The first time I tasted ricotta pie was this past Christmas. One of my coworkers is an old school Italiana and she is awesome. She constantly brings in homemade Italian goodness for the entire staff to enjoy. This past Christmas, she brought in ricotta pie with honey. Yum, yum, yum.

If you’ve ever been on a diet, you’d know that the oddest cravings will hit you when you least expect it. One night, I inexplicably craved ricotta pie, rice pudding, and chocolate cake. Of those three delicacies, the first was the only viable diet-friendly option. Once I found this elegantly simple recipe here, I knew it was meant to be.

To make my version of ricotta pie low carb, I used guidelines from here and here.

Ingredients

• 16 ounces of ricotta cheese. I used part-skim, which has about 30 grams of carbohydrates in the whole shebang. So, 8 total slices of pie = approximately 4 carbs per slice.
• 1 tablespoon of cinnamon. I used a heaping tablespoon because I really like cinnamon.
• 3 large eggs. All I had was large eggs. I’m sure whatever size is fine.
• 3 tablespoons of Stevia extract. This stuff has a weird bitter/chemical aftertaste but it cost $7 and has no carbs so I’m using it! If you’re sensitive to the taste of artificial sweeteners, I’d suggest using less.
• 1 teaspoon vanilla, with a whopping 1 gram of carbohydrates in one teaspoon serving.

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Dump out the entire container of ricotta cheese into a mixing bowl. Crack in eggs and mix.
3. Add the Stevia, cinnamon, and vanilla. Mix well.
4. Grease a cake pan (or pie dish, if you have one). Pour the pie filling into the pan.
5. Plop into the oven and bake for 65 minutes.

The verdict? DELICIOUS.

The cinnamon and vanilla satisfy my craving. The Stevia totally loses its bitter aftertaste but its still evidence this dessert was made with an artificial sweetener. Hopefully, I can get used to this in time. Does Truvia have a weird taste? What’s the latest in artificial sweetening? I’m so out of the loop.

Even ST had two slices of pie. He has a voracious sweet tooth so that is saying something about the yummy factor of this dessert. It was perfect after a big bowl of spicy beef and sausage chili (I of course had a small bowl of chili).

Fresh out of the oven, the pie has a slight custard-like consistency. After refrigeration, the texture alludes to something baked with flour, like a cake. I love this because I miss cake.

If you’re a fan of ricotta pie, definitely give this recipe a try, even if you’re not on a diet.

Have you successfully recreated a healthier version of your favorite dessert?