The Mild, Secret Ingredient To Add For Perfectly Moist Cakes

Is there anything worse than putting in the hours of time and emotional labor to create the cake of your dreams, only to take the first bite and realize ... it's dry? There are different ways to ensure your cake is as moist as possible, and one of the best ingredients to use for that is ricotta. Debra Clark, recipe developer and founder of the website Bowl Me Over, called it "... a game changer" when she spoke to Food Republic about the best way to use the miraculous cheese in your baking process.

According to Clark, "It works similarly to sour cream or yogurt, but it has a slightly different effect on texture." It's common to see these other types of dairy added to cake, like in a French yogurt cake (or an Italian one, if you prefer), but ricotta improves the texture. "Since ricotta has natural fat and a bit of sweetness, it locks in moisture without making the cake feel heavy," she noted. "Unlike sour cream, which creates a dense, velvety texture, ricotta keeps things soft while adding richness."

Because texture is so important in this process, it's important to remember one crucial step when adding ricotta to your desserts: drain it first. Ricotta is a high-moisture cheese, and if you're not careful, that excess moisture can wreck the beautiful mouthfeel you've created. Put a cheesecloth over a metal strainer, set it in a bowl, and dump the ricotta in to let it drain overnight. This will ensure the ricotta imparts the perfect texture to your cake.

When it comes to how to use ricotta in a dessert, some cakes are better than others, according to Debra Clark. "Ricotta is perfect for cakes that benefit from extra moisture," she said, as a general rule. "Think Italian ricotta cakes, citrusy bakes like lemon pound cake, and even chocolate cakes where you want that rich, melt-in-your-mouth feel." 

When making a ricotta cake, you want to incorporate the cheese once the butter and sugar have been well combined, before the lemon juice, eggs, and vanilla. Migliaccio is another such Italian ricotta cake, a semolina and ricotta-infused dessert that's almost but not quite a cheesecake and doesn't require a stand mixer to make.

There's also Cassata Siciliana, one of 12 Italian cakes you have to try at least once. This deconstructed cannoli-adjacent dessert features ricotta, sugar, and chocolate chips between soft, gentle layers of sponge cake and is perfect with an espresso to balance out the sweetness. Ricotta is also the secret weapon for juicing up boxed cake mix, only requiring a half cup of the cheese along with the wet ingredients to transform it into something entirely your own.

There is one category of cake that Clark would not recommend using ricotta in, however. "It's probably not the best choice for something like a light, airy sponge or chiffon cake, since those rely on aeration and structure," she informed us. Keep the ricotta for cakes that are more buttery than airy.