Why tiramisu suddenly ends up in your coffee cup

A Tiramisu Latte combines a strong espresso with milk, vanilla, and cocoa. A mascarpone cream layer can bring it closer to the original dessert, while just milk and cocoa make for a much simpler version. For the best balance, first ensure you have an espresso that tastes pleasant even without syrup.

In 2026, tiramisu will appear in many more places than just the dessert menu. In September, The Guardian wrote about the strong rise of tiramisuand its applications in ice cream, croissants, and drinks, among other things. It also mentioned a 27% increase in tiramisu sales at M&S.

For me, it becomes interesting as soon as such a food trend moves towards coffee. Espresso, cocoa, and creaminess are already in the DNA of tiramisu. So you don't have to come up with a strange combination to turn it into a coffee drink.

The most important choice lies in the base. If your espresso tastes harsh, burnt, or stale, extra syrup won't truly fix that. With fresh coffee beans and a pleasant-tasting espresso, vanilla, milk, and cocoa can do what they do best: complement rather than hide.

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Start with the coffee, not the syrup

A Tiramisu Latte contains several distinct flavours. Therefore, your espresso needs sufficient body to remain discernible alongside milk, vanilla, and cocoa. Your choice of coffee beans directly impacts the final result.

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Which coffee beans work well in a Tiramisu Latte?

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Warme Tiramisu Latte met espresso, vanille, melk en cacao

The warm version

The warm Tiramisu Latte is the easiest way to get to know the combination. Keep the amount of milk fairly compact, so the double espresso doesn't completely disappear. Vanilla provides the sweet dessert character and cocoa brings the taste closer to tiramisu.

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Recipe: Warm Tiramisu Latte for one

What you'll need:

  • 1 double espresso
  • 1 pump Torani Vanilla, about 7 ml
  • 150 ml whole milk
  • about ½ teaspoon unsweetened cocoa
  • optional 1 ladyfinger
  • optionally the mascarpone topping from the recipe below

If you're using an espresso machine, you can start with about 18 grams of ground coffee and about 36 grams of espresso in your cup for your double espresso. Consider this a starting point; ultimately, taste will determine if your espresso is well-made.

Brew the espresso and immediately add 1 pump of Torani Vanilla. Stir briefly so the vanilla is evenly distributed through the hot espresso.

Then steam the whole milk until it is hot, smooth, and creamy. Try to create a fine milk structure without large air bubbles. Gently pour the milk into the espresso, keeping the drink compact enough to still taste the coffee.

Dust the top with cocoa. If you want to visually enhance the tiramisu effect, place a ladyfinger on the rim of the glass.

If you find one pump too subtle, use two next time. The Torani dispensing pumpdispenses about 7 ml per pump, making it easy to replicate the same ratio.

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Iced Tiramisu Latte met espresso, koude melk, ijs en cacao.

The cold version

For an Iced Tiramisu Latte, the flavor profile remains the same: espresso, vanilla, milk, and cocoa. The difference is that you need to account for ice, as meltwater slowly dilutes the espresso. Therefore, also start here with a concentrated double espresso.

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Recipe: Iced Tiramisu Latte for one

You will need:

  • 1 double espresso
  • 1 pump ofTorani Vanilla, about 7 ml
  • 150 ml cold whole milk
  • a tall glass with ice cubes
  • about ½ teaspoon unsweetened cocoa
  • optional ladyfinger
  • optional cold foam or mascarpone topping

First, brew your double espresso. Mix in1 pump of Torani Vanillaand let the espresso cool briefly while you prepare the glass.

Fill a tall glass with ice and pour 150 ml of cold whole milk over it. Then slowly pour the espresso into the milk. For a layered look, you can gently pour it along the rim or over the back of a spoon. For taste, you can simply mix it afterward.

Dust the top with cocoa.

Want to add cold foam? Then set aside about 40 to 50 ml of the milk and froth it cold. For this, you will need aseparate milk frother that has a cold foam setting. The steam wand of your espresso machine makes warm microfoam because steam simultaneously heats the milk.

If you use cold foam, reduce the amount of milk in the glass so that the drink does not become unnecessarily large and milky.

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Romige mascarpone-topping voor een Tiramisu Latte

For more tiramisu feeling

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How to make a simple mascarpone topping

For one generous topping, you will need:

  • 25 grams mascarpone
  • 25 ml cold whipping cream
  • 1 pump Torani Vanilla syrup
  • a small amount of cocoa for finishing

First, briefly stir the mascarpone until smooth. Gradually add the cold whipping cream and gently whisk the mixture until it becomes lighter. Then add one pump of Torani Vanilla syrup. Stop once the topping is soft, creamy, and spoonable. It does not need to be as stiff as whipped cream for a cake.

If you use this topping, stick to one pump of Vanilla syrup in the main recipe. With one pump in the espresso and one pump in the topping, you will use approximately 14 ml of syrup for the entire drink.

For the iced version, you can spoon the topping directly onto the cold drink. On a hot latte, the mascarpone cream will slowly soften and partially mix with the milk. Therefore, add it only at the very last moment.

Dust the topping with unsweetened cocoa and optionally add a ladyfinger. This will give it a distinct tiramisu appearance without the recipe relying on alcohol or a ready-made tiramisu syrup.

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Could he be a bit sweeter?

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How to make the sweeter Vanilla Caramel Tiramisu Latte

For this variation, use the same espresso and milk ratio as for the hot or iced base recipe.

Add to your double espresso:

  • 1 pump Torani Vanilla
  • 1 pump Torani Caramel

This amounts to approximately 14 ml of syrup. This gives you significantly more sweetness than in the classic base version, without immediately using a large amount of syrup.

For the hot version, then add about 150 ml of frothed whole milk. For the iced version, use cold milk and ice. Dust both versions with cocoa.

