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Whole light Italian ricotta cheesecake on a cake stand with icing sugar, one slice cut to show silky pale filling

Light Italian Ricotta Cheesecake

A light, silky Italian cheesecake made with whole-milk ricotta, citrus zest, and a thin almond biscuit base. Baked low and slow for a clean, delicate texture.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Servings: 8 slices
Calories: 310
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Almond biscuit base
  • 120 g amaretti biscuits, finely crushed
  • 40 g almond flour
  • 60 g unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 tbsp caster sugar
Ricotta filling
  • 700 g whole-milk ricotta, drained drained in sieve for 30 min
  • 130 g caster sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 lemon lemon zest finely grated
  • 1 orange orange zest finely grated
  • 0.5 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 pinch fine sea salt

Method
 

Base
  1. Heat the oven to 160 C / 320 F. Grease a 23 cm springform pan and line the base with parchment paper.
  2. Combine the crushed amaretti, almond flour, melted butter, and sugar in a bowl and mix until the texture resembles damp sand.
  3. Press the mixture firmly and evenly into the base of the pan using the back of a spoon. Refrigerate for 10 minutes while you make the filling.
Filling
  1. Whisk the drained ricotta and caster sugar together by hand until smooth and no lumps remain.
  2. Add the eggs and egg yolk one at a time, whisking gently after each addition until just combined.
  3. Stir in the lemon zest, orange zest, vanilla extract, and salt. Do not overwork the mixture.
  4. Pour the filling over the chilled base and smooth the top with a spatula.
Baking and cooling
  1. Place the springform pan inside a deep roasting tray. Pour enough hot water into the tray to reach 2 cm up the side of the pan.
  2. Bake at 160 C / 320 F for 50 to 55 minutes, until the edges are set and opaque but the center still has a gentle wobble.
  3. Turn off the oven and leave the cheesecake inside with the door ajar for 20 minutes.
  4. Remove from the water bath and cool completely on a wire rack, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight before slicing.

Notes

Nutrition is estimated per slice based on 8 servings and whole-milk ricotta. Values will vary with part-skim ricotta or if the biscuit base is omitted.