Tiramisu Layer Cake

Awesome recipe. Seriously, it inspired awe in those who tasted it. I just wanted to repost a mascarpone substitute I found in another Tiramisu recipe. It worked wonderfully in this one! HEIDI8803 posted this in Raspberry Tiramisu, not sure which recipe she got it from: mascarpone substitute- 2pkgs cream cheese blended with 1/2 c heavy cream and 5 T sour cream And, to reiterate other advice given by previous reviewers, I too made two of the three cake layers with the instant coffee (I'd've made it three, but the changing colors are beautiful) and I doubled the coffee liquer everywhere it was called for. I think next time I'm going to add chocolate covered coffee beans around the base of the cake. ***Edit*** I've made this a few times now, and learned (the hard way) one big thing on the frosting: It is better to under whip than over. More than five minutes and you risk hitting an icky butter zone. That might be what happened to Nicky. Right at 5 min. works for me. Oh, and believe all the reviews about letting the cake sit overnight. The frosting will set better in that time.

Used 1 cup of coffee and 3T of liqueur. Made it twice this way and it turns out so wonderfly moist and flavorful. Oddly the coffee flavor is still very subtle. The cake layers are so moist with the extra liquid it is best to freeze them before you layer them.This way they will not fall apart when stacking.

Thanks for the excellent recipe! I made this for my father's birthday...he was a professional baker and cake decorator in Europe so the pressure was on. Everyone agreed it was great. The frosting was not overly sweet like some can be. I would, however add more coffee/liquor mixture to the layers next time. I was afraid the cake would taste too "boozy", as there are members of my family that dont drink, but the taste was very subtle. (good for those that dont like the coffee taste) I also made the cake layers days ahead of time and simply froze them, took them out of the freezer and assembled the cake the day before the party. When I sprinkled the cocoa powder on the cake I first carefully placed a paper "lace" doily on the cake top and when removed the cake had the lace pattern on top.

Excellent. To make things easier, I used only 2 pans. I poured half of the cake batter onto 1 deep pan and used a cake slicer to evenly divide it. I followed the instructions to detail afterward. Follow these tips for outstanding results: 1. Instead of mixing the instant coffee into the batter, mix 1/4 cup of water with about 1 tbsp of instant cofee powder and mix into the batter. It tastes like an awesome mocha cake. 2. Also, be generous with the coffee mixture as you're pouring it over your cakes, that way the cake is MOIST. Don't overdo it though! 3. Buy your MASCARPONE CHEESE at Trader Joes or Sams Club (even cheaper)...it's significantly cheaper there than any other grocery store that I went to. Excellent recipe!! thank you.

I thought that the cake and the filling recipes were wonderful. But when it was time to make the fristing, it turned out horrible. It was extremely watery and tasted sour. I decided to make a simple cream cheese combination frosting instead; and fortunately my cake was saved and everyone loved it. Can anyone tell me what I might have done wrong with the frosting?

I thought this cake was great! Following the advice of previous reviews, I make two of the layers with the coffee granulars and one without, doubled the Kahlua everywhere it was called for, and doubled the brewed coffee. I was amazed how fast this came together. Because the layers are so thin they cook and cool very fast. I think I had the whole thing done in under 45 minutes. As a variation, I made this recipe for my husband's birthday and left out all the coffee, kahlua, and coffee granulars and added Chambord to two of the layers, layered sliced strawberries over her marscapone cheese between the cake layers and pressed more slices into the side of the whipped cream frosting. It was very good, like a strawberry shortcake cake.

Absolutely delicious! So easy to make with a beautiful finished outcome. My whole family adored it and I've made it twice so far. One note - if you want luscious chocolate curls don't use a square of baking chocolate. Melt chocolate chips and shortening, refrigerate in a sm. rectangular pan, and shave away. Great recipe!

This cake was excellent and easy to make. I baked the cake layers in 9" springform pans and took roughly 12-13 minutes to bake. Followed some reviewers suggestions and made 2 coffee layers. I didn't want to modify the recipe too much the first time. But next time I will double the coffee/liquor mixture for the layers and add more liquor. I also used heavy whipping cream and it was yummy and so light. Cannot wait to make this cake again!

Did you REALLY make this? This is awesome! Tastes like a fancy bakery. These are the comments I heard after making this for my mom's birthday. She loves Tiramisu and all other recipes on this site looked too involved. This turned out wonderful, and the taste was great. I used a Kahlua and Vanilla Coffee, a little packet of instant flavored Vanilla Coffee and a Kahlua type liquor. Tasted wonderful! I don't even like coffee! The layered effect is really nice and although it takes a little time to put together it is well worth the comments I received from my family. You have to try it! Looks very fancy with shaved Ghiradelli Dark Chocolate on top and a dusting of cocoa!

This is THE cake to make if done properly. Followed the advice from other. Three cups of whipping cream for the icing. Two coffee layers, doubled the coffee added to cake batter, doubled coffee liqour. Duncan Hines white cake is the best. You MUST use marscapone cheese. I made this cake twice. Once with marscapone and one with the substitute mentioned earlier. The marscapone substitute was horrible. Sorry, but you can't replace the real thing. This is not a cake to make if you are worried about price, calories, cholesterol or anything else. I has to be made properly in order to truly enjoy it. I'm sticking with the real deal from now on. It's worth every penny and bite. I'm checking the calendar now to see what the next event is coming up that I can make this again. ;0)

Excellent cake for those who like tiramisu! I don't like boxed cake mixes so I used "Heavenly White Cake" from this site for that part and did 3 (8 inch) layers. I love how light the whipped cream frosting is for this cake. For that portion of the recipe I made sure my bowl and beater were chilled before starting. I did this cake the night before to let it set up and I'm glad I did because the coffee flavor really came through. I did add a bit more liquor but it was still nice and light and not overpowering.

This is an amazing cake! People offer me money to make it! I did however double the recipe, using two cake mixes instead of one. I made one white cake mix and split the batte between two 9 inch cake pans, the other cake mix i used the coffee in and put that in my 9in Springform cheesecake pan. I cut the coffee colored cake with a large bread knife for a total of 5 layers (3 brown and 2 white) I did double the coffee anywhere it called for coffee (anything liquor, instant or brewed) and dissolved the coffee first as suggested by others. One other tip that really helped me was I bought a plastic condiment bottle with the tiny spout (like for mustard) And that is what I drizzled the coffee on the cake with, it made it so easy that way. The frosting will not slip off at all if you beat it long enough. Beat your whipped cream until a scraper stands up in the middle of the bowl without falling over. I make my cakes the day before and refrigerate them. and then assemble it the next day or the night before I want to use it. It looks beautiful and everyone was so impressed! Thank you to all the cooks for the hints, it really helped to double the coffee I think I will triple it next time. (It was hard enough because I doubled the recipie, and then had to double the coffee on top of that) So my math is improving! Ha! This is my all time favorite cake.

