Homemade Ricotta Cheese
If you’ve never made ricotta cheese at home, you simply must try it. It’s oh-so-easy and surpasses anything I’ve ever bought from the store in terms of flavor, texture, and mouthfeel.
It’s creamy, rich, slightly sweet, and has a hint of tang from the lemon juice.
Joe looked at me and said, “Oh honey, this is so good…”
The recipe came from my Chef instructor. I’m sure she didn’t invent the recipe. She said what she does with all recipes – take it, make it at home, and then make it your own.
You see, I’ve learned that all great chefs share one quality – they’re dedicated to passing on the art and craft of what they do. They want you to take what they know, learn how to do it, and then make it your own.
It’s kind of like when a kindergartner goes to school and learn how to write her ABC’s. At first, she can just trace what her teacher has put in front of her. Next, she’s able to write free form letters that look much like the ones her teacher gave her. Eventually, she develops her very own style of writing that looks nothing like her teachers. Yes, the basic components are the same. But the form is uniquely hers.
Allowing that to happen in the world of gluten-free cooking is so important right now. We’re really still at the beginning. Staying open and being committed to passing it on is key to improving not only the quality of food but the image that goes along with eating gluten-free. There is so much work to do!
I’m not suggesting that anyone take credit for a recipe they didn’t develop. But I am suggesting that maybe, just maybe, there’s too much fear instilled in people about who owns a recipe, which according to the US government’s copyright laws, is no one.
Every dish that comes out of my kitchen has been influenced by so many great chefs that have come before me – Martha Rose Shulman, Ina Garten, Michele Brown, Rachel Ray, Martha Stewart, Alice Waters, Linday Shere, Carol Fenster, Carol Gelles, Julia Child, Janice Feuer, James Beard, Amy Scherber, The Moosewood Collective, and Mali Niall to name a few. I’ve read and re-read their recipes and techniques, brought them into the kitchen with me countless times and cooked their food. And then I make it my own.
Pizza crust from my new book topped with tomato sauce, ricotta, & fresh basil
As far as this recipe goes, I think it’s perfect just as it is. I’ve spread it on toast, put it on top of pizza, and I might just make some of my Chocolate Cannoli Cupcakes with it, too.
So please, take this recipe and have fun with it. And don’t be afraid to make it your own.
Have a great way to use ricotta? Share it in the comments section – and leave a link if it’s posted on your blog.
Other Ricotta Recipes:
- Lemon Ricotta Almond Cake from Gluten-Free Bay
- Cheese Blintzes with Blueberry Sauce from SS&GF
- Dairy-Free Substitutes for Ricotta Cheese from Go Dairy Free.com
Ingredients
- 64 ounces (1/2 gallon) 1% milk
- 8 ounces heavy cream
- 8 grams kosher salt (a generous 1 1/4 teaspoon)
- 48 grams freshly squeezed lemon juice (a generous 1 1/2 tablespoons)
- a large fine mesh sieve or colander
- cheesecloth
Instructions
- Wet a piece of cheesecloth large enough to line the sieve or colander with a double layer and squeeze out the excess water. Line the sieve or colander and set over a large bowl. Set aside.
- Put milk, heavy cream, and salt in a large, heavy bottomed stock pot and bring to a rolling boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. Once the milk comes to a boil, add the lemon juice and stir constantly for two minutes, until the milk curdles.
- Pour the mixture into the lined sieve or colander and let it drain for an hour. Gently squeeze any excess whey out of the ricotta, store in an airtight container, and chill.
Notes
Chef said that the whey can be reserved for up to a week and used in bread recipes…I haven’t tried this yet with my bread recipe but I’m going to.
The original recipe called for whole milk – any type of milk can be used. I had 1% on hand, so that’s what I used.
If you don’t have any lemon juice, you can also use 16 – 20 grams of Cream of Tartar.
Andrea
posted on March 14, 2011 at 11:19 am
Thanks so much for this recipe…I have been wanting to make ricotta for a while now, it’s hard to find organic ricotta and forget about trying to find organic part-skim or low fat…
I’ve seen Ina Garten make ricotta but only using full fat (which I love too, but not everyday!) so I am glad to see it works at home with 1%. Ina uses white vinegar but I like the idea of lemon juice instead…
My favorite ricotta recipe is Ricotta Pancakes…had them for breakfast just this morning!
[Reply]
Lisa
posted on March 14, 2011 at 11:20 am
I’m not just gluten-free, but also lactose-intolerant. I’ve missed Ricotta something awful – is there anyway to make this cow-dairy-free? Goat dairy is OK, although sometimes the goat “funk” can be off-putting. Sheep dairy products (cheese and yogurt) are yummy but I’ve yet to see sheep’s milk available…
Ideas?
