6-ingredient Lemon And Ricotta Cake
on Aug 11, 2020, Updated May 07, 2025
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When you need a freshly baked cake in a hurry, this very easy lemon and ricotta cake doesn’t disappoint. It’s moist and dense, and yet light and tangy with a subtle but delicious lemon flavour. it’s lowish in sugar and contains olive oil, which complements the lemon flavour really well. The best part? You need just 6 main ingredients to make it!
Why you’ll love it
Easy cakes are one of my ‘accidental’ specialities. You seem to go wild for this 6-ingredient gooey Swedish chocolate cake, this mini banana bread and these epic Greek yogurt blueberry muffins.
Made in a loaf pan, this lemon and ricotta cake is the simplest citrusy cake – just as easy to prep as these popular cakes that have gone before it in just 10 minutes and with only 6 ingredients. It’s perfect when you need a cake last-minute for a special occasion such as Mother’s Day, a picnic, or any gathering with family and friends.
It’s zesty and moist with a very soft crumb thanks to the one and a half cups of ricotta cheese in it.
Here’s a summary of what you’ll love:
- Only 6 main ingredients and 10 minutes to make the batter. 🙂
- No tiresome creaming of butter and sugar. Just stir all the wet ingredients together, then add the flour!
- It’s not too high in sugar – just 3/4 of a cup. A typical loaf cake contains at least a cup and sometimes more.
- The ricotta and olive oil (rather than butter) give it an Italian vibe. This Italian orange ricotta cake is similar, so if you love the chocolate-orange combo, you might like to try this as well!
- It stays moist and tasty for quite a few days. Bonus!
About the ingredients
You’ll find a full list of ingredients with amounts in the recipe card below. But here’s a summary of what you need to know.
Ricotta cheese: I would recommend using whole milk ricotta for the best results. You can usually find it in a tub in the supermarket cheese aisle, or from a deli counter.
Eggs: You’ll need 3 large eggs. Go with free range or organic eggs if the budget allows.
Olive oil: The advantage of using oil not butter in a cake is that you don’t need to cream it together with the sugar. I would recommend using light extra virgin olive oil if possible for a milder flavor, but you can use any olive oil you like. Surprisingly, olive oil complements the lemon flavor really well in a cake.
Sugar: Just regular white sugar. You’ll need just three quarters of a cup, which is a fairly low amount for a cake.
Lemons: You’ll need two lemons – the juice of one and the zest of both for the perfect amount of lemony flavor.
Flour: I usually use self raising flour for ease. If you don’t have any, you can easily make your own using all-purpose flour and baking powder (instructions in recipe card below).
Got some ricotta to use up? Try this 20-minute prosciutto pasta recipe. Perfect for spring – or any time!
How to make a lemon and ricotta cake
This is an incredibly quick and easy cake to make. Not only because it’s only got a few ingredients in it, but because there are just two main steps to making the batter.
It literally takes 5 to 10 minutes to do. The baking time is about the same as a banana bread – about 55 minutes in my oven. But once it’s in the oven you can put your feet up and enjoy the delicious smell as your cake bakes.
Step 1: Whisk together all the ‘wet’ ingredients. Start by whisking the eggs into the ricotta, then stir in the oil, and the lemon juice and zest.
Step 2: Fold in the flour and salt.
All that’s left to do now is to scrape your batter into a lined loaf pan and bake! 50 minutes to an hour should do it.
Helen’s Top Tips
- Be careful not to overmix when you’re folding in the flour and salt.
- In my oven this cake turns out perfectly after 55 minutes, but check every 5 minutes after 45 minutes to be sure.
- Use more lemon zest if you’d like to up the lemony flavor a notch.
How to serve your cake
The beauty of this very easy ricotta and lemon cake is that it’s moist and flavorful enough to serve it as it is. No fancy frostings or icings necessary!
It’s particularly delicious served warm. It goes wonderfully with a cup of tea or coffee, but you can also turn it into a dessert by adding a scoop of ice cream on the top.
My top tip for elevating this dessert into something special? Make some of this 5-minute raspberry sauce to drizzle over the top!
Variations
One of the reasons I like this cake so much is that it’s a very simple but very delicious cake. You can throw it together at the last minute and everyone will still ooh and ahh and think you’re the best baker ever!
However, here are a few more ways to switch things up and make it potentially even more delicious!
- Make it a glazed ricotta lemon cake by mixing lemon juice into icing/powdered sugar. When you have a thin(ish) icing, drizzle it over the top of the cake when it’s cooled.
- Fold some raspberries or blueberries into the cake batter before you pour it into the baking pan.
- Swirl a bit of lemon curd lightly through the batter.
- Stir in some nuts such as pistachios, hazelnuts, or macadamia nuts.