This is THE cake to make if done properly. Followed the advice from other. Three cups of whipping cream for the icing. Two coffee layers, doubled the coffee added to cake batter, doubled coffee liqour. Duncan Hines white cake is the best. You MUST use marscapone cheese. I made this cake twice. Once with marscapone and one with the substitute mentioned earlier. The marscapone substitute was horrible. Sorry, but you can't replace the real thing. This is not a cake to make if you are worried about price, calories, cholesterol or anything else. I has to be made properly in order to truly enjoy it. I'm sticking with the real deal from now on. It's worth every penny and bite. I'm checking the calendar now to see what the next event is coming up that I can make this again. ;0)

baked in 2 round cake pans - one with coffee, one white. poked cakes after they had cooled about 15 mins in pan & then poured coffee/kahlua mix (following other reviewers to double the amounts) over each layer in the pan. Covered them with pl. wrap & foil & froze in pans overnite. Made the cream cheese substitute also contributed by other reviewers and whipped up my cream with kahlua. Then I layered the whole thing in a trifle bowl -crumbled cake, cream cheese, whipped cream & sprinkled with cocoa/sugar mixture then layered again all the way to the top and sprinkled with more cocoa/sugar. it not only looked beautiful in the bowl, it served up perfectly. No worries about the cake layers sliding, no having to cut pieces - everyone just dug in. And the left overs the next day were awesome!!! So easy to do - if you are looking for something a whole lot simpler, try this!!

This was so good I followed others instructions and doubled just about everything and made 2 layers of coffee flavored cake rather than the one. I diluted the coffee in some hot water before adding so it colored nicely. I used about 3/4 cup of coffee to brush accross the layers and turned them upside down so they soaked in really well. I didnt have mascarpone so used the other suggestion for the cream cheese. The only real difference I made other than others suggestion was to add 2 TBSP of instant vanilla pudding to the whipped cream when I was whipping it for the frosting made it stand up really well. After 5 days it still looked good believe it or not.

Delicious just the way it's written! Why do people change it and then put photos of their concoctions under this recipe? I want to see it the way it's written. Put your own recipe in if you don't want to follow directions.

Thank you for a WONDERFUL recipe. I made this for my italian boss' birthday and she stated it was better than any tiramisu she has tasted! I made a few changes to make the recipe easier for me after reading all the other reviews: Used 2 9 inch cake pans pouring 1/3 mix into one and 2/3 in the other (used a food scale to measure the weight of the filled pans so I would know when they had the right amounts of filling - thanks Alton Brown for that tip!) Put 3 TBSP of instant coffee in the 2/3 pan. Put the baked cakes in the fridge overnight to cool. Next day leveled each cake and divided the coffee cake in half. Doubled filing recipe and placed in fridge to cool. Made the cake pour over mixture (4 TBSP coffee liquer & 1 cup espresso) and sat it on the counter. Doubled Frosting recipe and added a splash of espresso at the end for more of a coffee flavor (you could use a splash of instant coffee, just make sure your frosting is whipped to the right consistency, I found that on my kitchen aid stand mixer with the splash guard on I mixed the frosting for 5 minutes at level 6 for the first 3 minutes then level 8 for the last two and it was perfect. Placed the frosting in the fridge and pulled out the filling. Placed a coffee layer of cake on my cake stand, poked wholes in it poured 1/3 of the coffee/liquer mixture on the cake followed with 1/2 of the filling mixture, next layer was the plain white cake repeated above and followed with 2nd coffee cake layer poked holes and pou

I really took my time when deciding to prepare this one but boy am I glad I did..it was OUTSTANDING!!!!! Here are my modifications... 1. made it in 2 layers instead of 3 2. doubled the coffee and kahula everywhere 3. froze the cake for 2 hours before adding the liquid 4. made the cake and assembled it the day beofre I served it. 5. put the frosting and the filling in the fridge for an hour before frosting the cake..this helped the frosting "set" 6. Used the cream cheese, icing sugar and ssour cream indeat of mascarpone cheese the ony other thing I might do differently (I will make this one again!!) is to cut the filling in half as it was alot for only 2 layers. This was as beautiful to serve as delicious it was to eat!!!!

I've made this several times and have some suggestions for the ease of the baker....I leave my cakes in pans after baking. Let cool on wire rack for 15 minutes, poke holes with toothpick. Pour coffee/liqueur mixture over cakes and then set in freezer for 20 minutes. Doing this enables the cake to "swim" in the the coffee mixture and also insures the cake won't split when setting it up.

Once the first piece was cut, this cake lasted all of five minutes at the last family get together. Any recommendations? Sure. As others have said, yes, double the amounts of coffee and hootch. And personally, I liked to use a 50/50 blend of Kahlua and Bailey's. Next, I used 8" pans for higher layers. I then baked the cake in 2 pans, not three (1 plain and 1 with the coffee mixture), so that when I split each layer in half, I wound up with 4 alternating layers. Lastly, I doubled the amount of filling. Yup. Doubled it. That really brings out the tiramisu-ish taste. And please, please, don't substitute cream cheese for the mascarpone. Yes, it costs more, but the flavor is SO worth it!

This cake was a big hit! I made it for a friend's birthday. I only made two layers, since I only have two 9-inch round cake pans. Based on the many reviews I read about the coffee flavor being too subtle, I used 3 shots of espresso instead of 1/4 cup of coffee for the drizzle over the top of each layer. I doubled the amount of coffee liquor (I used Kahlua) everywhere it was called for, and I also doubled the amount of instant coffee in the coffee layer. I also made the cakes yesterday and put them in the fridge overnight, which made them much easier to deal with today, and kept the filling and frosting from melting at all. I added Pirouline cookies around the outside as some others have done; it makes the cake look great, but it does make it a lot more expensive. Still, it ramps up the fanciness factor!

Delicious and crowd pleasing.

