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Reality is setting in that my first-born baby boy really is graduating from high school. An occasion like this warrants a party, and everyone knows that a good party needs cake. I stumbled onto Italian love cake recently and think it will be the perfect dessert to serve at his graduation party.
What Is Italian Love Cake?
Italian love cake is an easy dessert to make with impressive results. Despite its name, Italian love cake was developed in America, most likely by Italian-American immigrants. It uses classic Italian ingredients, including ricotta cheese and rich chocolate, giving the dish its name.
A simple ricotta filling is layered over chocolate cake batter, and as the cake bakes, the ricotta layer sinks to the bottom and the chocolate cake rises to the top. The cake is topped with a mousse-like pudding topping that tastes light and indulgent all at once. The finished cake has three eye-catching layers that look much harder to achieve than they actually are.
I love baking from scratch, but for my version of this elegant chocolate cake, I was able to use a couple of shortcuts—namely chocolate cake mix and chocolate pudding mix—to keep things easy.
To deepen the chocolate flavor, I swapped out the usual water in the cake for black coffee. I also decided to use freshly whipped cream in place of the standard Cool Whip I’ve seen in other Italian love cake recipes. These simple swaps amp up my favorite flavors and keep me coming back for just one more bite.
Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm
Ingredients for the Best Results
Boxed chocolate cake mixes are generally pretty similar to each other. The only one I would avoid using in this recipe is the Betty Crocker cake mix that includes pudding—it tends not to rise over the ricotta mixture as well as other chocolate cake mixes.
Whole-milk ricotta cheese is ideal for this recipe. It’s the creamiest and tastes the best in the finished dessert.
Tips and Tricks for Making Italian Love Cake
This is a simple cake but as I’ve been making it, I found a few tricks for ensuring perfect results:
- Make sure to whip the ricotta mixture on low speed. You want it to stay dense so that it falls to the bottom of the cake during baking.
- The cake can become overbaked at the edges if the batter isn’t covered in a thick layer of ricotta, so I like to start spooning the ricotta mixture along the edges first and work my way into the center. Then, I use an offset spatula to ensure the layer is even before baking it.
- The cake may have cracks in it and some of the ricotta may still be visible when the cake is finished baking. That’s ok! The chocolate topping completely hides these imperfections, and imperfect layers lead to some slight marbling, which I think is pretty.
- Be careful not to overbake this cake. Remove the cake from the oven when a knife comes out clean. Cover the cake with foil in the last 15 minutes if you notice the edges browning.
Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm
Make It Ahead
Italian love cake is a great cake for making ahead of time. You can make the whole cake from start to finish in one day and hold it in the fridge overnight, or you can bake, cool, and refrigerate the cake, then add the topping just before serving.
More Italian-Inspired Desserts
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For the chocolate cake
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Nonstick cooking spray
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1 (15.25–ounce) box chocolate cake mix
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1 cup black coffee, room temperature
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3 large eggs
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1/2 cup neutral oil
For the ricotta filling and chocolate topping
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1 (32–ounce) container whole-milk ricotta cheese
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4 large eggs
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3/4 cup (150g) sugar
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1 teaspoon vanilla extract
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1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream, cold
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1 (3.9–ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
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1 1/2 cups milk, cold
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Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Spray a 9×13-inch cake pan with nonstick cooking spray.
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Mix the cake batter:
In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, coffee, eggs, and oil. Beat the cake batter according to the package directions and set aside.
Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm
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Make the ricotta filling:
In a second large bowl, combine the ricotta, eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract. Beat with a hand mixer on low speed until the mixture is homogeneous, about 1 minute. Scrape the sides of the bowl and ensure everything is fully mixed.
Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm
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Assemble the layers:
Scrape the cake batter into the bottom of the prepared cake pan in an even layer. Spoon the ricotta mixture over the chocolate cake batter, starting at the edges and working your way to the middle. Use an offset spatula to spread the ricotta filling into an even layer, fully covering the cake batter.
Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm
Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm
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Bake:
Bake the cake until the chocolate cake layer has risen to the top of the cake and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean, 45 to 60 minutes. The ricotta mixture may stick to the knife slightly but shouldn’t be wet. Cover the cake with foil in the last 15 minutes of baking if you notice the edges overbrowning.
Place the cake on a cooling rack and cool until the pan is no longer warm, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm
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Make the pudding topping:
In a clean large bowl, whip the cold heavy cream on medium speed to stiff peaks, about 2 to 3 minutes, and set aside.
Pour the pudding mix into a medium bowl and whisk to remove any clumps. Pour in the cold milk and whisk until smooth and thick, about 2 minutes.
Fold half of the whipped cream into the pudding mixture. Once the first half has been incorporated, fold in the remaining whipped cream. The mixture should be completely homogeneous and fluffy.
Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm
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Finish and serve:
Spread the chocolate topping evenly over the cooled cake. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate until fully chilled, at least 5 hours or overnight.
Once the cake is thoroughly chilled, cut into squares and serve. Store leftovers covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
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Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm
| Nutrition Facts (per serving) | |
|---|---|
| 446 | Calories |
| 28g | Fat |
| 39g | Carbs |
| 13g | Protein |
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| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings: 15 | |
| Amount per serving | |
| Calories | 446 |
| % Daily Value* | |
| 28g | 36% |
| Saturated Fat 12g | 59% |
| 143mg | 48% |
| 348mg | 15% |
| 39g | 14% |
| Dietary Fiber 1g | 2% |
| Total Sugars 23g | |
| 13g | |
| Vitamin C 0mg | 1% |
| Calcium 229mg | 18% |
| Iron 2mg | 9% |
| Potassium 270mg | 6% |
| *The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice. | |
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.
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