Lemon ricotta cake
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The fine crumble and the fresh creamy ricotta filling make this wonderful lemon ricotta cake to die for. It requires minimal preparation, 6 ingredients, and no stand mixer.
Welcome to the best new ricotta cake you’re going to love!
This is absolutely one of our favorite cakes ever and is inspired by the Italian sbrisolona, a typical crumb cake very popular in Northern Italy.
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I can’t even explain how much we all love this cake, and I’ve lost count of how many times I baked it. This is my go-to cake recipe for any special occasion, and it’s also my Easter dessert of choice this year!
And it’s always a hit.
First, the refreshing yet delicate flavor and texture are incredible. The crispy crumble outside, the soft filling inside made with sweet ricotta and bright lemon zest and juice.
Best? It’s a breeze to make; it keeps well in the fridge and is freezable, too, so it’s perfect if you want to make it ahead.
If you haven’t tried ricotta desserts, you’ll be amazed. This lemon ricotta cake is ideal for Easter, spring, and really any time you’d like a simple but beautiful cake.
I will make this lemon ricotta cake for the rest of my life. It’s that good. So good! Please make it right now and let me know what you think. x
List of the ingredients
- Ricotta
- All-purpose flour
- Sugar
- Eggs
- Lemons
- Vanilla extract
- Vegetable or olive oil
- Baking powder
How to make lemon ricotta cake
(Note: this is simply a quick explanation; the full recipe is at the bottom of the page)
- To make the lemon ricotta filling, add ricotta, egg, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract to a bowl.
- Stir until well combined and smooth. You’ve just made the filling, set aside.
- Make the crumbs: add flour, sugar, baking powder, and lemon zest to a large bowl. Mix the dry ingredients until well combined.
- Stir in the egg and the vegetable or olive oil.
- Use your fingers and rub oil and egg into the dry ingredients until you get a crumb-like mixture.
- Use about ⅔ of the crumbs to cover the bottom and edges of a round cake tin.
- Fill this shell with the ricotta mixture, then sprinkle the crumble mixture all over.
- Bake for 30 minutes and serve dusted with icing sugar.
- Enjoy at room temperature. The following day tastes even better!
Recipe Notes
Ricotta cake variations
This is the ricotta pie of your dreams, and it’s also amazingly versatile!
- Amaretti cookies: If you find some Italian amaretti cookies, skip the lemon zest and add a generous handful of crushed amaretti to the ricotta filling.
- Orange zest: Another simple and delicious option is using orange zest instead of lemon zest to make a refreshing and delightful ricotta orange cake.
- Dark chocolate chips: You can’t go wrong with dark chocolate and ricotta. Just skip the lemon zest and add about 1/3 cup chocolate chips to the ricotta mixture.
- Raspberries: Ricotta and fresh raspberries are another terrific combination; I have tested it many times. Spread the ricotta mixture first, then scatter about 3/4 cup raspberries on top, push them down with your finger, and cover with the remaining crumbles.
More ricotta cake recipes…
If you haven’t tried ricotta in desserts, you’ll be amazed. This fresh, soft Italian cheese brings plenty of moisture and a delicate flavor without weighing down. It makes rich, refreshing fillings, or moist, delicious crumbs. Check out our favorite ricotta cake recipes:
- Strawberry cake
- Raspberry cake
- Easy ricotta cake
- Chocolate ricotta cake
- Blueberry ricotta cake
- Almond ricotta cake
Does lemon ricotta cake need to be refrigerated?
This cake keeps well at room temperature for about 4-5 hours, but if your kitchen is too warm or if you’re planning to store it longer, wrap it in cling film and store in the refrigerator. It doesn’t dry out and it keeps very well for 3 days.
It freezes beautifully!
This lemon ricotta cake freezes very well: wrap it in cling film and freeze it for up to 1 month.
If you love ricotta…
Oh I love ricotta! This fresh Italian cheese is brilliant for sweet or savoury recipes, from scrumptious quick pasta dishes to moist cakes, and more. Have a look at this inspiring collection of amazing ricotta recipes to see how to get the most of it. Just to name a few:
- Ricotta meatballs
- Ricotta crostini with peas
- Easy cake with ricotta
- Herbed whipped ricotta
- Lemon ricotta pasta
- Ricotta crostini
If you make this delicious lemon ricotta cake or if you have a question, let me know! Leave a comment, rate it or tag a photo #theclevermeal on Instagram. I would love to hear from you!
Recipe update: originally published in March 2020, I’ve tweaked recipe and added new photos.
Lemon ricotta cake
Ingredients
Lemon Ricotta filling:
- 2 cups (500 grams) ricotta
- 7 Tbsp (90 grams) sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 ½ large lemons, zest
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Crumb shell:
- 2 ¼ cup (300 grams) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ scant cup (90 grams) sugar
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 6 tablespoon (90 ml) olive oil or vegetable oil
- ½ large lemon, zest
To serve:
- icing sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F°/180C°.
