# First ricotta took forever, but it's wonderful



## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

I made my first batch of goat milk ricotta yesterday. It took hours to get to 195 degrees, primarily because I was so afraid of scorching it. I swore that I'd never make it again.

Today, I used about half of what I made in a batch of lasagna. OH MY GOODNESS! Talk about good.

Now I'm looking for a ricotta cheesecake recipe.


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## gone-a-milkin (Mar 4, 2007)

this one is from the Moosewood cookbook, and it is awesome, and easy!

Ricotta Cake (Italian Cheesecake)

"Simple and plain, but full of soul."

A little butter for the pan
A little flour for the pan
2 lbs. ricotta cheese
2 or 3 large eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 tbsp. vanilla ext.
1/2 tsp. almond ext.
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. grated lemon rind
3 Tbs. fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven, 350 degrees.
butter bottom of 9 inch springform pan, and dust lightly w/ flour.

Place ricotta, eggs, sugar, flour, vanilla,and almond extracts, salt, lemon rind, and lemon juice in food processor, and whip everything together until smooth. You can use an electric mixer, if you prefer.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and spread into place.

Bake in the center of the oven for 50 minutes, or until solid in the center. Cool completely, then chill until cold. 

Serve w/ fresh berries or berry sauce.


This is a staple in my house. It is good hot or cold. W/ berry sauce or chocolate, or plain-old eat-it. No one EVER hates it, unless it maybe...burns? In which case there is more for the kids. I like this recipe because its not about CRUST. It is all about the cheese! I have substituted orange rind for lemon, good. The almond extract is pretty essential, but I have subbed RUM, which made it really nice too!


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

I'm going to use your recipe next time. I did one from the internet and just stirred. The resulting cheesecake has OK flavor, but it's a bit grainy. I think the blender step would solve that. Is the texture of yours better?

Thanks!!!


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

I don't know if you pasteurize first or not, but it's much quicker if you pasteurize and then continue to heat the warm milk - Doesn't take long to go from 165 to 195.

I was floored by how good the riccotta I made was, too - but was disappointed in the yield.


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## jerzeygurl (Jan 21, 2005)

BlueHeronFarm said:


> I don't know if you pasteurize first or not, but it's much quicker if you pasteurize and then continue to heat the warm milk - Doesn't take long to go from 165 to 195.
> 
> I was floored by how good the riccotta I made was, too - but was disappointed in the yield.



me too, i hardly ever make it esp in summer


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## goatsareus (Jun 23, 2007)

what kind of yields are you guys talking about? I have felt I got decent yields for ricotta cheese.

For the vinegar ricotta cheeses, for 2 gallons of milk I get 3 pounds of cheese.

For Ricki Carroll's recipe, 1 gallon of milk makes about 1 1/2 pounds, maybe more at times/

For the Jeff Smith recipe, 1 gallon of milk makes about 1 pound 11 ounces.

Are you guys getting less than this?


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

I think I got just a little less than or right around a pound when I made the Ricki Carroll recipe. (1 gal)

...And I get a pound and a half when I make chevre, so I was a little disappointed. - She said it was a high yield cheese, so I expected more than a pound.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

I'm thinking a pound per gallon is pretty much average from the books I've been reading.

I did the whole milk ricotta, not whey ricotta. Got enough to fill one of those tall refrigerator containers that come with the spinning rack. What is that, between two and three cups? 

We've used it already. I'll have to make another batch and weigh it.


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## Julia (Jan 29, 2003)

BlueHeronFarm said:


> She said it was a high yield cheese, so I expected more than a pound.


Ricki was probably comparing it to traditional ricotta from whey. There you only get a few tablespoons per gallon. But it is free...


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## mamajohnson (Nov 27, 2002)

Rose, if you dont want it to take so long you can use a double broiler type method, that is how I do it. Actually, I have ss stock pots that stack, and I put the water in the bigger one, about 1/3 full, then put in the smaller pot and add my gal of milk. Works real good, you can cook it a bit faster that way. The handles of the smaller stock pot keep it up off the bottom of the bigger one, so I dont have to worry about scorching at all.
Found a receipe online the other day, it said to let the ricotta sit for about 20 min covered before you pour it into the cloth lined collander, worked like a dream, I got more cheese, bigger curds and it tastes great. Pretty sure I got close to 3 or 3 1/2 cups of cheese. Well, I am pretty sure I taste tested at least 1/2 cup of it before it got to the fridge.  So there is only about 3 cups in there now.

