheese and powdered sugar until it forms peaks.
- In a small bowl, combine the strong coffee and dark rum.
- Cut the marble loaf into 1/2 inch thick slices.
- In a 9x9" baking dish, lay half of the loaf slices on the bottom (trimming to fit).
- Evenly spoon half the coffee-rum mixture onto the first layer.
- Top with half of the cream mixture. Then sprinkle half of the chocolate.
- Repeat steps 4 through 6 for the second layer.
- In addition to the chocolate on top, you can add a dusting of cocoa powder if you like.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours before serving.
That looks amazing! I had Tiramisu ONE time, at Ruby Tuesdays and I did not enjoy it at all. It had a “weird” taste, but I don’t know how it’s SUPPOSED to taste, so maybe they just failed? lol I might have to make this and just let my family have it even if I can’t stand it!
Hi Valerie! Thank you! It’s so easy to make. If you like coffee flavor and cream, then you will probably like Tiramisu. Ruby Tuesday isn’t authentic Italian (ha ha), so definitely give it another chance. I’d say this recipe can serve 6-8ish people, so if you serve it at a party (or if your husband/kids are ravenous dessert eaters!), I’d double the recipe and put it in a pretty trifle bowl!
Yeah, I suppose you’re right…I should try it again.