Easy Ricotta Cake with Honey, Chocolate and Orange
11 November 2025
Easy Ricotta Cake with Honey, Chocolate and Orange
Easy Ricotta Cake with Honey, Chocolate and Orange
This Easy Ricotta Cake has quickly become one of my favourite cakes to bake. It’s unfussy, quick to bring together, and the result feels genuinely special — the kind of cake you’ll make once and then happily come back to again and again. Ricotta gives the crumb softness and lightness, and the combination of honey, dark chocolate and orange makes every slice feel sunny and quietly indulgent without being overly sweet.
I love this cake because it feels truly impressive yet comes together with so little fuss.
So what is Ricotta?
Ricotta isn’t technically a cheese made from curds — it’s made from reheating whey. This gives ricotta its beautifully light, creamy texture, which is why it works so well in cakes and baked desserts without ever feeling heavy. I love this Bon Appétit article, and I especially love this part here: “If the Italian word ricotta doesn’t translate to glorious, fluffy cheese clouds in English, I’d like to speak to someone about changing that. Because that’s exactly what ricotta is: light, spongy, creamy, glorious fresh cheese”.
Why This Easy Ricotta Cake Works
Ricotta cakes have a softness that feels different from a standard butter cake. The ricotta brings moisture without heaviness, and the honey brings a gentle warmth rather than intense sweetness. Add the fragrance of orange zest and those little flecks of dark chocolate throughout each slice…and it’s the kind of cake people remember.
Since ricotta has natural fat and a bit of sweetness, it locks in moisture without making the cake feel heavy.
This is the a you can bake, with ease. for a midweek pantry treat …..or when friends are coming for dinner and you want to serve something comforting but not complicated. It’s effortless to make, but it’s beautiful enough to serve proudly.
Shared First With My Cooking Club
I first shared this cake with our Cooking Club after a test bake — and I have had such lovely feedback.
Suzette, one of our Cooking Club members, baked it over the weekend and messaged me straight away:
“It is delicious! Light and not too sweet, with orange and chocolate notes. Yummo… this will be my next go-to cake.”
I loved her message — because that’s exactly the joy of this recipe. It isn’t difficult. It isn’t dramatic. It isn’t a “special occasion only” cake. And yet, it feels & tastes super special. It is a cake to bake when you want something beautiful with hardly any effort.
Cake for Slow Moments… or Last Minute Invites
There will always be room in the world for elaborate baking projects — but some of life’s sweetest baking pleasure lives inside cakes like this one. Cakes that offer satisfaction, calm, and beauty without a big list of steps or stress.
Serve it simply with a dusting of icing sugar (like I do) and if you feel like it, a little extra drizzle of honey just before serving. Make it for morning tea. Make it for an afternoon cuppa. Make it for dessert tonight.
You’ll find the full recipe below & I hope you enjoy it very much.
With love,
Nellie
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Ricotta Cake with honey, Chocolate and orange
Equipment
- Digital kitchen scale
- Large mixing bowl (or two)
- Electric hand mixer or stand mixer
- 20 cm (8-inch) round cake tin (springform or deep)
- Parchment paper / baking liner
- Measuring cups & spoons (metric)
- Spatula & whisk
- Zester or fine grater (for orange zest)
- Small saucepan (if melting honey or glaze)
- Cooling rack
Ingredients
- 300 g plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp sea-salt flakes
- 2 free-range eggs
- 100 g honey plus extra for drizzling
- 200 g unsalted butter melted and cooled
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 400 g ricotta from the tub / deli
- 150 g caster sugar
- 100 g good-quality dark chocolate chopped roughly
- Zest of 1 orange
- Dust with Icing Sugar if desired, when serving
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C fan-forced (200°C conventional). Grease and line your cake tin.
- For bundt tins: Brush every ridge and curve generously with melted butter. Dust the tin lightly with plain flour and tap out any excess. This double layer is what helps the cake release cleanly. Once baked, allow the cake to cool in the tin for 10 minutes only. Place a wire rack over the tin and invert in one confident motion. If it feels a little stuck, give the base a firm tap several times and gently lift the tin away.
- Tip: If your bundt tin has deep detail, chill the greased tin for 10 minutes before adding the batter. This helps set the butter layer and prevents sticking.
- Alternatively, use a 23cm round cake tin or a square cake tin and grease well and line with baking paper.
- Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl.
- Rub the finely grated orange zest into the caster sugar with your fingertips until fragrant.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs until light and fluffy, then add honey, cooled butter, vanilla, ricotta and the orange-scented sugar. Combine well, then gently fold in the flour mixture and chopped chocolate.
- Pour the mixture into the prepared tin.
- Bake for 45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Cool in the tin for 10 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to fully cool.
- Dust with icing sugar, if desired.
Notes
Tip: If your bundt tin has deep detail, chill the greased tin for 10 minutes before adding the batter. This helps set the butter layer and prevents sticking.
Nutrition
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