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Blueberry Ricotta Pudding Cake: A fluffy, airy cake batter made with butter, lemon, creamy ricotta cheese, and vanilla, swirled with sweet blueberries and baked into an almost pudding-like texture. This blueberry pudding cake is extra special thanks to ribbons of blueberry jam and whipped egg whites that create its unique, melt-in-your-mouth feel. It’s light, delicious, and just a little unexpected. Top with flaked sea salt and plenty of whipped cream for the perfect anytime treat!
When I first decided to bake this cake, I honestly thought—this could either be amazing…or a complete disaster.
I was trying to combine a few different cake ideas into one. And with baking, you just never know until you pull it out of the oven! I had this vision of a fluffy, soft cake with a slightly pudding-like center—light, tender, and filled with juicy blueberries.
I’ll admit, I was a little nervous. But to my surprise (and total excitement!), the very first version turned out just right! It was pretty, delicious, and actually not too tricky to make.
The inspiration for this recipe came from my mom. She loves anything with a creamy, pudding-like texture, so the minute she heard what I was dreaming up, she insisted I had to make it.
And honestly, I think this would make the perfect Mother’s Day cake. A little more special than your typical blueberry cake, but still simple and so, so good!
Let me tell you the details
- salted butter
- granulated sugar
- lemon zest
- whole milk ricotta cheese – or you can use sour cream too
- eggs – be sure to separate the whites from the yolks
- vanilla extract
- all-purpose flour
- baking powder
- fresh or frozen blueberries – if using frozen blueberries, do not thaw
- blueberry jam
- so much whipped cream
Ingredients for the glaze
- lemon juice
- powdered sugar
- course sugar
- flaked or coarse salt
Special Tools
It’s helpful to have an electric mixer. I use a hand mixer to make the batter, then a stand mixer to whip the egg whites. But you could certainly use one or the other for both. You’ll also need a mixing bowl, 9-inch cake pan or springform, and a spatula.
Steps
Step 1: make the batter
In a bowl, beat the butter with the sugar and lemon zest until it’s well whipped. Now add in 3 egg yolks, the ricotta cheese, and vanilla. Next, add the dry ingredients, then mix in the milk.
Get the batter as smooth as possible to make mixing in the egg whites easy.
Step 2: whip the egg whites
Using a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites until soft peaks form. This will take around 3 minutes.
Now, gently and slowly use a spatula to mix the whipped whites into the batter. The whipped eggs will help create a pudding-like center to the cake.
Step 3: the blueberries and the swirl
Before mixing the blueberries into the batter, I like to toss them with a small amount of flour. This prevents the berries from sinking to the bottom of the cake as it bakes.
Now mix the berries into the batter.
Finally, swirl the top with blueberry jam. The extra jam will make the cake really pretty. Don’t skip!
Step 4: baking
Now it’s time to bake. This will take about 50 to 60 minutes. The more you bake the cake, the less pudding-like the center will be. I bake mine for 55 minutes and tent the cake with foil at 30 minutes to prevent the top from browning too much.
Step 5: the glaze
This is a very very light glaze. Just lemon juice, a little powdered sugar, coarse sugar, and the flaked salt.
Pour the glaze over the warm cake. Let set for a few minutes.
Step 6: serving with so much whipped cream
I love to slice the cake while it’s still warm and dollop it with lightly whipped vanilla cream. I use A LOT of whipped cream. It’s our favorite!
Vanilla ice cream would be yummy too, but we prefer whipped cream for this cake!
Make Ahead
If you’d like to prepare the cake a few days in advance, it stores really well. Just be sure to keep it covered and in a cool place (with no whipped cream on top). Making this the perfect make-ahead cake for brunch or dessert!
Looking for other baking recipes? Here are my favorites:
Chocolate Chip Espresso Yogurt Cake
5 Minute Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread Mug Cake
Maple Banana Bread with Cinnamon Spice Butter
Earl Grey Blueberry Lemon Cake
Lemon Strawberry Dutch Baby with Ricotta Cream
Lastly, if you make this Blueberry Ricotta Pudding Cake, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Bursting Blueberry Ricotta Pudding Cake
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 358 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 stick (8 tablespoons) salted butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon zest
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup milk or cream, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
- 1 tablespoon whole wheat or all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons blueberry jam
- whipped cream, for serving
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons coarse sugar
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- flaked salt
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. 2. In a bowl, using an electric mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, and lemon zest until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the egg yolks, beating to combine. Mix in the ricotta and vanilla. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Beat until smooth, then stream in the milk. Mix until combined.3. In a bowl, using an electric mixer, whisk the eggs whites until stiff peaks form, 3 to 5 minutes. Gently mix the whites into the batter until the batter is smooth with no streaks.4. Toss the blueberries with 1 tablespoon flour. Mix the berries into the batter. 5. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Swirl in the blueberry jam, leaving streaks of jam throughout the batter. Bake 50-60 minutes, tenting with foil at 30 minutes. The longer you bake, the more set your cake will become. I bake mine for 55 minutes. 6. To make the glaze. In a bowl or glass measuring cup, whisk together all ingredients. The glaze will be thin. Pour the glaze over the cake. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.
