Baked cheesecake

Serves 6 Desserts and puddings

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Method

Start 1 day before serving (preferably)

The day, or a few hours, before baking, drain the ricotta. Put it in a fine-mesh sieve or a colander lined with kitchen paper and leave to drain for a few hours.

Once the ricotta is well drained, push it through a sieve or blend in a food processor until smooth, then spoon into a large mixing bowl.

Preheat the oven to 200C/ 180C F/Gas 6 and grease a deep, 22cm springform cake tin and line with buttered baking paper. Lightly dust the inside of the tin with flour and tip out the excess – this will give the cake a fine crust. Using an electric stand mixer or food processor, whisk together the eggs, sugar and lemon zest until the mixture triples in volume.

Pour one-third of the egg mixture over the ricotta and lightly mix with a wire whisk to loosen the texture. Once the ricotta looks creamy, gently fold in the remaining egg mixture with a spoon, being careful not to knock the air out – the texture should be liquid and airy.

Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin and bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 160C/140C F/Gas 3 and bake for another 30–40 minutes. The cake is ready when it is just firm to the touch, but still has a slight wobble.

Turn the oven off, open the door and leave the cake to settle for 20 minutes.

Wait a few hours before lightly dusting with icing sugar and serving. Or, better still, keep in the fridge overnight and serve the next day.