First of all, this cake is a terrific 5-star recipe as written! I've made it four times and constantly hear "This is the best tiramisu I've had!" and "Can I have the recipe?" If you like the coffee flavor, I do recommend making 2 layers with coffee grounds (instead of one) as others have said using a total of 4 tsp. instant coffee in the batter once you've poured the first pan of plain batter. And again because I like coffee so much, I use 1 cup coffee and 3 tbsp. coffee liqueur to soak the layers. I've tried using a brush and using a squeeze bottle to soak but I like the brush much better as you have more control. Be sure to soak bottom of cakes as it soaks in much better. Do not use marscapone substitute, use the real thing. I found myself wanting a little bit more filling in the layers last time I made it, so this time I added two heaping spoonfuls of whipped cream cheese, a tad more powdered sugar, and 1 extra tbsp. coffee liqueur, and it was the perfect amount and kept the marscapone taste. Leave the frosting recipe as is. If you add more alcohol, it will be too thin. I put it in my Kitchenaid blender, throw the splashguard on and put the kitchen timer on for 5 minutes. Sometimes I use the shaved chocolate to garnish and sometimes I use strawberries. Again, this recipe is delicious and deserves 5 stars the way it is but above are the tweaks I've made to give it more of a coffee flavor and helpful tips I've learned along the way.

Excellent recipe but lacking the coffee flavor. I did double The coffee as others suggested and that solved the problem. I didn't have coffee liquor and didn't want to spend the money on it, so I improvised. I mixed 3T of water with 2T of coffee granules and 1/2 tsp of almond extract. The almond extract really upped the true tiramisu flavor. And just to add, I've seen several comments that this didn't turn out like tiramisu, this isn't a recipe for tiramisu, this is a cake intended to have a similar flavor profile. Also I didn't have 3, 9 inch pans so I put 1/3 of mix in one pan, and the other 2/3 (with double the coffee granules) in the other pan then tortes the larger cake. Just watch them carefully as they will have different cooking times. Also make sure the cake cools all the way down before stacking, and please don't poor the coffee mixture on each layer until it's stacked. Pouring it separately will just cause the pieces to crumble.

The coffee layer was best, so other people's advice on making 2 of them is good. Used a small baster to put the coffee on each (upside down) layer to control amount of liquid better. Only had Bailey's I.Cream. I took advice and doubled the mascarpone filling. Good move. Was worried about "assembly" so had everything chilled overnight before putting together except did NOT make whipped cream until eady to assemble. Like the advice on whip cream being ready when a spatula stands up straight in it. I was pleasantly surprised that the cream stood up to time so well - expected it to break down within hours. Next time will put more cocoa on each layer. Dessert was much better day 2 and even better day 3. Forget day 4; there wasn't any left!

I followed all of the reviewers suggestions and I am wondering how it would have tasted without all that liqueur? I was hoping that it would blend in to the cake and I left it out of the frosting, but I still didn't care for the taste. I increased my coffee up to 1 cup and did 2/3 coffee layers. I think that was a good taste. I used coffee-flavored mascarpone and that was good as well. The only thing I would change is I wouldn't use the liqueur at all. I decorated the top of the cake with Pirouettes and they were a hit! Not a bad recipe overall.

One word, GORGEOUS! If you really want to turn up the flavor, use Starbuck's Coffee Liquor instead of Kahlua - it's much richer. Also, the first time I made this, I used a nonstick pan and the cake had nothing to cling to during the baking process. I suggest if you're using nonstick to spray w/Flour infused Pam (or generic equivalent) to help the cake rise. It's good either way, just presents better and lighter if it's higher. A little salt in the whipping cream makes it whip up higher and faster too. Just a pinch (1/8th teaspoon), no more or you'll taste it.

Delicious and very impressive. As others, I did increase the coffee flavor...made two coffee layers and one white, used an extra T. Kahlua in the filling and in the frosting, and doubled the coffee/Kahlua drizzle. I didn't end up using all of the extra drizzle mixture, though, and I still thought it was moist. I'm imagining that those who increased this to a full cup ended up with a very wet cake, much like real tiramisu. Because I wanted mine to still have an actual cake texture, I found that less than 1/2 c. was sufficient.

Delicious! I used Kahlua and doubled the coffee and liquer, made in three loaf pans with two layers of coffee and one layer of white. Chilled overnight - wonderful! I also made a batch into mini cupcakes - cut off the top, drizzed about a teaspoon of coffee/Kahlua over the cake, filled the inside with the filling, replaced the top and frosted. I dusted these with cocoa powder and garnished with shaved dark chocolate and an espresso bean. Brought these to a staff luncheon and they disappeared quickly! People asked me where I bought them, then begged for the recipe! Thanks for the recipe and making my co-workers very happy!

This is a little more time-consuming than the typical recipe with premade ladyfingers, but it is visually stunning and completely worth the extra time/effort. I have made this several times and I change up a few things. When preparing the cake, I replace the water with chilled brewed coffee for extra coffee flavor. I bake in a 9x9 baking dish and use the old floss trick to split into layers. In a pinch, replace the coffee liqueur with coffee or espresso everywhere it's called for. I'd be interested to try this out with a Devil's food or butter chocolate cake mix.

An absolutely fabulous cake. As recommended, I did two coffee layers and one white. I also doubled the kahlua everywhere it was called for; it definitely was not too much liqueur. I made the cake for my dad for father's day, my family is Italian so it went over very well! The icing is divine, my stepmother was scraping the leftover out of the bowl to put in her coffee. I did use heavy whipping cream though, not heavy cream; the icing was light, airy and delicious! I will definitely be making this again, even my grandmother (the classic Italian cook) asked for the recipe! =)

Excellent recipe that's not hard and you get a super fancy looking and tasty product! Did as many others did and made 2 coffee layers with double the coffee (1 Tbsp per layer), and put an extra Tbsp of Kahlua in the coffee to brush on the cake layers. Made it twice and rave reviews each time. To help stabilize the whipped cream frosting, I added gelatin: 1 tsp dry gelatin to 2 Tbsp cold water in a small container. Let it sit for 5 minutes, then nuke for 20 seconds or until dissolved. Let it cool to room temperature. Add it to the cream just as it starts to form peaks, and continue as normal. No weird texture or taste. It will still get softer and may start to slide off the cake if you leave it out for more than 2 hours, but in the fridge it lasts indefinitely (doesn't seperate at all).

I was amazed how delicious this was for as easy as it was! The only change I really made was I used wayyyy more Kahlua than what the recipe called for! I had to go several places to find the mascarpone cheese, but that was before I realized that you won't find it with the regular cream cheese, most grocery stores do carry it- in the gourmet cheese cooler, that's usually near the deli or bakery (Where they have all the pre-made cheeseballs, dips, and party trays) Another tip: If you want good chocolate curls, soften the surface of your chocolate squares just for a second with a hair dryer on low! The surface needs to be a little bit soft to curl best!

Wow!!!!This is the best cake I have eaten or made. My husband and I have both worked at some of the best eateries in downtown Chicago and this cake takes the blue ribbon. I read the other reviews and made the following changes. I made two layers coffee, I doubled the coffee liquor in the filling and frosting , I double the instant coffee diulting it in about a tablespoon of hot water and finally I used 3/4 cup of coffee and 1/4 of coffee liquor to pour over the layers. Make sure that when you bake the layers of box cake the bake time is the the shortest time recomended on the box.(like 20-25 min. bake 20 min. no more) I still can't believe that I made the cake it was that good!

