Lemon Olive Oil Ricotta Cake
Dreaming of Lemon Olive Oil Ricotta Cake
I think about cake a lot. Not necessarily eating it. Baking it. I love to think up new styles and flavors and imagine what works well together. The other night I was in bed stress watching a DVRed Spring Baking Championship episode doing just that. The bakers on the show were creating these amazing looking masterpieces. I was thinking smaller. Simpler. Something tasty and springlike. Lemon cake. Good, but dull. Lemon olive oil cake? Better. Lemon olive oil ricotta cake. Best!
Fresh Lemons for a Very Lemony Taste
The two things I was looking for in this cake were great lemon taste and moist texture. To that end, I knew I wanted to use A LOT of lemon flavor, both zest and juice. I have discovered that the best way to get that lemon flavor is to use very fresh lemons. I used the zest of three lemons and the juice of two (slightly more than ¼ cup). The smell was amazing.
Add Moisture
Olive oil in and of itself can make a cake very moist, but I knew I wanted more. I decided on adding ricotta cheese. Ricotta doesn’t have a very strong taste, so it doesn’t detract from the flavor of the lemons or the olive oil. It is also nice and creamy without being too liquidy.
Common Ingredients for Uncommonly Good Taste
The balance of the ingredients are fairly common items: flour, almond flour, baking powder, sugar, and eggs. I wasn’t particular about the way I combined things. The dry ingredients went in one bowl. I dumped all of the other ingredients into the bowl of a mixer at the same time and blended everything together. Flours and baking powder went in last.
Springform Pan for a Spring Cake
The only somewhat “special” tool you need for this recipe is a springform pan. I didn’t try it in anything else, but if you really want cake and you don’t have the pan, I would probably try a 9-inch cake pan. Make sure you grease the pan really well and line it with greased parchment paper to avoid sticking.
The Perfect Spring Treat: Lemon Olive Oil Ricotta Cake
Once my cake was done, I let it cool and then sprinkled with powdered sugar. A little lemon twist on top added just the right amount of fanciness. And voilà, a flavorful, moist lemon olive oil ricotta cake, the cake of my almost literal dreams!
Lemon Olive Oil Ricotta Cake
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1/3 cup almond flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 cup ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup extra light tasting olive oil
- 1/4 cup lemon juice approx. 2 large lemons
- 2 tbsp lemon zest approx. 3 large lemons
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 large eggs
- powdered sugar & lemon slice optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Cut out a circle of parchment paper to fit the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. (SEE NOTE)
- Grease the springform pan or spray it with nonstick cooking spray.
- Add the parchment paper to the bottom of the pan and grease/spray it as well. Set aside.
- Remember that it is always a good idea to get all of your ingredients ready before you begin.
- Sift the flour. I do this by placing a strainer over a large bowl. I add the flour and tap the strainer or shift it back and forth.
- Sift the almond flour over the bowl with the all purpose flour. You may need to push some of the bigger pieces through with your fingers or a spatula.
- Add the baking powder to the flour mixture and whisk together. Set the dry ingredients aside.
- Zest lemons to obtain about 2 tbsp. For me, this was three lemons.
- Juice the lemons so you have 1/4 cup of liquid. This was three lemons in my case.
- Measure out the ricotta into a small bowl. If there is liquid on top of the ricotta, pour it off before measuring it out.
- Add the ricotta, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, eggs, and sugar to the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.
- Mix until all of the ingredients are thoroughly blended. Use a spatula to stir up ingredients left on the sides and the bottom of the bowl.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined. Again, make sure you are stirring up from the bottom and incorporating anything on the sides.
- Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan. Spread the batter out evenly with a spatula.
- Bake in the center of the oven for about 50 minutes. When the cake is done, a skewer inserted into the center will come out clean.
- Let cool for five minutes, then open the pan.
- Carefully move the cake to a wire rack to finish cooling.
- Once completely cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar and garnish with a fresh lemon wedge if desired.