- Line with parchment paper or grease with oil or butter a loosed bottom cake pan* (size 9 inches/23 cm).
- To make the lemon ricotta filling, place the first group of ingredients in a bowl and mix with a fork or a whisk, until well combined and smooth. Set aside.
- To make the crumb shell, place flour, baking powder, lemon zest in a large bowl and mix the dry ingredients until well combined.
- Stir in egg and oil and using your fingers, rub the egg and the oil into the flour and sugar to make a crumb-like mixture.
- Using about ⅔ of the crumbs, make the cake bottom and edges (about 1 ½ inch hight), but don't press the mixture too much.
- Fill this crumble shell with the ricotta mixture, then sprinkle the crumble mixture all over the ricotta filling.
- Bake for 30 minutes until lightly golden.
- Let it cool, and serve at room temperature dusted with icing sugar. The following day tastes even better! Enjoy.
Notes
Storage: it keeps well at room temperature for about 4-5 hours, but if your kitchen is too warm or if you’re planning to store it longer, wrap it in cling film and store in the refrigerator. It keeps very well for at least 3 days. Also, this ricotta freezes very well: wrap it in cling film and freeze it for up to 1 month
Great Recipe!! We loved it. I baked it for about 45-50 minutes for a really crunchy crust, but that’s personal preference. Very tasty and super easy! Thank you 🙂
That’s wonderful! I’m so glad you loved this recipe. Thanks for sharing, Kate. x
Brought this to a small dinner party and it was a hit. Made it to specifications and it was honestly full proof! It was done at 30 minutes but I added about 3-4 minutes at a high broil to slightly brown the top. I might also add a little salt to crumble crust next time, and maybe a little more lemon zest, but overall was a great recipe that you can customize with toppings (different berries or maybe some fresh whipped cream).
I’m so pleased to hear it was a hit, Molly! Thanks so much for sharing your feedback – that’s so appreciated. x
Loved… I also added a pinch of salt to the crust (enhances flavor) and used a large lemon zest instead half.
Thank you for posting ! 😃
You’re very welcome! I’m very pleased you loved it. : )
Made this once before and served it that evening – it was fabulous! Now, today , I just made it for tomorrow, and my question is, do I unhook it from the springform pan or leave it intact until right before serving.
Thank you !
I’m very glad you love this recipe, Judy. I usually remove it from the pan once it’s cool (even better after some rest in the fridge), and I only dust it powdered sugar before serving. It has delicate crumbs, and that gives me more time to do it carefully without the rush of serving it straight away. : )
I made this and it turned out perfect. I made a blueberry reduction sauce to top it off. With handpicked blueberries.
Now that it’s apple season, I’m going to make it and drizzle apple walnut sauce on top
Of it.
It is the perfect base recipe and it also stands perfect on its own.
Thanks for sharing, Christine! x
After 30 mins, the crumbs were still very pale and the entire cake was quite jiggly. Currently approaching 45 mins. Oven temp is accurate at 350 per internal thermometer. How do I know when it’s done?
I couldn’t reply straight away, sorry. The cake should be done within 45 minutes. How lontg did yours take? It’s ok if it’s a bit pale, but not jiggly. Hope it was delicious. x
Mine took 40 minures ☺️
When the filling recipe calls for “1 1/2 lemons, zest”, I am assuming you would add the juice of the 1 1/2 lemons too. And the crumb shell calls for “1/2 large lemon, zest”, does that include the juice too?
HI Marilyn. It’s all specified in the recipe, no need to guess. : )
If the recipe calls for zest, that means zest only. In this recipe you need 1/2 lemon zest for the crumbs, and 1 1/2 zest + 1 tablespoon of juice for the filling. x
Unfortunately, the crumb layers (top and bottom) stayed very pale and did not get a golden colour when I took it out of the oven and did not have an appetizing tasye. I’m wondering if that’s because of the oil – perhaps butter would have resulted in a better crust.
Hi Mia, I wonder why it was still pale after 30 minutes in the oven. It’s not the oil as I use it all the time and the cake looks exactly like the one shown on the website.
Maybe the oven temp wasn’t right? This is tested recipe that gets great feedbacks every time, so sorry it didn’t work well for you. x
In the early part of your posting you mention vanilla as an ingredient, but its not mentioned in the actual recipe. Did you eliminate it?
Hi Dixie! Vanilla exctract is def one of the ingredients, that’s an oversight! Thanks for asking. x
Can you make this in cupcake version for a crowd? Have the crust on the bottom of the muffin cup, fill then have a little crumb mixture on top? Store it in fridge to serve the next day?
Hi Suzanne! Yes, you can, but spread some crumb mixture also on the sides of each cupcake case (I recommend making more crumb mixture for this version). Another way to make this case for a crowd is to bake a rectangular or square cake, let it rest in the fridge overnight, and then cut it into smaller squares while the cake is still cold. Enjoy.x