As per my previous post, I followed the recipe for fresh ricotta. It took a little longer to drain than I anticipated, but the results are rich and creamy, with just a fresh taste of milk and no weird stuff. Here is a step-by-step photo-safari of the process.
The ingredients, and most of the equipment. Not shown: stirring spoon, measuring cup, cheesecloth.
Heat the milk until it simmers, steams, and bubbles on the edges.
Buttermilk ready to go.
After adding the buttermilk, continue heating and stirring constantly until it starts to look a little weird. Those are the curds forming. Next stop, cheese!
Pour everything into a colander lined with cheesecloth. The whey goes down the drain, or into a bowl if you want to hold on to it. 
About half of the final product still in the colander. After an hour of draining, it was very thick and creamy. (I moved it to a bowl to free up space in the sink.)
The final product (atop the recipe). 1/2 gallon of milk + 2 cups buttermilk = about 1 pint of ricotta cheese.
I recommend eating it straight from the container with just a little honey and a pinch of salt, or just piled up on a piece of sourdough bread with a little salt and pepper. Next time I might try pressing it to form something like feta or mozzarella, but for now I'm going to sit around and feel pleased with my homemade cheese.
1 comment:
Hooray for homemade cheese!!!
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