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What is the difference between mascarpone and cream cheese? Soft cheeses: mozzarella, ricotta, mascarpone

Philadelphia

This cheese is also made from a mixture of milk and cream, or sometimes just cream. Its difference is that it does not require much time to mature. In terms of consistency, Philadelphia and Mascarpone are almost identical.

The calorie content of Philadelphia cheese is significantly less than that of Mascarpone: it is 253 kcal per 100 grams of product.

The benefits of Philadelphia cheese

The composition, of course, contains vitamins (A, E, group B, K, PP, beta-carotene, choline) and micro- and microelements (selenium, potassium, manganese, calcium, zinc, iron, phosphorus, sodium and copper).

What to cook with Philadelphia

Ingredients:

150 gr. curd cheese
50 gr. powdered sugar
100 gr. coconut flakes
100 gr. coconut flakes for sprinkling
Filling: nuts, dried fruits

How to cook:

Grind coconut flakes into powder and mix with powdered sugar. Add cottage cheese, stir until smooth. Using a spoon, scoop out the same amount of curd-coconut mass and form into balls (not forgetting about the filling, which we put inside). Then roll in coconut flakes and place in the freezer for 15 minutes.

Spaghetti with raspberries

This is a recipe from the book by Alain Ducasse (a chef every housewife should know) “Nature. Simple, sain et bon. Desserts,” which he wrote together with nutritionist Paule Neyrat.

The combination of flavors may seem strange to you, but believe me, it will be love at first bite. , cooked “Al dente”, in a delicate creamy vanilla sauce and with a little - the synthesis of these ingredients has already made an indelible impression on the French. Now it's your time to experience it.

Nutritionist's comment:“Oh, how I love this! In front of you. A well-balanced dish with great flavor.” And it only takes 10 - 20 minutes to cook.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

250 g spaghetti
250 g raspberries (can be used frozen, after defrosting)
2 tsp. agave syrup (can be replaced with honey)
3 tbsp. l. cream cheese
3 cm ginger root
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 vanilla pod

How to cook:

Almond pie with apples and mascarpone

Apples can be replaced with pears or plums. It will turn out just as good, and perhaps even better.

Ingredients:

4 eggs
250 g sugar
125 g butter, room temperature
250 g mascarpone cheese
100 g ground almonds
3 tbsp. l. starch
0.5 sachet vanillin
1 packet of baking powder
300 g flour
1 large apple
a little lemon juice
1 tbsp. l. brown sugar

How to cook:

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grind the eggs well with sugar. The longer the better. Ideally, beat with a mixer for 10-15 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients in order, mixing well each time: soft butter, mascarpone, tbsp. spoon, ground almonds, starch, vanillin, flour mixed with baking powder. Knead the dough. It will turn out quite thick.

Cut the apple into slices, sprinkle with lemon juice to prevent darkening. Pour the dough into a greased and floured 26 cm diameter mold. Place the chopped apples on top and press them into the dough, sprinkle with brown sugar.

Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes. Let it cool in the mold and only then take it out. Serve completely chilled.

How to cook real Italian lasagna at home

Ingredients:

18 lasagna sheets
400 g frozen spinach
300 g ricotta
500 ml milk
30 g butter
2 tbsp flour
70 g parmesan
pinch of nutmeg
salt pepper

How to cook:

Thaw slightly and simmer for about 5 minutes. Melt butter in a saucepan, add flour and lightly fry for 1 minute. Pour in the milk in a thin stream and whisk constantly to avoid lumps. Add nutmeg, salt and a little pepper, cook over medium heat, stirring constantly for 5-7 minutes. The sauce should thicken.

Mix ricotta with spinach and add a little salt. pour boiling water over it. Let them sit for 2-3 minutes (or as the package says). Grease a baking dish with butter (I have a glass one 25x20 cm) and place 6 sheets of lasagna on the bottom. Let's plan the number of sheets in advance - let there be 18 of them (you may have other sheets, estimate in advance how many you will need for your form).

