Almond ricotta cake is a naturally gluten-free cake baked with almond flour and creamy ricotta for a wonderful flavor and light cheesecake texture! I’ve shared another similar recipe in the past for Swedish Visiting Cake, but I am told by some of my taste testers that this cake is now their favorite, so I will leave it for you to decide.

 

I’m a big fan of using both vanilla and almond extract together. The almond is the star flavor of this cake, but the vanilla tempers the almond and adds a lovely background note. The sliced almonds on top of the cake will toast during baking and provide a nice element of crunch. I also like to add my signature topping, sparkle sugar, to the top for an extra sweet finish! Enjoy!

 

1 cup granulated sugar 

½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature 

¼ tsp coarse salt

1 ½ tsp almond extract

1 ½ tsp vanilla extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature and separated

1 ¼ cups whole milk ricotta

1 ½ cups almond flour (smooth out the lumps)

½ cup sliced almonds

Confectioner’s sugar for dusting 

 

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 9” spring form pan.

 

2. Cream the sugar, butter, salt, and extracts until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.

 

3. Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time, scraping down the bowl as necessary.

 

4. Add the ricotta cheese and continue beating for another minute or so until very smooth. Blend in the almond flour.

 

5. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they form stiff peaks.

 

6. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter.

 

7. Spread the batter into your prepared springform pan and smooth out the top evenly.

 

8. Sprinkle sliced almonds evenly over the top.

 

9. Bake in your preheated oven for 50-55 minutes. The cake will be puffed, golden, and not jiggly in the center. 

 

10. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes, then release the sides of the pan. Let the cake cool for 15 minutes before dusting with confectioner’s sugar.