Berry Almond Ricotta Cake

Y’all, I love a good ricotta cake and the crumb on this one is sooo luscious and tender, I could cry. I can’t think of a better way to use up all the end-of-summer berries (especially if you’ve got a glut from all the blackberry picking if you’re in Seattle!).

I added a mix of market raspberries and blackberries we picked ourselves, but you can use whatever. There's almond flour and loooads of ricotta, and a bit of lemon zest to brighten things. You can add almond extract, or swap out lemon for rosewater. This cake is so versatile- you could probably use cornmeal instead of almond flour too (or just all all-purpose)!

And speaking of flour, I used Cairnspring Mills’ Edison all-purpose flour because not only does it pack a ton of nutty, toasted flavor, but I also feel better knowing it’s super fresh and still loaded with all the good nutrious bran. A win-win in my book! If you bake it, please let me know what you think :)

Berry Almond Ricotta Cake

Serves 4 to 6

1 cup (140 g) all-purpose flour (I used Cairnspring Mills All-purpose Edison Flour here but use w/e ap flour you’ve got!)
½ cup (52 g) almond flour
2 ½ tsp baking powder
1 ¼ tsp diamond crystal kosher salt 
1 lemon
1 ¼ cup (250 g) granulated sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 ⅓ cup (320 g) whole-milk ricotta, room temperature
¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter, melted
1 ¾ cup (235g) berries

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a deep 9-inch cake pan or springform pan and line bottom with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, zest the lemon over the sugar and rub it in with your fingers until the sugar has taken on the citrus color and perfume. Add eggs and ricotta and whisk vigorously for a minute or two to combine and to aerate the mixture a bit. Whisk in the butter until incorporated.

Add the dry ingredients and whisk until just combined. Add all but a ¼ cup of the berries and fold in with a rubber spatula until just incorporated.

Scrape into the prepared pan and smooth out the top. Scatter the remaining berries atop. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until golden brown on top a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean - a few crumbs is ok. Allow to cool completely before serving.