Hojicha Tiramisù

By Hetty Lui McKinnon

Published June 13, 2025

Hojicha Tiramisù
Mark Weinberg for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Yossy Arefi
Total Time
4½ hours
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
20 minutes, plus at least 4 hours’ chilling
Rating
4(70)
Comments
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A trendy addition to baked goods and desserts, hojicha steps in for espresso in this fun take on tiramisù. Hojicha is a Japanese green tea like matcha, but this roasted tea has a distinct chestnut brown color with a full-bodied nutty, toasty flavor that is akin to coffee and cocoa. Available from Japanese grocery stores, online and popping on more supermarket shelves, hojicha is sold either as tea leaves or as a finely ground powder, which is best for baking and desserts like this one. (If you can only find the tea leaves, simply blend them into a powder.) This simplified tiramisù forgoes eggs, instead opting for a mixture of mascarpone and Greek yogurt, which delivers an airy texture and a tartness that compliments the earthiness of the tea. If you can’t find hojicha, use matcha powder, cocoa or Earl Grey tea. The flavor and texture of this dish will improve overnight, as the ladyfingers soak up the hojicha, making it the perfect make-ahead dessert.

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Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings
  • 2cups/16 ounces mascarpone (or cream cheese; see Tip), at room temperature
  • ⅓cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided 
  • 2cups/16 ounces full-fat Greek yogurt
  • 2teaspoons vanilla extract 
  • ¼cup plus 2 teaspoons finely ground hojicha powder, divided
  • 1cup just-boiled water
  • 1(7-ounce) package ladyfingers (about 24 cookies, each about 4 inches long)
Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Place the mascarpone and ⅓ cup sugar into a large bowl and whisk together until it loosens up and looks like whipped cream. (This should take 30 to 60 seconds or so.) Gently fold in the yogurt and vanilla extract by dragging a flexible spatula under and over the mixture, scraping the sides and bottom as you go, until combined.

  2. Step 2

    Sift ¼ cup of the hojicha powder into a wide bowl and then add the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and the just-boiled water. Whisk until the hojicha is dissolved and there are no lumps.

  3. Step 3

    You will need a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. (An 8-by-8-inch square pan would work too, made in 2 layers.) Working quickly, dip one side of each ladyfinger into the hojicha mixture and immediately flip it over so both sides are soaked. (Dip quickly, as the ladyfingers will fall apart if they get too soggy.) Transfer the dipped ladyfinger to the baking dish, rounded side up. Repeat, lining them up neatly, until you have one layer of ladyfingers. (If using a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan, there will be a row of 8 across the bottom.)

  4. Step 4

    Spoon ⅓ of the mascarpone mix (about 1¾ cups) over the ladyfingers and spread it out neatly into an even layer. (An offset spatula helps here.) Repeat these layers of hojicha-soaked ladyfingers and mascarpone mixture two more times until you have three layers of each. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

  5. Step 5

    When ready to serve, sift the remaining 2 teaspoons hojicha powder over the top until it is fully covered. Cut into slices and serve cold. (The hojicha tiramisu will keep, tightly covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days.)

Tip
  • If you can’t find mascarpone, you can substitute with the same amount of cream cheese. When the cream cheese is at room temperature, loosen it with water, a few tablespoons at a time, until it’s the texture of whipped cream.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
70 user ratings
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Comments

Emma H

@Mere in MI I highly recommend the Jade Leaf brand on Amazon. Reasonably priced considering the quality. And organic too!

Erin

I made it! I love hojicha and mascarpone, so easy to please with this one. But for future- found it very mild/not entirely cohesive flavors. Next time I'd use a darker sugar maybe like jaggery or muscovado. And would skip the yogurt in favor of something else, maybe just more mascarpone. didn't need that much tang. Just needs more depth IMO

Adrienne

Happy Earth Tea normally has it in both leaf and high-quality powdered form (although the powder is currently out of stock). Hopefully they'll restock soon! Harney & Sons also appears to have the powder, but I've not personally tried theirs so can't speak to the quality.

Emmy

Made this last night and let it chill overnight to soak up the flavors. I liked it overall, but as others have said, the hojicha flavor wasn’t very strong, so next time, I’d soak the ladyfingers for slightly longer to infuse with more tea flavor. My husband and I actually liked the slight tang from the Greek yogurt mixed with the mascarpone, and instead of using hojicha powder on top, I opted to dust it with good quality cocoa powder (I used the Anamalai cocoa from Diaspora Co) like a classic tiramisu recipe. This was simple and satisfying. Will make again!

Kay from San Jose

Used matcha powder after being completely unable to find hojicha powder at my local Japanese grocery, so it was kind of a different recipe... Very matcha-y with these proportions, almost too much so. Probably should have just found a matcha tiramisu recipe. I also can't recommend the inclusion of yogurt, since it's an extremely overpowering flavor and made the cream thicker than I would've liked. Feels like an attempt to make a "healthy" cake, but we're already eating cake! Lean into it, people!

Heather

I’m clearly the only cheapskate who was upset/shocked when I ordered the Jade Leaf powder for 9.99 on Amazon and then a tiny pouch less than 2oz arrived! I didn’t think it was enough for the recipe (it was) so I immediately ordered another packet (larger size Yamasan Kyoto brand). After reading the comments of people not liking the Greek yogurt strong flavor, I decided to make the normal tiramisu cream mixed with 8oz mascarpone which is the recipe from Alison Roman’s Classic Tiramisu that I’ve made dozens of times. I then followed the rest of the instruction for this recipe using the tea powder. Since a classic tiramisu doesn’t sweetened the espresso/rum that the lady fingers are dipped in and instead has a 1/2 cup sugar in the cream, I decided to reduce the sugar in the cream for this version since it calls for sweetening the tea. I still found the overall sweetness a bit more than I wanted. I’m tempted to make again and not sweeten the tea to give it a bit of bitterness (like the espresso). Also, the recipe warns of not dipping the lady fingers too long in tea or they will fall apart. I definitely prefer a “wet” tiramisu which will add more tea flavor and keep it moist and yummy. Right now I’m wanting more tea flavor and I think that might work—longer dipping and omitting sugar in tea for more bitterness and pronounced tea flavor. Any thoughts?

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