Ricotta Pound Cake With Vanilla Bean Recipes

VANILLA RICOTTA POUND CAKE WITH MAPLE GLAZE

Steps:

• For the Vanilla Ricotta Pound Cake: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Position oven rack to lower third. Grease a 9-inch loaf pan and lay a strip of parchment paper along the bottom for easy cake removal.
• In a medium bowl, sift together cake flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, cream butter, ricotta and sugar on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes. Beat eggs in one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add vanilla bean paste and extract. On low speed, beat in dry ingredients until well combined. Do not over-mix.
• Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth down with a spatula. Bake for 15 minutes then turn pan 180 degrees to ensure even browning. Lower temperature to 325 degrees F and bake about 40 minutes more, until cake springs back lightly and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Let cool completely before adding maple glaze (recipe below).
• For the Maple Glaze: In small bowl, whisk all ingredients until smooth and creamy. If too thin, add a little more powdered sugar. If too thick, add a little more maple syrup. Or, you can also use cream or milk to thin.
• Drizzle over cooled pound cake and let glaze set before serving.
• Enjoy!

RICOTTA POUND CAKE WITH VANILLA BEAN

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.
• Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
• Cream together ricotta, butter, and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 7 minutes. Mixture will look somewhat grainy and curdled--this is normal. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition. Beat batter an additional 2 to 3 minutes on medium-high speed after adding the last egg. Mix in almond extract.
• Use a small paring knife to slice vanilla bean in half lengthwise. Scrape the seeds out of each half and add to the batter. Mix on low speed until vanilla seeds are evenly dispersed.
• Add half of the dry ingredients to the batter, mixing until only just combined. Mix in remaining dry ingredients until just combined. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Tap pan lightly on the counter a few times to remove air bubbles.
• Place pan into preheated oven and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 70 to 75 minutes. Allow cake to cool in the pan for 30 minutes. Gently run a knife around the edges of the cake to loosen, the remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

LEMON-BERRY RICOTTA POUND CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 15 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan with butter and dust with flour. In a medium bowl sift together flour, baking powder, and salt.
• Using a stand mixer, cream together ricotta cheese, butter and sugar until light and fluffy, approximately 3-5 minutes. Please not the mixture will be slightly lumpy, no worries. With the machine running, add the eggs one at a time and mix until just incorporated. Add the vanilla bean (I prefer Nielson-Massey's Madagascar Vanilla Bean paste), lemon zest, lemon juice (pulp okay)and mix until well combined. Don't worry if your batter is not smooth - the batter will not end up smooth.
• Add the dry ingredients 1/3 of a cup at a time and mix until just incorporated until you have added all your dry ingredients. Remove your bowl from the stand mixer and fold in your berries with a spatula. Pour your batter into your prepared loaf pan. (You could use a bundt cake pan if you prefer). Bake your cake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and the sides begin to pull away from the edges of your pan. Let the cake cool in the pan for approximately 10 minutes then turn out unto a wire rack to cool completely. Your house should smell lemony good!
• To serve, slice the pound cake & serve with a dollop of whipping cream or some vanilla bean ice cream and a fresh mint leaf. Enjoy!

RICOTTA POUND CAKE

Steps:

• 350°F (177°C).
• Place oven rack in the center position.
• Grease and flour a 9-inch loaf pan.
• Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a mixing bowl.
• In a large stand mixer bowl, cream together the butter, ricotta, and sugar, then adding eggs, one at a time, allowing each to incorporate before adding the next. Add vanilla.
• Set mixer speed to low, and gradually add the dry ingredients. Once added, allow the batter to mix for 30 seconds or so.
• Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, smoothing the batter.
• Bake the cake on the center rack for 15 minutes, then lower heat to 325°F (160°C) and bake about 25-60 minutes more, or until cake springs back from touch and has slightly pulled away from pan sides, and a toothpick comes out clean (baking time is approximate: the amount of water in the ricotta determines the baking time in the end).
• Cool the cake inside the loaf pan for 15 minutes before removing. Allow the cake to finish cooling outside the pan from then on.