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Home-made ricotta cheese
Posted October 5th, 2010 by Gloria Wen...
Warm a mixture of whole milk and buttermilk over medium heat until it reaches about 185 degrees (you'll see a ring of bubbles appear around the inside of the pan). Remove the pan from the heat and stir in vinegar (regular old distilled white … the stuff you probably now use for washing windows). Let it stand about 5 minutes until curds form, then gently lift them off with a slotted spoon and drain in a strainer.
I must confess I haven't made this yet. I'll come back with a report once I do.
This recipe was donated by my daughter Lauren who also hasn't made it yet.
washing windows
I feel called by the Divine to say something in defense of ricotta.
She says she needs the hands of a shepherd to be properly born.
Well, I don't know about
Well, I don't know about shepherd hands, but I do have the hands of a peasant!
Emilia, will you tell us the real way ricotta is made? Soft ricotta is what I mean. I also used to be able to get a hard ricotta, one sweet and one salty.
Please tell us more about authentic ricotta, will you?
ricotta
Oh dear, I haven't the slightest idea!
What I can say is that ri-cotta means "twice cooked"; that you need some rennet, a copper kettle, fresh superlative sheep's or goat's milk ( preferable to cow's one); a cane container where to put it at rest. What you speak of is rather a sort of curd than proper ricotta. This doesn't mean it can't be delicious and if it will be not, you can always use it for windows.
Emilia, I found this on the
Emilia, I found this on the internet:
http://www.italianfoodforever.com/iff2008/index.php?option=com_content&v...
Ricotta cheese is widely used in Italian cooking in everything from appetizers to desserts. It is a very soft, low-fat cheese that is actually a by-product of cheese making because it is made from the whey that has been separated from the curd in the process of actually making cheese. It is in fact, technically a dairy product rather than an actual cheese. Ricotta was originally made in Rome when it was discovered that the whey could be reheated, then strained. Although any type of milk can be used to make ricotta, in southern Italy either sheep or goat milk is used most often.
Emilia, presently, I can get some raw goat's milk. Where do I find a cane container? Instead of copper, I will use a glass pot which, from what I understand, is non-reactive.
I do make Indian panir, from which I have whey, which one recipe says you can use to make ricotta. After I move again, I'll try my hands at making it. I LOVE fresh ricotta.
you are an expert
Now I see why ri-cotta means twice cooked: when you make cheese you separate whey from curd, in order to make ricotta you have to reheat that whey with milk. Goat's milk is good when good, glass pot too is a good option. As for a cane container, if you have an antique chair with a cane seat, even if precious, do not hesitate to dismantle it. I would like to send you my chairs from the 19th century, to be of some help, as I really do not know if there is still someone selling cane containers nowadays. Such a noble art lost.
I LOVE both of you.
P.S. As you see, my tastes do not match my culinary talents.