So Fresh, So Clean: Meet the OG Cheese, & Whey Ricotta
Soft and freshies rule in the kitchen. Plus, Italians are the genius creators of whey ricotta.
Historical records suggest that fresh cheeses were first made up to 7000 years ago in Anatolia. Since they are the simplest cheeses to make, makes sense they were the first, right? Not normally aged over a day or two, freshies are ripe with subtle, sweet, and gentle flavors. Think chevre, ricotta, fromage blanc, paneer, and queso fresco.
Cheese at its most basic, freshies are either just heated milk or whey with an acid added, or 🥛 with a tiny bit of buttermilk or cultures, and rennet. The cultured or acidifying milk is left to form a curd, then drained, and sometimes in the case of queso fresco or paneer, pressed. They taste like milk, cream, and sometimes 🍋. Because of their simplicity they’re wonderful for cooking.
They don’t hog the spotlight and let other flavors shine.
One of my favorite ways to serve freshies is with seasonal produce. These ricotta dishes were served above in summer time. See those 🍅? Fresh cheese let them be the star. Shown above (photo by Erica Garlieb) is homemade ricotta studded with tomatoes, and, served over crostini with pea and herb puree. In winter and early spring I’d serve freshies with pickled carrots, seared mushrooms, and broccoli rabe.
One of my favorite freshies is ricotta.
True ricotta, the OG ricotta, is made from whey. It was created when one day an Italian cheesemaker re-heated the rich whey left over from making pecorino (whey is mainly whey protein and of water, but especially in the case of rich sheep’s milk, still has a primo amount of butterfat left) until more curds appeared, drained them, and said, “ta da, ricotta!” “Ricotta” means re-cooked, or, cooked twice. If you haven’t tried whey ricotta before, look for whey on the label at cheese shops! It’s delicious. And Sicilys? Well, it’s legendary.
Even though Italian nonnas would scold anyone who tried to call anything but whey ricotta by the name, what most of us are used to is “whole milk ricotta,” not “whey ricotta.” This style is made by bringing milk and often cream to almost boiling, then adding an acid like 🍋 . The acid breaks up the butterfat and binds up proteins into fluffy, rich curds. It’s simple, rich, and oh so lovable.