Sicilian Cream Cake (Cassata Alla Siciliana)

• 2 lbs ricotta cheese
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 ounce maraschino cherries or 1 ounce your favorite flavor liqueur
• 2 tablespoons shredded sweet chocolate or 2 tablespoons miniature chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup chopped candied fruit
• 1 sponge cake, cut into 1 inch slices
• confectioners' sugar (for sifting over unmolded cake)

1. Combine ricotta, sugar, vanilla and liqueur in a bowl and blend thoroughly until smooth.
2. Add chocolate and fruit; mix well.
3. Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch spring form pan (or a large pan or bowl) with cake slices.
4. Turn ricotta mixture into lined mold.
5. Cover the top with remaining cake slices.
6. Refrigerate overnight, or place in freezer for several hours.
7. To serve: If you used a pan or bowl as a mold, invert pan/bowl onto a serving platter, and remove mold.
8. Sprinkle (lightly sift) confectioner's sugar over cake.
9. If you used a spring form pan, remove sides of pan, leaving cake on the pan bottom, place on serving platter, sift confectioner's sugar over cake.
10. Variation: If you prefer, you can frost the cake with sweetened whipped cream flavored with a little almond extract.

ricotta cheese, sugar, vanilla, maraschino cherries, sweet chocolate, candied fruit, cake, confectioners

Taken from www.food.com/recipe/sicilian-cream-cake-cassata-alla-siciliana-38511 (may not work)