There is nothing better than to be self-sufficient and to be able to produce the basic ingredients used in our kitchen. There is also the obvious advantage of being cheaper than buying the ready-made product in the supermarket and it is free of any preservatives or chemicals.
Ricotta is a super tasty cheese, similar to our cottage cheese, but with a lighter consistency, that goes well with everything. It can be used to make lasagna, salad, spaghetti, sandwich or just eaten eat plain with olive oil and herbs with some toast. It is always good.
Ingredients
1 litre of milk
the juice of half a lemon
a pinch of salt
40 x 40 cm cheesecloth
Method
- In a saucepan warm the milk, wait until it starts to foam but does not let it boil. Turn off the heat. Then add the lemon juice and leave it to rest for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, you will notice that the milk has curdled.
- Place a sieve over a deep bowl and cover the sieve with the cheesecloth. Carefully remove the larger curds and put on the cloth, continuing until there is nothing left in the pot. If necessary pour the whey so that the sieve does not touch the liquid.
- Make a bundle with the cheesecloth and use a piece of string to tie the bundle’s end. Then just tie the other end of the string on something, to hang it if you wish, this is only to help the whey drain out faster.
- Let it dry for 10 to 60 minutes, depending on if you fancy wetter or drier ricotta (we leave it for 30 minutes usually). When it is ready put it in a Tupperware or jar and store in the refrigerator. It lasts a week.
