Home made ricotta + farmer's market ingredients = delicious dinner

God defend me from that Welsh fairy, lest he transform me to a piece of cheese! William Shakespeare

Ever since I read Barbara Kigsolver’s awesome book, Animal Vegetable Miracle  a few years ago, I have had a hankerin’ to make cheese (and to move back to the country, but that’s another story…) Ultimately, I want to make mozzarella, but I started with ricotta, which is even easier than I thought it could be.

All it took was some milk, vinegar, a little salt, and time. The result was a flavorful, delicate cheese that became the centerpiece of an easy weekend meal featuring ravioli, fresh tomato sauce, sauteed swiss chard and roasted spaghetti squash. 

When I look at the pictures of the plate, it almost looks too fancy for how simple it actually was. Almost all the  ingredients were found at my local farmer’s market and in my garden. There was very little cooking involved, which meant that I didn’t heat up the house on a warm summer evening… and each of the veggies had a chance to shine in its peak-season flavor.

I researched different ways to make ricotta and found that true ricotta is actually made from the whey that is left after making other types of cheese, such as mozzarella… (I love the fact that something so yummy is a by-product of something else that is equally yummy...a two-fer!)

In my simple rendition, I started with cow’s milk. I buy raw milk from a local dairy because I like the freshness as well as the beneficial bacteria that are important in maintaining gut flora, but you can use pasteurized milk as well. You cannot, however, use milk that has been ultra-pasteurized or homogenized.

My favorite way to eat ricotta is with honey and toasted hazelnuts. In making ricotta for that, you can add some heavy cream to give it a little more body. I met a lovely woman at the farmer’s market who said that in Italy she was served this same sweet ricotta preparation but with an added piece of sharp cheese. Doesn’t that sound like heaven?

Anyhoo, this ricotta was to become ravioli made with store-bought wonton wrappers… a quick solution for making ravioli without pulling out the pasta machine.

The ricotta filling was enhanced with chopped herbs from my garden, a few toasted pignoli nuts and a little lemon to brighten everything up. For the sauce, I minced garlic and herbs with a little sea salt and olive oil and mixed that with chopped fresh tomatoes. I made this before filling the ravioli so that the flavors would have a chance to meld together.

For the chard, I blanched the greens first and then used that same water for cooking the ravioli. This is a great way to save energy (heating only one pot of water) and also to add some nutrients to your pasta water. See this link for more info on cooking greens.

The spaghetti squash was poked a few times with a fork and then baked in the toaster oven at 350 F for about 45 minutes. After cooking, I cut it in half, scraped out the seeds and then used a fork to pull the flesh out in its spaghetti-like strands. Topped with cultured butter and a little salt...

The actual cooking time for this meal was less than an hour. Hard to believe, isn’t it? Just enough time to enjoy the candlelight, a glass of wine and some jazz on the radio…

Making ricotta:

• 1/2 gallon whole milk
• 3 tablespoons white distilled vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Heat milk in a heavy, non-reactive pot until it reaches 185 degrees F.
2. Remove from heat and add the vinegar and salt. You’ll see the curds beginning to form…
3. Cover and let sit for two hours to allow the curds to develop
4. Drain through 1 or 2 layers of cheesecloth for another hour or two

Yield: about 1 1/2 cups of ricotta.

That’s it. Done. Easy, right?

For the ravioli filling:

Chopped fresh herbs (I used rosemary, basil, thyme and parsley)
1 teaspoon chopped lemon zest
1 teaspoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons pignoli, dry roasted in a small cast-iron skillet and coarsely chopped

Combine all ingredients and then stir in the ricotta

Making the ravioli:

Place about a teaspoon of the filling in the wonton wrapper
Brush the edges with water

Fold over into a triangle 

Press the edges to seal

 

Drop into boiling water for about 3 minutes until heated through.