Homemade Fresh Ricotta (Edit recipe)

Explore the chemical reaction and formation of curds in cheese making through homemade ricotta.

10 minutes

30 minutes

Difficulty:

Intermediate

This is our estimate based on online research.
Calories:	242
Fat:	23 g
Carbohydrates:	5 g
Protein:	7 g
Cholesterol:	90 g
Sodium:	255 mg
Fiber:	0 g
Sugars:	5 g
Calculated per serving.

by Kate Strangfeld

Serves: 6

Ingredients

1.5 cup Heavy Cream (Whipping Cream)
2.5 cups Whole Milk
0.5 tsp Sea Salt
2 whole Lemon, (3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice)

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Process

Note, these instructions are written assuming the standard serving size, since you have modified the number of servings, these steps may need to be modified for best results

Add milk, heavy cream, and salt to a medium pot (if using stovetop) or to a large, microwave-safe bowl (if using microwave).
Heat the milk to 180F/82C. Stir occasionally.
Note: This took about 5 minutes in a microwave- we did 1-minute intervals where we stirred the mixture and checked the temperature every minute. But keep in mind every microwave is different!
Remove from heat and add lemon juice. Stir gently just once to make lemon juice evenly distributed.
Let sit for 5 minutes. During this time, you should start to see the curds forming. [A chemical reaction is happening right at this time.]
Place a paper towel or cheesecloth in a fine mesh strainer and place over a large bowl. Slowly pour the milk mixture over the strainer and then let it sit to drain for at least an hour. The longer it sits, the thicker the texture will be. This is after about 2 hours.
From here, you can use the ricotta however you want. Our favorite way was to spread it onto a lightly toasted baguette and top with some freshly diced tomatoes, a drizzle of balsamic glaze, salt, and pepper.