We’ve been having some *very* cold days in St. Louis. I’m a wimp when it comes to cold, so I complain any time it drops below 32 degrees. However, it has dropped below zero multiple times this month. When I went outside last week and yesterday, I experienced a feeling I hadn’t since my days living in Chicago: Bone-chilling cold- the kind that gets under every layer of clothing and your skin, and immediately makes you want to run inside and never come out.

Luckily, I had this lemon ricotta cake on the docket to make this weekend. It is the perfect antidote to freezing your…well, you know…off, and it does provide some brightness and cheer on gloomy winter days. It is light and bright with the perfect crumb. When I say perfect, I mean perfect; it is moist and slightly dense, but not too dense, which means you can comfortably have a couple slices with a cup of tea and coffee and not feeling bogged down afterward. It also smells like a glazed doughnut as it’s baking. I’m not sure how it accomplishes that…but I’m not asking too many questions.

The key to making this cake the best it can be is using whole milk ricotta. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT, use part-skim. This will result in a way different crumb, and an overall less moist and dense cake. I’m the type of person who sometimes makes substitutions in a recipe. For example, I’ll use 2% milk instead of whole, or when I’m cooking, I’ll use whole milk instead of cream in soup. But the more I bake, the more I realize that whole-milk or cream is essential in recipes that call for it. It’s there for a reason; it tenderizes the crumb to make it the best it can be.

This cake is so easy to make, and so delicious, I know I’ll be making it for years to come. I can see it having a starring role on a holiday breakfast or brunch table, or just another Sunday winter morning when I need something delicious and refreshing to perk me up. In the meantime, I’m going to cut another slice and have it with some Earl grey tea. I’d highly recommend that paring.

Here’s a song to get you started on your lemon ricotta cake journey.

Lemon Ricotta Cake

Ingredients

2 large lemons, juiced and zested
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup olive oil
1 cup whole milk ricotta
3 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
pinch of Kosher salt
powdered sugar for dusting

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F with a rack set in the middle. Spray an 8-inch or 9-inch cake pan with nonstick cooking spray, line the bottom and the sides with parchment paper, then slightly spray the paper with cooking spray.

Put the lemon zest and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugar until the mixture is fragrant. Add the olive oil, ricotta, lemon juice, eggs, and vanilla extract, and whisk until combined.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and whisk until just combined. Use a spatula to make sure all the flour is incorporated, scraping the sides and the bottom of the bowl and gently combining everything.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for about 40 minutes, or until the top springs back to the touch, the cake is pulling away from the sides of the pan, and the top is golden brown. I started checking mine at 35 minutes. Depending on your oven, you may need to bake it for 45 minutes. Just keep checking until it is ready to come out.

Let it cool in the pan for 20 minutes, and then invert it onto a wire rack to cool completely. Once it is cool, dust the top with powdered sugar. Enjoy!