This past Saturday we hosted a collaborative brunch with a couple of friends. By collaborative, I mean we all pitched in with one or two parts of the meal. One friend brought home-made waffles, while another brought home-made maple syrup, a huge fruit platter, bacon and we supplied sausages, ricotta, whipped cream, smoked salmon and coffee. We may have had morning glories as well (Prosecco and OJ). It was quite the feast! No one left the table hungry at least I don’t think so!
I had wanted to contribute something a little more unusual to the brunch, so I scoured the net. My ‘friend’ John made cream cheese recently and posted about it on his blog From the Bartolini Kitchen; hmmmm, from that post I was linked to another post where he made Ricotta Cheese. I have always wanted to make my own cheese and the ricotta seemed like a great place to start. Plus having a group of people for brunch meant that I wouldn’t have too much left over! We had ricotta with the smoked salmon AND topped off the waffles with it. Quite tasty indeed! Thanks John, I will be making this again and again.
John’s recipe was easy to follow and came together quickly. The only thing I changed is that I halved the recipe because I felt one pound of ricotta would be enough for brunch, and perhaps a lovely appetizer for Sunday dinner with nephew Brian.
Albert Capone’s Homemade Ricotta Recipe (adapted From the Bartolini Kitchen)
Total time: 30 minutes to prepare, at least 2 hours to drain.
Makes about 1 lb fresh ricotta
Ingredients:
- 1.9 L whole milk (homo)
- 0.5 L heavy cream
- 1/2 tbsp table salt
- 1/4 cup white distilled vinegar
Directions:
- Combine milk, cream, and salt in a large non-reactive pot and stir over medium heat as you bring the temperature up to 85°C (185°F) (about 15-20 minutes).
- Add the vinegar all at once and stir for 15 seconds; heat for two more minutes before removing from heat.
- Allow to rest undisturbed for 15 – 20 minutes; using a small sieve or slotted spoon, remove the floating curds and place them in a cheesecloth-lined colander to drain (I used coffee filters).
- Place colander over a bowl in refrigerator and drain for at least a couple of hours or overnight (I found 3 hours was enough). The longer you allow it to drain, the more firm the results.
- Remove the ricotta from the colander, place in airtight containers, and refrigerate.
- Ricotta will last up to 2 weeks.
[…] paneer is a soft unripened cheese made similarly to Ricotta, but instead of leaving it loose, you press it into a rectangular shape to be cut into cubes. […]
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[…] had to make it. John has inspired me to make so many things from his wonderful blog (like this and this and this) and I knew that this recipe would not disappoint. I found it interesting that the first […]
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[…] had a litre of heavy cream left over in the fridge from when I made only half the ricotta cheese recipe (from my friend John From the Bartolini Kitchen), so I thought I would make my own Vanilla Bean Ice […]
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mmm… nothing like homemade cheese… I’m totally impressed Eva and it sounds very do-able too. What a great success; I bet it was a big hit at brunch.
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Hi Kelly, my friend’s German husband was quite impressed; it was pretty obvious that he really enjoyed the fresh taste too. I found it difficult not to pig out on it!
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Hi Eva, I never knew ricotta was so easy to make – I’m curious though – what are the differences between this and paneer? Is it just the cream, and what difference does the cream have – I would have thought it would maybe just create more curd because of the higher fat content, but I don’t know?!
Also – “homo” milk… I’m assuming this is homogenized milk… what is that exactly… is it the same as UHT?
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Hi Charles, I was wondering the same thing about paneer, except that don’t you curdle the milk with lemon or lime juice in stead of vinegar? I think the cream just adds more milk solids (curd) into the mix just as you thought. Homo milk is homogenized milk, but I think UHT is ultra high temperature, so it may be good for paneer or ricotta, but not good for any cheese or yogurt that needs some bacteria. Also paneer would be a lot dryer, I think you would have to ‘squeeze’ the whey out of it by putting weights on it. This cheese is actually quite wet, like cottage cheese but the curds are a lot smaller and creamier.
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[…] Comments « Home Made Ricotta Cheese (from the Bartolini kitchens) […]
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Ever since I came across John’s recipe I have never even considered buying ricotta
It is so easy and versatile, just wait till you put it in pancakes or bake with it!
Heaven!