Spread with sauce and top with half of the spinach and ricotta filling. Next again: sheets - sauce-filling - sheets...the topmost layer is lasagne sheets.

Grate Parmesan cheese. Brush the top layer of sheets with the remaining sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake for 30 minutes at 200 g until an appetizing golden brown crust appears.

Ricotta is a cheese that is a traditional dish among Italians. Cooks have an unspoken rule that nothing should be thrown away. This cheese is a classic example. During the preparation of cheese, whey remains and it is from this that Ricotta is made. This word means "re-cooked." In terms of its structure, this mass is not the cheese we are used to, but that is what it is called all over the world.

This cheese is made from the whey that remains after preparing other types of cheese. Also made from milk:

cows;
sheep;
buffalos;
goats.

This mass has a sweet taste thanks to the lactose it contains. It has a delicate and unusual taste.

What and how to eat ricotta with

Not everyone knows what ingredients are best to combine ricotta with, where and how to add it correctly. This is a very practical product that fits perfectly into many dishes from salads to cakes.

To make the sauce tender and velvety, you need to add a couple of tablespoons of ricotta at the end of cooking.
Thanks to the perfect combination of cheese and eggs, ricotta will add a unique flavor to omelet or scrambled eggs.
It will add a pleasant taste to casseroles, both sweet and meaty.
Adds a delicate consistency to lasagna.
Good for making sandwiches. Easily spreads on bread. You can add greens, fish or avocado on top and a delicious quick snack is ready.
You can quickly decorate a cake or cupcakes on your holiday table by preparing a light, airy ricotta cream.
When preparing pie or cake dough, add a couple of tablespoons of cheese. This will make the delicacy more airy and fluffy.
Delicious for filling pancakes and ravioli.

You can combine this miracle cheese with any food: fruits, herbs, pasta, vegetables, confectionery. It is not recommended to add to dishes that contain fish or meat.

It has no contraindications, except for rare diseases of lactose intolerance. It is not recommended to consume more than 250 grams per day.

Calorie content of cheese

This is a dietary product that contains large amounts of calcium and proteins. Due to its low calorie content of only 174 kcal per 100 grams, it is suitable for people who adhere to a healthy diet.

Recipes with ricotta cheese

This cheese is well suited for use in cooking. Thanks to its natural sweet taste, the amount of sugar required in the recipe is reduced.

Pasta with tomatoes and ricotta

Once you try this pasta recipe, you will definitely make it your signature dish.

To make the dish tasty, the main thing is to choose the right tomatoes. They should be juicy and strong, without damage.

Ingredients:

ricotta cheese – 400 g;
tomatoes – 900 g;
olive oil – 40 ml;
onions – 4 pcs.;
hot pepper – 2 pods;
salt – 0.5 teaspoon;
garlic – 4 cloves;
Ground black pepper – 1 teaspoon.

Preparation:

Cut the onion into medium size cubes.
Cut half the amount of garlic into strips. The other one is to grate.
Peel the tomatoes and chop into large pieces.
Heat olive oil in a frying pan. Add garlic strips, chili pepper and onion. Fry until the onion becomes transparent. If you don’t like spicy food, you can remove the pepper as soon as the onion is ready.
Add the tomatoes and simmer without closing the lid for 10 minutes.
Add the remaining garlic and cheese to the mixture. Spice up. Add salt. Simmer for three minutes.

Ricotta cheese salad recipe

Ingredients:

ricotta cheese – 400 g;
chicken fillet – 5 pcs.;
green salad – 50 g;
water – 5 tbsp. spoon;
white wine vinegar - 1 tbsp. spoon;
apple – 5 pcs.;
honey – 2 teaspoons;
olive oil – 10 tbsp. spoon;
grainy mustard - 2 tbsp. spoons;
ground black pepper
salt.

Preparation:

Wash the apples and cut into quarters. Remove seeds and core. Cut into slices.
Prepare the dressing. To do this, mix salt, water, honey, oil, mustard, vinegar and pepper.
Boil the chicken fillet. Cut into thin slices.
Mash the ricotta with a fork to form small pieces.
Tear the green salad leaves into pieces with your hands. Transfer to a bowl.
Add apples.
Place the next layer of cheese.
Drizzle with dressing.

