Unbelievably dreamy, creamy, and delicious tiramisu mini pies with Oreo crust, Zabaglione custard-like filling flavored with Kahlua, mascarpone whipped cream, and a dusting of cocoa. This is the dessert of your dreams.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease pie tins.
Combine ground Oreos (I used a food processor) and melted butter in a bowl until evenly dispersed. Press into pie tins to form crust. Make sure it is pressed and thick enough that they'll hold their shape once prepared. Bake for 6-7 minutes, then set aside to cool.
Bring a large pot filled with 2-3 inches of water to a simmer on the stove. Place a large heat-proof bowl on top of the pot. (You're basically making a double boiler so the egg yolks can cook not over direct heat.) Add room temperature yolks and sugar to double boiler bowl. Whisk consistently (make sure the water stays simmering) for about 10 minutes, until the zabaglione is light, thick, and about doubled in volume. Set aside to cool.
While zabaglione is cooling, take Starbucks VIA/espresso powder and dissolve in 1 tbsp of hot water. Add Kahlua to espresso mixture. Finally, slowly incorporate mascarpone into espresso/Kahlua mixture until combined and smooth. Fold espresso/mascarpone mixture into the mostly-cooled zabaglione.
In a chilled mixing bowl, add cold heavy whipping cream and beat on high until the mixture starts to thicken. When it hits the point of being a runny whipped cream, add the vanilla extract. Then, continue to beat until the cream is thick enough to stand on its own. Using a circular motion, fold whipped cream into zabaglione mixture until smooth and completely combined.
Spoon zabaglione mixture into mini pies until just even with the top of the crust. Let chill in fridge for at least two hours.
In a chilled mixing bowl, add cold heavy whipping cream and beat on high until the mixture starts to thicken. When it hits the point of being a runny whipped cream, add the vanilla extract and sugar. Beat for a couple seconds so that vanilla and sugar are mixed in and mixture is slightly thicker. Then, add room temperature mascarpone and whip until light and fluffy.
Add a dollop of mascarpone whip to the top of each pie and then dust with cocoa powder. Enjoy!!
**There will be leftover filling. I recommend doubling the amount of crust to make about 80 1 1/2" mini pies, or 40 3" pies. If you double the crust, I'd also double the whipped cream.
If you're making these in advance, I'd assemble the crust and zabaglione and keep the pies stored in the fridge. Then, prepare and add the mascarpone whip closer to the serving time. These will keep for 3-4 days but will start to separate slightly.
Depending on the pie size that you make, there may be extra filling or whipped cream. I layered all the extra into a trifle and called it my "chef tax." Delicious.