This lemon ricotta cake is moist, tender and bursting with bright lemon flavor! It’s a favorite spring dessert and also the perfect sweet addition to an Easter or Mother’s Day brunch spread.
With this Lemon Ricotta Cake it was love at first bite
I love baking with citrus, so it’s no surprise that this lemon ricotta cake became an immediate favorite of mine. The bright lemon flavor is truly irresistible! If you’ve never baked with ricotta cheese, it makes baked goods like this ricotta cake wonderfully moist and tender.
I’ve brought this cake to share at many events, and it’s always a huge hit! I’ve added lemon juice and lemon zest to both the cake and glaze, so each bite is full of sweet-tart lemon flavor. I think you’ll also love my Lemon Bars, Grapefruit Ricotta Cake and Grapefruit Ricotta Muffins!
Ingredient Notes
Here’s a look at the key ingredients for this ricotta cake recipe. Find the printable recipe with ingredient amounts below.
- Cake Flour: Cake flour gives this cake the best light, tender texture. You can buy cake flour at the grocery store or make your own. I’ve also tested this recipe with all-purpose flour and it makes the cake a bit denser, but still very good.
- Baking Powder & Salt: The baking powder makes the cake rise and the salt enhances all of the flavors.
- Butter: For flavor and moisture.
- Granulated Sugar: For sweetness.
- Lemon Zest and Juice: First, zest the lemons. I use a microplane zester to do this. Then cut the lemons in half and juice them.
- Eggs: This cake uses 3 eggs, which provide structure and richness.
- Ricotta Cheese: Use whole milk ricotta for the richest flavor.
- Vanilla & Almond Extract: The almond flavor is subtle, and a wonderful complement to the lemon and ricotta.
- Glaze: For the glaze you’ll need powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest. I like to top the glazed cake with sliced almonds; this is optional.
How to Make Lemon Ricotta Cake
Before you begin: Let the butter and eggs come to room temperature before beginning. This helps them to incorporate easily into the batter.
Make cake batter: Whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and salt) and set aside. Use an electric mixer to cream together the butter, granulated sugar and lemon zest. This infuses the sugar with lemon flavor to make sure your cake is full of fresh lemon flavor. Beat in the eggs, then the ricotta, lemon juice, vanilla, and almond extract. Finally, mix in the flour until just combined. The batter will be slightly lumpy.
Bake cake: Pour the batter into a greased, parchment-paper lined loaf pan. Bake at 350° F for 50-60 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Be sure to insert the tester all the way down to the bottom of the cake, as the top may be done but the bottom might still be gooey. If the cake is browning too much on top before the center is done, you can lay a piece of foil over the top as it continues baking.
Glaze cake: Once the cake is completely cool, make the glaze. Whisk together the powdered sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice. Spoon the glaze over the top of the cake. Sprinkle with sliced almonds, if desired. Let the glaze set for a few minutes before serving.
More Favorite Lemon Recipes
I think you’ll also love these lemon recipes!
Lemon Ricotta Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 ½ cups cake flour, or all-purpose flour (see note)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- zest of 2 medium lemons, about 1 tablespoon
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup ricotta cheese, whole milk ricotta preferred
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
For the glaze and topping:
- ¾ cup powdered sugar, sifted
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons sliced almonds, optional, for topping
Instructions
Make the Cake
- Preheat oven to 350° F with an oven rack in the lower third of the oven. Spray a 9×5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Place a piece of parchment paper on the bottom of the pan, letting it hang up and over the sides on the two ends.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the cake flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- Use an electric mixer to cream together the butter, granulated sugar and lemon zest on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs and beat until incorporated, about 1 minute, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the ricotta, lemon juice, vanilla, and almond extract and beat on medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, about 2 minutes.
- With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute. The batter may be a little lumpy.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Be sure to insert the tester all the way down to the bottom of the cake, as the top may be done but the bottom might still be gooey. If the cake is browning too much on top before the center is done, you can lay a piece of foil over the top as it continues baking.
- Let cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes and then remove from pan to cool completely on the wire rack before glazing.
Make the Glaze
- Whisk together the powdered sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice in a medium bowl. Spoon glaze over the top of the cooled cake. Sprinkle with sliced almonds. Let glaze set for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
- Using cake flour makes this cake especially tender. I’ve also tested this recipe with all-purpose flour and it is a bit denser, but still very good.
- Store leftover cake wrapped tightly in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
I originally shared this recipe in April 2014. Post updated March 2025 with new photos and more helpful information.
