The ricotta and strawberry cake is a simple, soft and wholesome dessert ideal for the whole family’s breakfast and snack. The recipe is easy to prepare; you will only need a whisk to make the meeting between strawberries and ricotta turn into a cake as soft as a cloud.
Strawberries accompany us through spring; sweet, aromatic and fragrant, they are great as an afternoon snack and perfect inside spoon desserts or cakes such as the yogurt and strawberry cake or the very quick5-minute strawberry cake.
How not to let the strawberries sink to the bottom of the cake?
The main ingredients of this cake are the strawberries and the ricotta. When choosing strawberries make sure they are healthy, firm and aromatic; store them in the fridge and use them quickly — if they become too ripe they will become watery and will release a lot of liquid during baking, inevitably ending up at the bottom of the cake. This is the only secret to prevent them from sinking; there is no need to freeze the fruit or, even less, to flour it — that would make a real mess!
The ricotta gives a very soft, moist and “melting” texture to baked cakes; pay attention when you buy it: it should taste of milk and be fairly dense. If possible, prefer ricotta sold loose at the counter — it is firmer and more compact. This choice affects the baking time of your cake.
If you don’t like seed oil you can use butter instead; in that case you’ll need 6 tbsp of butter and you should leave it at room temperature until it becomes very soft or melt it and let it cool.
Here are other recipes with strawberries you can check out:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Budget-friendly
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Cooking time: 50 Minutes
- Portions: 8Persone
- Cooking methods: Electric oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Spring, Summer
- Energy 270.71 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 38.77 (g) of which sugars 19.59 (g)
- Proteins 6.31 (g)
- Fat 11.15 (g) of which saturated 3.79 (g)of which unsaturated 6.82 (g)
- Fibers 1.16 (g)
- Sodium 32.96 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 100 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup cow's milk ricotta
- 2 cups strawberries (fresh and firm)
- 5 tbsp peanut oil (or another oil of choice; alternatively 6 tbsp softened butter)
- 2 eggs (medium, about 100 g (3.5 oz))
- 1 packet baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp lemon zest (grated)
- 2 tsp butter
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
- as needed vanilla powdered sugar
Tools
- 1 Bowl large mixing bowl
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Kitchen scale
- 1 Cake pan removable 9-inch (22 cm) springform pan
- 1 Sieve
Procedure
Wash the strawberries, dry them, remove the leaves, cut 5 into small cubes (1 cm — about 3/8 in) and place them on a plate lined with paper towels; set them aside. Slice the remaining strawberries about 5 mm thick (about 3/16 in).
Wash a lemon, dry it and grate the zest; we will use it to flavor the batter.
Sift the flour with the baking powder.
When making ricotta cakes I recommend buying ricotta at the counter; it contains less water and has a good milky flavor that will make your cake special.
Put the ricotta in a large bowl together with the sugar and mix very well; add the eggs, incorporating them one at a time, then the oil, the vanilla and the grated lemon zest (or other flavorings to taste).
Sift the flour with the baking powder and add them to the wet ingredients, mixing vigorously with the whisk to obtain a smooth batter.
Fold the diced strawberries into the batter.
Transfer the mixture into the greased and floured pan and arrange the sliced strawberries on the surface.
Bake the cake in a preheated conventional (non-fan) oven at 356°F (180°C) for about 50 minutes; the baking time depends on the oven and the texture of the batter. If you used ricotta from a tub you will probably need to extend the baking time because it contains more liquid.
Do the toothpick test to check for doneness; if necessary extend the baking time by a few minutes.
If the surface of the cake tends to brown too much, cover it with a sheet of aluminum foil.The ricotta and strawberry cake is ready — let it cool completely, dust with vanilla powdered sugar and serve.
Tips
The ricotta and strawberry cake keeps at room temperature for two to three days, in an appropriate cake container.
If the outside temperature is high I recommend storing it in the refrigerator and letting it sit at room temperature for 20 minutes before serving, or warm the portion you need briefly in the microwave.
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