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    Home > Meal Type > Appetizers and Starters

    Homemade Ricotta and Grilled Bread

    Updated: Apr 9th 2019 โ€ข Published: Apr 25th 2015 โ€ข 20 Comments

    Jump to Recipe SaveSaved!

    Grilled Bread........yes today I am sharing a recipe for toast ๐Ÿ˜‰ Luckily toast isn't the star of the show. The star of this platter is the creamy rich homemade ricotta. Homemade ricotta is delicious and you can whip up a batch in about 25 minutes but for 20 of those you can leave the ricotta and get on with something else.

    Homemade Ricotta. A rich creamy and delicious cheese that is simple to make at home from everyday ingredients.

    I really urge you to try this, it is truly amazing! I love the way the curds form and you get cheese! Homemade cheese! Honestly even if you just do it for fun, please try it!

    Homemade Ricotta. A rich creamy and delicious cheese that is simple to make at home from everyday ingredients.

    I suppose you could make this with shop bought ricotta but I promise you, making ricotta is easier than finding a parking space at the shops. What is more, you probably have the ingredients in the fridge/pantry right now! Otherwise I guess you'll have to find a parking space anyway and then you could just buy ricotta ๐Ÿ˜‰ but you would be missing out on the creamy rich taste and the knowledge that you have made cheese! AND you can control the texture of your ricotta, if you want a very soft ricotta for spreading then you leave it to drain for less time, if you want a very dry crumbly ricotta for pizza then drain it well and squeeze out the remaining whey.

    Homemade Ricotta. A rich creamy and delicious cheese that is simple to make at home from everyday ingredients.

    The key to a ricotta is the acid you add to the milk, you need enough to start the process but if you add too much you get a vinegar tang to your cheese. I like to use apple cider vinegar, but this will work with white vinegar or white wine vinegar, even lemon juice will produce ricotta. After heating the milk you need to add 5% by volume, of vinegar.

    Example:
    1 litre of milk = 1000ml 
    5% of 1000 = 1000 * 0.05 = 50
    So for 1 litre of milk you need to add 50ml of vinegar.

    The quantities I have given below make about 350g of ricotta. If you remember the rule of 5% acidity then you can make any amount of ricotta you like. Last week I made a small amount to put on a pizza, so I just used 250ml of milk.

    Homemade Ricotta. A rich creamy and delicious cheese that is simple to make at home from everyday ingredients.

    Today we enjoyed the ricotta drizzled with olive oil, scattered with fresh herbs and a generous sprinkle of salt and freshly cracked black pepper. It was delicious with the grilled bread. ๐Ÿ˜‰ I used fresh thyme in my dish, but mix it up and add your favourite herb. Make sure you use a good quality olive oil as the olive oil soaks into everything, so you want a tasty oil.

    Homemade Ricotta. A rich creamy and delicious cheese that is simple to make at home from everyday ingredients.

    The by-product of making ricotta is whey, the watery part of the milk. I like to use it when I make bread as it gives my bread a slight sour-dough taste, it is also delicious used to make stock. Apparently people use it in the garden but that is definitely not my area of expertise!!!!


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    Homemade Ricotta. A rich creamy and delicious cheese that is simple to make at home from everyday ingredients.
    Print Recipe
    5 from 7 votes

    Saturday Afternoon Platter - Homemade Ricotta and Grilled Bread

    This recipe for homemade ricotta, gives you a rich, creamy and delicious cheese.It is simple to make at home from everyday ingredients.
    Cook Time20 mins
    Total Time20 mins
    Servings: 350 g
    Author: Claire | Sprinkle and Sprouts
    For more great recipes follow me on PinterestFollow @sprinklessprout
    Need Metric Measurements?Use the options below to toggle between cups and grams (if relevant)
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    Ingredients

    • 2 L full fat milk
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 100 ml apple cider vinegar

    Instructions

    • Pour the milk in a large saucepan and stir in the salt.
    • Heat the milk over a medium heat until it is just starting to boil. Stir it occasionally to stop it burning to the bottom of your pan.
    • Remove from the heat and pour the apple cider vinegar around in a spiral.
    • Stir gently and let it sit for 5 minutes to allow the curds to form.
    • Place a sieve over a bowl and line with a clean tea towel (in the past I have used a new j-cloth)
    • Slowly pour the curds and whey through your sieve.
    • Allow it to stand for 5 - 15 minutes and then refrigerate until needed.

