Alright y’all – finally one checked off the 2015 to-do’s! I made ricotta cheese today and it was a game-changer as I don’t think I’ll ever buy store-bought again. After tasting how amazing fresh ricotta can be at Eataly I just had to give it a go – and lucky for me the Queen had a recipe that was so easy! I had delicious, fresh, creamy, homemade cheese in about 30 minutes. In the wise, fabulous words of Ina, “how easy is that?”

Ingredients
4 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 tsp kosher salt
3 tbs white wine vinegar

Set a large sieve over a deep bowl and layer 2 pieces of water-dampened cheesecloth.

Pour the milk and cream into a stainless-steel or enameled pot such as Le Creuset, then stir in the salt. Bring to a full boil over medium heat, and stir occasionally. Turn off the heat and stir in the vinegar. Allow the mixture to stand for 1 minute until it curdles. It will separate into thick parts (the curds) and milky parts (the whey).

Next up, pour the mixture into the cheesecloth-lined sieve and allow it to drain into the bowl at room temperature for 20 to 25 minutes, occasionally discarding the liquid that collects in the bowl.

The longer you let the mixture drain, the thicker the ricotta, I did mine for about 25 minutes. Transfer the ricotta to a bowl and discard the cheesecloth and any remaining whey. Use immediately or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 4 or 5 days.

I absolutely LOVED this on a baguette with a drizzle of honey and a slice of pear. But this would also be great with dill and lemon. Really you can rock this any way you want, you can’t go wrong. And the next time I make lasagna, this is for sure going to be the star. Cheers!