Sicilian Homemade Ricotta Cheese

Here are some tips I found out: 1. A nonreactive saucepan refers to using any type of pot except aluminum and copper which would react with the acids in the milk; a heavy-bottomed pot is prefered to help prevent burning of the curds. 2. After the ricotta is made it can be stored up to 5-7 days, but may NOT be frozen; if it smells rancid then throw it out. 3. When you drain the ricotta in the cheesecloth, the longer you drain it the drier it will be, and the less you drain it the creamier it will be. 4. If you don't have a thermometer, then keep an eye on the cooking mixture until it separates into curds and whey (the milk has reached it's boiling point/scalding); remove from heat and either let the mixture cool/settle a bit, or scoop out the curds with a slotted spoon. UPDATE: The curds and whey separated nicely. I let the cheese cool down first, then I ladled the whey into a large bowl, and then I used a small colander to scoop out the curds into a clean dish cloth (I didn't have the cheese cloth on hand). Now it's hanging over the sink to drain and then I will refrigerate it over night. I tasted the ricotta and it tastes fresher than when you buy it at the store. This recipe is definitely a keeper. Thanks for sharing a classic, Orcashottie!

I didn't have the cream, but made ricotta for the first time in my 70+ years. It's delicious and I'll make lasagna and use part of the ricotta tomorrow. The whey looked so nutritious and I decided to make a pot of potato/corn/carrot soup with it. I sauteed onions, celery, garlic, added carrots, potatoes, frozen corn and seasonings. It's healthy and very good. Now I just have to find hungry people to help eat it. Thank you for this wonderful recipe. Next time, I'll be sure to use the cream.

I'd say this will yeild about 2 lbs of cheese. You can freeze your whey in cup containers, use it in pancakes/waffles, muffins and bread. Anywhere a recipe calls for water. Be creative, it's worth it.

I had some leftover whole milk (about 2 C), buttermilk (about 1 1/2 C) and heavy cream (about 1 C) so I impulsively made this throwing in 1 tsp kosher salt. I accidentally let the mixture rise above 200 degrees. Even so, it curdled just fine. It was delicious! We used it as a spread on homemade potato bread. It seems I always have a little bit of these various milks waiting to spoil in the fridge. Now I know what I can do with it!

A VERY nice and creamy result. I left the heavy cream out (since others mentioned it was OK and it wasn't readily available in my fridge) and used 2% milk. Wasn't real sure what I was looking for to know things were moving along. I did bring it up to 190 and let it sit, and there WERE some curds that formed, but overall it still looked like a pot of milk. Reading a previous commentor's suggestion I reheated the pot again at medium low and let the mixture go until I saw separation of the whey and curds. Worked perfect. I didn't bother with 4 pieces of cheesecloth - just used one. I also did only half a batch my first time out. Made just shy of 2 cups worth. Will definitely do this again :)

Fantastic. I will never buy ricotta again. It is so easy and taste is very fresh. I put it on top of penne with marinara, add sugar substitute and top with fresh berries and have even added high quality cocoa to make chocolate ricotta as a dessert. I love it while it is warm! I barely drain mine in the cheesecloth as it results in a more moist, creamy ricotta. I have made homemade ravioli for my southern friends and they said they were to die for! You must try this.

I am beyond thrilled with this recipe. It is incredibly easy and delivers a light, fresh, creamy tasting cheese. I made 2 batches of cheese and my egg-less semolina pasta for ravioli. I got 12 dozen ravioli from it. Everyone loved the fresh taste of the cheese and requested I try it in stuffed shells and lasagna next. This was a fun thing to make with my kids as well! Sayanora to another item I would normally buy!

Wonderful! I am originally from Italy and find that the store bought ricotta often has a plastic container taste. I made this once and it was wonderful. Look forward to making it again.

