Pear Ricotta Cake

This Italian Pear Ricotta Cake is light and full of flavor. Made with ricotta cheese, diced pears, and a bit of fresh lemon, you're going to love this classic Italian cake that's also great served as a breakfast or brunch treat.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Pear Ricotta CAke

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 15

Servings servings

Calories 317kcal

Author Angela Allison

Equipment

9 inch springform pan

Ingredients

¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese (well drained)
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ large lemon, zested and juiced (½ teaspoon zest, 1 tablespoon juice)
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ½ cups all purpose flour (200 grams)
2 large pears, cored and diced (about 2 ½ cups)
powdered sugar for dusting (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and position baking rack in the middle of your oven. Grease a 9-inch springform pan and line with a parchment round; set aside.
In a large bowl or stand up mixer, beat together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light, about a minute. Add in the drained ricotta cheese and blend until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes.
Mix in the eggs, one at a time. Add in the vanilla, lemon zest and lemon juice, and mix to combine. In the same bowl, stir in the baking soda and salt. Lastly, add in the flour and mix until just combined, scrapping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
Pat your diced pears dry with a paper towel. Use a rubber spatula to fold in the diced pears and mix until well combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared springform pan. Bake on center rack in preheated oven for 60-70 minutes, or until the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean.
Let cool in pan for 15 minutes before removing the collar and base of the pan. Cool on a wire rack completely. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Notes

Drain the ricotta: to drain, place the ricotta in a fine mesh sieve set over a bowl. Let the liquid drain for at least an hour or overnight in the refrigerator.
Make sure you take the time to mix the ricotta into the butter and sugar. This will give you a light and fluffy cake, rather than dense.
If the cake starts to brown too quickly while baking, loosely tent with foil until it is baked through.
Bundt cake option: if you don't have a springform pan, you can bake this in a standard bundt cake pan instead. Adjust your baking time and always check for doneness using a toothpick.
Storage: store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week or freeze for up to two months.

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