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+ servings
slice of cheesecake on a plate with berries

Ricotta Cheesecake

Chef Dennis Littley
What could be better to celebrate the summer than my red white and blue Ricotta Cheesecake. My oh so creamy cheesecake will be a hit at your next gathering
5 from 56 votes
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 12
Calories 538 kcal

Equipment

  • 9 inch springform pan

Ingredients
 
 

Crust for Cheesecake

  • 1 ¼ cup graham cracker crumbs
  • ½ cup pistachios toasted
  • 6 tablespoon Unsalted Butter melted
  • ¼ cup Sugar

Ricotta Cheesecake

  • 16 oz ricotta cheese full fat or low fat
  • 16 oz mascarpone *or cream cheese if you can find mascarpone
  • 8 oz Greek yogurt *or sour cream
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 6 large eggs
  • 2 tablespoon flour
  • grated peel of one lemon
  • juice from one half lemon
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Topping for Cheesecake

  • 1 pint strawberries whole berries
  • ½ Pint blueberries more if desired
  • 1 cup red fruit juice
  • juice of one lemon
  • 2 tablespoon sugar
  • tablespoon corn starch

Instructions
 

Crust for Cheesecake

  • In a food processor, grind up the pistachios and remove from the processor. Then add the dgraham crackers and grind to a fine meal.
  • Melt 6 tablespoons of butter and add the butter and sugar to the ground pistachios and graham crackers, mix well.
    *The mixture should be wet enough to form but not so wet that it oozes butter.
  • Form crust into your springform pan and bake at 375 degrees for about 7 minutes.
    *Allow to cool before adding the cheesecake batter.

Ricotta Cheesecake

  • In your mixer blend together the ricotta cheese, mascarpone, and Greek yogurt. Blend until the mixture is smooth.
  • Add the eggs one at a time until well blended.
  • Add the sugar, flour, salt, grated lemon peel, lemon juice, and vanilla.
  • Blend well until very creamy. Pour mixture into prepared Springform pan and Bake at 375 degrees for 50-60 minutes in a conventional oven, or until the cake has set in the middle. The top of the cheesecake can get brown. If you're not topping the cheesecake or prefer a lighter top, cover the cheesecake with foil for half of the time in the oven.

Topping for Cheesecake

  • Wash the strawberries and blueberries, allow to dry on paper towels.
  • Cut the tops off the dried strawberries and place around the outside of the cheesecake, fill the inside with blueberries. They should be at least two deep in the middle of the Strawberries.
  • Place all but ¼ cup of the juice and lemon juice and sugar in a saucepan, heat to a near boil. Mix corn starch, into remaining juice and make into a slurry, add the slurry to the heated juice and bring to a low boil. The mixture should start to clear as it thickens. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 5 minutes, then spoon over the berries.
  • Refrigerate the cheesecake for at least 4 hours or overnight. The cheesecake will be soft and crumble unless you give it time to set up!
    I know it's hard to resist but it will be worth it!!

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 538kcalCarbohydrates: 48gProtein: 15gFat: 32gSaturated Fat: 17gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0.2gCholesterol: 161mgSodium: 363mgPotassium: 289mgFiber: 2gSugar: 34gVitamin A: 990IUVitamin C: 31mgCalcium: 193mgIron: 2mg
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