I made this recipe for a bake-off at work and won! It was delicious and overall relatively easy to make. I ended up changing a few things. (1)As other reviewers suggested, I made twice the coffee/coffee liqueur mixture and I used almost all of it. (2) I misread the recipe and left the whipped cream out of the filling. I think it tasted better because of this, but I ended up having to double the amount of mascarpone, confectioners sugar, and coffee liqueur to make enough for 2 layers of filling. (3)I added the coffee/coffee liqueur mixture in such a way that I avoided the nightmare of the moistened cake layers falling apart when you try to move them. I placed the bottom cake layer on the serving plate, poked holes, and added the coffee/coffee liqueur mix with a tablespoon. I spread the mascarpone mixture on top and then put the next cake layer on. I poked holes in that cake layer and added the coffee/coffee liqueur mixture. Then I spread the filling, placed the next cake layer on, poked holes, and added the coffee/coffee liqueur mixture. After all of this, I put the cake in the fridge for about 45 min-1 hour to let everything set. Since I didn't already have the whipped cream made, I whipped this during the cake's time in the fridge. I pre-chilled the metal mixing bowl in the freezer for about 15 minutes before whipping the heavy cream and after the whipped cream was made, I kept the bowl on ice while I was icing the cake.

This was a wonderful cake. I made it for a Tupperware party and it was really well liked. I used cream cheese (8 oz of cream cheese, 3 tbsp sour cream and 2 tbsp heavy cream) instead of the mascarpone. I followed the advice of some other reviewers and doubled the coffee in the cake batter. I did two layers of the coffee cake and one vanilla. The coffee needs to disolve so either disolve it in a tiny bit of hot water, or mix it in and let it sit until dissolved. I also doubled the coffee and Kaluha that I drizzled into the cake. I was stressed that the cake would be soggy. It wasn't at all. I doubled the kahluha everywhere it was called for (filling and frosting). The flavour of coffee was very light and nice. I do not drink coffee and I really enjoyed the flavour of the cake. Thanks for a great recipe. I will try mascarpone next time to see if there is a big difference in flavour.

YUMMY!!!!

This recipe is a keeper! It is a very good tiramisu flavor. I followed the majority of the comments: Used mascarpone cheese substitute -> 8 0z cream cheese + 2.5 T sour cream + 1/4 cup cream. Made 2 cakes with 4x espresso coffee powder mixed into the remaining cake mix plus 2x coffee liquer (Kahlua) and 2 teaspoons of unsweetened cocoa powder. I also used espresso coffee shots for brewed coffee. I served only 7 people and they ate the whole cake after a very big lunch! Try this - it is really good.

It is so helpful to read the reviews before making this cake! I made it with some of the modifications and it came out absolutely fantastic!! 1- Definitely do 2 coffee layers and 1 regular cake layer. I used the aluminum disposable cake pans in the baking aisle. Super easy- and come in a pack of three! 2- When assembling the cake I put a wax paper border on the edges of the plate so drippings and extra frosting would fall on the wax paper and that can be pulled out from under the cake and tossed- leaving a clean plate! 3- Assemble the cake and drench with coffee as you go!! If people had crumbling cake I wonder if they soaked in the cake pans before stacking? Don't do that! Cake, poke, pour, fill, next layer. 3- I used 1/4 cup coffee and 1 tablespoon of Kahlua PER layer. 4- DEFINITELY double the filling. It's so tasty. If you have read other reviews they tell you to double the Kahlua everywhere. I totally agree with this. Some people have complained that their filling it too runny. The key is that if you add more liquid (aka Kahlua) you'll also need to add a little extra powdered sugar to thicken it up. 5-Same goes with the frosting. If you double the Kahlua here, you'll need a couple extra tablespoons of powdered sugar. The frosting is NOT too sweet, it's actually perfect. I know that others have substituted cream cheese for the mascarpone... but if you are going to go to the trouble to make a tiramisu cake, go for the mascarpone. It's worth it. Make this!

Most Excellent. Made today for an event and many asked me where my bakery was....What would I do different? Perhaps nothing... I made 3 layers (2 coffee).. so, since I doubled the coffee layer I used 4 tsp of instant coffee (Starbucks Via) in the mix. I baked the cakes, and let sit on wire racks until cool.. I then froze in pans for 2 hours. I used 1/2 cup of brewed espresso and 2 tbsp of Kahlua for the liquid. After being in the freezer for 2 hours I poked a ton of holes into the cakes and drizzled the liquid evenly between the 3 layers.. I then returned to the freezer overnight (or at least a few hours) I used the Marscarpone filling, which was amazing. ok.. so day 2: remove the frozen cakes and frost with the filling. it will look really funny---but will settle into itself as the layers thaw- I was worried that the layers would at this point slide off of each other so I placed a springform pan outer sleeve around them. I returned the cake to the fridge to set for a few hours...AWESOME.. I then frosted... amazing. In the future I may do the baking, the freezing, the liquid infusion, the refreezing for a few hours, the filling and then the springform for the setting "overnight" and frost before serving... seriously good..and although I think I messed it up many times... this was absolutely delicious!! I got a few requests to make this for "special orders".. sorry..but I am good for a while. Hope this helps.

This was very well received last night. I did things a little differently since I was pressed for time but the results I'm sure were just as tasty. Rather than layering, I made this in a 9x13 inch pan. I poked holes all in the cake and brushed it with some left over hot coffee. I used cream cheese instead of mascarpone and spread the filling layer over the cake and then the frosting. It turned out delicious and saved me lots of time and clean-up. Tiramisu is one of my favorite desserts and this was a nice alternative. Thanks bunches!

Did not taste like Tiramisu to us, but the WAS delicious! I did not have coffee flavored liqueur so I used brewed coffee and instant coffee mixed together whenever the recipe called for the coffee liqueur with some sugar mixed in to make a light coffee syrup. Also did not have Marscapone cheese, so I did what another user suggested and used a substitute of 2 packages of cream cheese, 1/2 cup of heavy cream, and 3 heaping teaspoons of sour cream. Everyone loved the cream cheese part the most! Even though it did not have that distinct Tiramisu taste, it was still a wonderful cake that I will be making again and again. Thank you! EDIT: I just wanted to add, after this sat in the fridge overnight it was 100 times better and had more "tiramisu" flavor. Love it!