I have made great Riccota cheese using just the whole milk. After heating one gallon of the milk very slowly to around 170 - 180 degrees, I then stirred 1/2 cup of apple cider vinegar into it. It immediately began separating and I let it sit for 30 minutes to finish separating. Then I placed a cheesecloth-lined colander inside of a large mixing bowl and gently poured the hot milk mixture into the colandar. At this point remove the bowl of whey for use in cooking, baking, etc. After you remove the bowl of whey, gently rinse the vinegar out of the ricotta cheese with a gentle flow from your kitchen tap water. Some people don't rinse at all because they like the kick which vinegar gives to this cheese. Others only rinse a little bit while others rinse it very thoroughly. It's your choice. If you rinse too much and decide you liked it better before you rinsed it, add a few tablespoons of vinegar back into it. When you are finished rinsing it, place the ricotta cheese in a mixing bowl, add salt (to taste) and then you can add anywhere from 1/2 to 1 cup of milk, cream or even buttermilk if you want a more tangy flavor. Use the whey for cooking corned beef and cabbage or a ham/cabbage/potato soup or a New England Boiled Dinner. Ham with noodles is also very good cooked in this broth. The slightly vinegary whey eliminates the need to add sauerkraut and it's really delicious.

This recipe can be very useful to me as I make a lot of Italian dishes and Ricotta is like Ice Cream to me... I can sit and eat it from the container. I also have the question that the first reviewer asked, how much exactly does this make? And how long will it last, can it be frozen, and what should we do with the Whey?

Wonderfully easy recipe and fun to make. Very mild flavor, and a bit dryer than store-bought ricotta, but perfect for anything you make with cheese as the ricotta simply absorbs the flavor of whatever dish you're putting it in. We made quesadillas, burgers, casseroles, etc...and the cheese was a perfect substitution for all other expensive cheeses we would've put in. Very pure, low-salt, mild flavor, and we ate onit for well over the week expiration. Keep in an air-tight container and it will last for almost a month!

This is amazingly simple and delicious. The hardest part was finding the cheesecloth to strain it. Whether it's a "true ricotta" or not is not really all that important to me. It tastes great and works in recipes. I used it in a chicken recipe and it was perfect. It works well as a spread on crackers (try adding fresh chives or a little powdered ranch). Love this stuff! I'll definitely be making it again. I may halve the recipe the next time to make a smaller amount.

This was really fun and produced some yummy cheese. Real ricotta is made from the whey leftover from making hard cheese. This cheese method is more similar to queso blanco or paneer.

this was just awesome and very easy to do!! super creamy and very tasty, i loved it!!

I know all these responses are a few years old, but, in response to Terry. Yes, store bought is cheaper but by no means better. This recipe is fantastic. I never thought it would be so easy to make ricotta. I gave some to my daughter to try and she said as soon as she tasted it she got out the crackers and chowed down. She never even shared it with her children or husband. I will never buy ricotta cheese again. The extra cost is totally worth it.

This recipe was ok but it cost more for a gallon of milk than it is to buy ricotta cheese at the super market so I will probably not make again. Turned out ok with the fresh ricotta taste when I did make it.

What is a 'nonreactive' pan? Is a reactive pan aluminum?

I am thrilled to death over the outcome of this recipe. Thank you for posting! AND, I made it is the kicker. None believes me, but tis the truth, by George! Thank you and my husband and grown sons and families do to.

Excellent

Surprisingly easy and very tasty! Used it in Ricotta CAke (also found at allrecipes) and it was DIVINE!! Will make again!

I have the great fortune of living close to two cheese makers who make ricotta like I remember my grandmother using. Because I can get it direct from the dairy it's relatively inexpensive, a little over $2.00 a pound, and it comes in either a 5 pound container or two and a half pounds. This recipe, after seeing many, interests me and next trip to the grocery store I'll be picking up all the things needed to try this. I've always said that no matter how good something that is commercially made is there's nothing like homemade! 5 stars before I even try it because it just looks that good!

I do not use the cream and do not let it sit for an hour before straining. I will try adding the cream next time and this recipe uses more salt than mine and I think that's a great idea.

Wow! If I had know it was this easy, I would have done this a long time ago. I couldn't find a ricotta commercially out there to satisfy my taste. I wanted creamy and fully flavor and I have found it. The only thing is I will try to use a lowfat version and see how it taste.

