Some days are meant for baking and indulging. I am not talking about cold weather or rainy days, cloudy mornings or even birthdays. It’s just one of those days when all you crave is to bake a chocolate cake for yourself. Regardless of how warm the afternoon feels and how extreme the temperature shoots, the girl just looks forward to wrapping her red apron around, whisking the cake batter and turning on the oven. It was that kind of day for me and chocolate cake was the first thought that popped in my mind while still on bed, scrolling through the inbox on my mobile.
Chocolate cake was all I used to bake at one point of time. Then I met Arvind, who loves to eat chocolate any day, any time but dislikes chocolate cake. Funny thing is, I am just the opposite. Huh! Anyway, so that morning without giving any second thought, I baked the cake even before I prepared lunch for us. What can I say, craziness bombarded out of nowhere and I played along with it.
Needless to say, it was quite worth the effort.
Arvind took a tiny bite. I shared couple small slices with a friend who dropped by for chitchat in the afternoon. As for the rest of the cake, I gobbled all by myself. The following two days, I had dessert for lunch and dinner. And you shouldn’t feel sad for the hubby. He is storing gelatos in the refrigerator like it’s the end of the world or something. So he is quite blissful with his favorite flavors. It’s good that he doesn’t care much for chocolaty cake. I get to eat it all without feeling any kind of guilt!
This is the first time I added ricotta in cake. After I baked the ricotta bread, there was sufficient leftover cheese to be used on a cake. Plus this recipe from Liren’s blog was on my mind for a while. So I took the inspiration and decided to bake one for me with chocolate and berries.
With a striking balance of sweetness from raspberries, richness from ricotta and bitterness from cocoa powder, this cake totally made my day. It was crumbly, soft, not overly sweet and perfect with a cup of tea or coffee.

Raspberry Ricotta Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder, I use dutch dark cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup oil
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup ricotta
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 cup fresh raspberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- In a bowl, combine all the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt). In a separate bowl, whisk egg and sugar until they’re mixed together. Add oil, ricotta and milk and give another whisk. Empty the mixed dry ingredients to the wet ingredients bowl and whisk again. Finally, drop the fresh raspberries and using a spoon, mix it lightly.
- Pour the cake batter in a six-inch round baking pan and bake for about 40 minutes or until it’s baked through. Check by inserting a knife or tooth pick right in the center. If it comes out clean, the cake is ready.
Notes
If the cake turns brown on top but remains uncooked in the center, leave the oven door partially open and continue baking.
Comments are closed.
Laura (Tutti Dolci)
May 21, 2013 at 9:06 PMSo lovely, the tumble of raspberries is just gorgeous! Wish I could indulge in a slice this evening :).
Joyti
May 21, 2013 at 9:39 PMYum! This looks really decadent and gorgeous too. And I like chocolate cake more than actual chocolate, like you.
sulagna
May 21, 2013 at 9:51 PMKankana so glad to have your post on my reader, the sight of those rasberries and that cake…like we in Bengali would say “durdaanto” . acha tell me something,i dont get Ricotta here easily, its almost a two hour drive to the fancy store which has it…so what can i substitute it with.
Mallika
May 21, 2013 at 10:19 PMLoving every bit of the moist crumb in that cake. Unfortunately, we don’t get ricotta nor those beautiful berries in India, but yet your clicks will not stop me from dreaming! They gorgeous as ever!
Sarah
May 21, 2013 at 10:19 PMOh perfect. I love chocolate and raspberry, and with the lightness of ricotta, I bet it would be perfect.
Rosa
May 21, 2013 at 10:33 PMA beautiful cake and delightful combination! I crave baked goodies all the time…
Refreshing pictures!
Cheers,
Rosa
Archana Kumar
May 21, 2013 at 11:03 PMThats a beautiful looking cake Kankana and a girl’s gotta bake when a girl’s gotta bake !! Loved the pics
Ingrid
May 21, 2013 at 11:37 PMLooks so moist and so sweet – perfect all round.
Nandita
May 21, 2013 at 11:45 PMWhat a fabulous cake. I could have this foe breakfast. 🙂
indugetscooking
May 22, 2013 at 1:28 AMThat cake looks so dark and divine. And the beautiful red raspberries on it make it all the better!
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May 22, 2013 at 2:08 AMit looks divine!! Moist and just that color I like.
