For The Most Traditional Italian Tiramisu, Brew Your Coffee Like This

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We all strive to make Italian food that's as authentic as possible. We follow tested recipes, buy imported ingredients, and there might even be a fancy piece of cookware involved. All of it feels especially important when it comes to recreating traditional desserts like tiramisu. If you're going to the effort of finding the best mascarpone and ladyfingers, then you need to make sure you're brewing your coffee the right way, too. For a truly authentic tiramisu, you need to use a moka pot.

If you've ever visited Italy, you might have seen these small, octagonal coffee jugs in local homes. Invented by Alfonso Bialetti in 1933, the moka pot is a symbol of life in Italy. It's estimated that over 90% of Italian homes own at least one. Bialetti's Moka Express is even on permanent display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York to showcase Italian design.

Moka pots brew strong, espresso-style coffee that's typically made of a special dark-roasted blend of arabica and robusta beans. That blend is key to a classic Italian tiramisu. Moka coffee is much stronger than the coffee we're used to in America, with a richer and more concentrated flavor. The deeply toasted notes pair perfectly with the other ingredients in tiramisu like cocoa powder, and the coffee's bitterness helps cut the creaminess of the mascarpone.

Moka pots (like this Bellemain Stovetop Moka Pot) are easy to find online, and they can last a lifetime. They're made of three aluminum parts: a base chamber, a funnel filter, and an upper chamber. The base chamber is filled with water, the coffee grinds are placed on top of the plate in the funnel, and the coffee is collected in the top part. As the pot heats up on a stove, the steam creates enough pressure to push the coffee up through the filter. There are some common moka pot mistakes, but just remember that once it starts sputtering, it's ready to pour.

You need about 1 ¼ cup of perfectly brewed moka pot coffee to make tiramisu. It's a good idea to brew the coffee before you gather up your other ingredients, as you want it to cool slightly. If it's too hot when you dip the ladyfingers in it, they could dissolve. You also run the risk of melting the mascarpone, and overall just creating a soggy mess, which isn't very Italian.

If you don't have a moka pot, a French press or drip coffee maker also work. You just want to make sure to use a coffee that's as bold and as concentrated as possible. A dark roast is best, and try to get an Italian option, if you can. The original tiramisu recipe from Le Beccherie in Treviso — which many people credit with being the inventors of the dessert – features moka pot coffee, so it really is worth the extra effort.