Strawberry Ricotta cake – easy 1 Bowl recipe

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy for more details.

I’m in love with this beautiful, deliciously scented strawberry ricotta cake! The moist texture, the juicy strawberries, the vanilla and lemon hints, make this super easy one-bowl cake to die for, guaranteed.

It’s the perfect fruity cake for all occasions, a breeze to whip up (no beating is required!), packed with amazing fresh flavors, and sure to impress!

Top view of a round strawberry ricotta cake dusted with powdered sugar over a white background.

The creamy, mildly sweet ricotta creates an amazing, dense texture which pairs beautifully with juicy strawberries and vanilla. This soft, fresh italian cheese with its delicate flavour keeps the lovely crumbs moist for days without weighting down.  

And it’s not too sweet, not too heavy, not too wet, it’s just right and so yummy.

I’m talking about a marriage made in heaven, absolutely one of our favorite ricotta recipes! No food coloring, no flavorings, but only simple, fresh ingredients and cheerful strawberries.

And if strawberries are not in season or are too expensive for your tight budget, just go for frozen as I did: they’re much cheaper, convenient, and work just fine.

List of the ingredients

  • Fresh or frozen strawberries
  • Whole-milk ricotta
  • All-purpose flour
  • Eggs
  • Sugar (caster sugar, light brown sugar, granulated is ok too)
  • Vegetable oil
  • Vanilla (extract or essence)
  • Lemon zest
  • Baking powder + pinch of salt
Top view of the ingredients to make this strawberry ricotta cake.

How to make this strawberry ricotta cake

(Note: this is a quick description with step-by-step photos, the full recipe is at the bottom of the page)

  • Stir eggs and sugar well in 1 bowl to dissolve the sugar.
  • Add the vegetables oil and mix again until well combined.
Top view of a glass bowl full of eggs and sugar over a white background.
  • Add the ricotta, lemon zest and vanilla extract and stir until smooth.
  • Stir in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined (do not overmix).
Top view of a glass bowl showing that ricotta, essences, and flour are added to the batter.
  • Pour the batter into a baking pan, I used this 9 x 3 inch deep.
  • Place the strawberries on top.
  • Bake for 40 minutes and serve dusted with powdered sugar. Enjoy!
Top view of a strawberry ricotta cake before and after baking.

RECIPE NOTES & TIPS

Strawberry ricotta cake ingredients

RICOTTA: whole milk ricotta is best, its fat content and moisture improves your cake texture. I used 1 cup/250 grams of ricotta (they don’t sell 15oz container here in the UK). But if you buy a large container of ricotta, check below how to use up your leftovers! 

STRAWBERRIES: you can use either fresh or frozen strawberries. However, frozen strawberries are convenient, available all year round, and save you money.
The recipe is also great to use up your not-so-perfect or not-so-fresh strawberries: cut them into pieces, and fold into the batter as I do in this strawberry bread. Don’t waste!

SUGAR: the recipe calls for only 1/2 cup, and that’s just a fraction of the amount of sugar used in regular cakes. But you can really save yourself that extra cup of sugar with such beautiful ingredients, and you won’t miss out on deliciousness!

VANILLA & LEMON ZEST: their lovely flavor shine in this cake! You can use only zest or only vanilla if that’s all you have at hand, but don’t skip both.

VEGETABLE OIL: I used expeller pressed canola oil (rapeseed oil here in the UK).

FLOUR, EGGS, BAKING POWDER, PINCH OF SALT: as usual in cakes.

A fork lifting a piece of strawberry ricotta cake showing the juicy strawberries inside.

Baking tips to make this strawberry ricotta cake

ROOM TEMPERATURE INGREDIENTS: make sure eggs and ricotta are at room temperature.

DO NOT OVER MIX THE BATTER: working flour too much can produce gluten, which creates a dense, rubbery cake.

MEASURE THE INGREDIENTS CORRECTLY: a kitchen scale is always the best option. And if you use cups, it’s important you don’t scoop the flour out of the bag with your measuring cup because you could end up with more flour than you need. Use a spoon to transfer the flour from the bag into the measuring cup instead, than use the back of a knife to level off the top. I find this post helpful to explain this spoon & level method.

