Recipe: Choc-Cheese Brownie Slice and Chocolate Ricotta Cake (Australia Women's Weekly)

The following is the only recipe I could find with chocolate and ricotta from Australian Women's Weekly's Cakes and Slices Cookbook. Otherwise, online you can find two chocolate ricotta cheesecakes, a chocolate ricotta layer cake made with a spruced up package of cake mix, and chocolate ricotta tart from Australian Women's Weekly. In addition, I found a Chocolate Ricotta Cake in a 1979 copy of AWW.

CHOC-CHEESE BROWNIE SLICE
Source: Australian Women's Weekly's Cakes and Slices Cookbook

FOR THE CAKE:
185 g dark chocolate, chopped
45 g butter
2 eggs
3/4 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup plain flour
1/4 cup self-raising flour
few drops almond essence
FOR THE FILLING:
60 g butter
1 tsp vanilla essence
185 g ricotta cheese
1/4 cup caster sugar
2 eggs
2 tbsp plain flour
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Grease a 19cm x 29cm lamination pan (7x11-inch baking pan).

TO PREPARE THE CAKE BATTER:
Melt chocolate and butter over hot water, cool, do not allow to set.

Beat eggs in small bowl with electric mixer until thick, add sugar gradually, beat until sugar is dissolved. Transfer mixture to large bowl, stir in sifted flours, essence and chocolate mixture. Spread half the chocolate mixture into prepared pan.

TO MAKE FILLING:
Beat butter, essence and cheese together in small bowl with electric mixer until mixture is creamy. Add sugar, beat until fluffy, add eggs one at a time, beat until combined. Stir in sifted flour.

Top chocolate mixture in pan with filling, then remaining chocolate mixture. Run a knife in a zig-zag pattern through mixture, sprinkle evenly with walnuts.

Bake in moderate oven for about 30 minutes. Cool in pan before cutting. Store in refrigerator until set.

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CHOCOLATE RICOTTA CAKE CAKE
Source: Australian Women's Weekly magazine, 1979

FOR THE CAKE:
1 cup self-raising flour
3 tablespoons cocoa
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk, extra
1/3 cup milk
125g (4 oz) butter or substitute
FOR THE FILLING:
400g packet ricotta cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
125g (4oz) dark chocolate
300ml carton thickened cream

TO PREPARE THE CAKE:
Put sifted flour and sifted cocoa into small bowl of electric mixer, add sugar, egg, extra egg yolk, milk and roughly chopped butter. Beat on medium speed 4 minutes.

Grease 28cm x 18cm (11 in x 7in) lamington tin, line base with greased greaseproof paper. Spoon cake mixture evenly into tin.

Bake in moderate oven 25 to 30 minutes or until cooked when tested. Turn out and cool on wire rack.

When cold, cut evenly into 3 horizontal layers. Place one layer on oven tray, spread a third of the prepared filling evenly over cake, top with another layer of cake, then another third of the filling. Place remaining layer of cake evenly on top. Spread remaining filling evenly over sides and top of cake. Put cake in freezer, freeze until firm.

Remove from tray, wrap in aluminium foil, then put in freezer bag, remove air, secure. Freeze until required.

TO SERVE:
Remove from freezer, unwrap, place on serving plate, stand at room temperature until thawed (approximately 2V2 hours). Decorate with extra whipped cream and grated chocolate. Recommended maximum freezing time: 2 months.

TO MAKE THE FILLING:
Beat cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Put chocolate in top of double saucepan, stand over simmering water until melted, cool. Add cooled chocolate to cheese mixture, beat well until smooth. Fold in whipped cream.