Kesar Pista Tiramisu

5 from 2 votes

Oct 23, 2024

Layers of saffron soaked ladyfingers topped with saffron infused mascarpone, and crushed pistachios, this Kesar Pistachio Tiramisu is a delectable Indian-fusion dessert that's perfect for the festivities!

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For an easy yet impressive dessert this festive season, try Kesar Pista Tiramisu. Served in individual cups (which makes it perfect for gatherings and potlucks) this tiramisu features layers of saffron-milk soaked ladyfingers, topped with saffron-infused mascarpone cheese, and drizzled with pistachio butter and crushed pistachios.

a spoon digging into bowl of kesar pista tiramisu to show it's texture

Kesar (saffron) and pista (pistachios) is such a classic combination. It’s used in numerous desserts worldwide and particularly in Indian and Middle eastern desserts. When I was little, kesar pista kulfi was one of my favorites and I love using this flavor combination in my dessert recipes. For this year’s festive recipe, I combined the 2 flavors in this Kesar Pista Tiramisu.

It has layers of saffron soaked ladyfingers at the base followed by saffron flavored mascarpone cheese and topped with pistachios. I love coming up with different variations of tiramisu like gulab jamun tiramisu, mango tiramisu. This particular one tastes like rasmalai, the ladyfingers soak in the saffron syrup well and when you eat the dessert with all its layers, it feels like you are eating rasmalai! It’s definitely perfect for the festive season.

Manali’s Tip

Crushing the saffron strands between the palms of your hands before adding it to the milk helps in bringing out the natural color of the saffron. So, always crush the saffron before adding it to the milk.

Let’s Make it!

To a food processor add 1/4 cup of raw pistachios and pulse it until you have very finely chopped pistachios. Set this aside. In a bowl, heat 1/4 cup of milk (I used whole milk but any milk is fine). Once the milk is warm, add a pinch of saffron strands to it. Give it a swirl and let it sit for 10 minutes for the lovely saffron color and flavor to develop.

hand showing crushed pistachios in a food processor — Crush pistachios using a food processor

saffron soaked in milk in a bowl — Soak saffron strands in 1/4 cup warm milk

To the steel bowl of your stand mixer (or use your hand mixer), add 8 oz of mascarpone cheese. Using the wire whisk attachment of your stand mixer, beat the cheese until it’s creamy and fluffy. Then add the prepared saffron milk, 1/4 + 1/8 teaspoon cardamom powder and 1/3 cup (75 gm) of granulated white sugar to it. You can add more sugar if you prefer sweeter desserts. Mix using the wire whisk attachment again until everything is well combined together. The mixture might appear a little grainy at this time and that’s okay.

mascarpone cheese in stand mixer — Beat mascarpone cheese until creamy

saffron milk being added to a stand mixer — Add saffron milk, sugar & cardamom powder

Now, add 1 & 1/4 cups of heavy cream to the same bowl. Whisk using the wire whisk attachment again until you get stiff peaks (medium speed on stand mixer for 2 to 3 minutes). Don’t over-beat the cream else it will curdle. Stop once you get stiff peaks. Set this aside and now start layering the dessert.

heavy cream added to mascarpone mix — Add heavy cream to mascarpone-saffron mixture

spatula showing the consistency of the mixture — Beat until you get still peaks

Now, take the remaining 1 cup (8 oz) of milk in a bowl and warm it up using a microwave or on the stovetop. Once it is warm, add a generous pinch of saffron strands to it and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes for the color and flavor to develop. Cut the ladyfinger cookies to fit the size of your serving bowl/glass. Take the cookie and dip it in the prepared saffron milk completely for 15 to 20 seconds. You must dip both sides. Then place it at the bottom of your serving bowl. I use 2 cookies at the bottom according to the size of my serving bowl (5 oz bowl).

hand dipping ladyfinger cookie in saffron milk — Dip ladyfingers in saffron milk

soaked ladyfingers in a serving bowl — Start layering the dessert with first layer of soaked ladyfingers

Now, add a layer of the prepared mascarpone-saffron mixture on top. Top with crushed pistachios and drizzle some of the pistachio butter if you have it (optional). Repeat with another layer of saffron soaked ladyfingers, mascarpone-saffron mixture and finish with more crushed pistachios and pistachio butter. If you want, you can pipe some of the mascarpone-saffron mixture on top to make it look pretty. But that is optional. Chill for 4 to 5 hours before serving. This dessert will taste great the next day as well.

hand sprinkling chopped pistachios on top of mascarpone cheese — Top with mascarpone-saffron mixture, crushed pistachios & pistachio butter

a piping tip making star shaped piping on the top of a dessert — Repeat layers and end with more crushed pistachios

How Many Servings This Dessert Make?

I have used 5 oz dessert cups to serve this kesar pista tiramisu and with that size I was able to get 7 to 8 servings depending on how I pipe the dessert. If I used the extra mixture to pipe it on top to make it look pretty, I got 7 cups, if I just layered the dessert without the piping on top, I got 8 of these cups. So, it depends on the size of the container you are using and how you layer your dessert. If you use 4 oz cups, you will make more individual servings, if you use 8 oz cups, you will make less servings.

Important Tips & Notes

You can also make this dessert in one pan if you do not wish to make individual servings. I would recommend using a 8×8 inch pan in that case to make this dessert.

This tiramisu can be made in advance, I would recommend making it a day or 2 in advance. If you have to make and serve on the same day, make sure to chill it for 4 to 5 hours before serving.

I have not used any food color here as the color from the saffron was enough to give this dessert that nice yellow color. So, make sure to use a good quality saffron for that floral aroma and the gorgeous color.

Using pistachio butter in this recipe is optional but it does add an extra layer of pistachio flavor. The one I used was sweetened.

Ladyfingers that I have used in this recipe do have eggs in them, If you don’t eat cookies with eggs, you can bake an eggless cardamom cake and use that as a layer. Or you can use vanilla wafers or even simple rusks as the base.