This easy Lemon Raspberry Ricotta Cake is a light, refreshing, creamy dessert flavored with fresh raspberries, lemon juice, and zest. It's perfect for spring, summer, and any other time of year!
This Lemon Raspberry Ricotta Cake recipe post is made in partnership with my friends over at Domino® Sugar. All opinions and views expressed below are 100% my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that help make Beyond the Butter® possible!
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Recipe Overview: Lemon Raspberry Ricotta Cake
I am so in love with this lemon raspberry ricotta cake! It's a light, refreshing dessert that tastes fantastic and doesn't need any mixers! Just a 9-inch springform pan, a few mixing bowls, a fine grater, whisks, and spatula. That's it!
The key players in this cake recipe are the whole milk ricotta cheese, Domino® Golden Sugar, raspberries, and lemons. The ricotta cheese gives it that nice creamy texture, while the Golden Sugar and raspberries give you the perfect level of sweetness and flavor, with a lip-smacking kick of tartness from the lemon juice and zest!
It's not as dense or indulgent as a regular cheesecake, making it the perfect treat to enjoy this time of year and summer. You can keep it stored in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature for about three days, or keep it longer in the refrigerator.
And my favorite way to enjoy this ricotta cake? Chilled with a sprinkling of powdered sugar! Eating it at room temperature is just as yummy, though. Either way, it is incredibly good!
Enjoy!
What Ingredients Will You Need
This is lemon raspberry cake requires a total of 10 ingredients.
- Domino® Golden Sugar. A 1:1 replacement for granulated white sugar, Domino® Golden Sugar, gives this ricotta cake the perfect level of sweetness!
- All-Purpose Flour. Keep it simple and use your favorite brand of flour. I didn't test this with any other kind.
- Baking Powder and Salt. 2 ¼ teaspoons of baking powder is needed—make sure it is fresh. And you will need one teaspoon of salt.
- Eggs. You will need three large eggs at room temperature.
- Ricotta Cheese. Gives this cake its name with a light and creamy texture. Whole milk ricotta cheese is preferred for this recipe.
- Lemons. You'll need one large or two medium-sized lemons for the two teaspoons of lemon zest and three tablespoons of lemon juice.
- Vanilla Extract. The classic vanilla taste helps bring all the flavors together. I do not recommend using lemon extract because lemon juice and zest will be enough.
- Unsalted Butter. This is added in melted form. Ensure it is slightly cooled before adding to the cake batter.
- Fresh Raspberries. You can also use fresh blueberries or strawberries or leave the berries out entirely.
For garnish, you can add a simple dusting of Domino® Powdered Sugar!
Recommended Baking Tools
How to Make this Ricotta Cake
This lemon raspberry ricotta cake really can't get any easier! Prep time is about 20 minutes with a bake time of 45-50 minutes at 350ºF.
Prep Your Ingredients. I recommend having your springform pan ready, lemon juice, and zest prepped, as well as tossing the raspberries in a coating of all-purpose flour. This will prevent the raspberries from sinking to the bottom of your cake.
Melting the butter now is also recommended, so it's cooled slightly before adding it to the batter later.
Whisk the Dry Ingredients. This includes the Domino® Golden Sugar, all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest.
Mix the Wet Ingredients Together. You'll whisk the eggs, ricotta cheese, lemon juice, and vanilla extract in a separate bowl. Do not add in the melted butter just yet. So far, the batter should be light yellow in color, relatively smooth, and thin in texture.
Add the Dry to the Wet. Use a spatula for this part, as it helps not to over-mix the batter. Partway through stirring, go ahead and pour in the slightly cooled melted butter.
Fold in the fresh raspberries. Make sure you've coated them in flour first. Using your spatula again for this part is recommended. The ricotta cake batter will be light in color and airy and somewhat thick and doughy in texture.
Transfer the Batter. Use a spatula to transfer the batter to the 9-inch springform pan, then level out. If you like, you can top with a few more raspberries, but don't press them all the way in. As the cake bakes, it will come up around the raspberries.
Bake, then cool. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until an inserted toothpick to the center of the cake comes out clean. My tests of this recipe came out well between 48-50 minutes.
The top of the cake should be light golden brown in color and puffy with golden brown sides that have slightly pulled away from the sides.
Let the cake cool for a minimum of 20 minutes before releasing it from the springform pan. Then let it cool completely before serving (this can take 1-2 hours). Dust with powdered sugar (optional), then serve!
Super easy and so very good!
FAQs
You will need a 9-inch springform pan. You can also make this in a 9-inch cake pan. I will say that making it in the springform pan is nicer because removing the sides allows you to cut the cake easier.
Fresh lemon juice is the best for this recipe for the best flavor. I also recommend fresh because this recipe also calls for lemon zest.
