| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 3 hr 20 min |
| Prep: | 5 min |
| Inactive: | 3 hr |
| Cook: | 15 min |
| Yield: | about 1 cup |
Ingredients
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3 cups whole milk
- 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
Instructions
- In a medium pot, bring the cream, milk, and buttermilk to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Simmer gently for a few minutes until the milk solids rise to the surface and form what looks like a raft. Shut off the heat and allow the milk to rest and cool gently on the stove, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Line a strainer with a few layers of cheesecloth. Use a large spoon to scoop the solids from the surface into the strainer. Pour the liquid gently over the solids in the strainer, allowing the liquid to flow through the strainer and trapping the solids in the cheesecloth. The liquid is the whey and can be used to thicken soups or as a substitute for water in bread dough, among other things. Refrigerate for a few hours to allow all of the liquid to drain out and the ricotta to firm up slightly. Use the ricotta as desired.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 6 servings |
| Calories | 236 |
| Total Fat | 19 g |
| Saturated Fat | 12 g |
| Carbohydrates | 10 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 0 g |
| Sugar | 10 g |
| Protein | 7 g |
| Cholesterol | 69 mg |
| Sodium | 184 mg |
Reviews
Tried this recipe after comparing a couple of others. This came out great. I was very nervous. From comparing to other recipes, I added some salt and only let rest a few minutes before carefully spooning into damp cheese cloth. Let is drain for about 30 minutes. Used some immediately for snacking – couldn’t wait. Refrigerated the rest. Will definitely make again. I got more than a cup, closer to 2 cups. Cost wise, It cost about the same as a high quality premade ricotta. But was fun, and nice to know you have this option.
Sooo SMART Alex to use buttermilk as the acid! However, it needs at least a teaspoon of Kosher salt to bring out the flavor.
I went to a local Italian store to get some ricotta cheese and they were out of it so I decide to make my own. I don’t think I’ll ever get it from a store again. I followed the recipe to a tee and it came out so good. I was amazed how easy it was, when I used vinegar with another recipe, it didn’t come out. Just a suggestion: I made mine the night before I needed it so all the water would drip out. I’m going to use the water to make some bread. Thanks, Alex for such a great recipe.
Extremely Easy & Tasty
SOOOOO GOOD AND EASY!!! I can’t believe how DELICIOUS this ricotta !
Hi Alex: Just tried your ricotta recipe, which I have used before with great success. However, this time I’m having great difficulty with the cheesecloth separation step. The curds seem very fine and the separation is extremely slow. Did I leave the milk/cream mixture on heat too long or not long enough? I also squeezed a bit of lemon juice into the mixture for flavour. Was that a mistake? Can you help please? Thanks, Rob
this is no doubt the best!!!
Super Duper easy…super duper delicious! Thanks Alex!
I made a ricotta with lemon two weeks ago. As it sat, the lemon flavor became very dominant. I had buttermilk in the fridge, so made this today. The flavor is clean, fresh, wonderful. Thank you Alex for giving me a recipe I will always use. I’ll never buy ricotta at the supermarket again.
Interesting twist in using buttermilk as the acid source. It seems to me that it would give it a more natural flavor as opposed to vinegar or lemon.
I will definitely try this version soon.