Blueberry-Lemon Ricotta Pound Cake

Rating: 4.32 stars
25 Ratings
  • 5 star values: 13
  • 4 star values: 8
  • 3 star values: 3
  • 2 star values: 1
  • 1 star values: 0

This healthy pound cake recipe isn't just delicious--it also only requires one bowl to make. For the best cake texture, be sure to beat the sugar and butter together long enough in Step 2 to look creamy--the time it takes to get there varies according to the type of electric mixer you have. Serve with brunch or alongside a cup of coffee in the afternoon. Source: EatingWell Magazine, May/June 2016

Stacy Fraser
Advertisement

Ingredients

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper.

    Advertisement

  • Beat sugar and butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until creamy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until fully incorporated. Reduce the mixer speed to medium-low and beat in ricotta, lemon zest, 2 tablespoons lemon juice and vanilla until just combined. Sprinkle flour on top, then evenly sprinkle baking powder and salt over the flour. With the mixer on low speed, beat until almost combined. Add blueberries and gently fold into the batter. Transfer to the prepared pan.

  • Bake the cake until starting to brown around the edges and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Run a knife around the edge to loosen the cake, then invert it onto the rack. Carefully turn it right-side up. Let cool completely.

  • Clean the bowl, add confectioners' sugar and whisk in the remaining 1 teaspoon lemon juice until smooth. Brush the glaze on the cake.

Tips

Make Ahead Tip: Wrap cooled cake airtight and store at room temperature for up to 1 day; glaze shortly before serving.

Room-temperature eggs make cakes fluffier. Here's a quick trick--place them (in the shell) in a bowl of lukewarm water for about 5 minutes.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: one 1-inch-thick slice
Per Serving:
303 calories; 11 g total fat; 6.3 g saturated fat; 96 mg cholesterol; 319 mg sodium. 124 mg potassium; 44.9 g carbohydrates; 3.3 g fiber; 25 g sugar; 8.4 g protein; 433 IU vitamin a iu; 7 mg vitamin c; 15 mcg folate; 148 mg calcium; 4 mg iron; 9 mg magnesium; 21 g added sugar;
Exchanges:

1 starch, 1 1/2 other carbohydrate, 1/2 fruit, 1/2 medium-fat meat, 1 1/2 fat

Reviews (23)