Just Cake Girl
May 22, 2013 at 4:52 AMThis is so simple, yet so amazing !!!
Lail | With A Spin
May 22, 2013 at 5:02 AMThanks for that partially open door tip. For the first time I had a semi cooked cake few weeks ago and wish I had known this. Absolutely amazing cake. Love that raspberry shot.
Pia
May 22, 2013 at 6:09 AMKi pretty dekhte cake ta! It’s fit for a shop window, Kankana. I would come by for chitchat anytime for a slice if that!
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May 22, 2013 at 6:11 AMI am like you.. don’t eat that much chocolate but can dig into a huge slice of brownie with abandon and that is also what I make when the world tumbles around me! :))
Gorgeous cake!
pavithra
May 22, 2013 at 6:44 AMGorgeous cake… Yah ricotta gives nice crumbs and moist to the cake with wonderful taste at the end. Pictures are stunning asusual.
Archana
May 22, 2013 at 7:01 AMI was smiling all through reading this beautiful post! 🙂 We have a similar scene at our home too. Hubby likes chocolates but when I bake a chocolate cake or brownies he says it is very chocolate-y! I sigh and say “Well, it’s a ‘chocolate’ cake!” and will have to gobble most of it down by myself while he only enjoys a piece or two. Love the addition of ricotta here…..lovely colorful pictures!
Rafeeda
May 22, 2013 at 7:12 AMThat is such a chocolaty cake… wow….
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May 22, 2013 at 7:47 AMSo beautiful and irresistible!
Sarvani
May 22, 2013 at 8:01 AMRubbing it in are you?? that you live in beautiful weather where you get raspberries ..and the weather permits you to bake.. while we swelter in temps that have crossed 40 degrees!! :)) but the cake looks beautifully moist.. and those raspberries.. am jealous!!!
Marie @ Little Kitch
May 22, 2013 at 8:49 AMRicotta makes every cake better! YUM!!!
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May 22, 2013 at 8:53 AMGorgeous cake! I love pairing chocolate with raspberries! Pinned!
Soma Chowdhury
May 22, 2013 at 9:02 AMChocolate and raspberiies together makes a rich taste…it’s my husband’s favorite combination. Will wait for the fresh raspberry season to make it. beautiful colors.
Eileen
May 22, 2013 at 11:40 AMRaspberry and chocolate is one of the best dessert combinations ever! I bet the ricotta makes the texture of this cake just amazing too. 🙂
Colette @ JFF!
May 22, 2013 at 11:59 AMWhat a pretty picture.
I’m shopping for a chocolate cake recipe and I think I just found what I was looking for!
nusrat2010
May 22, 2013 at 3:16 PMEvery inch of all your pictures is pure, dark, intense seduction:) And that sexy little gorgeous cake stole my heart. Totally 🙂
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May 22, 2013 at 4:59 PMAbsolutely gorgeous looking chocolate cake! Looks like it absolutely must be eaten as quickly as humanly possible
Grandbaby Cakes
May 22, 2013 at 5:32 PMThis cake looks incredible!!! I just stumbled across your blog and your photography is insane! So gorgeous!
ManjusEatingDelights
May 23, 2013 at 8:47 AMThat cake looks absolutely scrumptious! What a beautiful color.
Kiran
May 23, 2013 at 11:43 AMPure decadence. and I love the use of ricotta here 🙂
Radhika Vasanth
May 23, 2013 at 11:46 AMIf I can have that cake baked by you, I don’t mind flying all the way from one coast to another.
carey
May 23, 2013 at 3:32 PMWowie wow, this cake looks divine! Although I don’t believe I’ve had ricotta in a cake before, I can imagine that it does wonders for the texture. And chocolate + raspberries, well that’s always a yes. 😀
Trisha @ Vignette
May 23, 2013 at 4:01 PMWow, what a stunning cake! It looks so welcoming, waiting to be eaten! Beautiful photographs — the color of the raspberries just sing!
nipponnin
May 23, 2013 at 10:12 PMLovely photos! I especially like that bowl-full of raspberry photo. Raspberry and chocolate is a great combo I think.
Reem
May 23, 2013 at 10:58 PMI can only imagine the creaminess and richness ricotta must have added here..
