R i c o t t a

Making Fresh Cheese

Fleurieu Peninsula is renowned premium dairy country.  The McLaren Vale region historically was known for its premium milk.  The region has historically had farm house cheeses that disappeared as farms grew and bulk milk sales became the norm, fortunately we have returned to making farm house cheeses and producing local milks that celebrate terroir. 

A simple fresh curd cheese is the traditional Italian Ricotta, unique in that it is made from the whey that separates from curd during cheese-making.  The whey should not be held for more than an hour before making Ricotta or it will acidify.

At Producers we make Ricotta using whole milk, this method is not unknown in Italy and we prefer the creamy result.  As you would expect, the Milk makes all the difference in flavour and texture, we use Alexandrina Cheese Company and Fleurieu Milk Company Jersey Milk for our cow’s milk Ricotta.  For goat’s and sheep’s milk Ricotta we source from milk from Hindmarsh Valley Dairy. 

There are several methods of acidifying the milk to bring out the curd, we use a mixture of Lemon and White Wine Vinegar.  Whole Milk Ricotta will give almost two kilos of cheese from 10 litres of milk. 

Home Made Ricotta Method

• Heat milk to 90 degrees C, stirring occassionally.
• As the milk reaches temperature, take off heat and stir in acid very gently just a turn or two with a wooden spoon is all you need then watch the curds separate from the whey (vinegar approximately 5% of milk volume, lemon juice around 10% of volume – experiment as it depends on the strength of your lemons and vinegar), the milk will coagulate in a few minutes.
• Strain the curds, let it sit in a strainer over a jug for around five minutes.
• If you are cooking the curd is ready, for a tasty fresh Ricotta to serve with bread or bake as a starter add desired seasoning - transfer the curd to a mixing bowl and blend in desired fat and flavouring, eg: salt, pepper, butter, cream or olive oil.

Experiment: Sheep or Goat’s Milk makes a tangier Ricotta. If you take longer to heat the milk your curd will be softer. How often and how vigorously you stir the curd during cooking time will affect the size of curd formed, texture changes with vigour used when mixing in flavouring.   

• USE – Spread onto freshly baked crusty bread, serve with sliced tomatoes, bake the curd or add to cakes and tarts.  A favourite of ours is to make a simple salad of parsley, shallots, olives mixed with a generous amount of robust olive oil served alongside Ricotta and toasted tomato bread. Very creamy Ricotta is perfect for making cakes and puddings, as well as a savoury filling for pasta. The leftover whey can also be used in recipes.

• STORAGE – keep in the refrigerator covered with glad wrap or in sealed container, best eaten in one or two days it will keep for up to four.