Also tried making it from half whey and half milk. It tasted more 'goaty' and I didnt get near as much cheese. So, guess I will stick to the whole milk version.


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## YounGrey (Jun 7, 2007)

Good for you!


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

Ok-- made it again today-- I forgot to weigh, but it was only like a cup and a half! What am I doing wrong? The curds are SO tiny and I just don't get much yield. 
...but OH the lasagna was good - goat milk bechamel, ricotta, pesto and fresh spinach.


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## mamajohnson (Nov 27, 2002)

blueheron, what receipe are you using? I found one the other day that said to let it cook for no more than one min after the curds started to form, and then take it off the heat and cover it, let it stand for 20 min.
That made a huge difference for me. The cheese is moister, and bigger curds. Tastes wonderful too. I will always do it that way from now on.

PS it makes great potatoes au gratin! :hobbyhors


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

I used the Ricki Carrol one where you start with citric acid, add milk - heat until curd forms (it says 185-195) then remove and let set 10 minutes.
I didn't get curd separation until 200 - and the whey was nice and clear then, but the curds ended up being TINY. So tiny I poured it into the cloth lined strainer rather than ladling out curd. Clogged up my cheesecloth to the point I threw it away when I was done. 

...but again - it was delicious. Just not "worth it" for repeating very much. Not sure what is going wrong.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Are you using whey or whole milk?

My curds with whole milk are tiny, too. I think they are supposed to be for ricotta. Also, I think you're supposed to use muslin, not cheesecloth for the draining.


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

Whole milk- miniscule curd - draining in butter muslin. I think the curds would just fall through regular cheesecloth. 

I also tried the whey ricotta once - HORRIBLE. Dry, inedible and not worth the bother. We are getting a couple pigs to eat the whey instead.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

I used some muslin from my quilt stash!


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## mamajohnson (Nov 27, 2002)

I use muslin from the stash too! lol!
Well, I use whole milk, with a dash of salt mixed in the beginning, using a double broiler I bring it to 195, add about 1/4 c white vinegar for each gal, stir for no longer than one min, then remove the pot, put on a lid and let it sit for 20 min. That is how I got bigger curds. Then I just gently pour it into my cloth lined colander, and let it drain for 30-45 min.
Wonderful cheese, I will do it again for sure. And the whey is going to bread and rice making and such, but DH did mention getting a hog!!! woo hoo! I would love that!


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

OK-- I'm going to try it that way - I wonder if adding the curdling agent at temp is the key - because when I made paneer that way I got wonderful, large curds - though they were a little dry. (Actually - to look ayt it, ricotta and paneer seem to be the same recipe- only paneer is pressed??)


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

What I'm learning, also, is that the age of the milk is important. The lactic acid increases as the milk ages. Some of the processes work better with milk that's a couple of days old.


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## mamajohnson (Nov 27, 2002)

Well, I usually use my oldest milk for the cheese (which is normally 2-3 days old), today I found a jar of milk from Wednesday that had got shoved to the back of the fridge, made some with it and threw it in an enchilada I was making. It had just a little hint of goaty flavor to it.  So, I would say 5 day old milk is too old.


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## prairiegirl (Nov 2, 2004)

I gave cheese making a try yesterday. I made ricotta because it seemed fairly easy even though I had read the low yields some of you are getting.
Well maybe it was beginner's luck, but I got just about 4 cups of ricotta cheese from a gallon of milk. The recipe I used was similar to mamajohnsons except it called for cider vinegar and the salt was added at the end. Also, it was drained right after curds formed. The recipe said to let drain for 20 min., but mine took at least 30 maybe more to completely drain. 
I ended up with some nice cheese. Everyone enjoyed the veggie lasagna for supper last night I made with the ricotta. I need to make more to give cheesecake a try.

prairiegirl


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## mamajohnson (Nov 27, 2002)

prairiegirl said:


> Well maybe it was beginner's luck, but I got just about 4 cups of ricotta cheese from a gallon of milk. The recipe I used was similar to mamajohnsons except it called for cider vinegar and the salt was added at the end. Also, it was drained right after curds formed. The recipe said to let drain for 20 min., but mine took at least 30 maybe more to completely drain.
> I ended up with some nice cheese. prairiegirl


Well, wish I could have beginners luck like you!
I just made a fresh batch of cheese, and have maybe 2 cups of cheese.
Are you using cow's milk or goat milk? (hoping that will be the difference!)
I would love to come out with 4 cups of cheese.


