HOW TO BAKE IT

I always like to prep all my things ahead of time, measured out, and in front of me before I start cooking or baking.

Therefore, I think in bowls.

I always have ONE bowl out where I hold all the measured items — the flour, then the baking soda, then the salt, etc.

Now preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C).

Prepare your loaf pan by smearing it liberally with butter and dust a little flour all over it (so the cake pops out easily instead of sticking).

In Mixing Bowl #1, loosely mix the 1 3/4 cup of flour, 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda & 1/2 teaspoon of salt salt together.

In Mixing Bowl #2, mix the 3/4 cup of unsalted room temperature butter and cream it together with the 1 1/2 cups of sugar and 1 cup of ricotta cheese, assuming naturally that you haven’t eaten all of it in an excited frenzy.

Now in Mixing Bowl #2 with the creamy deliciousness of butter, sugar and cheese (stop yourself from just eating it with a spoon, have a little self control!), add the 1 Tbsp of lemon zest, 2 teaspoons of lemon juice, and mix in one egg at a time. It’ll get easier to whisk it as you do.

Finally, slowly mix in the ingredients of Mixing Bowl #1 slowly incorporating it into the batter until it is all smooth.

DO NOT OVER MIX THIS. See how I bolded this part?

Just mix it until it’s combined.

It is hard to not go overboard but the minute you stop seeing dry flour patches, stop.

Pour the final mix into the loaf pan, and stick it into your already preheated oven and bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes.

My oven needed 1 hour and 20 minutes, but yours might need less than that, so I am putting 10 minutes.

If it’s still a bit wet when you stick a toothpick or fork inside, then you need to leave it in there for another 10 minutes, then check it.

Keep checking at 10 minute intervals until it’s burned through and definitely cooked.

Just kidding.

OF COURSE I mean “until it’s cooked fully through and the fork comes out clean”.

I would caution you against eating or licking the batter off any bowls or spoons but then I’d be a hypocrite (I know, raw eggs, bla bla, so sue me).

Remove it from the oven, pop it out of the pan without any knife or struggle required (see, that butter & flour on the inside helped didn’t it?) and let it cool before devouring the entire thing in a fit of satisfied ecstasy.

It should sort of look like this beauty:

Oh my little gorgeous pound cake!! How delicious you look.

P.S. I made a delicious all-round-in-a-pinch miso noodle dish the other day if you’re interested which could turn vegan or vegetarian, and this at-home Steak Tartare and Miso seabass was an oldie but still a goodie!