Just so beautiful… You know I was going through IG feed n I saw this.. Well gal I have been craving this ever since ..LOL
Really lovely shots babe… Specially the one with chocolate draping and falling from the whisk… Love it!
Eva | A in C
May 24, 2013 at 2:31 PMWhat a beautiful creation! It must taste so wonderfully rich with the raspberries and ricotta. I must say that me & Jeremy will eat any and all forms of chocolate, but I am definitely partial to the chocolate cake as well 🙂
rebecca
May 24, 2013 at 8:35 PMthis looks wonderful 🙂 and you sound like me after I make a cake
Swati Bansal Rao
May 25, 2013 at 12:13 AMAbsolutely decadent cake.. never tried a ricotta and chocolate combination before but this looks stunning and very moist. beautiful pics too!
usha singh
May 25, 2013 at 7:32 AMThis looks fantastically fabulous-unfortunately for me–i will have to experiment a bit with the recipe–because i do not use eggs–but i will most certainly try this recipe–the addition of Ricotta sounds wonderful to me
Kankana Saxena
May 29, 2013 at 11:25 AMThanks Usha, would love to know how it turned out eggless. Do share with me please 🙂
goboroot
May 26, 2013 at 2:20 AMKankana,these photos are killing me! It’s late Saturday night and I crave a piece of your chocolate cake:)Absolutely beautiful images! Btw, congratulations on your new beginning (continuation).
Kankana Saxena
May 29, 2013 at 11:26 AMThanks dear 🙂 It was a risky move but feels worth the effort!
Jennifer @ Delicieux
May 26, 2013 at 6:57 PMThis looks like such an amazing cake. I love the combination of chocolate and raspberries. Absolutely stunning photos by the way. You are an inspiration!
jehanne
May 27, 2013 at 1:03 AMI could gawk at that chocolate cake for hours, kankana! and still salivate over the dish as well as your gorgeous photos. They look sublime.
easyfoodsmith
May 27, 2013 at 5:49 AMA gorgeous cake indeed and it looks like pure indulgence.
Ella-Home Cooking Ad
May 27, 2013 at 9:03 AMLike the fact you used ricotta in the recipe. Must have been really delicious. What a great combination, chocolate, ricotta and raspberries.
Nancy/SpicieFoodie
May 28, 2013 at 1:24 PMNow I am craving this gorgeous cake. Thanks for the temptation and for sharing the recipe Kankana:)
natalie
May 28, 2013 at 6:37 PMoh myyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy
this is just begging to be made for an upcoming two person picnic. it’s certainly petite enough to be gobbled up in one sitting!
might i just ask what sort of oil did you use for the cake? veggie, canola, coconut?
THANKS! n.
Kankana Saxena
May 29, 2013 at 11:09 AMThanks Natalie 🙂 I used olive oil but vegetable oil will do great too.
Shema George
May 29, 2013 at 10:47 AMCant tell you how badly I crave for that cake now…Too good !!
Nami JustOneCookbook
May 31, 2013 at 12:07 AMYou are so lucky you got to eat most of it by yourself. If I made this, I’d be fighting with my kids and husband for sure! Very interesting to know ricotta in it, and I’ve never baked with it and I’m very curious how it’s like. As you said, the balance sounds amazing!
Vladislav
June 2, 2013 at 4:43 AMHoly Moly, this is perfection!!!
nipponnin
June 4, 2013 at 12:16 PMI came back to print this recipe. I agree with whatever I posted in first comment. I just want to add to that is I love the red plate very much!
Antonio B
June 7, 2013 at 4:05 PMWhat a wonderful cake, I just made it for my friend for his bday!
Instead of a cake pan I used ramekin and made 7 mini cakes 🙂
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July 11, 2013 at 10:37 PMThis is such a gorgeous cake recipe. I just saw that I have all the ingredients in my fridge, except raspberries- maybe I will put cherries instead. My weekend baking is fixed. Cant wait to try and then nom nom..
RachelB
July 18, 2013 at 12:00 PMHi there!
My friend asked me to bake this cake (3 of them) for her wedding! Can you tell me if I make them ahead and freeze them? Thanks!
Kankana Saxena
July 18, 2013 at 12:08 PMHi Rachel. The cake stayed good and moist for couple of days. It got over by then. I never really had to keep it or more than that and hence really cannot assure you how it would taste if you make it much in advance. Sorry, couldn’t help much!