Learning Something Little Felt Really Big

Learning Something Little Felt Really Big
22 June 2015

I have been wanting to learn how to make cheese forever. It is second to salami on my stuck on a deserted island food list. But I have always been too busy, too tired or too boring.

It took my fella to book me in to a class and get my name on the cheese making roll call. Finally, I was doing that thing I’d been talking about for the past 15 years. I had almost surrendered to the fact it was never going to happen and I just started to use it to sound interesting “oh, I have always wanted to learn how to make cheese, I am going to do that one day”. But that isn’t interesting. Doing stuff is.

I am amazed how learning something has affected me. Walking out the class with new cheese making skills was awesome, but I now felt different parts of my brain ticking. Just from learning something, I had woken up bits that had been having a bit of a snooze.

There is something new in my head, that was never there before. New information and a new skill. I feel empowered by this. I know the new info sitting in my brain is only how to make cheese, BUT, it feels good.

I want to take this learning stuff further. And not just in the literal sense but in the sense of pushing myself. Taking myself out of my comfort zone and giving things a go I normally would turn down. Because you never know where these things can lead. I may look back one day and say “if I hadn’t done that cheese class…” hehe.

Let me show you something I learnt. And then I will show you how to eat it.

This is quite possibly the EASIEST and most UNREAL thing you can make in the kitchen. You probably all know how and I am the last person to ever learn this. That’s ok, I am cool with being a little behind the times.

LEARNING TO MAKE RICOTTA!

What You Need

• 2 litres of full fat (you can use low fat, but not no fat, but just use full fat. live a little!)
• 1/2 cup of lemon juice
• cheesecloth (or chux, I always giggle when I say chux, don’t know why)
• slotted spoon
• saucepan
• thermometer

What You Need to Do

1. Juice your lemons and have them at the ready!
2. Pour the milk in to the saucepan and put it over a medium to high heat.
3. Keep stirring milk until it reaches 90˚C.
4. Once the milk has reached 90˚C remove milk from the heat and pour in the lemon juice .
5. Let the milk sit for 10 minutes, leave it alone! Just let it be.
6. If your curds aren’t clumping together, add a little extra lemon juice and let it sit for another 5 minutes.
7. Put your cheesecloth, or chux, in to a colander and pour the curds and why through. If you’d like to save the whey pop a bowl underneath. (It is cool to save the why because you can use it in your next pizza dough, or try it in your sourdough starter, or start a starter!)
8. Leave the ricotta there to drain. Depending on how moist (I know! Give me a word that works there but isn’t gross) you can leave it to drain from 10 minutes up to an hour.
9. Either eat it straight away, like I did, or pop it in an airtight container in the fridge for later.

I made some toast, popped some still warm ricotta on top with some cinnamon and honey. Yep. It was amazing.

I hope a new part of your brain has woken up with this little gem. Have an amazing week. x