OVEN: make sure you preheat the oven and, let me state the obvious, do not open the oven door for the first 25 minutes (at least).

Close-up of a slice of strawberry ricotta cake on a white dessert plate while the rest of the cake is in the background.

How to use leftover ricotta?

I’ve got you covered. If you buy a large container of ricotta, I promise you won’t have leftover ricotta sitting in the fridge. These terrific recipes are perfect to use the versatile, creamy ricotta:

More delicious one-bowl cake recipes?

If you make this strawberry ricotta cake, or you have a question, let me know by leaving a comment. I would love to hear from you! x
And for more recipe updates, follow me on InstagramPinterest and Facebook.

Top view of a round strawberry ricotta cake over a tourquois background.
Print Recipe
5 from 5 votes

Ricotta Strawberry Cake (easy 1 bowl recipe).

The moist texture, the vanilla and lemon hints, and the juicy, cheerful strawberries make this easy one-bowl strawberry ricotta cake to die for. It's perfect cake for all occasions: a breeze to whip up, packed with fresh flavor, and sure to impress.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Total Time50 minutes
Course: Dessert
Keyword: Strawberry ricotta cake
Servings: 10
Calories: 259kcal
Author: Katia

Ingredients

  • 3 eggs
  • ½ cup (100 grams) sugar (caster or brown sugar)
  • ⅓ cup + 1 Tbsp (85-90 grams) oil (canola or vegetable oil)
  • 1 cup (250 grams) whole-milk ricotta
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract (or essence)
  • 1 lemon zest
  • 1 ½ cup + 2 Tbsp (200 grams) all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • 18-20 (approx 300-350 grams) strawberries, fresh (top removed) or frozen
  • 2 Tbsp Powdered sugar, to decorate (optional)

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F /180°C, place the shelf in the middle position, and grease and line a 23 cm / 9" cake pan with parchment paper (a loose bottom cake pan is best).
  • In a large bowl, stir sugar and eggs vigourously until well combined.
  • Stir in vegetable oil and mix well. Then add ricotta, lemon zest, vanilla extract and mix well with a whisk or a spatula until smooth.
  • Mix flour, a pinch of salt and the baking powder in a second bowl, than add these dry ingredients onto the liquid ingredients, stir until combined and the flour is incorporated, but do not over mix.
  • Pour the batter into the cake pan, smooth the surface, top with the whole strawberries pushing them gently into the batter.
  • Bake for about 35-40 minutes or until skewer inserted into centre comes out clean. 
  • Stand 15 minutes in the cake pan before removing from the pan. You might need to turn out onto cooling rack if you don't use a loose bottom cake pan.
  • Serve a room temperature dusted with powdered sugar if you wish. Enjoy!

Notes

STORAGE: it keeps well for 4 days, the texture stays nice. If the temperature is humid and hot, keep it in the fridge and bring to room temperature before serving. But you can keep on the counter covered with a cake dome or in air-tight container if the temperature in the room is cold. It freezes perfectly too.
SUBSTITUTIONS: you can replace strawberries with blueberry, raspberries or blackberries. You can also add to the recipe chocolate chips, fold them into the batter. 
Spooned & leveled: spoon the flour into the measuring cup (do not press it) than use the back of a knife to level off the top of the cup.
Nutrition facts: Please note that the nutrition values are based on an online nutrition calculator.  It’s an estimate only and it should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. The nutrition values are for 1 slice (assuming a cake cut into 10 slices).
 
 

Nutrition

Calories: 259kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 13g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 62mg | Sodium: 203mg | Potassium: 121mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 187IU | Vitamin C: 21mg | Calcium: 116mg | Iron: 1mg

20 Comments

  1. At 40 minutes, my cake ( used blueberries), was not nearly done. Just added another 15 minutes. I’ll have to review the recipe. Maybe I did something wrong. I thought I was pretty meticulous did weigh everything in grams except for to spoon the flour and level off. Maybe blueberries were too watery? Was I supposed to drain the ricotta first?

    1. Hi Kim, sorry to hear that. I think the blueberries and ricotta were fine – but the ratio of flour to liquid seems to be off unfortunately.
      Hope the cake turned out well, despite the long baking time. x

  2. Pamela Zimmer says:

    5 stars
    I made this today it is delicious, moist, and easy to make. Used a spring form pan worked like a dream.

