Meatless Monday: Ricotta Has Many Uses

I made this cake for Father’s Day. I’ve made it many times and have shared the recipe in this blog before. 

The original recipe for Blueberry Ricotta Squares comes from a cookbook compiled under the direction of my cousin Kris Bregani for the Greenfield, New Hampshire PTO.

Over the years I have tweaked it, substituting almond meal for half the flour and butter for the shortening. [Butter is trending right now. “Ending the War on Fat” is the cover story of the most recent Time, and a delectable curl of butter is the cover’s star.

You can copy the cake recipe from last summer’s post. After the cake is cool I cover it loosely and store it in the fridge, but it is easy to warm a square up by zapping it for a few seconds in the microwave [on a microwave safe plate].

This is still a cake, with lots of carbs from sugar. But is high in protein, and thus makes a delicious special occasion breakfast treat. It’s way better for you than a Danish.

No matter what container size of ricotta you purchase for this cake, you will have leftovers.

You could use it to top a dish of pasta, but I have another idea…

Combine your extra ricotta with an equal amount of nut butter. Blend well with a fork and add local honey to taste. This make a delicious spread for toast, and a great alternative to the classic P,B & J Sandwich. The idea comes form Recipes for a Small Planet, by Ellen Buchman Ewald, published in 1972. One testimonial on the cover claimed that this volume “makes all other cookbooks obsolete.” I wouldn’t go that far, but it’s a good one.  

Happy Monday. Have a great week!

On Mondays I often blog on food, food issues, or gardening in support of Meatless Monday, one of several programs developed in the Healthy Monday project, founded in 2003 in association with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help reduce meat consumption 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.”

Meatless Monday: Not Your Usual Blueberry Cake

Native blueberries are in season, and cool nights have returned. What a perfect time to bake a blueberry cake!

I turned to a favorite recipe — Blueberry Ricotta Squares — submitted by Gail Arnold for the Greenfield Village School Cookbook, compiled by the PTO of the Greenfield, New Hampshire Elementary School, under the direction of Kris Bregani (my cousin) in 1997.

Over the years I’ve tweaked Gail’s recipe a bit. I’ve swapped out the shortening for butter. I’ve made certain to use low-fat ricotta, and the other day I substituted almond meal for 1/2 the flour, to lower the carbs and increase the protein.

Here’s my most recent version of her recipe.

BLUEBERRY RICOTTA SQUARES

9 generous servings (as a breakfast treat)

12 servings as a dessert

Preheat over to 350° F.

Lightly grease a 9x9x2 cake pan.

INGREDIENTS

Bottom Layer:

1/2 cup unbleached white flour

1/2 cup almond meal

3/4 cup sugar

1-1/4 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1/3 c. milk

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1 egg

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Top Layer:

1-1/2 cups fresh blueberries (washed and drained)

2 eggs

1-1/4 cup low-fat ricotta cheese

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 tsp. vanilla

• In a small bowl, combine flour, almond meal, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
• Add milk, butter, egg and vanilla. 
• Beat with an electric mixer at low speed until well blended. 
• Then beat for one minute on medium speed.
• Pour batter into prepared cake pan and spread evenly.
• Sprinkle blueberries evenly on top of batter.
• Break the remaining two eggs into a mixing bowl [You can re-use the one from the batter.] and beat with a fork. 
• Add ricotta, sugar, and vanilla. 
• Spoon over blueberries and spread evenly.
• Bake at 350° for 55-60 minutes. Test at 55 minutes; a cake tester inserted at the center should come out clean.

Cool before serving, and store leftovers in the refrigerator. Ricotta Blueberry Squares are delicious warm or cold. They also freeze well if tightly wrapped.

Please remember that any cake is best in moderation. Despite my tweaks, these Blueberry Ricotta Squares are still high in fat and sugar. They are, however, packed with protein from the eggs, ricotta (35 grams), and almond meal (14 grams), making them a perfect once-in-a-while breakfast treat, far better than a cheese Danish. 

Have a great week. Eat well. 

I often blog on food or food issues on Monday in support of Meatless Monday, one of several programs developed in the Healthy Monday project, founded in 2003 in association with Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Syracuse University’s Newhouse School of Communications. Meatless Monday’s goal is “to help reduce meat consumption 15% in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.”