Caramel makes the drink less classic tiramisu and more of a dessert latte with tiramisu influences. That's precisely why I would treat it as a separate variation. First, taste the version with only Vanilla. Then you'll know what espresso, milk, cocoa, and vanilla do together. Then add caramel and compare the difference.

This way of tasting helps you much better determine which amount of syrup suits your coffee beans and taste preference.

Try Vanilla with Caramel
Moka pot naast een Tiramisu Latte met gemalen koffie en cacao in een lichte thuisbarista-keuken

No espresso machine?

Espresso is the best base because it contains a lot of coffee flavor in a small volume. If you don't have an espresso machine, you can still make the recipe, as long as you brew the coffee strong enough.

Make tiramisu coffee with a moka pot or strong coffee

With a moka pot, you can use approximately 50 to 60 ml of concentrated coffee as a substitute for a double espresso. Brew the coffee as usual and mix the Torani Vanilla into the hot coffee before adding milk.

If you use regular strong coffee, keep the volume limited as well. A large mug of filter coffee with an additional 150 ml of milk will result in a much thinner drink where cocoa, milk, and vanilla can easily overpower the coffee.

That difference is important. Espresso is not a separate ingredient because it sounds fancier; it gives you a lot of flavor and body with relatively little water.

Therefore, without an espresso machine, start with approximately 50 to 60 ml of strong coffee, one pump of Vanilla, and 120 to 150 ml of milk. Then taste if the coffee is still clearly present.

If the drink becomes too milky, add less milk in a subsequent attempt instead of immediately using extra syrup. If it becomes too sweet, go back to one pump and first look at the ratio between coffee and milk.

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If the taste is not yet right

A recipe gives you a usable starting point, but coffee beans, grind, milk, and personal taste differ. That's why it helps to recognize what component you're adjusting when your Tiramisu Latte tastes too sweet, too flat, or too bitter.

Learn to dial in your espresso better

Why does my Tiramisu Latte taste too sweet, bland, or bitter?

Too sweet?First, go back to one pump of Vanilla. Extra syrup can be added quickly, but it's harder to undo.

Too milky or bland?Check if your double espresso is strong enough and use less milk. A latte doesn't automatically get better by filling a larger glass.

Harsh, smoky, or ashy?Taste your espresso once without milk and syrup. If you already find that taste there, look at the coffee beans, roast, freshness, and extraction before changing the recipe.

Too sour or thin?Even then, the espresso itself could be the cause. With a coffee scale with a timeryou can, for example, better compare your amount of ground coffee and espresso. If you want to understand how dosage, yield, and extraction time are related, then The 3 Golden Rules of Espressologically connects to that.

For frothing milk, a good milk pitcher helps to make the milk spin in a controlled way and create a fine texture. A Barista Essentials milk pitcheris a practical addition for this.

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Frequently Asked Questions About Making Tiramisu Latte

What is a Tiramisu Latte?

A Tiramisu Latte is a coffee drink with espresso, milk, and flavors reminiscent of tiramisu, such as vanilla and cocoa. With a mascarpone cream layer, you can bring the drink even closer to the dessert.

Can I make Tiramisu Latte without an espresso machine?

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How much Torani Vanilla do I need for one Tiramisu Latte?

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Can I use oat milk for a Tiramisu Latte?

Yes. Preferably choose a barista-style oat milk designed for frothing. The taste will be slightly different from whole milk, but the creamy texture pairs well with vanilla, espresso, and cocoa.

How do I make cold foam for an Iced Tiramisu Latte?

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The best Tiramisu Latte still starts with good espresso

The appeal of a Tiramisu Latte lies in the combination: strong coffee, smooth milk, vanilla, cocoa, and optionally, a creamy mascarpone layer. But as soon as one ingredient dominates, you lose that balance.

Therefore, start with one pump of Vanilla and a good double espresso. Taste the warm basic version before adding more syrup, caramel, cold foam, or mascarpone. This way, you'll discover much faster which version suits your coffee beans and taste.

If you want to better understand how to build different milk drinks from espresso, then Coffee Drinks and Ratiosis a perfect fit. The explanation goes into more detail about how espresso, milk texture, and quantity together determine the character of a coffee drink.

If you prefer to work practically on your own machine and grinder, you can also practice with me during a private barista workshop at home. We'll look at your coffee beans, espresso extraction, grind, and milk as you actually use them at home.

Whichever route you choose: The Barista Shop helps you make better coffee by first understanding what's happening in your cup.

Learn how to build cappuccinos, lattes, and other coffee drinks in a logical proportion, starting from a good espresso.

Learn to build coffee beverages
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Warme en iced Tiramisu Latte met espresso, melk, vanille, cacao en mascarpone

☕ Make Tiramisu Coffee: Hot and Iced Tiramisu Latte

Tiramisu is no longer just the dessert that appears on the table after an Italian dinner. You see the combination of coffee, cocoa, and creaminess increasingly in ice cream, pastries, and coffee drinks. For me, the latter is particularly interesting: because as soon as you turn tiramisu into a latte, the quality of your espresso largely determines whether it becomes a tasty coffee drink or primarily a sweet dessert in a glass.

With a good Tiramisu Latte, I therefore want to taste coffee first. After that, vanilla, milk, cocoa, and possibly mascarpone can make the flavor profile rounder and creamier. This is also how I prefer to use syrup at home: as an addition to a good espresso, not as something that has to hide a harsh, ashy, or old coffee taste.

Below, I will show you step-by-step how to make one hot Tiramisu Latte and one Iced Tiramisu Latte. You'll get exact quantities, a simple base, a mascarpone topping for when you want to make it more luxurious, and a sweeter Vanilla Caramel variation.

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