Homemade Ricotta

For supper I made grilled cheese with homemade ricotta that I had put together that afternoon. It's easy. I know homemade anything sounds fancy and hard, but this was minimal work and ingredients. I use this recipe: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Fresh-Homemade-Ricotta-234282. 

After buttering some bread, put a generous amount of ricotta between two slices, add a little salt and some chives if you have some, or other fresh herbs like sage or basil. I have chives in my garden (a very easy, hearty little plant) so I went out a few minutes before and snipped, washed, and chopped them for some extra onion flavor. Once these were assembled I put them on our George Foreman grill and turned them into paninis.

Ricotta's most notable attribute is probably its texture - light, crumbly, and slightly creamy. Flavor on the other hand is chameleon-like, tasting mostly of milk and whatever other flavors with which it's paired. If you want to steer away from the savory, you can use ricotta for dessert. I put a heaping ball of it in a small dish (roughly 1/2 cup) and then drizzled it with honey, fresh raspberries we had picked a couple of nights prior from my dad's garden, and some pecans. So delicious! You could substitute just about any fruit and nut combination. Maple syrup would be fun, too...

Happy inventing and buen provecho!