Chocolate Italian Cream Cake

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and floured a 13- x 9- x 2-inch cake pan. Prepare cake as per package instructions, using eggs and oil; pour into prepared pan and set aside.

Combine ricotta cheese, sugar and vanilla in a large mixing bowl; mix until thoroughly combined. Pour over cake batter. Swirl through the batter with a knife.

Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven; let cool down and transfer to a serving platter.

Meanwhile, combine chocolate pudding mix and non-dairy whipped topping; beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth about 3 to 4 minutes. Refrigerate pudding mixture.

Cover cake with pudding mixture. Serve immediately or keep refrigerated until serving time.

TIP: For baking purposes, when buying ricotta cheese in a plastic tumbler, it is best to take the following precautions in order to not end up with a soggy cake:

In a small skillet over very low heat, add ricotta. Once the cheese has shed its excess liquid, discard liquid. Wrap ricotta in cheesecloth and place over a bowl. Ricotta is ready for baking once it has stopped dripping.