- Try the cake using lime or orange juice and zest instead of lemon.
Recipe FAQs
I find that this cake stays nice and moist and tasty for several days. Just keep it in an air tight container and enjoy it for days… if it lasts that long!
Yes, you can freeze it – either whole or in separate slices. Simply wrap well in aluminium foil and/or cling wrap/plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months.
More classy but simple cake recipes
6-ingredient Lemon And Ricotta Cake
Ingredients
- 1½ cups ricotta cheese
- 3 large eggs
- ½ cup light olive oil, (or use another kind of oil – any works)
- 2 medium lemons, juice of one lemon, zest of two lemons
- ¾ cup white sugar, I've used ordinary white sugar, caster (super fine) sugar and raw organic sugar – all work
- 1½ cups self raising flour, Or make your own: 1½ cups plain flour + 2½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Line a 9 or 10 x 4 inch loaf pan with baking paper. Pre-heat the oven to 180C / 355F.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir the eggs into the ricotta cheese with a wooden spoon until smooth.1½ cups ricotta cheese, 3 large eggs
- Add the oil, lemon juice and zest and sugar. Stir with the wooden spoon again until well combined.½ cup light olive oil, 2 medium lemons, ¾ cup white sugar
- Fold in the flour and salt until just combined (be careful not to overmix).1½ cups self raising flour, ½ teaspoon salt
- Tip the cake batter into the prepared loaf tin/pan. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a skewer poked into the middle of the cake comes out clean. (It takes 55 minutes in my oven, but check at 45 minutes and every 5 minutes after that)
Notes
- Add raspberries, blueberries or a swirl of lemon curd before baking.
- Make a simple icing out of icing/powdered sugar and lemon juice and drizzle over the top.
Light, moist, and delicious. Very pleased. I drizzled a simple lemon glaze over the loaves. I’m going to tweak it a bit for next time:
– It browned more than I would like before it fully cooked in the center. I’m going to try lowering the temperature to 325F and cooking it slightly longer next time.
– I did a double batch and used 2 lemons total (because that’s what I had on hand). I think 3 lemons (zest and juice) would be perfect for 2 loaves.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Jeanne, and thank you so much for the feedback. It’s helpful to hear how much lemony flavor you prefer and how long it takes to cook in your oven. I love the idea of adding a simple lemon glaze. 🙂
Nice easy recipe to add to my many ricotta recipes. I’m able to get fresh ricotta daily at the local farmers market, so this a good recipe to put to use. The only thing I did differently was add 1 tsp of Lemon extract. For my taste, it was spot on. Thank you.
Hello Wilhelm, and thank you so much for the great feedback on this recipe. I bet that fresh ricotta is amazing. Have you ever tried making ricotta gnocchi with it? There’s a recipe here in case you’d like to give it a go: https://scrummylane.com/easy-baked-gnocchi-with-sausage-peppers-and-tomatoes-30-minute-recipe/
Simple and delicious. I had some ricotta cheese left over and didn’t want it to go to waste. I had the right amount left over to use in this recipe. I used gf flour, added salt and baking powder to make it self rising. I didn’t have any lemons on hand, so I used pure lemon extract and used 2/4 cup of truvia, instead of sugar. Baked it in my air fryer. I’m no cook or baker so I was nervous that my substitutions and cooking method would turn out to be a disaster. I was so wrong. This cake came out moist, zesty and just delicious. I will definitely make this again. Next time I’ll be sure to use fresh lemon juice and zest. The lemon extract was fine in a pinch, but fresh lemon will be even better. Split the battery into 2 loaves. One will go in the freezer, if not i may devour both😋. Happy I found your site. Thank you.
Thank you SO much for the feedback, Tamra! I love my recipes to be adaptable, so it’s fantastic that your changes worked out so well. I’m especially happy that the recipe turned out well in your air fryer! Thanks again and happy new year!
This cake is the best!!!! I would like to make a double batch and bake it in the @ 3″ x 4″ disposable
aluminum pans to give as little gifts to friends. What do you think? How long should I bake them?
I’m so glad you like it so much, Andrea! Mini loaves for gifts are a lovely idea! I’d try checking the loaves after about 18 to 20 minutes and go from there. You might like to try baking 1 by itself first as an experiment before cooking a whole batch? I’d love to hear how you get on!
Hi Helen,
Another fantastic recipe and what a joy looking at the steps and ingredients list. I’m considering making this over the weekend and would like to adapt the recipe swirling in some lemon curd (around 4 tablespoons) and adding some raspberries (around 1/2 cup)- would you recommend any changes to the cooking time?
Hello Deji! So happy you’re going to try this! I think you’ll be fine leaving the recipe exactly as it is if you swirl some lemon curd in and add raspberries. I’d love it if you let me know how you get on! 🙂