It’s so beautiful!! I’ve never used ricotta in baked goods but I can’t wait to try this cake! It looks so dense and so moist and so lemony! Pinned!
Thanks for the pin!
This lemon pound cake is absolutely delicious.
Couldn’t resist having a piece for my breakfast.
Thanks for sharing!
You are welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake. Lemon treats are just perfect this time of year!
This? Looks absolutely amazing. I’m a fan of anything lemon (so jealous of your easy access to a lemon tree!). And you can tell from the photos how dense and moist it is from the ricotta. Definitely making this one day soon.
Yep, this is super dense and moist! I actually just baked this for the fourth time today, because I just had to share it with my work friends. I do hope you try it!
I baked your lemon-ricotta cake with almond glaze three times in one week! Once to practice and twice for guests. A success each time! The cake was well received by my guests and I had many requests for the recipe. I served it with fresh fruit salad. Thank you for a delicious and versatile cake recipe.
I am so happy to hear that you and your guests loved this cake, Maria! Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment to let me know!
My sis and i made the cake last night, first time. Came out perfect, delicious capital D!!!!! Thanku! ?
Yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed this! Thanks for letting me know. ?
Kristine, this looks beyond amazing! Don’t you just love when it’s time to test out recipes and the little nibbles here and there are still really delicious?! This looks like a winner… so pretty. I can just imagine the texture the ricotta cheese gives it.
Thank you so much for your thoughtful comment! And thanks so much for pinning and sharing! You’re right, each of those taste tests along the way were completely delicious!
This is ONE DELICIOUS CAKE!! So fresh and sweet. I have a new favorite treat!
Thanks, Marlene! I’m so glad you liked it!
Today is Super Bowl XLIX. My wife (and I) loves anything lemon so I am heading out to the store to buy all the fixins to make this. It looks delicious. Will let you know how I do on it. I think, I’ll get some lemon curd and whipped cream for the topping.
This cake is one of our all-time favorites. I hope you and your wife love it as much as we do!
I just printed it out and am going to make it this morning. I’ve decided I’m going to substitute coconut oil for butter and reduce the sugar by 1/2. Will let you know how it turns out!
Those sound like great ways to make this cake a little healthier. I hope you loved it!
can you make this with reg all purpose flour, instead of having to use cake flour?
You can, but the texture of the cake will be a little denser. Cake flour has a lower protein content which gives a soft, light texture. You can make a cake flour substitute by measuring out 1 cup of all-purpose flour, removing 2 tablespoons of the flour, and adding 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in its place. Then it’s important to sift the flour a number of times (3-5) to ensure that everything is well mixed, light, and aerated.
Hi there! I just made this pound cake recipe and while the taste is spot on and it looks gorgeous, mine caved in the middle and I’m not sure why. Do you know why this would happen? Thanks again!
I’ve never had a problem with this cake sinking in the middle, but there are lots of reasons why that can happen. It’s important to not open the oven door until the cake is almost done baking, old baking powder could be to blame, as well as overbeating the batter. A quick Google search can provide even more details. While I’m sorry your cake caved in the middle, I’m glad it still tasted good! 🙂
What size of loaf pan??
My pan is 1.5 quart, and measures 8.5×4.5×2.5 inches. Enjoy!
Could you double thus recipe and bake in a tube pan ???? Thanks, Angie
I’ve never tried that, so I’m not 100% sure. Maybe, but the baking time may be different.
This looks delicious! Do you think it would work and 6 inch or 8 inch pans?
Do you mean round cake pans? It may work, but the bake time would probably be less. This cake does have more of a dense texture, it is like a very moist pound cake.
I loved this recipe. I decided to make dessert breads for Christmas visits and chose a lemon ricotta recipe. It was good, but when I made a second batch to use up the rest of the cheese I used this recipe and it blew the other one away! I love the subtle hint of almonds and the glaze worked really well.
Hi Jacqueline, I’m so happy to hear that you loved this recipe! Thank you for taking the time to let me know. 🙂 Happy New Year!
SO GOOD! This was some of the moistest cake I’ve ever had. Took it to work and it disappeared in no time. Everyone loved it! Thank you for this excellent recipe.
I’m so happy to hear that! 🙂
I made three smaller cakeS. So cute. I’ll be taking them to Christmas dinner. Thanks for sharing, I had a little ricotta left and it was enough to make this tart little treat
Is is possible to freeze this delicious cake?
I haven’t tried it, but I think it would freeze well.
This lemon ricotta bread is the best bread I have ever eaten. Don’t hesitate to make this bread, it is so moist and delicious.