There’s been something I’ve been wanting to say to you for a long time now, Cheese, and…it’s just…wow, this is so emotional.
Cheese? Would you like to spend the rest of your life with me?
The problem with eating a lot of cheese is that you go through a lot of cheese. Hard cheese is kind of out of my range still- I just don’t have the space- but paneer? Mozzarella? Marscapone? Ricotta? Done.
There are two major benefits to making your own ricotta. The first should be obvious: it’s cheaper. The second is probably also obvious: it tastes way, way better. It takes only a couple minutes (have you noticed I say this a lot?), and it you’re going to be really happy you did things my way, which I assume you always are.
First things first, gather your equipment:
Seriously. That’s it.
If you can’t tell, that’s 1 quart of ricotta, an 1/8 of a teaspoon of salt, and the juice of one lemon. Your equipment (other than like, a pot, colander, and a whisk) are cheese cloth and a candy thermometer, which you also probably already had.
Now, you’re going to want to prep your colander by putting two layers of cheesecloth over the holes and putting said apparatus into your sink. You can choose not to follow this directive, but it’s going to be a mess in the sink.
Okay, now for the cooking part. Heat the milk over a medium heat slowly slowly slowly until it reaches 200 degrees. When you hit that point, stir in your lemon juice.
Instant curdling.
Gross for like, one minute, and then you have cheese.
Turn the heat off and let that all sit together for a few minutes, maybe three. Stir in your salt, then dump all that into your waiting colander. Let it lie for a half hour or so, and you’re good to go.
The longer it sits in the sink, the firmer it gets, so make your choices.
Isn’t that great? It is, isn’t it? So good. Come back tomorrow and see the ricotta snack I have in store for you! It’s really tasty, and also very fast. Hooray!
