“Cheese, I just love cheese! Really I do!!”
Does anyone else remember this cartoon? A little female mouse declaring her love of the good stuff? I remember watching this cartoon on 1001 Rabbit Tales as a young child and it’s the one line that has stuck with me throughout the years.
I can’t say the word ‘Cheese’ without putting on my best southern belle accent ‘I love cheese, really I do!’
Once you’ve tried my recipe for homemade ricotta you’ll never buy the supermarket version again. It’s almost too easy to make it at home and the taste is out of this world. Eat it warm, eat it cold, bake it, spread it, sweet or savoury.
Homemade Ricotta Cheese
- 2 litres full cream milk
- ¼ cup cream
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 5 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice or plain white vinegar
Pour the milk, cream and salt into a saucepan. Heat the milk, stirring it constantly to keep it from scorching on the bottom. Just before it comes to the boil, add the lemon juice or vinegar, stir it once only and let it simmer it 1-2 minutes only. Remove from the heat and let the pot sit undisturbed for 30 minutes.
seconds after the lemon juice was added
Line a colander with a few layers of cheesecloth (minimum 2 layers) and place it over a large bowl. Pour the curds and whey gently into the colander and let the curds strain for at least an hour. The liquid collected in the bowl is whey.
After straining at room temperature for an hour, you’ll have a tender, spreadable ricotta. At two hours, it will be spreadable but a bit firmer, almost like cream cheese.
I usually discard the whey into our vegetable patch, however there are many uses for it from baking with it to bathing in it a la Cleopatra
Homemade ricotta cheese will last up to 2 weeks in the fridge, in a sealed container.
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x
Gourmet Wog 
I tried this earlier this year with goats milk. I was amazed how easy it was. GG
ooh I can only imagine how much better it would be with goats milk! Yum!
I rarely buy mine anymore as it is so easy to make-and it tastes great too!
me too, we always have so much fresh milk in the fridge, its just too easy to make our own now!
Hi Lisa, that is simple. The next time I need ricotta, I will make it. How much does the 2 litres yield?
not much Glenda, probably about 500grams? Still worth the effort though, cheaper and hands down tastier 🙂
Great post…and so easy! Must give it a try since we get our milk straight from the farm so it is the full fat version that would work perfect with your recipe!
oh fresh milk would be so much tastier! You’re very luck to have access to fresh raw milk, we only get the pasteurised version here.
Lisa, such an easy recipe! Thanks for sharing it! You really do need to make a trip in to Chefs’ Warehouse for some muslin! 😀
I know Celia!! I bought this piece from Spotlight but I probably should’ve overlocked the edges (if I had a overlocker that is!!) because its already fraying.
You make it sound very easy… my husband has just started making cheese at home, I’ll have to show him your recipe!
it certainly is very easy Sarah!
Hey Lisa … you are hilarious! Love your blog. So exciting too about Not quite Nigella … wow. I made ricotta at Hort school and just loved it. So easy – beats the bought stuff hands down. Twitter ah? I do it for work but haven’t got into the swing properly. Should get a Facebook happening for my blog but run out of time. Go girl!
you’re too funny Julie, thanks so much!! Oh yeah, homemade beats the store bought any day 🙂
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It is so easy isn’t it… you can also make ricotta from the whey. Good to see you on Twitter!
I’d love to know how Lizzy, I just diluted mine and fed it to the veggie patch!
I need to go and buy some cheesecloth!
I bought some from a fabric store Tandy, probably should’ve overlocked the edges though, it’s fraying!!
I actually make this too except we call it ‘paneer’ and then make an Indian paneer dish out of it! But using as a ricotta is a great idea too. I’m think cannelloni !
one of my favourite Indian dishes is Palak Paneer Amelia, so yum!!
So simple. I feel there should be some fantastic use for whey, though have never found it. Must admit though that I’d never thought of bathing in it.
I dilute it Anne, and feed the veggie patch 🙂
I love making ricotta but then I end up not eating it all because there’s so much. Homemade tastes so much better.
we’re quite the opposite here Maureen, there’s never enough!!
Forget the ricotta, I’m gonna make it to bathe in the whey :). But seriously, it’s wonderful making your own. We use a lot of this Indian cooking and desserts, but believe it or not, I’ve only made it like once. Thanks for reminding me that I should really make it more often. I’m off to listen to the Tabouli Song again, it’s very catchy.
Nazneen
LOL Nazneen, I forgot about the tabouli song but now that you’ve reminded me I’m humming it all over again!!
So easy to make and homemade always tastes better. I remember that cartoon, reaaaaly I do.
LOL Sara, when I asked every one of my friends no one remembered it and I started to think maybe I was the only one!
Looks wonderful. I would love to make this next time I need ricotta, or maybe make it “just because”! Nice post!
‘Just because’ is a wonderful excuse 🙂
I keep saying that I need to make ricotta…I know it has to be so much better than what you can buy.
Absolutely better Karen, creamier and so much smoother!
I made ricotta two summers ago (how cd it already be TWO summers??) and never got around to blogging it because I forgot to photograph it, lol. Love love fresh ricotta! Thanks for reminding me.. I must make some again, there’s nothing better!! xx
You better have the camera handy this time Smidge!! xx
It may officially last two weeks in the fridge but homemade ricotta never does! Fab easy-to-do instructions Lisa.
Very true Nancy! Lasts 2 days max in this house!
I love love love ricotta. I should make it how lazy am I ?. Thanks Lisa
nahh not lazy at all Tania! We’ve always got leftover milk in the fridge about to spoil so it’s a good excuse to turn it into cheese
You sure made it sounds very easy, I should really try to make it.
It really is Norma, and the uses are endless!
I have never tried making homemade ricotta and yours looks so lovely! Bookmarking this to try this weekend! Thanks for visiting my little blog!
Hi Anna, hope it turned out successfully for you!!
I only ever make homemade ricotta now, it tastes to clean and fresh!
So delicious, very good of you to share your step by step method 🙂
Thanks so much! Nothing beats home made 🙂
YOu have no idea for how long i’ve been meaning to make ricotta from scratch! Due to a pretty pathetic and messy experience making mozzarella, I think I postponed it… and postponed it… and postponed it.
Once my kitchen renovation is done, I shall face this challenge!
Time to face it, head on Sally!! Good luck! x
I didn’t know it would be so easy to make ricotta! You make it look very simple. I should stop being so lazy and give this a try. Thanks for the inspiration xx
most welcome Charlie! It really is too easy 🙂
Hands down the best thin and with no comparison to store-bought varieties. Bathing in whey? Just for that I need to make me a batch 🙂
Lovely post!
chow! Devaki @ weavethousandflavors
I am going to try to make a batch of the ricotta cheese very soon. I have DIY yogurt and if I can’t find any cream, then I will use the yogurt as replacement.
Hi there, I’ve made this many times since without the cream and it works perfectly well! Less creamy, but the salt/milk/vinegar or lemon combo is great too!