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Baking Desserts Recipes Vegetarian

Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake

If executed with a reasonable amount of precision and expertise, attributes which often elude me, cheesecake is, perhaps, the best type of dessert. In all honesty, can anyone think of an attribute sought after in a dessert that goes wanting in a cheesecake? In general, they are smooth, simple, tasty, decadent, and as Greg Wallace, best known for his Master Chef induced dessert fetish, will tell you; they do have the highly sought after ‘buttery biscuit base’. As you may have noticed I appear to have developed something of a cheesecake fetish myself and ought really to stop prefixing every cheesecake recipe with fragranced drivel regarding their excellence. Please, I invite you all to violently rebuke me if this trend continues.

When writing a new blog post, there is nothing quite like the inspiration for authorship delivered to one by the food about which one is writing. So, as I sit here masticating upon the penultimate slice of lemon ricotta cheesecake, I am reminded of a rather innocuous thought which came to me yesterday. As you shall soon discover, this entire cheesecake employs the services of one rather lonely lemon. The flavour imparted by this single, small, yellow citrus fruit is more than enough to give the dessert a rather pleasing taste. Why then, do so many recipes appear to make use of as many as four whole lemons? This seems absurd and rather over-the-top. Of course, I don’t wish to insult the entire population of lemon cheesecake enthusiasts, but surely it is better to use as little lemon as is sensible, since it would be best to avoid the bitter harshness of pure lemon juice? Wonders will never cease.

Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake

Makes one 9 inch cheesecake

Ingredients:

• 200g crushed digestive biscuits

• 6 tbsp melted butter

• 60g granulated or caster sugar

• 500g ricotta cheese

• 300g cream cheese

• 3 eggs

• 1 lemon, zest and juice

• 150g gold caster sugar

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180C. Mix the biscuits with the melted butter and sugar and press into the bottom of a greased 9 inch springform pan.

2. Best together the cream cheese, ricotta cheese, lemon juice, lemon zest before mixing in the sugar. Incorporate the eggs, one at a time until you are left with a uniform mixture. Pour this on top on the biscuit base.

3. Wrap the bottom of the springform pan tightly foil and bake in a bain-marie for around an hour. The cheesecake is ready when its centre wobbles a little when shaken – it should not have cracked at all on top. Remove from the oven and leave to cool, remove it from the springform pan when cool. It is best after having been returned to the fridge.

Cost: This cheesecake could be done a little more cheaply if one substitutes the ricotta cheese for extra cream cheese. However, I believe this is a necessary expense as it gives the dessert a wonderful smoothness. As such, the entire cheesecake will set one back around £3.80. As usual, this cost me a little less as my chickens provide me with eggs.

143 replies on “Lemon Ricotta Cheesecake”

I have most definitely got to try this. I love cheesecake. I am from New York originally so I think it’s in my DNA. However, because I am a silly American could you clarify two things for me? What is caster sugar and what is a bain-marie? My mom’s name is marie is that close enough? 🙂 I think I must now go purchase a springform pan. I’ve been wanting to but hadn’t had the appropriate amount of motivation until now. Thanks and keep up the great work.

I love lemons, but four of them in one cheesecake? Seems excessive.

I think I will go for your recipe because as it happens I’ve never had lemon cheesecake before. We usually go for a plain one, if one could ever call a dessert as indulgent as cheesecake “plain”!

oh – it looks so good. Love the flavours. Perhaps you need some editorial help over there – you know – a tester!!! I would like to volunteer for the job! Starting, of course, with your lemon ricotta cheesecake! It is safe to say, my mouth is watering as I type!

I really wish I had the self control necessary to make one of these and then have it sat within reach and not eat it all at once. Unfortunately self control is not my strong point! Absolutely adore cheesecake and this one looks fab! 🙂

Okay, I wrote in your Apple Pie post that it might be the first pie a attempt, BUT, after reading this one I have to take that statement back. 🙂
Cheesecake is my very favorite and lemon cheesecake would probably take the crown.
Thank you thank you thank you!!! 🙂
I have to get a springform today.
Cheers!

