I love to read Food and Wine magazine. In one issue, there was a recipe for how to make fresh ricotta cheese. I had never tried to make my own cheese, but I was intrigued. How hard could it be? Actually, it is not hard at all. What I love most is the “Oh’s and Ahh’s” you get when you tell people you made your own ricotta cheese. Having made this recipe dozens of times I have experimented using both white wine vinegar and lemon juice. Either will work so use what you have on hand. Thank you Food and Wine magazine for the inspiration (and courage) to make fresh ricotta cheese!
My first thought for a pairing for this simple dish is that it needed to be full-bodied but also crisp. I recently tried a white from Sicily that I loved and thought it would pair beautifully. Interestingly, in doing research for the blog, I came across a little known fact that ricotta cheese was apparently invented in Sicily. So, I guess this pairing makes sense! Check out my Etna Bianco pairing page to learn more.
PS: For a sweeter take, add a drizzle of your favorite honey!
Fresh Ricotta Cheese & Grilled Bread
Ingredients
- ½ gallon of organic whole milk
- 1 cup of organic heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons of white wine vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon of Kosher salt
- Favorite country bread or baguette
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- Kitchen Thermometer and cheesecloth
- Honey (optional)
Directions
- Step 1 Combine milk & cream in a large saucepan. Heat over medium heat, stirring every few minutes to circulate the heat and to keep the mixture from developing a film on top. The goal is to heat the mixture to 190 degrees. Check the temperature often with a kitchen thermometer if you have one. I have learned over time that it takes approximately 20 minutes to heat the milk mixture.
- Step 2 Once the mixture hits 190 degrees, remove from heat and stir in the vinegar or lemon juice. Mix gently until the curds start to separate. Note: if curds do not form immediately, the mixture is not at the right temperature. Place the saucepan back on the heat and stir gently. Once at the right temperature, the curds will form. Add the salt and stir gently to combine. Place cheesecloth or kitchen towel over saucepan and let the mixture stand at room temperature for about 1 hour.
- Step 3 After 1 hour, place cheesecloth in a colander over a bowl. Begin to pour the mixture slowly into the colander. Once colander is filled, empty liquid from the bowl and pour some more of the mixture into the colander. You will probably need to repeat this step a few times. Once you have all the cheese mixture into the cheesecloth-lined colander, let stand another hour.
- Step 4 Remove cheese from the cheesecloth and store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The cheese will last for about 1 week.
- Step 5 Slice bread in ½ inch slices and brush with extra virgin olive oil. Grill bread, approximately 2 minutes per side until evenly browned with nice grill marks. Remove from grill. Spread even layer of cheese on bread. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and salt.