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Great idea Sawsan, I remember a pancake recipe you made with ricotta a little while ago, I’m heading over to find it right now. Thanks!
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I love making my own ricotta too! It tastes so good especially compared to the ones that you get at the supermarket! 🙂
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Quite right Lorraine, and less expensive too! I know I’ll be making it again.
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Sounds like a fun brunch. I’ve never made homemade ricotta. This sounds simple – was it? I’m sure it must have tasted Incredibly fresh. I was thinking of signing up for a cheese making class here in town. You spend either a day or weekend making various types. I think it would be a blast but really don’t know how often I’d actually make it after the class if at all.
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Hi Vicki, it was mind numbingly easy! I really reco you try it. Id love to take a course for making mozzarella, it’s a little more difficult to make!
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Doesn’t John just post the best recipes! I’m glad you tried the ricotta cheese recipe because it’s something I’ve been wanting to try. Your waffles look so delicious. What a great brunch.
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Thanks Charlie, the ricotta went over very well with everyone; it was an unexpected treat!
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After making 5 batches of paneer cheese in the last 4 weeks, I’m ‘cheesed’ out but this is definitely something to keep in mind the next time I want to make lasagna, cannelloni or cheesecake (leaving out the salt, of course). The cream would definitely up the luxurious texture of some of those goodies.
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Just going over some comment, Maria, can you link to your paneer? I just made some this week and didn’t remember a post from you.
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John’s ricotta tickled my desire to make cheese when I first saw it, and now that you’ve tempted me, too, I must get busy. So many things to make and do over the weekend, but this one is marked for the to do list next weekend…a half recipe for sure. Thanks for the prompting! 🙂
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Sometimes that’s all it takes, Betsy. It’s a really easy recipe, so if you have a specific recipe to include the ricotta in, just pull it together the night before and by the next morning you will have fresh cheese!
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Hey did someone say brunch? That’s a blast from the past — hopefully you don’t get sick in the near future. (he, he) Sounds like your ricotta took the brunch to a whole new level. Way to be adventurous in the kitchen!
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I had to read your comment twice, but I eventually caught on. No one brought any highly contagious diseases to our brunch this time, Barb! If you use ricotta, I highly reco that you make it, so easy.
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Congratulations on your successful homemade ricotta. I haven’t tried this yet.
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Always thought making ricotta at home could be really messy and time-consuming….love this recipe. Nice to serve on the waffle with some berries.
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Thanks Angie, it’s actually not messy at all nor time consuming, and so tasty. I recommend you try it soon, particularly if you use ricotta in your recipes frequently.
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What a great idea, I would never have thought of this combination! I do also love John’s blog and yours as well, so nice to see you both together here this morning!
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Thanks Barbara, it was very tasty indeed. John shares wonderful family recipes and I really do enjoy reading the stories he weaves into the posts. Thank you for your flattering compliment.
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I need to get over my fear of cheese making and give this a go. I use ricotta too often to not try it. This sounds like a wonderful brunch!!! 🙂
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Hi Kristy, I think the kids would love it too…the curds and whey separate instantaneously, it’s so cool to watch!
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Sounds awesome – I think you might have another cheese-making newbie – will definitely be trying this!
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I certainly hope you do try it Bill, it’s way easier than I ever expected.
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I need to find time to make John’s ricotta.
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It comes together quicker and easier than I anticipated, even though John mentions that it would!
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Why is friend in quotes? Is that guy shady? Oh hi John! Seriously, love this, have to try it. Turned out beautifully.
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I laughed out loud, Greg! Thank you for the compliment.
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Thank you, Eva, for your kindly mention of my cheesy efforts. I am thrilled that you and your guests found the recipe to be so enjoyable and that you will be making it again.You were correct to begin your cheese making career with ricotta, for it is the easiest and quickest to make. To be honest, though, the others I’ve shared thus far aren’t much more difficult. In a couple weeks, I’ll be posting a mascarpone recipe. Now that you’ve gotten your feet wet, I say you should take the plunge and give home-made mascarpone a try! 🙂
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It really was a winner, John, and as you can see from other readers’ comments, you have opened the cheese doors to many of them! I used some of the left over ricotta in chicken last night, stuffing it with garlic, lemon rind, black olives and wilted spinach…very very tasty indeed!
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