Heat milk, add acid...got cheese!

Hey everyone!

Can it really be that simple? I've seen people make there own ricotta cheese and I've always wanted to try it. Alton Brown used skim milk and called it cottage cheese. I guess you can switch up the type of milk you use and get a different consistancy but the process is the same no matter what milk you use. This is a great thing to do that's kind of impressive when putting out a spread of appetizers for guest. And it doesn't even feel like cooking. It feels more like a science experiment! How cool is that.
Just keep in mind that the word Ricotta in italian means twice cooked. Real ricotta is actually made from the whey leftover after making mozzerella. So even though this isn't exactly like the real deal, when it all comes down to it what matters is how it tastes.
So here's what I did:

4 cups 1% milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 tbs salt
3 tbs white vinegar

I put the milk, cream and salt in a medium pot on a medium heat. Make sure to watch it so it doesn't boil over. You can use a food thermometer and bring it up to 120 degrees. I didn't use one. I just watched it and brought it to high heat..almost boiling but not quite. I read that if you boil the milk your cheese will be grainy. I then added my vinegar and gave it a stir. I let it sit for about ten minutes and then drained it in a paper towel lined strainer. I didn't have any cheese cloth. I then turned it into another paper towel lined bowl and drained it some more. Keep in mind the more you drain it the drier it will be. Alton Browns method is just as easy however he stirs in cream at the end after the draining so you get a creamier texture like the store bought kind. I really liked the way this came out for a first time batch. I'm going to experiment and not drain it as much the next and see if I get a creamier consistancy. Here are the pictures of my first attempt.

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is it gravy or is it sauce?

Ok...so I've been at a road block in my blogging. I've got nothing. No fancy soups,stews, sauces or marinades. No casseroles to speak of. Life has been consisting of frozen weight watchers lasagne and eggwhite omelettes. But I did hunt down some tomatoes that I've been wanting to try. Everytime you turn around some celebrity chef is using san marzano tomatoes. They claim they are the best. Now I've been making my own sauce for years. Everyone has their own way of making sauce. Italians have their way.I'm not italian..I just know what tastes good to me. I have tried almost every brand of canned tomatos in every style. I have finally figured out a "recipe" that I like. I put recipe in quotes because there's so many different ways to make sauce you really have to come to your own way of doing it.
Now before I continue, I must address the issue of calling sauce "gravy". I used to work for a sicilian lady and she used to call sauce, gravy and any pasta other than spaghetti, macaroni. I never understood why. But I've been doing my research and "gravy" is actually sauce made with meat that can be put over pasta. Pasta is actually the dough that macaroni is made from. "Pasta" was what the fancy people called it a million years ago. But nowadays pasta is more acceptable and less high fallootin than it used to be. And also there are so many different pasta shapes to choose from.
Last week I bought two different types of tomatoes. San marzano (real ones) and cherry tomatoes in a can. I must say that the flavor of the san marzanos were very bland. It didn't have that slight bitterness that other brands have. I actually didn't think they had that much flavor. My sauce came out good, just not as tomato-y as usual. When it was simmering I decided to add in a can of the cherry tomatoes. I didn't realize that they weren't peeled. I find this a very annoying texture, especially since I always buy whole peeled tomatoes in the can. So I was surprised to say the least. Tomato skin in my mouth..blech. I guess I can't fault the makers of that product. I mean those suckers are pretty small and probably a pain in the ass to peel anyway.
So as it stands at this moment in time I am not very impressed with san marzano tomatoes. The stop-n-shop brand is my favorite. I think it tastes pretty good and if you hit it right you can get ten for ten dollars. Just remember you have to cook canned tomatoes a long time. Which is why I make sauce in the slow cooker. So here is how I make it. Hope you like it!

2 cans whole peeled tomatoes
(you're going to have to crush these by hand or use a potato masher to break them up, but leave them chunky)
2 cans of crushed tomatoes
1 tbs tomato paste
1 medium onion (chopped)
1 cubanelle pepper( chopped)
6 cloves of garlic chopped fine. More or less to suit your taste
Salt and pepper
1 tsp dried italian seasoning
1 small bunch of basil (chiffanade)
A few tbs of olive oil

Heat your olive oil and saute the onions,peppers and garlic until tender. Add in tomato paste. And cook for a few more minutes. Put all of this mixture into your slow cooker. Add all of the tomatoes and seasonings. Then add in the basil and cook on low for 6-8 hours. This is my favorite thing to do overnight right before I go o sleep. When I wake up the whole house smells so yummy.
Off for now peeps!

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