OMG! Never made this before but will make instead of buying at the store. Just like when I was small and got ricotta at the italian deli. So creamy. The ricotta in stores today is grainy with no taste and not creamy at all. As soon as this was made had to spread on toast and eat warm. Yum! Made italian doughnuts with it. They were to die for. Great recipe. Will make again and again

Looks easy and really good. I can't wait to try this. Can it be made with part-skim milk? I'd like to cut the fat in it if possible.

This recipe is just fabulous! It's so easy, and appears to be foolproof! Beautiful texture, and lovely light flavor. I served it to my husband drizzled with Italian honey with blueberries on the side. His remark was "what are the peasants eating?" It truly makes you feel very special. Thanks so much for sharing it!

Do NOT ever make this. Or you will never, ever, ever, ever, EVER be able to eat the store bought again. Make sure you use a pot that is way bigger than the liquids you are putting into it-to avoid spillover, and do not cook on too high a temperature, or stop stirring or scraping the bottom or you will have a burned taste and brown bits in your ricotta. Keep in mind that the whole idea behind this is that it's the fat cells that curdle and create the cheese. If you substitute lower fat milk, etc. in the recipe, you will just get less ricotta with the same fat content. Also, if you don't have cheesecloth, a simple strainer will do. (The longer you drain it, the thicker and drier it will get. All depends on preference.) You might miss a little of it, but it works just fine. Also, it freezes pretty well. (Don't believe anyone who tells you it doesn't .) Thaw it naturally, not in a microwave, and stir any liquids back in. BTW, the liquid leftover is called whey and is GREAT for cooking and baking (sub anything that calls for milk) and your dogs and cats WILL LOVE it. It's so good for them! Make this. Trust me. It will change your life.

This is a fairly simple recipe to follow. I used goat's milk/cream. Instead of using store-bought buttermilk though, I tried to give the cheese the signature flavour of citrus like the Sicilian tradition. I used lemon juice to make goat's buttermilk. The benefits of making cheese at home may seem moot if you only look at the final results in an economical way. The whey is so useful in baking and smoothies that is a definite plus. Being able to control the salt is priceless. Also, the taste of authentic cheese and not industrial plastic, is more than enough to keep you making your own cheese. Let this age in the cheesecloth and mix in some other flavours to make things more interesting. This is awesome smoked too! Thank you and your nonna for this recipe.

OK so I really didn't follow he recipe very well. But it still turned out great! I made a half batch with 8 cups whole milk and 1 cup cream. Instead of buttermilk, I used the juice of two Meyer lemons and one orange plus 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar. (Basically, just keep adding acid until it curdles.) And I used 2 teaspoons total of kosher salt. I got about 11/2 cups of delicious ricotta and 71/2 cups of tangy whey. Tip 1: If you don't have cheesecloth, use a floursack towel to line your colander. Tip 2: You can freeze the whey (protein!) in Mason jars, leaving ample headroom, and use it in pancake batter and smoothies instead of milk.

I have been looking for fresh ricotta cheese in my area without sucsess. Being able to make fresh cheese like I used to get back home, well I'll make my own from now on. I'm from the Detroit area where you can go to an Italian bakery and buy a as much as you need. Out here in the Seattle area, fresh is not from a tub. I couldn't be happier.

I've considered making my own ricotta before but never thought of it as something to rave about. After reading many reviews I decided to make this recipe and, although I've never even thought of doing it before, I found myself eating it by the spoonful!!! I had to stop so I would have enough for the lasagna I'm planning on making!! This ricotta is delicious!!! Thanks for the recipe.

I just finished making this cheese. And if I knew it would be this easy I certainly would never have bought the store brand, this tastes so fresh I can't keep myself from sampling it there probably won't be much left by supper tomorrow night. Good Job Girl and Thanks for the really good cheese!

This recipe is better with lemon juice added.

