How to Make Italian Ladyfingers: Superb Sponge for ANY Dessert Trifle!

In my quest for baking traditional dishes from around the world, I’ve always been intrigued with the baked portion of a Tiramisu… the ladyfingers. Tiramisu is not a baked dish unless you make your own ladyfingers. A good traditional ladyfinger recipe in your repertoire is good to have. These light and airy cookies would make a great sponge layer for any trifle dish like strawberry shortcake or banana pudding. In addition, these simple cookies are fabulous to eat by themselves or for dipping into any sweetened dip or cream. Check out my homemade Italian Savoiardi Ladyfingers with a nice fresh addition of lemon zest.

What do Savoiardi Ladyfingers Taste Like?

Ladyfinger cookies are called such as they are elongated to resemble the length of a lady’s finger. They are a very simple cookie made primarily of eggs, flour, and sugar. They have a relatively soft, light, and eggy sweet sponge on the inside with a light crust on the outside. The whipped eggs provide the light and airy nature of the cookie. The sugar adds sweetness, a little caramelization, and crunch while the flour provides structure. Potato starch, commonly found in the cookies, adds lightness and helps to decrease the moisture giving it that signature light crunch once they’ve cooled and dried. These are FANTASTIC in my Strawberry Tiramisu, check out this recipe!

Where did the Savoiardi Ladyfingers Originate?

The famous Italian ladyfingers are know as Savoiardi in Italian. The name Savoiardi comes from the court of Amadeus VI, the duke of Savoy. Savoy was an area that covered part of France and Italy during the 15^th century. These cookies were created by the court’s chef in honor of Charles V who was the King of France at that time. Later the cookies were given the name Savoiardi after the Savoy region and became known as the official court cookie. Thus, they were considered royal cookies.

It is not uncommon for these little cookies to be given to kiddos in Italy. They have simple flavors to appeal to kids. They are also easy to hold and eat.

The KEY to Getting the Recipe Right!

Making Savoiardi (ladyfinger) cookies is not difficult, but timing, texture, and even temperature are pretty important so you don’t end up with flat cookies. The key in getting this recipe right, is prepping all the ingredients BEFORE you begin whipping the egg whites. You should have minimal pauses from the time you begin whipping the egg whites until you put the cookies in the oven. Any breaks in time will allow the egg whites to deflate and the cookies to flatten out. The other key elements are whipping lots of air in the cold eggs and placing the cookie batter on cold cookie sheets. These little technical steps can make or break your ladyfinger cookies. Granted, I’m sure they’ll taste good regardless of what they look like. 😊

Italian Savoiardi Ladyfinger Cookie Ingredients

The most basic ladyfinger cookies only contain eggs, flour, and sugar. However, there are other ingredients you can add to enhance flavor and texture. This recipe has the basics with a few additions… for fun. This ladyfinger cookie recipe calls for eggs, superfine granulated sugar, vanilla extract, lemon zest (which is optional), cake flour, potato starch, salt, and powdered sugar for the ladyfinger tops.

Step 1: Preheat the Oven & Place 2 Lined Cookie Sheets in the Fridge

To get started, go ahead and preheat the oven to 375˚F / 191˚C. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper and place both in the refrigerator.

TIP: Cold cookie sheets will help prevent the ladyfingers from spreading too much in the oven.

Step 2: Measure Out ALL the Ingredients & Set them Aside

Secondly, measure out all the ingredients and put them aside so they can easily be accessed when needed.

TIP: A food scale is the most accurate method to measure as weighing in baking is more accurate than using the common US customary system (cup and spoon measurements).

Measure out 2 small bowls with 60 grams each of superfine granulated sugar. Superfine sugar makes a difference because it dissolves more easily in the eggs and doesn’t weigh down or flatten the cookies before they bake.

TIP: If you don’t have or can’t find superfine/ultrafine sugar, whiz your regular granulated sugar in a food processor until the crystals are very fine, not powdered sugar fine but very small granules.

Zest the lemon, if you’re using it and set it aside. You may want to leave out the lemon, if making the traditional coffee & cocoa version. But it really adds freshness to the strawberry & chocolate version. See both recipes here.

