Blueberry, Lemon and Ricotta Cake

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 1/2 cups caster sugar 
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp lemon zest
• 1 1/2 cups blueberries - fresh or frozen

Method

1. Spray an oblong cake tin with oil, or line with baking paper.
2. Preheat oven to 160C.
3. In a bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and salt together with a whisk – this will break up any lumps. Set aside.
4. In a separate bowl, using an electric mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, and ricotta on high speed until the mixture is pale and fluffy (about three minutes).
5. Add the eggs one at a time and mix on a medium speed after each one is added.
6. Add the vanilla extract and lemon zest and mix. The cake mix may look a little curdled, but that doesn’t matter.
7. Add the flour/baking power/salt mix half a cup at a time and gently stir in until just mixed.
8. Toss the blueberries in a little flour (wash fresh blueberries first; frozen don’t have to be defrosted before coating) Gently fold in the blueberries.
9. Pour the mix into your prepared cake tin.
10. Bake at for 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out mostly clean. Remove from oven and let it cool for 15 minutes in the cake tin.
11. Gently remove the cake from the tin and let it cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.