Ricotta Amaretto Cheesecake

These little Ricotta Amaretto Cheesecake squares are light and refreshing and so easy to make!  They come together really quickly using short bread cookies for the base and only 6 ingredients for the cheese cake. 

Strawberries are available pretty much the whole year so you can make this any time you like.  It makes a nice Valentine presentation, spring-like presentation or a promise of spring in the dead of winter!

Ricotta cheese is relatively low fat so it does make a nice light dessert.

You can substitute your favorite liqueur for the amaretto.  I think Lemoncello would be awesome - and you may have some leftover if you made my yummy Lemoncello Chicken! Gran Marnier would be nice too.   You can use your imagination here!  I would omit the lemon juice from the recipe if you are leaning toward a cream liqueur like Baileys.

You can also get creative with the fruit topping to suit your taste or whatever is available. Blueberries would be good and of course raspberries would be good too.

You can easily double this recipe... just double all the ingredients and use a 9 X 13" pan.  If you use something like a 10" spring form pan that will work as well but you will have to increase the baking time for the cheesecake to set.  I would check it at 1 hour but it may take up to 1 ½ hours if doubled.  A knife should come out clean from the center of the pan.  Center may be a bit jiggly but not runny.

Use your imagination and enjoy!

Ricotta Amaretto Cheese Cake

Add a bit of flare to your cheesecake squares.

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Italian

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 1 hour hr

Cooling time: 30 minutes mins

Total Time: 1 hour hr 45 minutes mins

Servings: 16 squares

Ingredients

Base

• 1 sleeve short bread cookies about 7 oz or 1 cup of crumbs
• 2 Tbsps sugar
• 2 Tbsps cold unsalted butter

Cheese Cake

• 1 lb ricotta cheese room temperature
• ⅓ cup sugar
• 3 Tbsps flour
• 2 tsps lemon juice
• 3 eggs room temperature
• 2 Tbsps amaretto liqueur (Sub 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ⅛ teaspoon salt & ¼ teaspoon cinnamon if not using liqueur)

Strawberry Glaze

• 1 cup crushed strawberries + about 8 more for garnish (about 1 lb in total)
• ¼ cup sugar
• 4 ½ tsps corn starch
• ¼ cup amaretto

Instructions

Base

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Pulse cookies in food processor until finely ground. Add sugar and butter and whisk until mixed.
• Spray an 8" square oven proof pan. Press the shortbread mix firmly and evenly on the bottom with a fork.
• Bake about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.

Cream Cheese

• Drain the ricotta cheese in a seive for about 15 minutes.
• Whisk all ingredients together in a food processor. Whisk well for a couple of minutes until the cheese is a silky texture. (Check it to make sure the mix is not gritty).
• Pour cheese mixture into the shortbread base. Bake another 45 minutes at 350 degrees.
• Allow to cool before glazing.

Strawberry Glaze

• Add amaretto to corn starch and stir until dissolved.
• Heat crushed strawberries and sugar in a saucepan. Add cornstarch mix and cook over medium heat until mixture boils and thickens. Juices should be transparent. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
• Pour cooled glaze over cooled cheesecake. Garnish with strawberry slices or halves.

Nutrition

Calories: 92kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 32mg | Potassium: 31mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 91IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 1mg