Ricotta and Strawberry Cake

To prepare the ricotta and strawberry cake, start with the genoise sponge. Pour the room-temperature eggs into a bowl, add the honey, the grated lemon zest 1, then the sugar a little at a time. Turn on the beaters and whip for about ten minutes until the mixture is fluffy and light and forms ribbons when lifting the beaters 3.

Turn off the beaters, place a sieve and sift the flour 4. Gently incorporate it with upward movements using a whisk or spatula 5. Transfer the mixture into two greased and floured 8-inch cake rings or pans 6.

Gently level the surface 7 and proceed with baking 8: the disks bake in a static oven, preheated to 350°F, for about 10 minutes 9.

Once baked, flip them onto a rack and gently peel off the parchment paper while they are still hot. Then let them cool completely 10. Prepare the lemon syrup by infusing the lemon zest and vanilla bean for an hour. After the time has passed, pour everything into a saucepan, add the sugar 12

and when it is dissolved, strain and let it cool 13. In the meantime, move on to the strawberries. After briefly immersing them in fresh water, drain and clean them. Remove the top part and slice enough to line the circumference of the pan 14. The rest should be chopped and gathered in a bowl 15.

Pour the sugar over the strawberry pieces 16, mix, and let them macerate for about ten minutes 17. Then, pour into a pan 18,

along with the sambuca, and sauté over high heat: be careful of any flames if you have a classic stove. As soon as they are slightly softened, turn off the stove and set aside 19. Now let's move on to the cream. Soak the gelatin in cold water for about ten minutes 20. Meanwhile, sift the ricotta 21

Heat 2 tablespoons of cream and dissolve the drained gelatin 22, then pour it over the ricotta and mix 23. Then add the slightly cooled strawberries 24.

Pour the remaining 1/3 cup of cold cream into a bowl along with the powdered sugar 25 and whip it to stiff peaks with beaters 26. Pour the whipped cream into the bowl 27,

gently fold it in 28. Set aside a couple of tablespoons, preferably without strawberries 29. At this point, everything is ready, proceed with the assembly. In a pastry ring lined with acetate (the circumference will probably be slightly smaller than the initial 8 inches) placed on a turntable or classic plate, place the first genoise sponge disk 30.

Moisten with a bit of syrup 31, pour the cream with the strawberry pieces 32, and then place the other disk 33.

Moisten the surface and refrigerate for a couple of hours 34. After the time has passed, remove the acetate 35 and proceed to glaze the cake. Take the reserved cream and thin it with a bit of cream until you have a soft, not too liquid cream 36.

Then coat the entire cake with a spatula 37, garnish with sliced strawberries, alternating them with the tip first facing up and then down 38. Decorate the surface as desired, and your ricotta and strawberry cake is ready 39.