Dreaming of this vegan rasmalai tiramisu, a cake that does not taste much like a classic tiramisu but with a structure inspired by it! Cakey ladyfingers dipped in a vegan rabri made by simmering soy milk with pistachios, almonds, cardamom, sugar, and saffron. Topped with a silken tofu coconut cream and finished with more rabri for an extra creamy, spongy, fragrant treat to celebrate Diwali or any day.
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My favorite Indian sweets have always been rasgulla and rasmalai (they’re like fraternal twins. or maybe cousins.) This Diwali season, I had to turn rasmalai into tiramisu. Making Indian deserts vegan is a little challenging because they heavily rely on dairy and on top of that I wanted to avoid things like vegan butter and vegan cream cheese since I know those aren’t available everywhere and I’d love for my family in India to be able to try this some day. So that’s why we’re making cakey ladyfinger and instead of dipping them in espresso, I considered chai, but I figured masala chai tiramisu just needs its own moment another day. So instead we’re dunking them in rabri, followed by a silken tofu coconut cream and drizzled with extra rabri, mimicking the creamy saffron pistachio goodness that is rasmalai.
How to Make Vegan Rasmalai Tiramisu
Make the cake ladyfingers.
The reason why I opted not to go for a more classic ladyfinger recipe is because I wanted the recipe to avoid more niche plant-based alternatives. Aquafaba (the liquid left behind in a can of chickpeas) is not hard to come by, but it does require whipping until you have stiff peaks and I didn’t have a stand mixer or electric whisk when I was testing this recipe! If you do want to go for a more classic ladyfinger structure, I’d recommend checking out School Night Vegan’s recipe.
I adapted Nora Cook’s recipe, adjusting the amount of sugar and oil. It turned out perfectly fluffy!
Make the vegan rabri.
Rabri is usually made by simmering full-fat milk until it becomes more dense and yellow. It is flavored with nuts, jaggery or cane sugar, mixed nuts, and saffron. I really think the best milk for vegan rabri is unsweetened soy milk. Almond milk isn’t creamy enough while coconut milk is too creamy and may add a distinct coconut flavor. In my experience, some oat milks turn greyish or slimy with heat.
Simply simmer the soy milk, sugar, and cardamom. Near the end, add saffron strands, crushed pistachios and almonds, and rosewater. It’s divine! Cool it down before dipping the ladyfingers in it. Store the extra for pouring over the cake.
Make the silken tofu coconut cream.
A classic tiramisu is made with mascarpone, an acidic Italian cream cheese. In my quest to avoid cream cheese alternatives, I decided to go with silken tofu and coconut cream. For the coconut cream, you can either refrigerate 2 cans of coconut milk overnight or use 1 can of coconut cream. Blend with a few cardamom pods and sugar. If you already have the rabri done when you’re making this, I’d highly recommend blending a few tablespoons of rabri into the cream!
Assemble the tiramisu.
Dip the ladyfingers in the rabri and place in an 8 x 8 dish. Top with a layer of silken tofu coconut cream and repeat with the rest of the ladyfingers and cream. Let it set in the fridge for a few hours. Honestly, the leftovers are way better than the day of. As the cake soaks in the flavor of the rabri and cream, it becomes spongy and more like the texture of rasmalai. For serving, drizzle leftover rabri on the cake to mimic the rasmalai consumption experience we know and love.
Vegan Rasmalai Tiramisu
Ingredients
cake "ladyfingers"
- 300 g (2½ cups) all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 100 g (½ cup) granulated sugar
- ½ cup canola oil
- 1¾ cups unsweetened soy milk
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
vegan malai (aka the silken tofu coconut cream)
- 2 12 oz. packages of firm silken tofu
- 14 oz. can of coconut cream (sub 2 cans of full-fat coconut milk, refrigerated overnight)
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup sugar (plus more to taste)
- 3 green cardamom pods (sub ¼ tsp ground cardamom)
vegan rabri
- 3 cups unsweetened soy milk
- 10-12 threads of saffron
- ⅓ cup mixed pistachios and almonds, coarsely chopped
- 2 green cardamom pods (sub ¼ tsp ground cardamom)
- ¼ cup sugar (plus more to taste)
- ¼ tsp rosewater *optional
- pistachios and almonds for topping
Instructions
Make the ladyfingers.
- Pre-heat oven to 175 degrees C (350 degrees F) and grease a 10 x 15 inch sheet pan.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt and sugar. Then pour in the oil, soy milk, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla extract. Mix with a large spoon until just combined.
- Pour into the sheet pan and bake for 25 minutes. If using a 9 x 13, it will take 10-15 minutes longer. Check with a toothpick to make sure it’s done.
- Let the cake cool, then slice into rectangles that are about 2 x 4 inches.
Make the malai.
- Save ¼ cup coconut cream for the rabri (next step). Then process all the ingredients until smooth and creamy. Add more sugar and cardamom to taste if necessary.
- Chill until you’re ready to assemble the cake.
Make the rabri.
- To prepare the nuts and cardamom, grind them together in a small processor or crush the cardamom and chop the nuts.
- Soak the saffron in 2 tbsp of warm soy milk. Add the rest of the milk to a large pot and bring the milk to a boil.
- Once the milk is boiling, add sugar, nuts, cardamom. Let it simmer over medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes. It should thicken over time.
- Just before taking off the heat, stir in the saffron soaked in milk, the ¼ cup coconut cream you saved, and rosewater if using.
Assemble the cake.
- Grease an 8 x 8 inch dish. Place 1 cup of rabri in a shallow bowl.
- Dip both sides of each ladyfinger in the rabri and assemble the first layer of ladyfingers in the dish. Spread a layer of malai.
- Repeat step 2 with the rest of the ladyfingers and malai to make the top layer.
- Sprinkle more crushed pistachios and almonds on top. Let the cake set in the fridge for a few hours. Trust me when I say it's better the next day!
- When enjoying it, pour a few spoons of rabri over the top, so eating it feels sort of like eating rasmalai!
If you love the saffron pistachio goodness in this treat, consider trying:
Saffron Pistachio Oat Milk Ice Cream