Cheesecakes with ricotta

For lovers of ricotta and cheesecakes, this recipe is suitable. By replacing cottage cheese with cheese, you get a dish with a delicate consistency and amazing taste. Prepare simply and quickly.

Ingredients:

ricotta cheese – 500 g;
flour – 140 g;
sugar – 75 g;
vanilla sugar – 1 tbsp. spoon;
egg – 2 pcs.;
salt.

Preparation:

Beat eggs with salt and sugar.
In a bowl, mix cheese, flour and egg mixture.
Knead the dough. If it sticks to your hands too much, add more flour. Leave in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
Roll the sausage.
Cut into 18 equal pieces.
Roll the cut round pieces in flour.
Fry in hot oil. It is tastier to use the olive component.
The cheesecakes should become golden brown.
Transfer to paper towel. It will absorb any remaining fat. After a couple of minutes, remove to a plate.

Ricotta cream cake

A delicious sponge cake with delicate, airy ricotta cream will decorate your holiday and surprise your guests with its exquisite taste.

Ingredients:

ricotta cheese – 1 kg;
flour – 150 g;
milk cream – 1 liter;
almond flakes – 100 g;
canned tangerines – 800 g;
sugar for cream – 300 g;
egg – 8 pcs.;
sugar for dough – 150 g;
canned pineapples – 500 g.

Preparation:

Beat eggs with enough sugar for dough.
Add flour. Beat with a mixer.
Bake a sponge cake.
Cut into five layers.
Drain the juice from the tangerine into a separate container.
Cut the pineapples into pieces.
Pour sugar and cream into a separate bowl. Beat.
Turn the mixer on low and gradually add the ricotta cheese with a spoon. You should get a homogeneous mass.
Sprinkle each cake with tangerine juice.
Coat the cake with cream and add pineapples. Place tangerines on the next coated cake layer. In this order, assemble the cake using all five layers.
Cover the finished cake with cream on all sides.
Cover the side of the cake with almond flakes. Decorate the top of the cake with tangerines.
Be sure to let it soak for four hours, or better yet, leave it in the refrigerator overnight.

Lemon-honey cheesecake

Cottage cheese adds sourness to the dish; replacing it with sweet ricotta will give you a rich, pleasant, delicate taste of the delicacy.

Ingredients:

ricotta cheese – 680 g;
mascarpone cheese – 450 g;
egg – 8 pcs.;
sugar – 280 g;
butter – 180 g;
biscuit cookies – 450 g;
honey – 150 g.

Preparation:

Before cooking, you need to prepare a springform pan. Wrap it in two layers of foil on the sides. It is better to use a mold with a diameter of 28 cm.
In a food processor, beat the cookies.
Melt the butter in a water bath or in the microwave.
Pour into the cookies and beat.
Distribute the mixture evenly over the bottom of the pan. There should be no cookies on the edges.
Beat the ricotta.
Add mascarpone cream cheese with sugar. Beat.
Pour in the zest and add honey. Mix.
Beat in the eggs. Mix all ingredients.
Transfer the filling into the mold.
Take a mold with a diameter of 30 cm, pour hot water and place the prepared container with the cake in it. The liquid should cover the edges of the springform pan by half.
Bake in the oven for one hour.
When the cheesecake is cooked, the filling will be golden brown.
Leave to cool for an hour. Then put it in the refrigerator for 10 hours. The filling will harden and the delicacy will take the desired shape, which will be easy to cut.

Neapolitan Pastiera Pie

Every year, the residents of Naples prepare this delicious delicacy for the Easter holiday.

Ingredients:

flour – 600 g;
egg – 6 pcs.;
ricotta cheese – 1000 g;
baking powder - 2 teaspoons;
sugar – 250 g;
salt – 2 teaspoons;
candied lemon peel – 4 tbsp. spoons;
butter – 350 g;
orange zest – 2 tbsp. spoons;
ground cinnamon – 1 teaspoon.