In a small bowl, measure out 80 g (3/4 cup) of cake flour, 40 g (~1/3 cup) of potato starch, and 1/2 tsp of SIFTED salt and set aside. Italians use “00” flour to make light dough breads such as pizza crust and ladyfingers. While you can buy “00” flour online, I have found you can reach a similar lightness using cake flour or pastry flour.

Why Cake Flour in Ladyfingers?

Cake flour is a very light, finely milled flour with less gluten protein (5%-8%) than other flours like all-purpose (10%-13%). Since the gluten protein is what binds all of the ingredients together, it is what produces dense breads. Thus, cake flour has just enough protein to bind the ingredients but not so much that it produces a dense product. You can also use finely milled pastry flour in this recipe if you can’t find cake flour.

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Prepare the piping bag and set it aside. I don’t have a pastry bag, so I use a gallon-sized, zip-top bag. Then, I place it into a large glass to hold its shape. Place one corner of the bag into the bottom of the glass. Fold the top of the bag over the edges of the glass. Then, put your hand in the bag in the glass (if you can) to push the bag against the edges. The cookie batter will be thick and fluffy so having space in the glass is helpful.

TIP: Go ahead and find a pair of scissors to cut off the tip when you’re ready. Set those scissors aside so you can reach them quickly.

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Step 3: Make the Savoiardi Ladyfinger Batter

Separate the Eggs & Whip the Egg Yolks with Sugar & Vanilla

Since the ingredients and tools are prepped, let’s begin the actual process. Start by separating the COLD egg yolks from the COLD whites (eggs just out of the fridge). Place the 4 yolks in a large bowl and the whites in a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. You could also use another large bowl and mix with a hand mixer or balloon whisk.

TIP: Cold eggs are really important in this recipe. While cold egg whites take a little longer to whip to stiff peaks, they hold their shape longer than room temperature eggs. Therefore, they’ll take longer to deflate and keep the cookies from flattening out in the oven.

Using a large whisk or hand mixer, whip the egg yolks with 60 grams of sugar. Whip them until the eggs are pale and fluffy. Then, whip in 1 tsp of vanilla and lemon zest, if using. Set them aside.

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Whip the Egg Whites with Sugar

In a stand mixer, whip the 4 egg whites on medium-high speed (4-6 level) until soft peaks form. Add the other 60 grams of sugar in a slow and steady stream, about a tablespoon at a time while whipping. Continue to whip until the whites hold stiff peaks. In addition to visibly stiff peaks, you’ll see that a large mass of whipped egg whites remain in the whisk when you lift up the whisk.

TIP: If you don’t have a stand mixer, use a hand mixer or balloon whisk. A balloon whisk will certainly take longer and more effort on your part. ☹

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Folding it ALL Together

Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the whipped whites into the whipped egg yolks until mostly incorporated. Careful not to deflate too much of the air that has been whipped.

Once the egg white and yolk mixture are almost combined, sift the combined flour, potato starch, and salt over the batter. Discard any leftover particles left in the sifter. Continue to gently fold until all the flour is incorporated. If you have a few egg white specks remaining (unincorporated egg whites), don’t worry, they will smooth out during the baking process. Just leave them.

TIP: Fold by making a figure 8 pattern with your spatula through the center and around the batter. Cut the spatula through the center of the batter. Then, move the spatula around the bowl and cut through the center again… figure 8 (or infinity sign). Continue this process until batter is incorporated.

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Step 4: Fill the Piping Bag & Pipe the Batter

Fill the Piping Bag

Fill the piping bag or zip-top bag with the batter. If using a piping bag, use the ¾-inch wide tip. If using a zip-top bag, use scissors to cut a ¾-inch wide strip from the bottom corner (the corner at the bottom of the glass) of the zip-top bag.

Piping the Ladyfinger Batter

Pipe the batter in 4-inch-long lines about 1 inch apart. For a cookie sheet that has a 17″x 12″ internal measurement, I can pipe 15 ladyfingers (5 across and 3 down). Sprinkle the ladyfingers with granulated sugar, then sift powdered sugar over the tops.