    Notes

    To form the ball of ricotta below I gently gathered up the tea towel and gave it a gentle squeeze. The harder you squeeze the drier your ricotta will be.
    Then I drizzled it with extra virgin olive oil, sprinkled over fresh thyme and seasoned it generously with salt and cracked black pepper. And of course don't forget the toast grilled bread.
    Tried this recipe?Mention @sprinklesandsprouts or tag #sprinklesandsprouts
    Homemade Ricotta. A rich creamy and delicious cheese that is simple to make at home from everyday ingredients.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Amy says

      June 24, 2019 at 11:03 pm

      Have you ever made this with goat milk? There is a goat farm near me and I have been wanting to try.

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        June 27, 2019 at 3:11 pm

        I haven't but I do know a friend who did and she said it worked really well and was actually creamier than the cows milk version. Hope that helps

        Reply
    2. [email protected] says

      May 27, 2016 at 11:52 pm

      5 stars
      This is just like Our Indian Cheese Paneer. Nice and easy. I prepare it all the time, except I add lime juice instead of vinegar.

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        June 05, 2016 at 7:47 pm

        Ooooh, I have never made paneer. Will have to check it out ๐Ÿ™‚

        Reply
    3. Carla Luppi says

      December 28, 2015 at 12:31 pm

      5 stars
      Hi Claire. I came across this recipe by chance and I like the idea to make my own ricotta: I am
      Italian, and I like ricotta cheese, so I will definitely have a go. Thank you to share it with us

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        December 28, 2015 at 7:34 pm

        Thank you for your comment ๐Ÿ™‚
        I hope you enjoy it, it is so simple to make and tastes so much better than the processed supermarket stuff!

        Reply
    4. Lauren @ Create Bake Make says

      July 27, 2015 at 8:34 am

      5 stars
      I can see why you make it every Friday, it looks amazing!

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        July 27, 2015 at 4:24 pm

        Thank you Lauren. It is so easy to knock up a batch. Definitely easier than taking two kids around the supermarket!

        Reply
    5. [email protected] says

      June 27, 2015 at 8:00 am

      Just ordinary milk? Not unhomogensied?

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        June 27, 2015 at 9:36 am

        Yes, just normal 'buy in the supermarket' milk ๐Ÿ™‚
        I always use full fat milk as we aren't a high-low buying family.

        Reply
    6. [email protected] says

      June 27, 2015 at 8:00 am

      5 stars
      What? It's that easy???? I'm making it THIS WEEKEND!!

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        June 27, 2015 at 9:36 am

        I know, the first time I made it I was so excited and shocked by how simple it was. I felt like a kitchen chemist ๐Ÿ™‚

        Reply
    7. Michelle @ foodie cravings says

      June 15, 2015 at 7:46 am

      5 stars
      Oh wow I did not know that it was this easy!! Thanks Claire, I nearly bought ricotta from the shops last night but only wanted a small quantity. I've got milk and apple cider vinegar so I'll be making my own now - cheers for the recipe

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        June 15, 2015 at 10:09 am

        Thank you, I am so glad you found this recipe.
        I love how simple it is. And like you say when you just need a small amount you can make up a batch and don't have to hit the shops.

        Reply
    8. Natalie says

      May 18, 2015 at 4:21 am

      5 stars
      This looks so good! I need to try this immediately.

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        May 18, 2015 at 7:14 am

        It is such a great feeling when you make it. I get so excited to see my own cheese!
        And the taste is so much better than anything you can buy in the store.

        Reply
    9. Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop says

      April 26, 2015 at 8:34 pm

      I made homemade ricotta once, many years ago. I've forgotten how easy it is, although I do remember the taste being fantastic. Thanks for the reminder...I'll need to give this a try!

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        April 26, 2015 at 8:59 pm

        Thank you for stopping by.
        I hope you enjoy it, the taste knocks the socks off shop bought ricotta.

        Reply
    10. Amanda Reid says

      April 25, 2015 at 7:45 pm

      Wow who would have known it was so straight forward, will have to try that...would it work with a balsamic vinegar Claire or would that be no good?

      Reply
      • Claire McEwen says

        April 26, 2015 at 11:39 am

        I have never tried it with balsamic vinegar Amanda, but I think it would work as you just need the acidity to curdle the milk. Flavour wise you don't get an over powering taste of vinegar, just a sort of tang, so I think balsamic vinegar may well taste rather nice. Although I don't know what affect the dark colour of the balsamic vinegar would have on the appearance of the ricotta. If you try it please let me know.

        Just check that your balsamic vinegar isn't one that has added sugar as that will dissolve into the milk and change the taste of the cheese.....although a sweet balsamic vinegar made ricotta spooned onto fresh strawberries sounds rather good ๐Ÿ™‚

        Reply

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