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Amy Reply:
March 14th, 2011 at 11:42 am
@Lisa, Did you see the link for Go Dairy Free right above the recipe? She’s got some ricotta alternatives on her site.
Hugs,
Amy
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Michelle Reply:
October 5th, 2011 at 10:28 am
I make ricotta cheese using goats milk. We milk our nubian and La Mancha goats and to gather enough cream, I skim it from the milk for several days before I want to make the ricotta. I use the same recipe Amy posted.
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Glutenista Gluten-Free
posted on March 14, 2011 at 11:47 am
Love this post Amy… the commentary & the recipe. Since we are off butter & sugar for Lent, I think I’ll finally be able to participate in the Tuesday round-up & will definitely use this recipe as a starting point! Yum…
One note, for those of you who don’t have cheesecloth at home, here is a list of other options: http://www.ehow.com/list_6140500_substitutes-cheesecloth.html But please don’t use a sock, that’s kinda icky
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Julie Uehlein
posted on March 14, 2011 at 12:15 pm
Looks great! I will try that very soon. I really want to make my own goat/chervil cheese as we use so much of it and it is pretty expensive. Does anyone have an easy and delicious recipe? Amy..Thanks for all you do
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Jeanine
posted on March 14, 2011 at 12:32 pm
Love it, Amy! Since I started making my own yogurt, I’ve been looking at making ricotta, just wasn’t sure how much it yields. I just may have to try it though, at least once.
Thanks for the great recipe!
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Tamara Dever
posted on March 14, 2011 at 12:34 pm
Does anyone know if this would work with coconut milk or almond milk? I’m assuming rice milk is just too thin to make cheese.
Thanks!
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SnoWhite @ Finding Joy in My Kitchen
posted on March 14, 2011 at 12:57 pm
Awesome! This looks great
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jamie
posted on March 14, 2011 at 2:24 pm
wow, that looks sooo yummmy! and thank you for addressing the recipe ownership-my little blog is barely a year old and i like to experiment but at the same time be respectful of where i got my inspiration or sources. nice to know how you feel. &i, too, was wondering if you can curdle a veg based milk for this, since my sister can’t have dairy or soy (the link). i recently subbed coconut cream for making caramel and it worked great. thanks for all your hard work and sharing the fruits of it with us
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
March 14th, 2011 at 8:02 pm
@jamie, I think every good chef gives credit to those they learn from. It’s just the right thing to do. I’ve noticed that great chefs want to pass on the art and the craft so that it lives on.
You ought to try curdling dairy-free milk and if it works, post it.
Hugs,
Amy
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Gigi
posted on March 14, 2011 at 3:19 pm
This looks delightful, Amy! I wish I could have dairy at times like these
But I’m sharing the link with all my dairy-consuming friends – I’ll live vicariously through them!
~Gigi
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Iris
posted on March 14, 2011 at 4:06 pm
Love this idea, Amy! Every time I buy ricotta cheese, I’m so confused by all the other ingredients on the label. I really want to try this out! I also don’t really think there’s such a thing as a “new” recipe anymore…maybe just new adaptations. Although with gluten-free, that might not be true! I guess since it’s such a new way of baking, there are new recipes…
Oh and I love adding ricotta cheese to my flatbread with roasted red pepper sauce.
http://www.thedailydietribe.com/2011/01/gluten-free-flatbread-with-roasted-red.html
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
March 14th, 2011 at 7:53 pm
@Iris, Thanks for sharing a link with us, Iris. Yes, ricotta on flatbread is so good.
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Iris
posted on March 14, 2011 at 7:24 pm
I wonder if the recipe would work with soy milk…. I did see the link to tofu ricotta but it is not quite the same, but I still wonder if the recipe would work with soy milk.
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
March 14th, 2011 at 7:53 pm
@Iris, I don’t know…you can always try it out and let us know.
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The Mixing Bowl Diary
posted on March 14, 2011 at 8:41 pm
I made Ricotta Cheese with my kids (before we went Dairy Free) and it was easy and delicious! I can still remember all of us crowded around the counter eating it on crackers. YUM
I am with Iris, I would love to try this with soy milk and see what happens.
[Reply]
Karen
posted on March 14, 2011 at 11:32 pm
Thanks for the links to some alternatives for those of us who are dairy free. Now to find time to try them… Can’t wait!