This cake tasted good, but I think you have to modify the recipe A LOT, as suggested in other reviews. My husband and I agree that we would prefer all THREE layers of cake to have coffee powder added to it. I only put it in two layers, as suggested, but I think the coffee drizzled on top of the layers doesn't give it as much of a coffee punch as real Tiramisu made with espresso. The icing is delicious! Here's a few tips to help with this recipe: --Use 4 teaspoons coffee powder in AT LEAST two layers of the cake. --Use heavy WHIPPING cream. Place a metal bowl in the freezer for a few minutes first and it will whip up great. --I made a mascarpone-like cheese for the filling. I have used mascarpone before, but this substitute worked just as well with ingredients I already had on hand: mix 1 (8-oz) container cream cheese, 3 Tablespoons sour cream, and 2 Tablespoons heavy whipping cream (steal a little from what you'll be using for the frosting) together, then add the confectioners' sugar and liqueur. Hope this helps!

An amazing cake. I wanted to make a Tiramisu for the first time but the cooking egg yolks didn't interest me so I made this instead. As written this is a fantastic cake with a hint of Tiramisu flavor, and for my tastes I want it to be a substitute for the dessert so I will increase the coffee in the cake by at least double and will triple or maybe even quadruple the coffee glaze next time, as soaked as I can go without collapsing the cake. I did think the icing and filling were PERFECT as is. No problems with this impressive treat, thanks so much for sharing!

I used 3 tsp instant espresso powder mixed with a tsp of water to put into the cake - and I put it into two of the layers. I used a whole cup of coffee. I used 4 tbsp Kahlua every time it called for coffee liquer. Nobody could taste the kahlua even then. It took me 11-12 minutes to whip the heavy whipping cream into whipped cream, and I did use another reviewer's suggestion of adding 2 tsp of vanilla pudding instant mix. I lined the bottom of the pans with wax paper so the cakes would come out okay, and I used the suggestion to put the cake in-pan on a rack for 15 minutes, then poke holes and pour coffee, then freeze for 20 minutes. I dusted each layer's filling with cocoa powder as another suggested as well. After assembling I needed to refrigerate about an hour before I could frost - it was starting to slip but was fine after that. I tried making curls by softening the chocolate and hardening the chocolate until it was the right consistency but still only got curves instead of curls. Everyone liked it, but I thought it was kinda average. Personally, I'd rather modify the Amaretto Divine cake to be tiramisu flavor than go through this one again... so much more work.

Great recipe and worth all the work! The filling and frosting wasn't holding too well so I refrigerated them a bit before spreading it on the cake layers.

This is an wonderful dessert. My only change was that I couldn't find mascarpone cheese. I did find a recipe for a substitute online that called for 8 oz. cream cheese, 3 T. sour cream and 2 T. heavy whipping cream. That worked well in place of the mascarpone cheese. Other than that, it was fabulous!!!

OMG- this is the BEST cake I have ever made.We had to bring an Italian dessert to a dinner party for 10 so I decided to try this recipe based on all the rave reviews that I read. It was AWESOME! I followed the advice that most reviewers said to make two of the layers with the coffee flavor and one with the plain using three 8" pans. I doubled the filling layer, (it almost seemed like that was too much but do it anyway- you won't be sorry) and also doubled the Kahlua everywhere else it was called for. I was afraid the finished cake wouldn't be high enough to be "impressive" but once you add the filling and put the frosting on, it was perfect. So light and fluffy. My husband said this is now his favorite cake. I can't wait to make it again.

I made this yesterday, and the finished product was so beautiful that it looked professionally made. It tasted wonderful, too! I made 2 of the 3 layers with coffee powder and placed the white layer in between. I also doubled the amount of coffee flavored liqueur everywhere it was in the recipe. I used instant espresso instead of coffee. It was delicious. Great recipe!

Not being a lover of cake in general, cakes made with box cake mixes in particular do not tend to tickle my taste buds. I made this for a dessert buffet at Thanksgiving, however, and have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. I used strong espresso coffee and a little extra Kahlua, and found the flavor to be just perfect. It keeps very well in the fridge so it is a home run for entertaining, being both easy and able to be made ahead.

This was so good! It tasted just like a tiramisu made with lady fingers, I thought. There was plenty of filling and frosting. I would have liked a little more of the coffee/liqueur mixture. Next time I think I might double it. I have never been successful making chocolate curls. After another unsuccessful attempt, I watched some youtube videos and I finally think I am ready for my next try!

I used coffee flavored mascarpone and doubled the coffee-flavored products. This was a HUGE success!

This cake is TOO good! I made it for my son's 19th birthday and it was gone in two days. If you want to up the coffee flavor, I would suggest preparing more of the coffee mixture that you pour (I used a pastry brush; easier and more even coverage) over the cake layers and leaving the rest of the recipe as is. It is a lot of whipped cream, but is so light-tasting you'll be glad you made so much! Truly a wonderful cake.

E-X-C-E-L-L-E-N-T! I bake and decorate alot of cakes and this one is a winner! I didn't change a thing and even my husband the self described "cake hater" loved this one.

Very easy to prepare. Surpisingly light and absolutely delicious! The only things I did differently was to substitute cream cheese for the mascarpone and added 1 Tbs. of unsweetened cocoa powder to the coffee-flavored batter. Kahlua was my liqueur. Will definitely be making this cake again, and again, and again...

I feel the need to write some extra praise for this recipe because it is that great. I am actually getting ready to make this cake again for Christmas meal for some friends. First, i have to say that I have never tried to make it without the mascarpone. I have no idea how it would taste without it, but even though I have to pay $10 for a container of fancy cheese, I absolutely love the end product. I have always made this cake with brewed coffee and and poured 2 TB of Kahlua in the cake batter, rather than coffee. I will try with instant coffee on the batter this time, but I still prefer brewed coffee for when I pour over the cake layers. I have never made the chocolate swirls before either and i'll give them a try tomorrow. it is my absolute favorite recipe. I followed first time exactly, except I used double Kahlua where recipe asked for it, and 1 cup brewed strong coffee. And I do mean strong. I always only bake 2 layers (8"), but it's enough tall. I use Duncan Hines yellow moist cake and it never disappoints. It's the best cake on this website, in my opinion.

Based on the ratings and relatively simple preparation, I decided to make this for the first time to donate to a dessert auction. I followed the directions explicitly and every step went as expected. The cake brought a tidy sum but more importantly, the buyer actually cut it on site and served it to his table . . . and then came looking for the baker. I've already received a request for another cake. Definitely a hit -- and I haven't even tasted it yet.

