Homemade Creamy Ricotta Cheese

For the love of cheese! My wife and I have been fascinated with how cheese is being made. We've watched so many shows that made different cheeses and said one day we'll our own.

A few weeks later, she craved homemade lasagna. What best opportunity presented, we made the ricotta cheese ourselves.

This recipe is super easy with as little as 4 ingredients that you may already have sitting in your pantry/kitchen ingredient supplies.

Ricotta is an excellent addition to your pasta and pizza recipes and because it is extremely versatile, you can also include ricotta in your appetizers and desserts. Believe me when I say that homemade ricotta cheese just tastes way better than store-bought. It is extra creamy, not too wet, and less grainy. I hope you will try and love this recipe - ;-) Dina

Utensils:

• Large pot for boiling
• Strainer
• Glass bowl to collect the whey
• Measuring cups
• Measuring spoons
• Spatula for stirring
• Slotted spatula for collecting the ricotta cheese
• Cheesecloth
• Thermometer

Ingredients:

• 3 cups whole milk (If possible, to make lots of curds! In this recipe, I used 3.25% homogenized milk)
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup 35 % Whipping Cream
• 2 tbsps. strained fresh lemon juice

Assemble your curd collection supplies:

Over a large deep glass bowl, line a mesh strainer with two layers of cheesecloth and set aside. This will be used to separate the cheese curds from the whey.

Procedure:

• Set your heat to medium-high, add the milk, cream, and salt.
• Stir your mixture constantly until it comes to a soft boil (between 200-206 F/ 93-97 C).
• Add the lemon juice to the mixture, stir only a couple of times then turn the heat off. Do not stir the mixture again, let it sit for 10 minutes and watch the mixture start to curdle.

Notes/Tips/Substitutions:

• Do not use ultra-pasteurized milk, It will not curdle properly. Regular pasteurized milk will do the trick.
• White or red vinegar can be used instead of lemon juice.
• it is safe to use ultra-pasteurized heavy whipping cream or 35% whipping cream.
• Do not wait for your mixture to come to a vigorous boil. It will mess up the cheese's texture and soft consistency. It may also result in burnt-tasting cheese.
• This recipe would yield about 1 cup of ricotta cheese.
• You can easily double the recipe, you just need a bigger strainer. It will be best to make a couple of straining stations.
• The ricotta, at room temperature, will be light, fluffy, and warm. When chilled, the ricotta will be creamier and slightly dense.
• Use a thermometer (optional). We used a digital thermometer to check. If a kitchen thermometer is not available, use visual clues: the mixture should come to a rolling boil, with only soft bubbles from the sides and in the center of the pot.
• Recycle and reuse your cheesecloth. Wash your cheesecloth in mild, soapy water and rinse. It is best to hang the cheesecloth to air-dry. Once fully dried, put the cheesecloth in a zip lock bag ready for next use.

Ta-da!!! Ricotta Cheese!

• For light and fluffy ricotta, drain after 10-15 minutes, use your slotted spoon (or you can pour it over slowly) to transfer the ricotta curds to a cheesecloth-lined strainer over a deep bowl. For drier and slightly denser ricotta, strain longer.
• Your ricotta will be ready to use right away, or transfer to an air-tight container and refrigerate until ready to use. ENJOY!

Additional Note:

This super yummy ricotta can be used for any warm or cold recipes. Enjoy with toasted buttered sourdough bread drizzled with olive oil, garlic butter, and some of your favorite herbs. You can store your fresh ricotta cheese in a tightly covered glass container in the fridge for about 4 days.

*** The liquid that remained in the glass bowl after straining the ricotta is the whey. You can either throw it out or make something else. It will taste a little tangy and salty, some exercise buffs use whey in their protein shakes as it is full of protein, vitamins, minerals, and enzymes.

Hope you will have fun and enjoy making this simple ricotta cheese recipe. Cheers!