This delicious ricotta pie recipe with a homemade crust is a creamy sweet pie that is easy to make, and a traditional Italian dessert for Easter and the holidays. With the delicate flavors of ricotta, lemon and cinnamon it is so delicious.
Now there are as many recipes for Italian ricotta pie as there are recipes for Italian red sauce. The basic ingredients in ricotta pie are always, ricotta, eggs, sugar, lemon, and a pastry dough. It is an Italian ricotta cheesecake but not to be confused with ricotta cake!
Italian ricotta pie is sometimes called ricotta Easter pie because it is traditional in Italian families to serve this at Easter. This is a recipe that has been passed down in my Italian family and growing up, we actually enjoyed this ricotta pie at Christmas. I now make this for my family at all the holidays.
It is really easy to make, there is no straining or special techniques and it is so good.
The Best Easter Ricotta Pie!
I have made this ricotta cheese pie (and eaten it) countless times over the years. With that, I have tweaked the recipe to improve on what I thought needed improvements to make this pie the best version it can be. Even family recipes can use this from time to time.
My biggest improvement is making a ricotta pie that is extra creamy and not grainy. To do this, I like to use sour cream which gives the pie a smooth and creamy texture and to eliminate the dryness that can sometimes happen with this Italian dessert. The creaminess also helps ensure that the pie does not crack on the top which can happen with baked custard fillings.
I also eliminated the need to make a complicated Italian pasta frolla (Italian pastry crust) and instead use my family's pie crust recipe. In my opinion, holiday desserts like this one should taste amazing and be easy with as little stress as possible. Don't you agree?
This simple and uncomplicated ricotta pie, my biscotti with cranberries and almonds, Amaretto tiramisu, and classic tiramisu (without alcohol), have become my go-to desserts during the holidays.
What You Will Need
The ingredients for this lemon ricotta pie are so simple (quantities below):
- Pie crust: I have included my family's recipe below which always prevents a soggy bottom on the pie. I use this in all my creamy pies, like my creamy Italian custard pie to hold up to the filling. You can also use store-bought.
- Whole milk ricotta cheese: Please make sure to use whole milk ricotta! The full fat will help make sure the pie custard is creamy.
- Granulated sugar
- Full fat sour cream: This helps with the creaminess of the ricotta filling.
- All-purpose flour: Helps hold the custard filling together.
- Large eggs
- Vanilla extract
- Lemon: lemon and ricotta are classic Italian flavors and what make this pie so delicious.
- Kosher Salt
- Ground Cinnamon: For dusting over the top of the pie.
Ingredients Note: Traditional Italian recipes call for pasta frolla for the crust. To keep it easy, store bought pie crust is what we are using. For planning, keep in mind that ricotta pie will need a little time to set up in the refrigerator after cooling but it is well worth the wait.
How To Make Ricotta Pie
If you have never made a ricotta pie before, this is the best ricotta pie recipe to start with because it is so simple.
- Making the crust: If you are making you pie crust from scratch, this part is so simple. Just add the flour, butter, and remaining pie crust ingredients to a food processor and blend until a dough forms. You will get 3 crusts from this recipe so go ahead and freeze two for a later time.
- The prep: Roll out the pastry crust with a rolling pin then gently transfer to a pie 9-inch round pie pan. At this point, make sure to preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
- Mix: grab a large bowl add your eggs, vanilla and sugar and mix well. Then add your ricotta, sour cream, lemon zest and lemon juice and mix. And last, add your flour and salt and mix and that is the filling. Done!
- Bake: Pour your ricotta mixture into your pie dish (or a spring form pan if you do not have one) and bake until the custard looks firm when you give the pan a little shake.
- Cooling: Make sure to let the pie cool completely on a wire rack before chilling in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours but preferably 4 hours.
Tips, Substitutions And Notes!
- Add a lattice top to the pie: I use pie crust on the bottom only but you can certainly add a beautiful lattice top to the pie before baking. If you make my pie crust recipe, you will have extra crust for this.
- Add more citrus: You can make this Italian pie with orange zest or even more lemon zest if you love citrus flavors. I love doing this with my Italian fried dough.
