Cooking with Love

Pizza Dolce (Italian Cheesecake)

Every Easter and Christmas, my mom would make her Italian Cheesecake. It was moist and wet, and had a lot of flavor. My mom was not a very good baker, as she was a cook. In Italy, especially around Easter, there was an abundance of eggs and ricotta, hence the creation of this cake. 

There is no flour, crust or topping. The toppings are left up to you. Here's how you make it:

Ingredients:

3 lbs whole milk ricotta

18 large eggs

2 cups white sugar

2 cups whole milk

1 lemon rinde

1 orange rinde

2 jiggers Annesette

1 jigger Amaretto

2 TBS pure vanilla

1 TBS pure orange extract

Directions:

In very large bowl, combine eggs with sugar. Beat till frothy. Add ricotta, milk, lemon and orange rindes. 

Finally, stir in liquors and extracts.

Combine and mix thoroughly till pale yellow color.

In a greased 13X9 pan, pour liquid. Place on cookie sheet for spillage.

Carefully place in 350 degree oven on center rack. It will puff up and turn golden brown. The top will be dark, but that's OK. It should take about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours.

Check for doneness with knife coming out clean. Carefully remove from oven. Let cook before placing in the refrigerator.

When serving, sprinkle powdered sugar or whipped cream or both.

Now, brew some espresso and invite your special friend to join you.

Note* I usually half the recipe and get about 6 servings, depending upon your servings. 

The older it gets, the better it tastes.

Salute!

09.09.2022 20:23

Jan Conte

What a wonderful addition to this cake. Cherry juice must be delicious in this. My mom also put chocolate pieces, however, they always sunk to the bottom. Thank you for reading my blog....Happy Cookin