This is a wonderful recipe, I just loved it. I made it exactally how its listed - for those having trouble with the frosting, you just got to have a little more patience and mix it longer - it will thicken up! I made if for my boyfriends birthday and he loved it! I will make this cake again with no doubt! :)

This looked so fancy, and tasted fancy too! I used a classic white cake recipe so that I was able to claim that I actually made the whole thing myself from SCRATCH (though it took a little longer). This was my first time making a cake and from this one, I feel like an expert. It was a bit hard to frost the cake since the whip cream frosting was so light, but I got the hang of it after awhile, and the taste of the frosting with the cake was worth the work! Next time, and BOY will there be next times, I will make more than just a 1/4 cup of the coffee mixture to pour onto the cake layers because I would really like that flavor to stand out a bit more as well as add some extra moistness to the cake. And I'll make more of the frosting too, since that was so good that I'd like a thicker layer of it on the cake (I started running out while frosting...too many licks). But other than that, this is a real winner. Thanks so much, Bettina, for sharing this fabulous recipe with us!!

This cake is OUTSTANDING! Lots of raves and one of my favorites. I could not find the mascarpone cheese, so I used regular cream cheese. I also used a cup of Pampered Chef's flavored coffee (1/3 C. per layer) and for the dusting, I combined Ghiradelli's Mocha Hot Chocolate, Cocoa and International's brand instant coffee-Swisse Mocha flavor in order to take the edge off of pure Cocoa as well as combine the coffee/chocolate flavors of the cake. Molto Bene!

This cake was awesome! I really used it as a starting point, having never made tiramisu cake before. After looking at several recipes, this one seemed the best. While reading the cake package directions, it suggested using 4 egg whites instead of 3 whole eggs - to make it have lower cholesterol. However, I discovered that using just the whites, as well as adding a tablespoon of meringue powder (which was my experiment for the day), made the cake so light and fluffy, it was so MUCH better than the regular method! I made only two layers, though, having only two pans; but torted each layer so that I ended up with two layers of each kind. This meant needing more filling, and not having another container of mascarpone I used softened cream cheese. I also added a cup of sour cream to the filling, based on a different recipe; but that extended the filling so that I had enough for all three layers. At any rate - my cake appeared to be a hit at a BBQ I took it to tonight, and it certainly tasted divine. I definitely will be thinking of this cake every time I have leftover coffee - I made my own coffee syrup, which I used instead of liqueur so that I could just use what I had on hand. Personally, I think this cake would make a great wedding cake with the adjustments I made based on what I had on hand. Also, I made the Wilton buttercream icing recipe using my coffee syrup in place of the water, since I didn't want to buy anything. That worked wonders for the cake!

This cake is AMAZING! I made it for my little brother's birthday because he is a fan of coffee. I was very impressed with it and it was pretty easy compared to other three layer cakes I have made. The hardest thing was cleanup, I used at least four bowls for the whole thing and that includes washing some during the process. I used a recipe on this site called "Simple White Cake" because I'm not a fan of boxed cakes, but they would save time. I followed other suggestions and made two layers using the instant coffee powder and doubled what was called for. I also doubled the amount of liqueur and used a mascarpone cheese substitute I found on google (8 oz cream cheese, 3 Tbsp. sour cream, 2 Tbsp. heavy cream) just because I couldn't find any and it tasted great and was probably cheaper. I received nothing but praise and my grandmother even claimed that it was "the best cake she has had in years!" I will definitely make in the future and pass on!

If I could give this cake 10 stars..I would! Easy to make and not as sweet as traditional cake. I agree with the others who said double the coffee and coffee liquor. Give this one a try, you'll be glad you did!

This was a fantastic recipe. I made it for my grandmother's 80th birthday party and was still getting rave reviews by phone 4 weeks later when the last of it was pulled from her freezer. Now my family insists that I make it for all functions, or even just visits. I didn't use much of the coffee liquer since my grandmother can't handle the burn of alcohol very well, and I replaced the marscapone with a subsitute I found on this site (next time I'll be doubling the cheese portion as well since it wasn't thick enough for my tastes.) This is beyond a keeper and may become a new signature cake.

If this seems like too much work, try making this cake in a 13 x 9 pan. After you mix cake batter, pour 2/3 of it into pan. Then drop spoonfulls of the coffee flavored batter & swirl (like a marble cake). When it is done cut in half horizontally and put filling in between layers & put back into baking pan. Frost the top only. I have also made this in individual serving dishes. To save money substituting cream cheese for the mascarpone works well.

I'm not an experienced baker, so I found this slightly tough to make. I made two coffee layers and froze them overnight, as some people suggested. I also doubled the Kahlua is just about everything. It turned out WONDERFULLY. I served it at my son's first birthday as an adult alternative to vanilla cake with vanilla frosting. Everyone loved it!

A taste of coffee and a great cake. Not the same as tiramisu, but delish!

SUPERB! Super easy to make and knocked everyones socks off! I wont make regular Tiramisu again because this recipe is so memorable. Light, full of flavor. Had fun with garnishing, tried lady fingers, pirouette cookies, cocoa, chocolate curls - anything is great. Definitely double the liqueur everywhere it calls for it. YUMMO!

Great recipe. My 13 year old son made it -- so it's not only delicious but it's easy. Every single person who ate it came back for seconds. I would make the following suggestions: I agree with many other reviewers that you can and should kick up the level of coffee & coffee liqueur. As written the recipe has a very mild flavor, which is fine for those who don't like a strong tiramisu, but I can already tell that next time we're going to add more coffee powder and more Kahlua. Also, if your budget permits I would suggest doubling the amount of filling, especially if you are making all three layers. We made only two (ran out of pans) and could have easily put in more filling. We froze the night before and removed it from the freezer two hours before serving; it was fine. Enjoy! This is great.

Impressive and amazing cake.

I made this last night, so cool and smooth and luscious on a hot summers evening. I have made many traditional Tiramisu's this is nice for a change. I used a scratch cake recipe Simple White Cake; from this site I doubled the recipe. I did have to change the addition of the coffee liquor (some people can't have any alcohol. So I made a simple syrup and, instant coffee for the cake, same instant coffee for the filling. I did come up with an idea for the whipped cream; I added the Kahlua to 1 cup of whipping cream and brought to the boil simmered for a few minutes to burn off the alcohol it cooks down a little so just add enough to bring it back to the right measurement. I chilled with the other cup of whipping cream when it was time to beat it worked like a charm. For some people that had trouble with the "Frosting" being to soft I put my bowl and beater in the freezer helps with the beating especially when the kitchen is warm and I added a packet of whipped cream stabilizer, kept my cream on the cake and looking fabulous. I beat a little more whipping cream and placed dollops around the edge of the cake after topping the cake with chocolate shavings then placed an espresso bean on each dollop. Lots of ooo's and ah's. My son who's 16th Birthday is in September has asked for this cake. I will make it in two 9x13 pans and layer it. I wish I had taken a picture of my cake but by the time I thought of it there wasn't much left I will try to remember to take one of my next cake.