- Skip the citrus: I do love making this sometimes with no lemon and just topping the ricotta pie with cinnamon. It is so good that way!
- Testing for doneness: Make sure you do not shake the pie too much when you check if it is ready because this can cause cracking in the custard.
Recipe FAQS
Because ricotta pie is a custard pie, in order to know it is ready you must give it a little shake to make sure it is set up and firm in the middle. To avoid cracks, make sure to just barely nudge the pie to check for doneness and this will prevent cracks in the custard.
Low-fat ricotta is not ideal for ricotta pie since it lacks the fat content needed for a creamy pie. Whole milk ricotta works best.
If you have leftover ricotta after making the pie, you can use it in baked rigatoni, as a dip or as a cannoli filling.
Yes. To do this just make the pie and let it cool completely. After cooling, wrap the pie in a couple of layers of plastic wrap and freeze for up to 2 months. Thaw the pie in the fridge overnight when you are ready to eat it.
Storing And Serving
Ricotta pie is best served chilled, much like a pumpkin pie. Since the ricotta pie has ricotta and eggs it is best to store it in the fridge until ready to use.
We love making this ricotta pie ahead of time (up to 2 days) and having it already chilled and ready for when we want to serve it.
For More Traditional Italian Recipes
- Italian Brownie Cake
- Buttermilk Panna Cotta
- Italian Cornmeal Cookies
- Baked Italian Sausage
- Italian Rice Pudding Using Arborio Rice
- Rigatoni Amatriciana
- Ciambella Cake
- Ricotta Pancakes Made With Baking Mix
Creamy Italian Ricotta Pie Recipe: For The Holidays
Equipment
- 9 inch pie plate
Ingredients
- 1 pie crust one disc of dough (recipe below) or store-bought.
- 2 cups ricotta Whole milk ricotta
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup all purpose flour
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 lemon zest of the lemon and the juice
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- pinch of salt
Pie Crust (makes 3 discs of dough or 3 pie crusts)
- 4 cups All purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups cold unsalted butter cut into cubes
- 1 egg beaten
- ½ cup ice water
- 3 tablespoon sour cream
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
Ricotta Pie
- Roll the pie crust (see recipe below) out a little larger in diameter than a 9-inch pie pan.1 pie crust
- Add your pie crust to a 9 inch round pie pan and crimp the edges and remove any excess crust.
- Set aside.
- Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.
- In a large bowl add your eggs, vanilla and sugar and mix well for 1 minute.1 cup granulated sugar, 4 large eggs, 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- Now add your ricotta, sour cream, lemon zest and lemon juice and mix it all in.2 cups ricotta, ¼ cup sour cream, 1 lemon
- Add your flour and salt and mix for 1 minute until you do not see any more lumps.¼ cup all purpose flour, pinch of salt
- Pour your ricotta mixture into your pie pan and place in the pre-heated oven.
- Bake for 45-50 minutes or until the texture of the pie is firm and not jiggly in the center. When checking the doneness of the pie, only give it a slight nudge to check if it is set. This will prevent the custard from cracking.
- Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
- Refrigerate for at least 2 hours but preferably 4 hours.
- Dust the top with cinnamon and serve as is, or with with whipped cream.1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Pie Crust Recipe
- Add dry ingredients to a food processor.4 cups All purpose flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- Add the cold butter to the flour in the food processor and pulse until butter is combined and looks like coarse sand.1 ½ cups cold unsalted butter
- In a small bowl mix together your egg, water, sour cream, and vinegar.1 egg, ½ cup ice water, 3 tablespoon sour cream, 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- Add to the food processor with the flour mixture and pulse until just combined.
- Dump flour-butter mixture into a large bowl and set aside
- Dump out onto a lightly floured board and shape into a ball. Divide the ball into 3 sections and form into round balls.
- Take each ball of dough shape into a ball and press down into a disc. Wrap each disc with plastic wrap
- Refrigerate dough for 20-25 minutes to make the butter cold again (this helps with flakey layers)
Denise says
OMG, I am addicted to this ricotta pie. We have made it 3 times now and each time it is eaten quickly 🙂
Jen says
This was like the ricotta pie I grew up eating! So good
Meg says
This ricotta pie is my new favorite pie. Silky and creamy and so good!