Delicioso!!! Came out perfect. Ended up with 2lb12oz fresh cheese. The final cost factor... 7.86 total 2.86 per pound. That sounds like a win. And almost 1 gallon of whey. For breads and it will last at least ten days. Who said it's not cost effective harumph.

very good! i added 1/4 cup of lemon juice to promote curdling better, omitted the buttermilk, and used 2% milk. i tried this version without the lemon first and it just didn't curdle as much as it does when the lemon is added (for me at least!). can't wait to have this with the french bread i am baking :)

Very creamy with wonderful flavor. I will use for canolli but would be great in lasagna and other dishes.

This is so far the best homemade ricotta/fresh/farmer's cheese on AR. It's rich, creamy, and so easy to make.

Made half a recipe. Delicious. I will never buy store ricotta again.

I have made this same recipe in smaller quantities at least 10 times. It in no way compares to the packages at the grocery store. It is so fresh and creamy and the smell in the kitchen is absolutely incredible!! It is such a simple recipe to make that you will be so surprised and happy you tried it! I rarely go to the deli anymore and just make it myself.

I made this as the recipe called for and couldn’t believe how easy and delicious it was! After using most for my recipe, I ate a little and drizzled honey on top. It was delicious both ways.

I followed directions and created a very delicious, creamy ricotta cheese. Not grainy like store bought. I'll use this recipe again and again.

LOVED this! Took about an hour to heat up to 190 slowly. So easy and yummy! I used in calzones and in lasagna. Won't buy store bought again!

Did not set up at all. I live in the Caribbean, and fresh buttermilk is not available. Used Bob Red Mill powdered buttermilk and reconstituted according to the package directions. Did everything else exactly as written and not a single curd. Will follow a recipe like the one on Taste of Home next time. An expensive mistake.

very easy to make. nice because you can adjust the salt. store bought ricotta is usually fairly bland. I made ricotta gnudi with mine and it was so good! I only made a half-recipe of the ricotta. the division by two in the recipe worked well. I didn't have any heavy cream, but I did have the box of heavy cream from Trader Joe's. it is a shelf stable whipping cream and it worked very well.

I make this all the time, we use it for just about everything..Wife absolutely refuses to buy commercial made, If I want to mess with her I'll suggest getting store bought.

I did not try this but I want to know if I can make this using Lactaid milk and making "buttermilk or sour milk" with lactaid will give me the same results. I saw where others have not used the heavy cream, so that wouldn't be a problem.

I haven't made this but wonder if anyone can tell me how much this makes pound wise?

Fantastic recipe! Straight forward, simple and delicious. Definitely a keeper :-D

Absolutely delicious, never buying store bought again.

This is so much better than store bought and WAY better than the milk and vinegar recipes that I see all the time! The cheese itself is very delicious, not bland. And there is zero hint of vinegar taste, even in the whey itself, which I used in place of buttermilk (since the whey is cultured, or “sweet” rather than “acid”) in the Classic Bran Muffins recipe.

Absolutley delicious. Just like in italy.

After making this recipe, store-bought ricotta is forever forbidden from our home. Amazing!

I love this recipe. My Grandpa made cheese and none of the cousins have his recipe. I make this with lactose free milk, and leave out the heavy cream if it 's just for me, because I have a sensitivity to lactose. If it's for a holiday a leave in the heavy cream and have had no problems eating cheese, raviolis or cannolis to my heart's content!

I made the this recipe. It tastes so much better than store bought. Very easy to make.

No changes will definitely make again!

This came out so smooth and creamy! I love it! I did add the juice from half a lemon to make sure I got as much curd possible. And I love having the whey to use for bread

So easy and delicious. I've tried it with low fat milk but it worked better with the whole milk and cream. I've also added some salt for more flavor. For a first attempt making cheese, this is an easy and tasty recipe. Thanks!

This turned out perfect! It tasted just as good, if not better, than the local Italian store's freshly made ricotta. I will definitely make this again, many times. It is delicious in crêpes, with fresh fruit, too!

This ricotta is by far the most amazing thing I've ever eaten. I'll never buy commercial ricotta again.