Homemade Ricotta

A few years ago, I was obsessed with making everything from scratch and I heard I could even make cheese!  I googled cheese recipes and the easiest recipe that came up was this ricotta by Shutterbean.  I'm still not convinced that ricotta is even a cheese, but it was amazing and I've been making it ever since!  Originally, I only used ricotta in lasagna, but this stuff is so good that I'm always trying to find new excuses to make another batch.  Some of our favorites are ricotta pancakes, bruschetta, as a pizza topping, and as a filling for crab-rangoon-without-the-crab (aka Poor Man's Rangoon).  Enjoy!

First, gather your ingredients.  You'll need:

• 4 cups milk
• 2 cups cream
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar

You'll also need to set a colander lined with a few layers of cheesecloth or a thin kitchen towel over a bowl.

First, pour the milk and cream into a large pot and stir in the salt. 

Bring to a boil over medium heat. You only need to stir it occasionally so it doesn't scald.   (Don't try to take pictures while doing this or it will boil over like mine did and you'll have a mess. If it does, just take close up pics the rest of the time and no one will notice.)

Once its come to a full boil, turn off the heat and stir in the vinegar.

Let it sit for a minute or two until it begins to curdle.

Pour the mixture into your cheesecloth lined colander.  Let sit for 20-45 minutes at room temperature depending on the texture you want.  I always go the full 45 minutes because it makes it extra thick and creamy.  If your bowl seems to get too full of liquid before its done, just pour it out.

When the time is up, you have ricotta!  Use immediately or cover and refrigerate.  It will last up to 5 days if you don't eat it first!