    1. That’s great to hear, Pamela! Thanks a lot for sharing your feedback. x

  3. 5 stars
    Thank you for the recipe for a really easy, yet impressive looking cake. Faced with rapidly deteriorating strawberries and a random tub of ricotta, this recipe jumped out of my search results. I switched the vegetable oil for olive oil and used orange zest (as no lemons to hand) and as an addition, one teaspoon of ground ginger to the batter. Worked well, cake enjoyed by family in one sitting, luckily I put aside a slice for my morning coffee time the following day. Greetings from Hungary.

    1. I’m so pleased the whole family loved it, Bernard!
      Thanks so much for taking the time to share your feedback. : )

  4. 5 stars
    Hi Katia
    Greetings from Johannesburg!
    It looked great and came out very light too. I used butter instead of oil as I prefer the taste.
    I was looking for something like a gateau, so I chopped some of the strawberries into the dough, topped the rest of the strawberries as per your recipe and garnished with piped fresh cream.
    (butter and fresh cream… yummy – next time I’ll be more health/calorie conscious).
    It was delicious!
    Thank you for sharing your recipe.
    Karla

    1. You’re so welcome, Karla! : )
      I’m so pleased it turned out delicious, and thanks for sharing your lovely feedback.
      Have a great weekend. x

  5. How is this a “one bowl” recipe when the instructions clearly call for a SECOND bowl for the flour, salt and baking powder?

    1. Yes, you have the option to use a second bowl to mix flour and baking powder, but you can also make the batter in 1 bowl if you wish, mixing all the ingredients there, it works just fine.
      I will add a note to the recipe.
      Cheers

  6. Hi Katia , greetings from Collingwood, Ontario Canada. I wonder if I can use applesauce instead of oil. Thanks.
    Ruth

    1. Hello from London, Ruth!
      Sorry, but I’ve never tested the recipe with applesauce, I’m not sure about the result.
      Have a lovely weekend. x

  7. 5 stars
    This was easy to make and passed my husbands taste test. He was disappointed however that it was not cheesecake. I had repeatedly told him it was ricotta cheese CAKE but until he ate it, he did not get the emphasis🤣. My ricotta was homemade from the whey after making chèvre . The goat milk definitely had a different taste than one would get with cows milk ricotta. I used frozen raspberries because I had a very good season last summer and need to use them up. The ones that touched the edge of the pan burned some and created a lot of smoke. It did not affect the flavor of the cake but we had to run the fan the whole time so be sure to not let the fruit touch the sides of the pan. I would be inclined to fold them in the batter next time although the separate bite flavors were interesting with sweet chevre flavored cake and then tart raspberry.

    1. Thank you, Sarah… I love your comment! You’ve used amazing ingredients, I wish I had fresh ricotta and raspberries from my garden!
      I’m sure it turned out delicious, and I’m so glad your skeptical husband enjoyed it too ; )
      Have a great week x

  8. nancy Visconti says:

    5 stars
    Hi Katia.
    Love your site. Made this twice. The second time I was sure to let the ricotta come to room temp….was definitely better then the first time I made it. It’s such an easy recipe & I’ll be making it more often. I used frozen berries [ that’s all I had]. Will use fresh next time. Many thanks for your recipes. Nancy in New York

    1. Hi Nancy, thanks so much for taking the time to share your lovely feedback!
      I’m so glad to hear you love my site and this recipe. I remember when I took those pictures I was craving a slice of this cake, it was so moist and irresistible!
      Hugs from London. x

  9. This looks great! Would it work with olive oil instead of vegetable or canola oil?

    1. Hi Stacey! Olive oil works too, its stronger flavor is usually mellowed out by the addition of vanilla and lemon zest (you might add a bit more of lemon zest just to make sure). It’s fine! x

    2. Jen Harrison says:

      I was wondering if coconut oil would throw the flavor? I try to bake with that or butter typically. Looks yummy and something to throw together quickly.
      Thank from Ohio, USA

    3. Hello Jen! I’ve never tested this recipe using these substitutions, but I think either butter or coconut oil should work. Please, keep me posted if you give it a go. : )
      Greetings from London. x

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating