Authentic Italian Ricotta Cake With Double Devon Cream

This Italian Ricotta cake is the perfect solution for those who crave sweet dessert but dislike the high sugar content of the traditional cakes or the richness and high calorie count of classic cheesecakes. Our lemon ricotta cake is versatile enough for you to enjoy for breakfast alongside coffee, or as a dessert, either on its own or accompanied by one of our wine pairing recommendations.

Wine Pairing Recommendations

Pairing this fusion desert dish with wine is as easy as a walk in the park.

The main challenge we encountered with this food and wine pairing was the multitude of wine pairing options that complemented our ricotta cake perfectly. While there were numerous contenders, we only had three spots for the winners. Let’s walk you through our final wine pairing recommendations.

Despite the addition of Devon cream, this dish remains authentically Italian ricotta cake. When it comes to food and wine pairing, always remember the golden rule: what grows together, goes together! Staying true to this principle, our first wine pairing recommendation for this cake is a fantastic Italian wine Moscato D’Asti. It is light, bubbly, and sweet. Moreover, it is our ultimate dessert wine and our fail-safe option whenever we’re stumped on how to pair a cake with wine. No matter the cake you pair with this wine, it always works! Our second recommendation is a late harvest wine, particularly a late harvest Riesling. Last but not least, pick Marsala, an Italian fortified wine famous for its flavors of dried fruit, caramel, and spices.

So, whether you’re sipping, swirling, or diving fork-first into your Italian ricotta cake, these wine pairing recommendations are here to help you enjoy it even more. Because, let’s face it, any food is always better with wine!

Marsala, Moscato d’Asti, Riesling

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Recipe at a glance:

What is ricotta cheese?

Ricotta cheese is an Italian whey cheese made from the whey left over from the production of such cheeses, as mozzarella or provolone. To make the ricotta, the whey gets heated first. Then, acid or rennet is added to separate the curds from the liquid. The curds are then drained and typically lightly pressed, resulting in a soft, creamy cheese with a slightly grainy texture. Ricotta is known for its mild, slightly sweet flavor. It’s commonly used in Italian cuisine in dishes like lasagna, cannoli, and ricotta cheesecakes as well as in salads.

It’s possible to make ricotta cheese at home. Although recipes for homemade ricotta cheese may differ, commonly listed ingredients include unpasteurized milk, cream, salt, lemon juice, and vinegar. Reportedly, homemade ricotta tastes much better than store-bought, but it also has a noticeably different texture compared to commercially manufactured ricotta.

Do not confuse ricotta with ricotta salata which is traditionally made by means of pressing and aging the fresh ricotta cheese. Ricotta salata is a firm cheese that can be sliced or crumbled, very much like Feta cheese.

Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 160 g. sugar approx. ¾ cup
• 1 large lemon zested and juiced
• 370 g. ricotta approx. 13 oz
• ¼ cup currant raisins or other small raisins
• 1 cup Devon clotted cream
• 100 g. flour approx. ½ cup + 2 tbsp.

Substitutions

• You can substitute currant raisins for any small raisins you can find. Another option is to chop larger raisings into smaller pieces.
• If you can’t find raisins, you can use dry apricots. However, you need to chop these very finely. If using apricots, there’s no need to soak them in the water.
• Not a fan of Devon cream? Not a problem! You can substitute it with sour cream, or skip it altogether. If using sour cream, first drain the sour cream over the metal strainer lined with a cheese cloth. Then add sugar, about 2 tbsp. or to taste, to the sour cream and mix together till the mixture is homogenous and resembles the cream.
• While it is possible to make ricotta cheese at home, we do not recommend using it in this ricotta cake recipe. Reason being is, the density and the creaminess of the homemade cheese will vary based on the method and ingredients used to make it. We made our ricotta cake with a commercially manufactured cheese. Quantity of the ingredients provided in this recipe accounts for the density of the commercially manufactured ricotta.

This is how we do it

Recipe Card

Italian Ricotta Cheese Cake

Create a taste of Italy at home with our ricotta cake recipe. We've taken the classic Italian dessert and added a touch of Britain by incorporating Double Devon cream into our version of this traditional Italian cake recipe.

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 40 minutes mins

Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 160 g. sugar approx. ¾ cup
• 1 large lemon zested and juiced
• 370 g. ricotta approx. 13 oz
• ¼ cup currant raisins or other small raisins
• 1 cup Devon clotted cream
• 100 g. flour approx. ½ cup + 2 tbsp.

Instructions

• Before you start working on this cake, preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C).

Preparing cake ingredients:

• Wash raisins and then soak them in the hot water for 15 minutes. Drain and set aside
• Separate egg yolks from egg whites.
• In a separate bowl beat egg whites till they form stiff white peaks. Set aside in cool place.
• In a larger bowl beat the egg yolks slightly until they turn creamy and lighten in color. Then add sugar and beat again until the mixture turns lemon color and is very creamy
• Add the lemon zest, lemon juice and ricotta. Using a mixer, stir everything together unless all ingredients are well incorporated and the mixture looks homogeneous.
• Using the fine mesh metal strainer, little by little add the required amount of flour. Make sure to incorporate the flour as you go, so that the mixture is not lumpy.
• Carefully fold egg whites into the cake mixture. Your cake batter is ready for baking

Baking the cake:

• Prepare the springform pan. To do so, line it with the parchment paper at the bottom and on the sides.
• Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan and bake in the oven for 40 minutes or until the top of the cake is golden brown.

Finishing the cake:

• Remove cake from the oven and let it cool slightly
• Spread a layer of the Devon cream with brandy over the top of the cake and serve.

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine European Fusion

Keyword healthy dessert, italian ricotta cake recipe, ricotta cake, ricotta cheese dessert