Homemade Ricotta Dip
Cheese is generally one of those things that is hard to make.
Ricotta is not one of those cheeses. Ricotta is actually ridiculously easy to make and it makes an incredible dip with a few toppings and a baguette to dip. I honestly cannot believe it took me so long to make it.
Whenever I thought of making cheese I imagined milking a cow and then going through some year long process, but with ricotta, thats not it at all!!
It starts with a quart of whole milk, 90 mL of heavy cream, and 1 1/4 tsp of salt. You boil them to 200 degrees fahrenheit and then stream in 19 mL white vinegar until dissolved. Turn the heat off and let sit for 20 minutes. After it forms some curds, you add to a strainer with cheese cloth and allow to drain for an hour. Put in the fridge for 30 minutes or until completely cooled and then add your toppings for the dip.
You can eat this dip as an appetizer, a snack or, like we did, with your meal. We ate it with a baguette on the side with my potato caprese salad with homemade pesto but it would also be good with any pasta, pizza or flatbread.
Homemade Ricotta Dip
Ingredients:
- 1 quart whole milk (NOT ultra pasteurized)
- 90 mL heavy cream
- 1 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 19 mL white vinegar
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tbsp honey
- sprinkle of paprika or red pepper flakes
Instructions:
- On medium high, boil milk, heavy cream and salt until it reaches 200 degrees fahreheit. Please make sure you have a thermometer for this -- temperature precision is fairly important for ricotta.
- Stream in vinegar a little bit at a time until fully combined.
- Allow to sit for 20 minutes to cool.
- Once you see some curds forming, add to a fine mesh strainer covered with cheese cloth over a bowl. Allow the whey to drip out from the mixture into the bowl for about 1 hour. Make sure the strainer is not touching the bottom of the bowl, you don't want the ricotta to sit in the whey it is expelling.
- Once it is fully drained for 1 hour, add the ricotta to a bowl to sit in the fridge for 30 minutes or until you're ready to serve it.
- Top with olive oil, honey and a bit of paprika or red pepper flakes. Serve with a crusty baguette, gluten free bread or crackers. Enjoy!