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Karen
posted on March 14, 2011 at 11:34 pm
Ok. Back to the drawing board. Her recipe calls for soy…I am gluten, dairy, & soy… I may just have to try this with almond milk and coconut cream and see what happens…
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Christianne
posted on March 15, 2011 at 1:16 am
Amy please ignore this if you received my comment on FB regarding the socca dough.
I divided it into 4 servings and made 2 pizzas for me and one for my sister. I experimented with the cooking times for the dough and the pizza because all i have is an 8 inch iron skillet.
I have never eaten socca to my knowledge but my socca dough tastes a bit like Indian Naan, perhaps a bit thinner. Does that sound right to you? It is fairly soft in the middle and crispy on the edges. I haven’t eaten chickpea flour either so I am not sure if it is completely cooked. It is yummy though and my family agrees!
[Reply]
Christianne Reply:
March 15th, 2011 at 1:18 am
@Christianne, Oh i meant to say I divided 2 socca bread recipes into 4 seperate pizza doughs with one I left for my sister to cook. thanks!
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
March 15th, 2011 at 11:36 am
@Christianne, I replied on Facebook this morning…sometimes the page is wonky and new posts don’t come to the top. I don’t know what you mean by fairly soft but I think you’re meaning pasty?? If so, it’s undercooked. It is crispy on the edges and softer in the middle unless you use a pizza stone, which dries out the middle. Also, make sure that you’re putting it in a hot cast iron skillet – that helps.
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Christianne Reply:
March 16th, 2011 at 8:50 pm
@Amy, thank you Amy
Oh and your baked brown rice rocks!
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
March 18th, 2011 at 8:18 am
@Christianne, Yea, it does. That’s the simplest way to make rice and it always turns out perfect.
Marisa
posted on March 15, 2011 at 9:41 am
WOW I’m so excited to try this recipe. Thanks for sharing
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Tina M
posted on March 15, 2011 at 10:53 am
Hi Amy,
I’m wondering if whole milk is used, instead of 1%, would I still need to include the cream? Thanks for all you do!
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
March 15th, 2011 at 11:33 am
@Tina M, Yes, include the cream regardless of they type of milk used.
You can leave it out and see what happens if you want.
Hugs,
Amy
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Claudia
posted on March 15, 2011 at 11:11 pm
Hi Amy, i really enjoyed your post about making recepies our own! I’ll definitely try the ricotta
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Maggie
posted on March 16, 2011 at 6:55 pm
What a great post Amy. I have personally learned so much from you! I would love to try a dairy-free version too. I think you could try it with almond milk for the 1% and perhaps full fat coconut milk for the cream. That’s what I would do, and I just might have to try it! xo
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Lori @ Laurel of Leaves
posted on March 16, 2011 at 7:59 pm
I love cheese. And I can’t wait to try this recipe! It looks amazing!
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Sabrina M.
posted on March 19, 2011 at 12:23 pm
Wow this sounds delicious! I probably wouldn’t make it all the time as it is more cost-effective for me to just buy the tub when I need it, but I am definitely going to try this soon for the experience.
I’m wondering if the heavy cream could be reduced, or perhaps omitted altogether, if using whole milk?
What’s the difference between ricotta cheese and cottage cheese?
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
March 21st, 2011 at 1:25 pm
@Sabrina M., I think it’s cheaper to make it at home…and the taste is so much better. I don’t know what would happen if you omitted the heavy cream but it sure is delicious.
Ricotta is a very fine cheese…cottage cheese has large curds. It takes longer to ripen and then you cut the block to release the whey.
Hugs,
Amy
[Reply]
Cucee Sprouts
posted on April 14, 2011 at 12:11 pm
Very nice recipe. Similar to mine!!! Making Ricotta is so easy!!! And the final product costs a fraction of what you’d pay at Whole Foods!!!! I usually make mine with buttermilk but I have decided to experiment with various souring agents (lemon juice, vinegar, etc…) I posted pictures from my experiment on my blog: http://cuceesprouts.com/2011/04/homemade-farmers-cheese/
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Jenny M
posted on June 15, 2011 at 7:20 pm
Great idea as you are certain it is fresh and what ingredients have gone into it. Well done!!!
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Lindsey Naylor
posted on July 15, 2011 at 2:53 pm
Has anyone made the coconut, hemp, or almond milk ricotta yet? If you have can you post what happened and how it turned out, please.
Lindsey
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Pat Beard Reply:
April 7th, 2012 at 7:46 am
@Lindsey Naylor, Lindsey, Did you get any to reply with a almond, coconut etc ricotta milk recipe? If so can you pass it on. I can’t use dairy either. Thanks so much in advance. Pat
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