TIP: Regular granulated sugar is preferred over superfine sugar at this stage. Regular sugar adds crunch to the tops of the cookies along with caramelization once baked. The powdered sugar adds texture and color with additional sweetness.

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Step 6: Bake the Ladyfingers & Allow them to Cool

Baking the Ladyfingers (Both Batches)

Bake the ladyfingers for 14-15 minutes, or until they begin to turn golden brown around the edges and on the bottoms. Place the first full cookie sheet in the oven and set the timer. Then, continue to add the batter to the other cookie sheet followed by the sugar toppings. Place that batch in the oven for 14-15 minutes, as well. Be sure to keep track of the timer for both batches. Consider alternating the cookies sheets at least 1 time during the baking process. Alternating the cookies sheets will allow each a chance to be near both the top and bottom heating elements.

TIP: If baking 1 pan at a time, store the 2nd pan in the fridge until ready for the oven. You may need a smaller 3rd pan. For more than 2 pans, just pipe as you did on the other 2 pans and bake the 3rd pan separately. If baking 1 pan at a time, 15 minutes should be enough time. If baking 2 pans at a time, you might need 16-17 minutes total baking time.

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Final Product Ready to Cool & Store

The ladyfingers are completely baked when the tops, sides, and bottoms are golden brown. Allow the ladyfingers to cool completely. If making Tiramisu or another layered dessert, leave the ladyfingers on the counter (uncovered) for at least 1 day before storing. Ladyfingers are meant to “harden”, particularly for Tiramisu or a trifle dessert where they might soak up any liquid. You can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for a couple of weeks. They can also be frozen for up to a couple of months.

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Final Thoughts

Ladyfingers are a great little cookie dessert. They are simple in flavor making them a good accompaniment to any sweet dip or cream with fruit. They are fabulous by themselves, too. You can simply dunk them in coffee or hot chocolate. Why not dip them in sweetened cream or chocolate spread. And of course, use them as a cookie/cake layer in a trifle. I used these in my Strawberry Tiramisu post from last week. They were FANTASTIC in that dish. You should check it out! Thanks!

Baker’s Perspective

The Italian Savoiardi ladyfingers can be difficult to locate in a grocery store. If you can find them, you can simply use store-bought ladyfingers in your Tiramisu or other trifle dish. However, this homemade version is a very good option. They take a little time of course. But once you make them, you can store them in the freezer for months. You’ll have ladyfingers ready whenever you need or want them.

As long as you follow the key elements outlined above, the recipe is quite easy. Ensure your eggs and cookie sheets are cold. Whip the egg whites to stiff peaks. Gently fold in the egg whites. Finally, have all of your ingredients measured out and ready to go before whipping the egg whites.

Taster’s Perspective

Ladyfingers are light on the figure. While they contain sugar, you can eat a few at a time and not feel heavy or like you’ve overeaten. With such simple flavors, they can be eaten for breakfast, snack, or dessert with most anything else sweet, particularly with coffee or hot chocolate. We love the lemon zest in this recipe because it adds freshness and goes GREAT with a fruit trifle, cream dip, or by themselves.

Check out my gluten-free Italian Savoiardi Ladyfingers recipe. For you gluten-free eaters out there, I haven’t forgotten about you! You can still enjoy these AND a traditional Tiramisu like everyone else.

If you would like more visuals in making this recipe, check out my YouTube video with ALL the steps and LOTS of tips! “How to Make Italian Savoiardi Ladyfingers: Superb Sponge for Tiramisu or ANY Dessert Trifle!”

Check out these other fantastic dessert recipes!

Italian Strawberry Tiramisu (traditional coffee & cocoa recipe too!)

Granola Bars (Chocolate Chip & Almond Strawberry)

Australian & New Zealand Pavlova

French Macarons

New Zealand Kiwi Quick Bread

Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed this post, please share it. Check out my YouTube Channel as well to see videos of kitchen tips, blog bakes, and dishes.