Lemon & Lime European Ricotta Style Cheesecake

I have to confess, I stole this recipe straight from Chocolate Shavings Blog, I didn’t even tweak it, it didn’t need it, or change the flavours apart from add some lemon. After making the ricotta with the girls at the previous workshop I thought I would make a cheesecake but I really wanted a baked European style with no base and just the minimum of ingredients. And that’s exactly where I found one, you should certainly pop across to take a look at all the other yummy recipes on that site too.

I think I had only ever eaten the ‘set’ cheesecake variety until I moved to Germany where I fell in love with the baked style and have never since eaten an unbaked one. I love the simplicity of them, the emphasis on the cheese and the fruit they are baked with rather than the sugary sensation you get with the others. But I’m sure that could be a long debate with many a cheesecake fan!

This one is very light and fluffy, coming up like a souffle but it does sink as it cools.

Ingredients

Butter, room temperature, for cake tin
3/4 cup sugar, plus more for cake tin
700g ricotta cheese, pureed in a food processor until smooth
6 large eggs, separated
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon & 1 lime, plus juice
1/4 teaspoon salt

Method

Preheat oven to 170C.
Generously butter and sugar a 9-inch springform pan (3 inches deep).
Whisk together ricotta, egg yolks, flour, 1/2 the sugar, the zest and juice, and salt in a large bowl.
Whisk egg whites with a mixer on low speed until foamy.
Gradually add remaining sugar, whisking until stiff, glossy peaks form, 3 to 4 minutes.
Gently fold a third of the whites into ricotta mixture using a rubber spatula until just combined. Gently fold in remaining whites until just combined.
Pour batter into cake tin and bake until center is firm and top is deep golden brown, about 1 hour.
Allow cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Run a knife around edge of cake; release sides to remove from pan, and let cool completely.