Ricotta Cheese - ☺♥

I found a recipe for making ricotta cheese on the Internet and it is simple and excellent. Use freshly squeezed lemon juice when you want to make a sweet recipe that uses ricotta cheese, like cannoli, or vinegar when you are planning to make a savory recipe, like ravioli.

Ricotta cheese is very easy to make and what you make at home tastes great so I hope you make it.

Ingredients: (makes one pint of ricotta cheese)

2 quarts of whole milk (4% butterfat)

1 teaspoon of salt

3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice or white vinegar

Directions:

I learned quickly that all the discussion about using cheesecloth in this recipe is silly if you have a medium to large size sieve with very fine holes. Use that and you can skip all the directions in this recipe for using cheesecloth. If you don't have that type of sieve then get one. Look online at sites like Amazon® to see the different types of sieves.

Optionally ... Line a colander with a large piece of lightly dampened cheesecloth that has been folded over itself at least 3-4 times. Place the colander over a bowl. Make sure to use non-reactive materials. (Alternatively, you can use a recycled ricotta basket placed on a bowl).

Heat the milk in a large heavy base saucepan over medium heat.

Add the salt and stir slowly with a wooden spoon. Make sure the milk does not scorch on the directly heated surface.

Heat the milk to 185 degrees F. Use an instant read thermometer to check the temperature.

Lower the heat to low.

Add the freshly squeezed lemon juice (or the vinegar).

Slowly stir the mixture for 2 minutes. You will notice the curds (the ricotta cheese) separating from the whey (yellowish liquid). Note that the whey can be used later in various recipes if kept refrigerated, but use it within a week or two as it will spoil like milk.

Remove the saucepan from the heat.

Cover the saucepan and let it stand for about 20 minutes.

Carefully “ladle” your ricotta into the sieve or use the cheesecloth lined colander or your basket. The consistency of the final product will depend on the amount of time you leave the ricotta to drain. For a creamy ricotta, let it sit for 3-5 minutes; for a dryer ricotta, it can sit up to 20 minutes.

You can use the ricotta cheese immediately. Do refrigerate any leftover ricotta cheese, storing it in a sealable plastic bag with excess air expelled just prior to sealing the bag. It will last about a week in the refrigerator.

You may also decide to lightly vacuum seal leftover ricotta cheese and then freeze it. It won't be good for recipes that actually need fresh ricotta cheese but here is a list of foods below that you can make after thawing frozen ricotta cheese.

Uses for (thawed) Frozen Ricotta Cheese

Pancakes

Cookies

Cakes and Pound Cakes

Cannoli

Pizza and Calzones

Lasagna

Casseroles

Stuffed Pastas