Wow! Made this as directed using Kahlua as the coffee liqueur. Refrigerated overnight. A wonderful, light and airy cake. A definite show stopper.

Amazing tiramisu recipe! Although I didn't follow the recipe, I used it as a guide. I did not use white cake mix and instead I made lady finger cake. I didn't have mascapone cheese so I used cottage cheese and mexican sour cream in a blender. I also used vodka instead of some coffee liqueur. I added pecans in the filling and topping for texture. I soaked my sponge cake with coffee such as I would for tres leches cake only not as much. And, I also added mexican vanilla to filling topping and cake.

This recipe is PERFECT the way it is written. I would strongly recommend making it exactly according to the directions using the correct ingredients (especially the mascarpone cheese), at least for the first time and then modify it. I have made this 3 times and it turns out perfectly every time (except one time I think I whipped the heavy cream just a little too long.. beware of that!) I get asked for the recipe every time I make it.

This cake was delicious! I made two "coffee" cakes and one white cake and added 1-1 1/2 extra Tbls of coffee liquor to the coffee liquid to be poured on the cakes. Other than that, I made the recipe as is. Sooo good the longer it sets. Thank you for sharing!

My family enjoyed this cake so much I have made it several times.

Came out great. Was a little worried after reading reviews, but turned out not to be that difficult and all so yummy. Used 2 boxes of D.H. French Vanilla cake mix. llike other reviews made two coffee layers, used ground espresso. Doubled the kahlua in everything. Froze the cakes in pan overnight, poured on the coffee/kahlua mixture in morning and then returned to freezer. Beating heavy cream was no problem for me and made a wonderful light icing. Coffee and kahlua flavor was not strong, but dont think it should be. Very light dessert, will be making again!!

Absolutely amazing recipe - easy to make, with great results. I've made this many times, with the following changes : 1) for the coffee layer, I use instant espresso granules or double the amount of instant coffee 2) I use 1 cup of coffee for the coffee syrup (sometimes a little more). This gives the cake a more noticiable coffee flavor and keeps it nice and moist. 3) I substitute cream cheese for the mascarpone cheese 4) I substitute an equal amount of brewed espresso for the coffee liquer Additional tip - 1) Freeze the cake layers, and refrigerate the frosting and filling before assembling. It makes it a lot easier to assemble. 2) This cake tastes much better when made a day ahead

As most reviewers have stated this cake is delicous. Very quick and easy to put together and it looks almost too beautiful to cut into. I was a little worried because neither me or my family drinks alcohol and I didn't want the cake to taste too much like liquer, but it didn't at all. I did double the kahlua every where it was called for and I was pleasently surprised. I made 2 coffee layers and added 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder with the coffee granules. I poured almost 3/4 cup of coffee/kahlua over the layers and it was not too wet at all, just perfectly moist. I used hazelnut coffee because that was all I had on hand. I used heavy whipping cream for the icing and it was the best icing I have ever had, let alone made. I couldn't find marscapone cheese so I grabbed a tub of ready to use cheesecake filling and stirred the kahlua into that. It was cheap and it made a lot so I had double the filling. I used the side of my box grater to shave a dark chocolate bar and it made beautiful curls. This was the best cake I have ever made and I will absolutely make it again.

This is an AMAZING dessert on all accounts! I made this for a good friend's birthday. Her favorite dessert happens to be Tiramisu and this was absolutely perfect! None of us are into alcohol so I didn't want to spend a lot of money on a bottle for the small amount needed. Instead, I substituted Davinci Kahlua gourmet syrup (like what you'd put in coffee drinks). It worked fabulously! I also used instant Espresso powder instead of instant coffee. And I made two of the three layers coffee flavored, leaving the center layer as is. I made perfect chocolate curls. The fresh whipped cream frosting is amazing! Wonderful recipe and definitely competes with the most impressive I have ever made!

OMGosh! This recipe has the best filling and flavor! I have had Tiramisu several times, only to not find the original flavor again.....but this is it! Thank you, thank you! My mouth is watering just thinking about it......may have to make it again very soon! Delicious! MMmmm!

Outstanding! I've taken this to a few dinner parties, and people nearly collapse when they see it, and then they rave about it when they actually taste it! Even people who don't like coffee have gone bananas over it! I made a few slight alterations to it, by using instant coffee (dissolved in a tiny bit of water)instead of liqueur in the frosting, rum instead of the liqueur in the filling, and I used at least two cups of coffee (in total) to pour over the layers, instead of just 1/4 cup. (It seems that the more coffee I poured over it, the better folks liked it.) This one is a keeper!

This almost turned into a disaster for me. I made the cakes the night before a facy neighborhood dinner party. I left them on the counter to cool overnight. When I got up in the morning the dog had eaten part of two of the cakes. I started baking again. Not a problem, but then I couldn't find marscarpone cheese so I substituted ricotta....way too runny. The cakes kept sliding off each other when I tried to put them together with the filling. And the chocolate curls - well they just were not in the mood to curl. In the end I wound up turnng the mess I had on my hands into a trifle. People raved over it and wanted the recipe. Hmmmm. How does this sound? "First bake three layers and let the dog eat two!"

I got rave reviews on this. I did as others said, and made one white layer and 2 coffee layers. I made this for a New Year's Eve party, and everyone said it was really, really good. My brother in law who never eats cake had 2 pieces. The only thing negative were that 2 of my sisters in law said you could really taste the Kahula. I followed the recipe for the liquor amount exactly. I will make this again, only next time, cut back by about 1 or 1&1/2 T. of Kahula. I made this two days ahead of time like others said to do. I was worried that the Whip Cream frosting would dry up, but no worries. It was great. The only other difference I made was using an instant mocha mix instead of instant coffee. We don't drink instant, and I couldn't justify to myself spending $3-$4 for something just to throw it out. At Stater Bros I found a 1 serving pkg. of an Instant Mocha Latte for only .59 cents. I used it all in the two layers. Thanks so much for the great reciped Bettina!

I cook a lot but don't do a lot of baking. Made this to take to a dinner party last night. WOW! Tiramisu is generally Really Good, or very average. This was out of the Park! Thanks! Be sure your whipped cream gets whipped REALLY firm.

I've made this cake 3 times now for various birthday's and it's always the hit of the party. Not too sweet but still rich and delicious. I always add a little extra Kahlua and coffee to give it more moisture and I get my marscapone from Wal-Mart. It's much cheaper there. Great recipe!

