Whole milk ricotta cheese

When I have too much milk and don't have time to make cream or Farmhouse cheddar, I make whole milk ricotta cheese.

Here are 4 gallons of fresh goat milk in my large stock pot:



For each gallon of milk, I will need 1/2 cup of distilled white vinegar, so here are 2 cups of vinegar:



Heat the milk gently (so it won't scorch in the pot) and bring it up to almost boiling (at least 200 degrees F.) Remove the milk from the heat, pour in the vinegar and stir for a little while. Let the pot sit for 15 minutes and most of the curds will float to the top:



Strain the curds from the whey through a cloth placed in a colander. I do not save this whey, as it has been cooked.



Gather up the cloth and press out most of the liquid:



Turn the curds into a bowl and add 1 teaspoon of salt for each gallon of milk used:



While it is still hot, I press the ricotta into bowls, cover them with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator:



When thoroughly cooled, wrap the cheese in plastic wrap and if you are not going to use it soon, put the wrapped cheese (s) in freezer bags and freeze.

We slice this and eat it out of hand or use it on sandwiches. Since it is cooked, it will not melt. I also like to use it in salads, casseroles, lasagna, etc. And it keeps well for a long time in the freezer. As a matter of fact, it will stay nice in the fridge for several weeks as well!