Orange Ricotta Poppy Seed Coffee Cake

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9-inch springform pan with butter.
2. Prepare the topping: in a medium bowl, mix together flour, sugar, brown sugar, oats, salt, almond extract and walnuts. Once thoroughly combined, pour melted butter on top and stir until all the dry ingredients are coated with butter and a crumbly mixture forms. You may want to use a fork to break up the clumps that are larger than half an inch in diameter. Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a mixer, cream together the butter and sugar. Once combined, beat in eggs, adding one at a time. Add ricotta, orange zest and juice, and mix until thoroughly combined. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and poppy seeds, and then add to the mixing bowl. Mix until fully incorporated. The batter will be rather thick – don’t worry!
4. Place about one half of the batter in the prepared springform pan. You may need to use an offset spatula to spread the batter evenly over the bottom. Sprinkle on top about one half of the prepared topping. Repeat with the remaining batter and topping.
5. Bake for 1 hour – 1 hour and 5 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely in the pan before running a knife or offset spatula around the edges to help loosen the sides.