Read More Reviews
25 Ratings
  • 5 star values: 13
  • 4 star values: 8
  • 3 star values: 3
  • 2 star values: 1
  • 1 star values: 0
Reviews:
Most Helpful Most Positive Least Positive Newest
Lynnla
Rating: 5 stars
06/15/2020
Have made this multiple times over the past few months - the first following the recipe, then making various tweaks - and it never disappoints. The best version included: full-fat ricotta (as fresh as you can get it); zest of an entire lemon (3tbls+); juice from entire lemon (3tbls+); regular flour (haven't found white whole wheat); and using a kitchenaid rather than a hand blender. Twist: try a slice on the griddle if you're having a big Sunday breakfast/brunch. It's fantastic. Read More
Ridgerider
Rating: 5 stars
05/25/2020
Will not disappoint! Read More
Dee
Rating: 5 stars
05/15/2020
This is a great recipe! Turned out perfect. I always read the comments on a recipe to get hints or tips if there’s a common issue/tweak that comes up, but I decided to leave this one per the original recipe as a first pass. (I have no idea why people rate recipes they haven’t -made, yet) Despite many comments saying it wasn’t sweet enough, I don’t agree; it’s plenty sweet enough, unless you’re trying to give yourself diabetes. 2 cups of blueberries is not too much, just don’t beat the out of the batter when folding them in (absolutely make sure you dredge them in flour, first). And it won’t fall apart if you make sure you let the cake rest and set in the tin for at least 20 minutes after it comes out of the oven. I used full-fat ricotta because it was the reason I made the cake in the first place, I was using the ricotta up. What I would do next time is add more lemon juice and rind. Twice as much, at least. And I’d add rind to the glaze, too. Read More
Advertisement
Ajaxso99
Rating: 3 stars
05/07/2020
It wasn’t bad...but it wasn’t good either. Unremarkable? I don’t think I’ll be making again. Not sweet enough to be considered pound cake. Read More
Julianna
Rating: 5 stars
04/28/2020
I made this recipe exactly as written, except my ricotta cheese was whole milk, and it was delicious!! I loved the flavor and it was perfectly moist - my husband and 3 kids all liked it - which is a rare thing in our house! Read More
Mary Beth Einerson
Rating: 4 stars
04/27/2020
Nice! As I think others said it was very moist. I used frozen wild blueberries and think I could cut by half. The bread is very blue even though I held back flour for coating and used them directly from the freezer. Also would like the lemon to shine through a bit more. Good use for the King Arthur White Whole Wheat flour I had on hand. Read More
Advertisement
hsblanchette@yahoo.com
Rating: 5 stars
02/18/2020
Made this exactly as written except with all-purpose flour. The blueberries were fresh, plump, and thoroughly dry. Loved it! I wouldn't say it was too soft from too many berries at all. Lightly sweetened, juicy blueberries, and a lovely lemon flavor. Following the directions, I let it cool in the pan (sprayed & floured) for 20 min before flipping it out, and had no problems at all. This would be perfect for breakfast with company in town. Delish! Read More
SherryP
Rating: 5 stars
01/28/2020
I made this tonight after work. It was easy and turned out perfectly. I used fresh blueberries and used regular white flour and whole milk ricotta. It s a gorgeous rustic cake. I used a big enough sheet of parchment paper that I could use it to pick the cake up out of the pan after the 20 min cooking time. I cook and bake a LOT and am definitely adding this to my recipe box???? I wish I could share a picture!! Read More
DonnaMaggie
Rating: 3 stars
07/30/2019
I would give the recipe and instructions a 3.5 out 5. First I put aluminum foil loosely over the top to stop the browning. I was concerned it was on the verge of being over cooked on top. I agree with the other comments that the 2 cups of blueberries was to much and made the bread to wet and hard to set. I would cut back to 1.75 cups of blueberries next time and if still to wet drop down to 1.5 cups of blueberries. I rinsed my blueberries dried with a paper towel and coated with flour prior to adding them to the mix. I used regular white baking flour and greased my non-stick bread pan with Crisco. Did not use any parchment paper and had no difficulty getting the bread out of the pan after it cooled. I loved that the bread was mildly sweet. I used a bit extra fresh lemon juice and lemon zest and still would have liked more lemon flavor. However because I made it late at night and found myself without any powdered sugar to make the icing my plan was to make a lemon sugar syrup to put on the bread in the morning; but I could not wait to taste it. If I had put a lemon topping of the syrup or powdered sugar it may have given it the stronger lemon flavor Read More
Kelly Bean
Rating: 4 stars
05/20/2019
I liked it but think I will use less blueberries next time. While I love blueberries they did make the inside of the cake too moist even though I dredged them in flour first. Otherwise I love the flavor of it! Read More
manon.fuller@gmail.com
Rating: 5 stars
04/30/2019
