Italian Lemon Ricotta Cake

This recipe will make 12 reasonable servings but what the hell right, if we’re going to be decadent, why limit ourselves to serving size. The calculus of cuisine is anything that can be eaten can be worked off later, it may be years later, but that’s a topic for another day. I’m not going to lie, this is a high-calorie dessert, but it is quasi-keto friendly if you use a sugar substitute, so there you go. You can use store-bought ricotta, but why when you can make your own ricotta cheese.

Ingredients

  • 16 oz Ricotta Cheese – whole milk
  • 6 oz Butter – softened, 1.5 sticks
  • 243 g Flour, ~1.5 cups
  • 322 g Sugar, ~1.5 cups
  • 4 g Vanilla powder, ~1 tsp
  • 3.3 g Kosher Salt, 0.5 tsp
  • 2.9 g Baking Soda, ~0.5 tsp
  • 3 Eggs
  • 1 Lemon – zested and juiced
  • Powdered sugar – for topping and pan lining

Process

  1. Mise en Place – Measure and prepare your ingredients prior to starting.
  2. Preheat oven to 350 F (320 F fan).
  3. Grease 9″ springform pan with butter and dust with powdered sugar.
  4. Whisk salt, baking soda, and flour. Stir until well mixed.
  5. Make Batter – using a stand mixer and paddle attachment
    1. Cream butter and sugar on speed 1 until well combined.
    2. Add cheese and mix on speed 4 until fluffy and stiff (~4 mins).
    3. Reduce speed to 1 and add eggs – one at a time
    4. Add zest, lemon juice, and Vanilla; mix until integrated.
    5. Add in flour mixture and mix until just combined. Use a spatula to fold edges into mixture.
  6. Bake
    1. Gently scrape batter into springform pan.
    2. Bake ~45 mins in conventional oven (~30 mins fan).
      • Test cake in center for done – toothpick inserted in center should come out clean.
    3. Rest cake in pan for 15 mins.
  7. Finish Cake
    • Loosen spring on pan
      • Use a butter knife to scrape any edges that may be stuck to the side of the pan.
    • Place cake on cooling rack (leave on pan base) to cool to room temp.
    • Dust with powdered sugar (optional).
  8. Storage
    • Can be kept out for up to three days if you cover it and your house is not crazy hot so you can serve it at room temp.
    • Best if kept covered in fridge and it tastes better cold. Will keep at least a week I don’t know beyond that, no cake has made it that far in my house.
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