Ricotta recipes

Light, airy coffee cheesecake with ricotta, instant coffee, and fluffy egg whites on a honey-sweetened zwieback crust. A no-bake style set with gelatin for smooth, mousse-like slices.

Pasta with chicken in a creamy tomato sauce blended with four Italian cheeses: Bel Paese, ricotta, Romano, and Gorgonzola. A rich, indulgent pasta dinner with plum tomatoes, heavy cream, and butter.

Mexican-Italian fusion lasagna with hot Italian sausage, chili powder, ricotta, cheddar, and jalapenos layered between flour tortillas instead of pasta sheets.

Vegan Italian spaghetti casserole with tofu ricotta, nutritional yeast cheesy sauce, and a homemade tomato-herb sauce baked until bubbly. A plant-based baked ziti.

Sneaky vegetable lasagna: shredded zucchini, eggplant, and spinach simmered into the sauce until they vanish, then layered with ricotta and gobs of cheese. A veggie-packed, kid-approved lasagna.

Light apple raisin crepes with an oat bran batter, part-skim ricotta and apple filling, and a warm cinnamon syrup poured over at serving. Just 178 calories per serving.

Stuffed poblano chiles filled with ripe olives, ricotta and Monterey Jack, baked and finished with a quick olive mole sauce of tomato, cumin, chili powder and beef stock.

Layered bar cookies with an oat-almond-tahini crumb crust and a rich carob filling made from tofu, ricotta, and maple syrup. A wholesome, caffeine-free treat for health-conscious bakers.

Manicotti Rita Taule wraps a creamy three-cheese ricotta filling inside delicate homemade crepes (no boiling pasta tubes). Baked under tomato sauce and melted mozzarella for a tender Italian classic.

Fruited cheesecake: a creamy ricotta cheesecake on a vanilla wafer crust, crowned with fresh fruit arranged in concentric circles and glazed with currant jelly. A bakery-style summer dessert for eight.

Lo-cal cheese cake swaps cream cheese for low-fat ricotta and cottage cheese, fruit sugar for white, and folds in beaten egg whites for an airy, lighter cheesecake without the dairy bomb.

Spicy venison sausage lasagna layered with a slow-simmered mushroom tomato sauce, creamy ricotta, stretchy mozzarella, and Parmesan. A leaner, bolder twist on the Italian-American classic.

Four-layer spiced chocolate torte filled with apricot jam and frosted with a cocoa-espresso ricotta cream. Warm cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg give this butterless cake a complex, grown-up flavor.

Grilled portabello caps loaded with creamy spinach-artichoke ricotta filling, finished with Parmesan and served alongside a rustic tomato bread salad. A quick vegetarian main that's ready in under 30 minutes.

Classic Italian-American lasagna with hot Italian sausage, a carrot-and-celery-studded tomato sauce, creamy ricotta filling, and stretchy mozzarella. A peppery weeknight crowd-pleaser.

Shortcut calzones made with refrigerated pie crust, hot Italian sausage, mozzarella, ricotta, pine nuts, and roasted peppers. Italian-American takeout flavor at home in under an hour.