Cream:

corn starch - 2 tbsp. spoons;
egg yolk – 8 pcs.;
milk – 500 ml;
vanilla sugar – 2 tbsp. spoons.

Preparation:

Add baking powder and salt to the sifted flour.
Cut 240 g of chilled butter into pieces. Transfer to flour and add 80 g of sugar.
Rub with your hands until it becomes bread crumbs.
Add 4 eggs. Stir.
Knead the dough for a long time, at least 10 minutes.
Cut the dough in half. Wrap in a bag. Leave in the cold for an hour.
Beat 4 yolks with the remaining sugar. Pour 6 tbsp. spoons of flour and starch. Beat.
Boil the milk.
While constantly stirring the egg mixture, pour in the milk. Place on the fire, boil and cook for one minute, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat, add remaining butter and vanilla sugar. Cool.
Beat the ricotta with the remaining sugar. Without turning off the mixer, pour in the cooled cream and 4 yolks.
Roll out the first half of the dough into a circle so that the diameter is seven centimeters larger than the diameter of the mold. Transfer to a baking dish. The dough should cover the entire bottom and edges. Cool for half an hour in the refrigerator.
Transfer the cream, spreading it evenly over the entire surface of the dough.
Roll out the remaining dough. Cut into 10 strips.
Place the strips on the dough using a wire rack, pinching the edges. Beat the yolk and brush the top of the pie.
Bake in the oven at 180 degrees. hour. Remove and cover with foil. Bake for another half hour.
Wait until it cools completely, then leave in a cool place for two hours.

What can you substitute for ricotta in recipes?

If you decide to cook a dish that includes ricotta, but you don’t find this cheese on sale, you can safely replace it with other products, such as:

Cottage cheese. It is not as flexible as ricotta, low in calories, and contains less fat. Before adding to the dish, squeeze it to get rid of excess moisture.
Fromage blanc. This is a more expensive type of cheese, which has a consistency similar to yogurt.
Sour cream. It is an ideal substitute for ricotta when you need to make a sauce.
Tofu cheese. To make it look like ricotta, you need to squeeze it and beat it.
Buttermilk cheese. Ideal substitute for cheesecake and pasta fillings.
Goat cheese. Only freshly prepared cheese is suitable; old cheese cannot replace ricotta due to its strong taste.
Pot cheese. It resembles cottage cheese, just as loose and soft.
Mascarpone. Also classified as an Italian variety, it has a denser texture. Therefore, it must be shaken before use.
Cream cheese. It differs from ricotta only in fat content. This is the best option for replacement.
Paneer. The cheese comes from India and is a vegetarian product.

Mozzarella, ricotta, mascarpone, feta... These soft cheeses are the very essence of the taste of the Mediterranean!

Classic mozzarella is made from black buffalo milk. This cheese has a delicate and slightly sweet taste. Mozzarella contains a lot of vitamins and minerals and, at the same time, is low in fat. Real mozzarella can legally only be produced in seven regions of Italy.

More affordable but less exclusive, mozzarella cheese is made from cow's milk. It is also characterized by a sweetish taste and relatively low fat content.

Mozzarella is a natural, live product without preservatives. Customers receive it in the same water in which it was prepared (this helps increase shelf life). It is better to store cheese in this liquid in the refrigerator, at a temperature no higher than +12 degrees. The taste of mozzarella can be improved if you put it in warm water before using it (before this, keep it at room temperature for half an hour). Still, it’s better to eat it quickly; the delicate product cannot be stored for a long time!

No real pizza is complete without mozzarella. This cheese is widely used in appetizers and salads, as well as main dishes.

In Gastronome stores you can buy mozzarella from both buffalo and cow's milk, as well as buffalo mozzarella with truffles. The chef recommends cheese produced by Brimi. To produce this cheese, milk from cows from farms in the southern regions of Tyrol is used. Mozzarella is of very high quality, distinguished by a delicate creamy and milky taste.