No rebuking necessary on the humble cheesecake, it truly is a fine dessert that is whole heartedly worth paragraphs of praise.
(although, I am rather fond of an eye squinty tarty one… possibly more than the one lemon in those ones 🙂

I have never used ricotta in cheesecake so this will be a new one for me too! Looks wonderful and I bet it is fresh and zesty which is exactly how I like my lemon cheesecakes enough to make the mouth pucker!

Ooooh, Frugal, cheesecake is the key to my heart. I love the tangy sweetness and the buttery crust. I even like dense, brick-like cheesecakes.

But ricotta ones are my favorite.

And I have to say, you must have the best collection of bowls and dishes that I have ever seen! Those mixing bowls of yours? I totally want them!

I’ll bear that in mind :D. I’m glad you like my crockery – I shall be buying more as I go along. We have a really nice, cheap second hand shop here that always has loads. They are my mum’s and were my great grand mother’s I think :D. I love them too :D.

What I and my (Italian heritage by way of New York City) husband and I love about this is the relatively small amount of sugar. Here in the U.S., outside of NYC, cheesecakes all seem be too frigging sweet. This looks grand!

Lemon and ricotta…I’ve never been a huge cheesecake fan, but the more posts I see of great cheesecake, the more I want some! This sounds absolutely wonderful and I wonder how it would taste with a little fresh basil in it? Lemon, ricotta and basil are so good together.

Loving the dessert love on Frugal lately! I’ve been craving a creamy rich cheesecake recently, what perfect timing! I’ve never made or eaten ricotta cheesecake before, what’s the texture like?

Wanna hear something eerie? So I was browsing through the WP blogs in the “Baking” tag and I see this picture without knowing whose blog it is. I think to myself, “This so is Frugal Feeding!” and sure enough, I putmy mouse over the picture and saw that it’s you 🙂 Do I know a Frugal meal or what??!!

ohhh cheesecake. I agree, certainly the best dessert. the only drawback, in my life, with an allergic-to-dairy-boyfriend, is that cheesecake can’t really be made dairy-free! This one sounds delicious. thanks for making my mouth water; I’ll try to stop thinking about it now….. 🙂

Awesome! I’m so glad. Umm – it wouldn’t affect the consistency, but I think 140-150g is the minimum for the mixture itself. The base doesn’t really need any sugar, strictly speaking. So, I;d cut it out of the base.

I have lemons and I have ricotta! I think I must make this recipe. Looks so absolutely delicious! But… what would I sub for digestive biscuits here in the US? Graham Crackers, Vanilla wafers? I suppose any crunchy cookie/biscuit?

Your cheesecake is beautiful, Nick. Digestive biscuits are far superior to their American cousin graham crackers. But describing the flavor of fresh lemon juice as “bitter harshness” causes me to wonder if a sun drought in the British Isles might be causing bitter lemons. Our lemons are sweet enough to eat like oranges, with just a bit of bite.

Thanks, Kale. I’d always imagined that they were. Perhaps you have a preponderance to being able to eat lemons, or perhaps we have a different variety? I don’t know… I don’t think they were grown in Britain though.

Sad for me! I have, in my fridge (should I even admit it?), a 10-day-old Costco cheesecake that just doesn’t – could never – hold a candle to the one you describe here. Now I’ll be wanting lemon cheesecake all night! Into the list of bookmarks this goes so I can make it very soon. Especially while Meyer lemons are still in season. For the Americans, what would be a brand of digestive biscuits to look for? I’ve never purchased them before. Lovely site you have here!

I have never made cheesecake (even though it is one of the desserts I like best) because I don’t have a springform cake pan. But I really must go buy one…your recipe looks too delicious to be ignored!

Sounds lush, will have to give this one a go.
Had to laugh about the Greg Wallace techno remix reference… most amusing; you should link it 🙂 Wobble, wobble, wobble-wobble-wobble-wobble… acid base, smack around the face, I like the buttery biscuit base…

This looks great and creamy. I love the picture of the ricotta and lemon zest in the bowl, its a great picture. I could probably go through all your recipes and click the “like” button (don’t worry I didn’t), because your recipes are amazing. I love your blog and I’m glad I found it.

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