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## prairiegirl (Nov 2, 2004)

I used cows milk. What did you use?
I'm new to milking and cheese making, but I was thinking there wasn't much difference when it came to cheese. I knew that goat milk and it's cream separates differently than cow milk. The recipe I used was in an old Countryside magazine. The author of the article has written a cookbook for using goat milk. But, she said that the recipes could use either milk with good results. I'll have to go back and re-read it.

prairiegirl


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## HilltopDaisy (Feb 26, 2003)

I have found, through trial and error, that if my milk is too hot the curds are really tiny and I don't get much. I use fresh raw goats milk, no more than 2 days old, and I always taste it first to make sure it has no goaty flavor. I bring it to 180 degrees and then cool it down to around 100 before I add the acid. Sometimes I use white vinegar, and sometimes cider vinegar. I think the recipe calls for 1/4 cup to one gallon of milk. I use about 1/3 of a cup. I stir it into the milk then leave it for about ten minutes. This seems to work the best for me.


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## mamajohnson (Nov 27, 2002)

I use fresh goats milk. Dont know if that makes a difference, was just curious.
I just made some cheese yesterday and got about 2 cups of cheese from a little over a gallon of milk.
Hilltop daisy, I read that the milk needed to be heated to 195. Is that too high? Could that be affecting my yeild? 180 is what I heat to for yogurt. I use a tad more vinager than the 1/4 cup, seems to work better. Now, I have cut the salt out, as DH is having some big problems with Blood pressure, but it hasnt seemed to affect the cheese any (I just salt mine if I am gonna eat a piece)


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## HilltopDaisy (Feb 26, 2003)

Sorry, I just saw your question, mamajohnson. I heat my raw milk to about 180 degrees, then let it come down to around 100 degrees. I don't know if 195 is too high or not, but I've found that if I add the vinegar to the milk while it's still very hot I don't get much from it.

I have 5 quarts of milk cooling right now. I will measure the amount of cheese curds that I get from it.


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

HilltopDaisy said:


> Sorry, I just saw your question, mamajohnson. I heat my raw milk to about 180 degrees, then let it come down to around 100 degrees. I don't know if 195 is too high or not, but I've found that if I add the vinegar to the milk while it's still very hot I don't get much from it.
> 
> I have 5 quarts of milk cooling right now. I will measure the amount of cheese curds that I get from it.


This is really interesting - I would like to know how much you get, too, by adding the acid at a lower temp. 

So, maybe dumb question, but why does it have to go up to 180/190 first?


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## mamajohnson (Nov 27, 2002)

ok, I will be making cheese again tomarrow, I think I will try cooling it before adding the vinegar. I was wondering about the reason for heating it also...


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## prairiegirl (Nov 2, 2004)

I made the cheesecake recipe shared by gone-a-milkin. I did add a bit of cream cheese I had left. I used the food processor to blend the ingredients. The cheesecake was good. The only thing I would do differently is to process the ricotta by itself a bit more to get a smoother texture.

Thanks for sharing the recipe. It's a keeper. Good way to use up some eggs, too.

About the heating.........remember I am no expert. But, from what I've read, the milk would need to be heated to kill any bad bacteria because this is not an aged hard cheese. At least this is what I'm thinking and I could be totally wrong. I'm curious to what those with more experience have to say.

prairiegirl


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## jerzeygurl (Jan 21, 2005)

jersey will give twice as much as holstien, a goats will be finer particles and you will lose much if you dont double layer, i use the flour sack tea towels, much thicker than muslin..

ricotta is the albumin ( a milk protein) it can only be coagulated by heat, not by rennet.


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## goatsareus (Jun 23, 2007)

BlueHeronFarm said:


> So, maybe dumb question, but why does it have to go up to 180/190 first?


I don't know. It seems to me to be an odd temperature. 160*F is enough to kill bacteria. But I have done a lot of reading over the last 30 years of cheesemaking, and all the sources say to heat to 180*F. So I do it  

I use a ricotta recipe that uses rennet to set the curd.


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## BlueHeronFarm (Feb 9, 2007)

See-- I assumed that the temp was necessary to get the curds and whey to separate. But if they can do it at 100... I feel like I am missing something!


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