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Whey Ricotta 

You can make whey ricotta from the whey left over from your mozzarella. In a heavy pan, heat the whey to 195 to 200 degrees, stirring often. When the curds separate from the whey, remove the pan from the heat and let sit for 10 minutes. Ladle the curds into a colander lined with butter muslin and drain for 20 minutes. Add salt or herbs.

Ricky Carroll says that you can add 1 quart of whole milk to the whey to increase your yield, which I plan to do the next time I make it.

Whole Milk Ricotta

Makes 1¾ to 2 pounds

Citric acid crystals — sometimes called sour salt — are available in the spice sections of grocery stores. My grandmother used sour salt in her sweet and sour cabbage soup.

1 gallon whole milk
1 teaspoon citric acid diluted with ½ cup cool water
1 teaspoon salt (kosher, sea salt or any other large-crystal salt)

Pour the citric acid solution into a stainless-steel or nonreactive pot and add the milk, stirring as you do. Heat the mixture to 195 degrees, stirring often to keep it from scorching. When the curds and whey separate, turn off the heat and let sit for 5 minutes.

Line a colander with butter muslin. Ladle the curds gently into the cloth. Tie the cloth into a bag and hang over a bowl or the sink to drain for ½ hour or until the desired consistency is reached. Sprinkle the salt over the cheese and mix gently. The cheese is then ready to eat. It will keep for two weeks in the refrigerator.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 4th, 2008 at 10:55 pm and is filed under Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.