This is a fabulously quick recipe and utterly delicious cake! Also lovely with orange zest/juice in place of the lemon and 1cup dark chocolate chips instead of the blueberries. Without glaze this comes to about 205kcal/slice (12 slices per loaf calculated on Noom). Read More
scrubio@gmail.com
Rating: 5 stars
04/22/2019
This was a huge hit. Based on comments here (thank you!) I made a few modifications. I used 1-1/2 cups of blueberries and coated them with flour first. I used 1T of lemon zest instead of 2. I used the flour I already had in the house (white unbleached organic). Everything had the perfect amount of sweet and tart and the blueberries were perfect. Read More
Marina
Rating: 5 stars
10/08/2018
Used a cake pan & baked for only 40 minutes instead of what this called for and still turned out perfect. Only complaint is that when I tried to take it out of the pan it fell apart. I recommend leaving it in the pan/dish to cool before cutting/moving. Turned out really tasty though. I did follow the tip to bring eggs to room temperature and the cake is very fluffy and pleasant so I think it worked. Read More
sandy
Rating: 5 stars
02/26/2018
First time I made it as the recipe said and was awesome! Second time I only had half amount of blueberries available so I added a banana with the blueberries. Awesome! Super moist and very tasty! Read More
chefliz@satx.rr.com
Rating: 3 stars
02/11/2018
I find it hard to believe that no one thought there were too many blueberries in this recipe. I will be putting only one cup in next time - if I even make it again. Read More
Darell R Harrison
Rating: 5 stars
10/28/2017
Im gonna tweak this recipe into a keto recipe. No sugar and very low carb using erythritol as my sweet source and maybe almond flour or coconut flour Read More
voraciousgirl
Rating: 4 stars
10/19/2017
I used white flour full fat ricotta & added 1 cup of shredded zucchini. It was very good but a bit dense. Next time I would double the glaze/add extra lemon. Read More
P.Doodler
Rating: 2 stars
08/16/2017
Too moist too lemony and not nearly sweet enough. The ricotta's a nice addition that I'd try again but as a whole the cake was just a disappointment. The flavor and texture are just all over the place. Read More
Sherri Nowell
Rating: 5 stars
01/30/2017
I thought the cake was delicious i did not have the blue cake issue at all...I am going to try this recipe as muffins next time. Thank you Read More
Lizette Carter
Rating: 5 stars
08/30/2016
This recipe came out great! Very easy to make and it was delicious! I followed the recipe with the exception of using the eggs at room temperature. That is a trick I will have to try next time. Read More
fluffy
Rating: 4 stars
08/25/2016
Awesome cake... Read More
Nancy
Rating: 4 stars
08/15/2016
If I was to make it again would use a little less blueberries otherwise it was good..... Read More
Rosanne Mount
Rating: 5 stars
08/14/2016
So delicious! Moist and plenty of blueberries. I went slightly less on the lemon zest but wish that I hadn't. Very good regardless! Thanks for a real winner! Read More
Linda Resendes Cestodio
Rating: 4 stars
08/13/2016
Am only giving it a 4 star because I haven't tried it yet. Made it to take camping with tomorrow hoping to grill it for breakfast like a blueberry muffin. Read More
laineyhf
Rating: 5 stars
08/10/2016
Looks delicious I will bake this weekend. To 'fluffy' - click the 'print' button and you get an ad free page to print! Read More
sagraham
Rating: 5 stars
08/08/2016
This turned out great! I even forgot the vanilla but it was still rich and delicious. I had no problem with the blueberries just gently fold them in or dust them in flour like Jealith suggests. I started to do this step but I didn't (feeling lazy) and it turned out great. Nice definition between cake and berries. Very easy cake. Read More
Jealith
Rating: 4 stars
08/06/2016
Very good! I did one thing that might help with those who had the wet blue cake problem lol. I always dredge my berries in flour before adding them to my batter. Especially if they are really juicy. I do the same with frozen berries too. Then fold them in gently. The little bit of extra flour takes care of the extra moisture from the berries. I also make a similar cake with sour cream instead of ricotta cheese. Read More
Deborah Farkas
Rating: 3 stars
08/06/2016
Flavor is great but the blueberries made the batter blue and too wet. What when wrong? Read More
EatingWell User
Rating: 5 stars
07/12/2016
Easy and Delicious This reminds me of something I would pay 5 a slice for at Star Bucks. It is rich with Lemon flavor moist from the Ricotta Cheese and lots a Blueberries in every bite. It is one of the best loaf pan cakes I have ever made! I didn't even bother making the glaze. It's so good it doesn't need it! BTW I did not use wheat flour I used white. I don't know how healthy it is but it sure does taste great! Read More
EatingWell User
Rating: 5 stars
06/12/2016
Great taste and texture! This cake turned out great and is very tasty! It's like something you would get in a coffee shop. Pros: easy to make one bowl cleanup no fancy ingredients Read More
EatingWell User
Rating: 4 stars
05/07/2016
yuuum! absolutely delicious! I can't stop eating it! Pros: easy to make Cons: none Read More
More Reviews
© Copyright 2020 eatingwell.com. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.eatingwell.com 07/05/2020