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In another thread I mentioned this recipe from Gourmet Magazine April 2006
Well I tried it. And (drumroll......................................... ............................)
It works! Very well. The cheese is absolutely yummier than the stuff from the store. It's mild, not as wet, has a soft texture, but has enough body that it isn't mushy and has a pronounced milky-creamy-buttery flavor the store-bought doesn't have. It's absolutely the best ricotta I've tasted.
The whey, or liquid, doesn't taste bad either. It's rather sweet (from the milk sugars). So I know the carb count is pretty high. It's drinkable and usable in other foods. but I'm saving the whey and I'll use it the non-low carb baking I do for family and friends.
As for the carb count, I'm using the USDA's counts for whole milk ricotta cheese with is 3.4 something for 1/2 cup. But to be on the safe side, I will count the 1/2 cup as 5 net carbs.
By the way, I used whole milk and heavy cream for this. I didn't try making it with the Carb Down dairy beverage.
My hints about making this stuff..
1. If your milk and cream are refrigerator cold, it will take a while to "slowly" bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. So you might want to start it off on medium-high heat, stirring constantly in order to prevent scorching.
2. The lemon juice. I was able to squeeze 3 tablespoons (plus a few drops more) from a large lemon. Be sure to strain the lemon juice to remove any pulp and seeds.
3. The recipe says to stir the cheese constantly after you've added the lemon juice. I didn't find that necessary on the second batch, because the curds floated to the top of the pot. Although, if you want a finer texture ricotta, stir away because stirring breaks the larger curds into smaller curds.
4. Use a large pot!!!! This is very important because once the milk-cream mixture begins to boil, it foams up and if the pot isn't large enough, the mixture could boil over.
5. Have all the equipment ready to go. That is squeeze and strain the lemon juice, line the strainer with cheesecloth and set it over a large pot of basin, before you begin heating the milk. Once it boils, the recipe goes pretty fast so you might not have time to juice the lemon and get the cheesecloth arranged.
6. Molding the cheese. The first batch I let sit in the strainer and I ended up breaking it up to put into my storage container. The second batch, I gathered the corners of the cheese cloth and gently squeezed the excess whey from the cheese by gently rolling the cheese against the sides of the strainer. That cheese has a sorta round shape, which looks prettier than the batch I smashed into the container.
Ricotta Cheese
2 quarts whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Special equipment: large sieve, fine-mesh cheesecloth
Line a large sieve with a layer of heavy-duty (fine-mesh) cheesecloth and place it over a large bowl.
Slowly bring milk, cream, and salt to a rolling boil in a 6-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. Add lemon juice, then reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring constantly, until the mixture curdles, about 2 minutes.
Pour the mixture into the lined sieve and let it drain 1 hour. After discarding the liquid, chill the ricotta, covered; it will keep in the refrigerator 2 days.
Makes about 2 cups.
Gourmet (magazine) April 2006
2 quarts whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Special equipment: large sieve, fine-mesh cheesecloth
Line a large sieve with a layer of heavy-duty (fine-mesh) cheesecloth and place it over a large bowl.
Slowly bring milk, cream, and salt to a rolling boil in a 6-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally to prevent scorching. Add lemon juice, then reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring constantly, until the mixture curdles, about 2 minutes.
Pour the mixture into the lined sieve and let it drain 1 hour. After discarding the liquid, chill the ricotta, covered; it will keep in the refrigerator 2 days.
Makes about 2 cups.
Gourmet (magazine) April 2006
It works! Very well. The cheese is absolutely yummier than the stuff from the store. It's mild, not as wet, has a soft texture, but has enough body that it isn't mushy and has a pronounced milky-creamy-buttery flavor the store-bought doesn't have. It's absolutely the best ricotta I've tasted.
The whey, or liquid, doesn't taste bad either. It's rather sweet (from the milk sugars). So I know the carb count is pretty high. It's drinkable and usable in other foods. but I'm saving the whey and I'll use it the non-low carb baking I do for family and friends.
As for the carb count, I'm using the USDA's counts for whole milk ricotta cheese with is 3.4 something for 1/2 cup. But to be on the safe side, I will count the 1/2 cup as 5 net carbs.
By the way, I used whole milk and heavy cream for this. I didn't try making it with the Carb Down dairy beverage.
My hints about making this stuff..
1. If your milk and cream are refrigerator cold, it will take a while to "slowly" bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. So you might want to start it off on medium-high heat, stirring constantly in order to prevent scorching.
2. The lemon juice. I was able to squeeze 3 tablespoons (plus a few drops more) from a large lemon. Be sure to strain the lemon juice to remove any pulp and seeds.
3. The recipe says to stir the cheese constantly after you've added the lemon juice. I didn't find that necessary on the second batch, because the curds floated to the top of the pot. Although, if you want a finer texture ricotta, stir away because stirring breaks the larger curds into smaller curds.
4. Use a large pot!!!! This is very important because once the milk-cream mixture begins to boil, it foams up and if the pot isn't large enough, the mixture could boil over.
5. Have all the equipment ready to go. That is squeeze and strain the lemon juice, line the strainer with cheesecloth and set it over a large pot of basin, before you begin heating the milk. Once it boils, the recipe goes pretty fast so you might not have time to juice the lemon and get the cheesecloth arranged.
6. Molding the cheese. The first batch I let sit in the strainer and I ended up breaking it up to put into my storage container. The second batch, I gathered the corners of the cheese cloth and gently squeezed the excess whey from the cheese by gently rolling the cheese against the sides of the strainer. That cheese has a sorta round shape, which looks prettier than the batch I smashed into the container.
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