Ricotta Cake

The ricotta cake is a classic Italian dessert, extremely popular for its soft texture and delicate flavor. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients

• 250 g of all-purpose flour
• 300 g of ricotta
• 150 g of sugar
• 3 eggs
• 100 g of soft butter
• 1 packet of baking powder
• Grated zest of 1 (untreated) lemon
• 1 pinch of salt
• Icing sugar for decoration
• (optional) Chocolate chips or candied fruit

Preparation

1. In a large bowl, cream the soft butter with the sugar until the mixture is fluffy.
2. Separate the yolks from the whites. Add the yolks one at a time to the butter and sugar cream, mixing well after each addition.
3. Incorporate the ricotta into the mixture, mixing thoroughly until you get a homogeneous mix.
4. Add the grated lemon zest to the mix.
5. In a separate bowl, sift the flour with the baking powder and add a pinch of salt.
6. Beat the egg whites until stiff.
7. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the ricotta mixture, alternating with the beaten egg whites, mixing gently from the bottom up to avoid deflating the mixture.
8. If you wish, you can add chocolate chips or candied fruit to the batter.
9. Pour the batter into a previously buttered and floured cake pan (or lined with parchment paper).
10. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 °C (356 °F) for about 40 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
11. Let the cake cool before unmolding.
12. Dust with icing sugar before serving.

You can enjoy this cake as is, or enhance it with chocolate sauce, a fruit compote, or simply with a dusting of icing sugar.

Curiosity

The ricotta cake has many regional variants in Italy. In some cases, ingredients such as chocolate, pine nuts, or candied fruit are added. In other variations, the lemon can be replaced or accompanied by orange or vanilla, according to personal taste.