Ricotta is a fresh, salty cheese made from cow's and sheep's milk, with a consistency similar to compressed cottage cheese. The literal translation of the word "ricotta" means "recooked", and this refers to the way the cheese is prepared - it is made from the whey that remains after the hard cheese is prepared. Typical Italian ricotta is salty in taste, smooth and "creamy". The most popular is fresh ricotta without additives, but there are other versions of this cheese on sale: salted, smoked, dried and fried.

The birthplace of ricotta is the outskirts of Rome. Despite the fact that today this cheese is produced all over the world, it is believed that the best ricotta is produced here.

The Gastronome chef suggests trying buffalo mozzarella, truffle mozzarella and Tre Stelle ricotta. Milk for cheese production is provided by our own farm, which has received all the necessary certificates, and the milking process is strictly controlled by the owner himself - so that there is no doubt about the quality of the product.

Another cheese in the soft cheese family is Italian mascarpone. Fresh, white cheese is made from cream that comes from cow's or buffalo's milk. Mascarpone is characterized by a soft, “creamy” consistency, a sweetish taste with the aroma of milk and a sour aftertaste.

Mascarpone is used in the preparation of desserts with berries (for example, strawberries), sugar, chocolate, and liqueur. Mixing cheese with tomatoes, mustard and anchovies makes a great pasta sauce.

Another, equally legendary soft cheese, is also very typical of Mediterranean cuisine. It is almost as old as our civilization. Homer sang it in the Odyssey, and since ancient times this cheese has been the traditional food of shepherds.

We are, of course, talking about the pride of Greek cuisine - feta cheese, which is made from fresh goat or sheep milk. Feta cheese has a special aroma with notes of thyme and marjoram.

Chef Gastronome recommends enjoying feta cheese from the Greek company Vermion, which has 80 years of experience in cheese production. Vermion has been following the traditional recipe for generations, and this is what makes feta cheese truly unique.

How to replace mascarpone cheese

The simplest recipe for homemade mascarpone:

1 liter of good heavy cream (at least 25%);
3 tablespoons lemon juice.

Heat the cream in a water bath, not exceeding the temperature of 90°C, add the juice. Continue heating over low heat, stirring constantly. Usually, it takes 15 minutes for the cheese to set. Place a colander on a saucepan, cover it with several layers of gauze, put the still hot mixture in there, and knead so that the whey drips faster than glass. When it cools down, put it in the refrigerator until the morning.

In the morning you will be able to create culinary masterpieces with your homemade mascarpone!

There is an even simpler and even creamier option:

No heating and no citric acid!

Buy good homemade cream from a trusted grandmother, freeze it completely, then defrost it and let it drain on a cheesecloth. All!

Particularly scrupulous cooks may be indignant: they say that mascarpone cannot be replaced, and buying it now is not a problem.

For me personally, another advantage in favor of a homemade analogue of mascarpone cheese was the composition indicated on store-bought mascarpone: cream + citric acid!

By the way, it tasted like regular homemade cream; everyone liked my mascarpone better.

Thanks to generous and generous chefs, you no longer have to rack your brains about what can replace mascarpone cheese. There is no need to reinvent the wheel, just choose the option that suits you best.

1. You can replace mascarpone in desserts, for example, in tiramisu, with this yummy: mix a packet of pudding or custard powder with condensed milk, Following the instructions on the package, condensed milk is used instead of regular milk. Place in the refrigerator for 2 hours. This mixture is used in tiramisu instead of mascarpone with yolks.

2. Whisk baby vanilla cheesecakes with heavy cream in a ratio of 2.5:1. Will also work vanilla curd mass without additives. Of course, this option is for sweet dishes.

3. Mascarpone cheese can be replaced... with another cheese. This is a good option for both sweet and savory dishes, and there is no need to fuss with cooking.

What cheese can replace mascarpone?

Philadelphia cheese;
Almette cheese;
cream cheese "Bonjour";
cheese "Rama Bonjur"(classic, without additives).

