Homemade Ricotta Cheese
(from simsyobby’s recipe box)
Source: http://becksposhnosh.blogspot.com/2006/01/homemade-ricotta.html
Categories: Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 gallon of whole milk
- 1 quart of buttermilk
- cheesecloth
- a rubberband
Directions
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- Fold rinsed cheesecloth into layers and use it to line a colander or sieve in the sink.
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- Pour the milks into a large Stainless Steel, Glass, or Ceramic saucepan. Don’t use aluminium or copper which will react to the acids in the milk.
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- At this point I like to attach a candy thermometer to the side of the pan, it will come in handy later in the proceedings.
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- Put the pan over high heat and stir with a rubber spatula, scraping the bottom of the pan to make sure the milk doesn’t burn.
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- Once is the milk is warm, stop stirring and continue to heat.
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- You will start to see lumps forming in the milk – these are the curds. Once the temperature reaches between 175 and 180 F, the curds and whey will separate. At that point remove your pan from the heat.
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- Using an Asian Skimmer or other large flat ladle with holes, very gently transfer the curds to the lined sieve and leave them to drain.
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- Once the draining has slowed to a drip, carefully gather the edges of the cloth around the cheese and secure with a rubberband, into a bag shape which can be hung from your faucet or tap.
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- Drain further until the cheese cools down and dripping completely comes to a halt.
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- Remove from the cheese from the cloth and refrigerate. For absolute freshness, consume as quickly as possible.