Because this prevents them from sinking to the bottom of your cake. I also recommend doing it with the blueberries in my lemon blueberry streusel muffins recipe.
Yes, absolutely. Frozen berries (unthawed) will work just fine!
Enjoy More Beyond the Butter Cake Recipes!
📖 Recipe
Lemon Raspberry Ricotta Cake
Author:Ingredients
Flour Coated Raspberries
- 1 ½ cups Fresh Raspberries (plus extra for topping)
- 1-2 tablespoon All-Purpose Flour (for coating raspberries)
Lemon Raspberry Ricotta Cake
- 1 cup Domino® Golden Sugar
- 1½ cups All-Purpose Flour
- 2 ¼ teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 2 teaspoon Lemon Zest
- 3 Large Eggs
- 1½ cups Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese
- 3 tablespoon Lemon Juice (from approximately 1 large or 2 medium-sized lemons)
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ½ cup Unsalted Butter (melted)
- Domino® Powdered Sugar (for dusting/garnish top of cake)
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the 2nd level position (just above center) and preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously spray the sides and bottom of a 9-inch diameter springform pan with a flour-based baking spray and dust with powdered sugar.
- In a small bowl, toss the clean raspberries with 1-2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour. Set to the side.1 ½ cups Fresh Raspberries, 1-2 tablespoon All-Purpose Flour
- In a medium-size mixing bowl, whisk together the Domino® Golden Sugar, all-purpose flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest. Set to the side.1 cup Domino® Golden Sugar, 1½ cups All-Purpose Flour, 2 ¼ teaspoon Baking Powder, 1 teaspoon Salt, 2 teaspoon Lemon Zest
- In a large-size mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs, ricotta cheese, lemon juice, and vanilla extract until well combined.3 Large Eggs, 1½ cups Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese, 3 tablespoon Lemon Juice, 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- With a spatula, fold in the whisked dry ingredients until just blended. Then stir in the melted butter and flour coated raspberries. The batter will be thick and on the heavier side, but airy.½ cup Unsalted Butter
- Spoon the batter into the prepared 9-inch springform pan and top with additional fresh raspberries.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes at 350ºF or until an inserted toothpick into the center of the cake comes out clean. The top of the cake should be light golden brown in color and puffy with golden brown sides that have slightly pulled away from the sides.
- Let the cake cool for a minimum of 20 minutes before releasing it from the springform pan. Allow to cool completely, then dust with Domino® Powdered Sugar (optional), and serve.Domino® Powdered Sugar
- Keep the lemon raspberry ricotta cake stored in an airtight cake dome container or wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 3 days. For keeping fresh longer, you can also store the cake for up to a week in the refrigerator.
Video
Recipe Notes
- This lemon raspberry ricotta cake can be made using fresh or frozen raspberries, blueberries, or strawberries. It can also be made using only lemon juice and lemon zest.
Nutrition
Nutritonal information provided above is an estimate only and will vary based on specific ingredients used.
Anna says
Excellent easy and delicious cake. Used regular sugar as no acces to the brand in the recipe. Next time I will add a little more lemon grind. Will definitely be making this over and over!! Thanks for this great recipe!!
Jennifer says
So happy you enjoyed it, Anna; thank you!
Sue says
What happens if I use part skim ricotta cheese?
Jennifer says
I didn't test the recipe using part-skim, but you may notice a change in the texture as whole milk ricotta is higher in fat and creamier.
J Brown says
I am preparing to make this for the third time at the request of my granddaughter for her birthday cake. It is so delicious! One question, I hope you can answer is, if I double the recipe can I bake it in a bundt pan just to make it a little fancier
Jennifer says
Ahh, that's wonderful! I'm so glad she loves it! I never tested this cake in a bundt cake pan before so I can't say for certain how it would turn out. I prefer using a springform pan, but you're welcome to try this way though, and let us know how it turns out.
Dianne says
Can I freeze this cake?
Jennifer says
Yes, you can freeze this lemon raspberry ricotta cake. Just make sure it's cooled completely. Place it in the freezer on a plate until the cake has become solid, then double or triple wrap in plastic wrap and place in a well-sealed container (or large freezer bag). Place it back in the freezer. It will be good for up to a month. To defrost it, place it in the refrigerator overnight.
Marjorie says
This sounds delicious! Do you think this could be divided into single serve portions using a muffin tin? Maybe reduce it to 20 min baking time?
Jennifer says
Thank you! Because I didn't test the recipe this way, I can't say how it would turn out using a muffin tin. Sorry!
Janice Kay Short says
Hi Jennifer,
I made this cake today and the result was fabulous! I have already eaten two large slices and am trying to resist a third! It was so easy. This will be in my regular rotation forever. Thank you so much for the awesome recipe and the articulate directions!!!
Jennifer says
You're very welcome! And thank you for making it!