Is it possible to replace mascarpone with ricotta? Yes, after all ricotta cheese very similar to mascarpone both in taste and in its qualities. But ricotta can be both sweet and smoky-salty - choose the desired shade.

The only negative is that ricotta, like mascarpone, is a rare guest in our refrigerator.

4. Whip fat cottage cheese, preferably homemade, with heavy cream, sugar and 5-6 drops of lemon juice. If the consistency is not thick enough, you can add gelatin. The result is a soft and at the same time strong mass.

Sour cream. But very fresh and very fatty - “so that a spoon could stand in it.” They say that even Italian chefs of famous restaurants replace mascarpone in tiramisu with homemade sour cream...

What else can you replace mascarpone in tiramisu?

Yulia Vysotskaya in one of the episodes of “Eating at Home” advised replacing mascarpone cheese if necessary curd cheeses without glaze.

Another option - matsun (matsoni) or Greek yogurt. It is important that the biscuits are crispy. An additional plus is that this tiramisu will have significantly fewer calories.

Some housewives claim that mascarpone-based tiramisu has a cloying taste. But with cottage cheese and sour cream (grind 50/50) - just right! The taste is creamy, but not cloying, but with a pleasant sourness.

Do you want it with a salty note? Try making tiramisu with processed cheese without flavoring additives. My friend does just this and claims that the taste is divine!

What can replace mascarpone in cream?

Ricotta cheese. Add cream. Not a very economical option.

Fat cottage cheese , ideally - homemade.

Sour cream + Nutella - Of course, the taste is different from mascarpone, but oh-so delicious! And high in calories...

How you can replace mascarpone in a cake is up to you, it all depends on what you want: to save money, play with taste or reduce calorie content.

Sour cream. We buy 1 kg of good, proven sour cream, in the evening we put it on a gauze cloth folded several times and hang it until the morning. All that remains is to cool the sour cream mass and the question of what to replace mascarpone in cheesecake with can be considered resolved! A kilogram of high-quality sour cream yields about 750 g a la mascarpone.

Curd and cream mixture. You will need full-fat cottage cheese and cream (at least 20% fat). Cool the cream and whip it into a strong foam. Grind the cottage cheese through a thick sieve and add to the cream, whip again. It must be admitted that a cheesecake with such a mascarpone substitute will not be as tender, but with an amazing velvety consistency.

Almette cheese (creamy) + sour cream + cream. Beat 300 g of Almette, 3 tablespoons of sour cream and the same amount of cream (35% fat) until smooth. This analogue of mascarpone will help out when preparing both cheesecake and tiramisu.

“Almette” with “FITAKI Creme Mediterranean Cream” and granular cottage cheese. Creamy “Almette” - 2 jars, “FITAKI” - 1 jar, cottage cheese - 2 tablespoons. We beat everything and get a very tasty cheese and curd mass. The cheesecake will be no worse than in the restaurant! And also very economical!

Italian Ricotta cheese is often used to prepare various dishes: salads, lasagna, pizza, all kinds of desserts and many others. It is good both in combination with other products and as a rich dish.

Curious! Ricotta cannot definitely be called cheese, since this product is not made from milk, but from whey.

You can often hear that ricotta is a soft cheese, light cottage cheese or curd cheese. No matter what this product is called, it does not become less tasty. In addition to its taste, ricotta contains a large amount of vitamins and microelements that are good for health.

Fact! Ricotta has a slightly sweet taste due to the lactose it contains.

What can you replace ricotta with?

Although ricotta is not an expensive product, it is not always found on the shelves. What to do if the recipe has already been selected, but this ingredient cannot be found? In this case, the choice is not difficult to make, since there are more than enough alternative options.

Cottage cheese. It has a mild taste, which makes it similar to ricotta. However, cottage cheese is less plastic and contains less fat. This makes it a healthier substitute for cheese. Cottage cheese can be used as a substitute for ricotta to make the filling for lasagna or other dishes that require mild cheese.