This post was originally published on April 29, 2025
Yum, yum! You’ve created a delicious recipe, Tieghan! I made it per your recipe, but not having blueberry jam handy, my twist was twirling in thimble berry jam. We live way north in the Keweenaw Peninsula of Michigan where both blueberries and thimble berries grow abundantly in the wild. Being it’s Labor Day, I made this cake patriotically with both berries 🙂 It is splendid! Thank you!
Hi Trudi! Thank you so so much! I am so glad you are loving this pudding cake! Those fresh blueberries sound like such a dream with this cake! 🙂 xT
Looking forward to making this cake looks lovely! Would it be ok to substitute the all purpose flour for gluten free flour? Any other tips to make it as close to using normal flour as possible?
Hey Heidi! So glad you’re planning to make this—it’s such a pretty cake! Yes, you can use a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend in place of the all-purpose flour. Just make sure it has xanthan gum or add about ¼ teaspoon per cup if it doesn’t. Also, don’t overmix the batter—this helps keep the texture light and fluffy. Let me know how it turns out! xT
Absolutely loved this cake! So moist, airy and fluffy! I love the lemon flavor and that it’s not too sweet. I’d say it’s got a pudding texture to it; this is one of those cakes you really have to keep an eye on. I tented mine with foil after 30 mins; cake was still jiggly in the middle so I added about another 5-10 mins. Thank you for sharing this recipe! I’ve loved your recipes so far, keep them coming!
Hey Sheela,
Awesome! Thank you so much for giving this recipe a try, I’m so glad to hear it was enjoyed! Have the best week:)
Hi! When do you add the 1/2 cup of room temperature cream/milk? Didn’t show anywhere in the recipe.
Hi there,
The milk is added in step 2. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
Made this for my Mom’s 87th birthday yesterday. Thank you! Delicious!
Hi Rhonda,
Amazing! So glad to hear this recipe turned out nicely for you, I appreciate you making it! Happy Birthday to your mom! xx
Loved this! Beautiful cake and my game group loved it! The course sugar in glaze made it extra special. I will make again!
Hey Kristi,
Happy Friday!! Thanks so much for making this cake and your feedback, love to hear it was a hit!
My family couldn’t get enough of this. They ate it for breakfast the next day! I am making it again this weekend for a party. Excellent!
In case this is helpful:
– I didn’t have blueberry jam, so I put leftover blueberries in a sauce pan with a little sugar, cooked it down a little and smashed them. That worked well in a pinch!
– I also did use a 1-1 Gluten Free flour substitute, and it turned out great.
Yay!! Thanks so much, Chelsea! Love to hear this recipe was enjoyed by your family and thanks for sharing your notes! xT
This cake was easy to make, super moist, and a big hit for our Mother’s Day celebration! I added raspberries in the cake as well and used blackberry jam as I couldn’t find blueberry jam. Thanks again for a wonderful recipe Tieghan!
Hi Tracey,
Fantastic!! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe and your feedback, I’m so glad to hear it was enjoyed! x
Delicious cake. I pulled mine out at 45 minutes and that was plenty. I wish the lemon flavor was a bit more pronounced but I can adjust that for next time.
Thanks so much, Page! So glad to hear this cake was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! xx
I made this for Mother’s Day. I found the recipe slightly confusing since the Instagram video didn’t appear to use ricotta cheese, but I followed the written recipe (including the ricotta) and it turned out great. My cake didn’t brown much—likely due to the ricotta, so it looked paler than the photo, but I still removed it after about 55 minutes. I glazed it that day and frosted it with whipped cream the next. The texture was definitely dense, but it was flavorful and very good. I’d make it again!
Hey Annalies,
Happy Monday! I appreciate you trying this recipe and your feedback, love to hear it turned out well! xx
Hey Tieghan,
I live in Canada and we dont carry whole milk ricotta cheese. Is there a way to make regular ricotta cheese with this recipe! I really want to try it but dont want to screw it up! Thanks!
Hi Natalie,
Yes, that will be just fine for you to do:) I hope you love this cake, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
So delicious. Even better the next day. Don’t go more than 55 minutes it keeps that melting, pudding-like consistency. Bravo Tieghan – you get better each year ❤️
Hi Sue,
Amazing! So glad this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for making it! Have a wonderful weekend!💐