Homemade Ricotta Cheese

I'd been hearing for awhile that homemade ricotta cheese is pretty simple to make.  Let me be the first to confirm the rumors.  It is indeed easy to make, provided you have cheesecloth on hand (which I do & so should you, my dears).

The ingredients are so basic, the preparation so simple, why would you buy store-bought ricotta ever again?

This recipe yields one cup of ricotta, which is enough for a whole lotta things.  Double it if you're making a big-ass lasagna.  Since I'm avoiding all sugar and grains these days, I'm finding creative uses for the homemade ricotta.

Here's how it goes down...

HOMEMADE RICOTTA CHEESE:

4 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
Juice of 1 small/medium lemon (about a tablespoon and a half)

1.  Bring milk, cream & salt to a boil, stirring with a wooden spoon so it doesn't get too filmy along the sides of the pot.

2.  When at a boil, add the lemon juice, turn heat down to a simmer, and stir constantly.  Mixture will begin to curd after 3-4 minutes.  The curds will look quite tiny and then clump only slightly more.

3.  Pour the curd mixture into a large bowl through a cheesecloth laid in a strainer.  The liquid will drain through and the ricotta will form out of the remaining curds.

4.  Only strain the cheese curd mixture for 5-10 minutes to avoid the ricotta getting too dry.  Cool off ricotta in the fridge until you are ready to eat it.

Tonight we had a variation on a caprese, using the fresh ricotta in place of burrata & Trader Joe's pesto in place of basil atop some delicious heirloom tomatoes.  We slathered the caprese with Villa Cappelli olive oil, of course.