Advice! In order to remove excess whey, the cottage cheese must be lightly squeezed before adding to the dish.

Sour cream. Sour cream is made by fermenting natural cream with lactic acid bacteria. Ricotta can be replaced with sour cream to make sauces. To tone down the sour cream flavor a little, you can add garlic, herbs, and various spices to the sauce. In addition, sour cream can be added to cream for cakes and desserts.

Fromage Blanc. A buttery cheese with a structure similar to yogurt. It has an interesting and unusual taste with a slight sweetness. It is very rare in stores due to its high cost. Ricotta can be substituted in desserts or as an addition to fruit. Can also be added to various sauces.

Tofu. Tofu cheese is made by pressing fermented soy milk. Before adding tofu to dishes, like cottage cheese, it must be squeezed out of excess whey and lightly blended with a blender to obtain a consistency similar to ricotta. Tofu is used to make lasagna, ravioli and various baked goods.

Interesting! Tofu is a popular product among vegetarians and people suffering from cow's milk intolerance. This cheese also has a high protein content with a small amount of fat and carbohydrates.

Mascarpone. Like ricotta, mascarpone originates from Italy. Mascarpone is a thick creamy mass with a pleasant creamy taste. Mascarpone cheese, unlike ricotta, is quite fatty. Therefore, people watching their figure should limit its use. Mascarpone is usually added to various cakes and desserts. All kinds of sauces are made on its basis.

Buttermilk cheese. This cheese is not often found on the store shelf. It has a mild taste with a slight sourness. In appearance it resembles a cream. Buttermilk cheese can replace ricotta in cheesecakes and as a topping for pasta.

Cream cheese. Due to the fact that cream cheese has a soft, creamy structure, it can easily replace ricotta in various desserts and sauces. However, since ricotta is made only from milk and cream cheese is made from cream and milk, it has a higher fat percentage. Some manufacturers offer reduced-fat cream cheese for sale, but the taste of this product differs from the original.

Goat cheese. In appearance, this cheese is similar to Fromage Blanc. Goat cheese can be used in place of ricotta in desserts or as an accompaniment to fruit. The main condition is the freshness of the goat cheese. Only fresh cheese will taste similar to ricotta.

Fact! Goat cheese can be consumed by people who are intolerant to cow's milk.

Paneer. The cheese comes from India. Paneer is very similar to ricotta not only in its appearance and bite, but also in the way it is made. It is produced by heating cow's milk and adding a small amount of lemon juice to it. Suitable for grilled dishes, as well as various fillings and desserts.

Interesting! Paneer is suitable for vegetarians as no rennet is added during its preparation.

How to make your own ricotta

If you couldn’t find ricotta in the store, and you can’t replace it with anything, you can cook it at home yourself.

To make ricotta there are several simple recipes:

Homemade ricotta recipe 1

A package of yogurt or full-fat kefir must be placed in the freezer until completely frozen. The colander is placed on the pan and covered with gauze.
After this, the package with yogurt or kefir needs to be cut and the contents placed in a colander. After the mass has melted, the whey will drain into the pan, and the curd mass will remain in the colander.
Then, the resulting mass should be squeezed out of the remaining whey and transferred to a resealable container.

Homemade ricotta recipe 2

To prepare ricotta you will need: pasteurized milk - 1 liter, cream 22% - 0.3 liters, salt - 1/2 teaspoon, juice of half a lemon. Mix milk, cream and salt in a saucepan. Then it is placed on low heat until it boils.
The mixture must be stirred periodically. After the mixture begins to boil, lemon juice is added to it. When the milk curdles and begins to separate from the whey, remove the pan from the heat and cover with a towel.
When the mass has cooled a little, it must be transferred to a colander covered with gauze and left for about an hour. During this time, the serum should disappear. In order to remove it completely, the mass should be squeezed out in gauze and transferred to a closed container.
For a richer taste, you can add even more parmesan, grated on a fine grater.

As you can see, you can easily replace ricotta with either store-bought products or homemade cheese. In any case, the finished dish will decorate the table.

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