I really struggled with this recipe. For one thing, there were no 18.25 oz cake mixes in any of the three stores I went to. Maybe they're making them smaller than when this recipe was originally posted. The largest I could find was 16.5 oz and my layers came out looking like pancakes. I threw the first batch out, went back to the store and bought two more mixes. I baked the first with the coffee, splitting the batter between two pans and, by the way, I added the instant coffee to the cup of water called for with the mix. Then I made the second mix with just white. I put one layer in the freezer, so had one white and two coffee. I made the filling, did the poking, brushed on a half cup of coffee and liquor, using instant, put the layers together and went to bed. So that took several hours. The next morning, I woke up and watched the video again and realized I needed to put some of the filling in the frosting. It doesn't mention that in the ingredients; only in the instructions. I had to disassemble my layers, scrape off some filling full of crumbs and put it back together. I made three cups of whipped cream and had far more than I could put on my now giant cake. But I served the extra alongside, so people could add more. Everyone loved it, so I guess that's the bottom line. But it takes far longer than two hours, when you factor in the time to let the layers and filling cool and the flavors to meld.

this is really good. I have made it as a cake and also made it as a trifle. I cut up all the cake in cubes and layered the ingredients. It's good either way, but making it as a trifle is WAY easier!

this cake is the best one I have ever made! Even my mom thought it was better than the classic recipe she usually uses when she makes tiramisu. One thing I did different from the recipe was that I used amaretto (disaronno) instead of kahlua. Amaretto is an almond liqueur which gives a sweet flavor to the cake. I recommend it as amaretto is used in the classic tiramisu! The cake was very moist and I will make it again and again and again!

OMG! Super yummy!! Made this for Dad's dinner party--hit of the night!! Super light, suprisingly... Only changes: needs a bit of a stronger taste-next time more coffee for sure, and just did chocolate shavings on top--veggie peeler didn't work. However, still TO DIE FOR!!! Takes a while to make and quite a bit of work, but so worth it!!! Everyone loves it!

I made this cake for our Valentine Party last night (2-17) and it was a huge hit. I used a cup of coffee and 4 tablespoons of Kaluha to pour over the cake - it was wonderful - the flavor was not too strong at all. I made and put together the cake and filling the day before and then frosted the cake about 5 hours before the party. I did not notice that I was to put a half cup of the frosting in the filling - but it was fine without doing that. I noticed some people in their review said their filling was runny - if you use mascarpone cheese - don't soften it! It should be used right out of the container. I did use the mascarpone cheese although it is pricey, it think it is worth the cost. I used European Cocoa on the top and then the chocolate curls over that. There's only one small piece left -I'm hoping my husband says, "You eat it, honey." :)

Another 10+ recipe ...tastes like a bakery cake. Simply delicious! I made 2 layers instead of 3. I also used instant espresso coffee powder. Also doubled the coffee and Kahlua in all areas. I left one layer white cake and the second added a tblspn of the espresso powder. My ISSUE began with the filling! My 2 layers cooked up beautifully ....but my filling was turning to disaster! I used real marscapone cheese instead of the mock cream cheese version. And the filling after mixed with the Kahlua and powdered sugar was super thin and all I could envision was a mudslide. I asked my Allrecipe friends on Facebook...and they came through and saved me! Thanks to Cindy Lepp, VA Mom, and Princess Jenna who helped me save my cake.! I ended up adding an additional 1/4c of powdered sugar and about 3oz of cream cheese and re-whipped the filling. It was of perfect consistency. All in all a huge success thanks to some very helpful friends....and I served this cake at my parents house on Christmtday with rave reviews! The flavors here ate incredible and it is so worth the work and efforts. Thanks!

Great cake. Wonderful flavor, but labor-intensive and a little difficult to put together. I made this for Father's Day. My biggest problem was that the layers were too thin a nd they started to crumble and break apart during assembly even though I took one reviewer's advice to freeze them before assembly. I froze them in plastic wrap for 4 hours and the middle layer still cracked and my cake came out like the Leaning Tower of Tiramisu. I surrounded them with piroueetes and tied them with a ribbon, pulling the ribbon tight to try to get the cake to stop leaning, but it didn't work. I used one reviwer's maescopone substitute and it was WAY WAY too much filling, so halve that substitute recipe. I put about 3x as much Kahlua as called for and doubled the amount of instant coffee. I also doubled the amount of brewed coffee, and subbed espresso besides. I took one reviewer's advice about melting a bag of semisweet choco chips with shortening and refrigerating them in a rectangulaur container and then using a veggie peeler for curls. 16 oz. chips was way too much. 8 oz. plus 1 T. shortening would suffice for curls on top. Do make this a day ahead of time and put all the ingredients in the fridge to harden them up before assembly or you may have a runny mess.

Be sure to turn the layers upside down when stacking on plate and this way you can "spoon" the coffee mixture onto the layers. No need for brushing or poking holes in cake, if the layers are upside down, it seems to absorb very well. I doubled the filling but it was way too much. I also doubled the frosting and it was also too much. Made 2 coffee layers and 1 plain white as others suggested and tripled the amount of coffee/liquor mixture in order for the cake layers to be sufficiently soaked with mixture. Delicious!

I've made this cake several times now and it's a hit every time! I've followed all the different suggestions and I make 2 coffee layers and two plain. This makes for a really pretty layered cake look when you cut into it. One adjustment I've made is to add about 1/4 cup of heavy cream to the mascarpone/comfectioners' sugar mix and then whip it. This way you don't have to carefully fold the whip cream in and it comes out thicker and easier to spread. I love this recipe!

Loved it! The only thing I will do next time is make more filling.

I brought this to a dinner party and must admit I didn't get rave reviews. My friend who LOVES tiramisu was not that impressed, she said too much Kahlua. I actually agree BUT I am giving it 5 stars because I thought it was absolutely delicious. I made it again yesterday simply because I wanted to perfect it...... 1st time I used "Heavy Whipping Cream" and the frosting was great.... I did 2 coffee layers and it was delish, a little too much Kahlua for my tastes. 2nd time I used just Heavy Cream and it didn't whip good at all. I whipped it for twice as long as the previous time and it wouldn't form. Don't know why. 2nd time I did as the recipe called, 1 coffee layer, I like it better this way.... although I did pour more coffee onto the layers. Depending on your tastes, I would cut back the Kahlua. Also, it's so easy to pour the coffee on the cakes if you flip them over. That's what I did and it came out great. This cake is extremely easy to make (in my opinion) and very pretty.

I just made this cake today for a birthday. It is fantastic! Our local grocery store didn't have mascarpone cheese so I used cream cheese instead. The cake turned out beautiful. Thanks for submitting the recipe.

Very good recipe! Used a german chocolate cake mix! I added Coffee Tequila and doubled it everywhere it called for it. I also replaced 1/3 of the water for the cake mix with strong brewed coffee. This was spectacular!!