Italian Cheesecake

Ok, so I'm not really a baker, but I must share this delicious recipe with you. I promise that it is very easy. It's also not quite as bad for you as regular cheesecake. That's because Italian Cheesecake is actually more of a cheese-pie and is made with ricotta instead of cream cheese. As a result, the texture is a bit different from regular cheesecake...more rustic perhaps? But definitely delicious! This recipe comes from my mom. By the way, the 'true' way to say "ricotta" is rig-aw-ta, or even just rig-awt. Sound like a Soprano the next time you're at the store!

Italian Cheesecake
time: 15 min prep, 80 min oven

1 frozen pie crust (thawed)
3 and 1/2 cups ricotta cheese (whole milk gives a slightly moister cake, so watch the cooking time more carefully if you use reduced-fat)
1/4 cup flour (all purpose)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
1 tablespoon grated orange peel (or another lemon if you were too lazy)
1 tablespoon vanilla
4 eggs
1 cup sugar
ground cinnamon (optional)

Arrange pie-crust in a lightly greased pie-pan. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together the cheese, flour, salt, grated lemon peel, grated orange peel, and vanilla. Next, beat in 4 eggs. Add sugar gradually, mixing well in between additions. Pour filling into pie-crust. Tilt and gently shake pan to ensure an even distribution. Bake until pie is firm (but not dry and cracking!), about 1 hour and 20 minutes. Cooking time will vay a bit from oven to oven. If you use reduced fat ricotta you may need less cooking time. Let the cheesecake cool at room temperature. If you want, sprinkle with ground cinnamon before serving. The cake can be served warm or cold and goes really well with coffee.

The top of the pie should be a light golden-tan color. This is NOT my pie...i'll try to make one soon, but it demonstrates fairly well what to aim for. I'd even go a tad lighter on the cooking.