Messing around with milk

I recently read how easy making your own ricotta cheese is. Cool, I thought, and filed the idea away for testing at a later date. And then I was in Mercato, picked up a wee tub of ricotta and saw the price tag - $10. Okay, game on. On that same walk, I stopped and picked up a 4 litre jug of whole milk for $5 and change and got things started that evening.

Turns out, I should have started a little earlier in the day. But even still, I had a big bundle of curds in about 2 hours, with only about 15 minutes of that time requiring me to be busy.

First up - pour the jug of whole milk into a large pot, and over medium heat, warm the milk to 180 - 185 degress, just short of boiling. I used my meat thermometer, twist-tied to the pot handle to monitor temperature. Add a 1/4 tsp salt and stir occasionally, to ensure the milk doesn't scorch to the bottom of the pan. Once the milk reaches 180, remove from heat and add 1/3 cup white vinegar. Stir thoroughly to allow the acid to interact with the milk - it is this reaction that forms the curds. Let sit for 2 hours, or longer, if you can't get back to it quickly.

This is my 5 quart pot full of emerging curds - the vinegar was just on board. I was using the recipe from "Italian Food" http://italianfood.about.com/library/rec/blr0949.htm but "Italian Food Forever" talks about using a quart of buttermilk to create the reaction which I'll try another time.

Not having cheesecloth, I drained the curds in a dampened, clean tea towel, inside a strainer over a bowl, because I wanted to catch and use the whey.

I ended up squeezing the last of the whey out - it was late, I had to get to bed! - and I was afraid if I left it to drain all night, the ricotta would be too dry. Finished product: a 500 ml of fresh, home-made ricotta and about 3 litres of whey.

In photos: ricotta on left, whey on right.
The ricotta I used crumbled over sauteed kale and garlic; topping a meatball and tomato sauce pasta; and in a baked cheesecake topped with a rhubarb - orange compote. (mmm - rhubarb. I crave it every spring)

Whey substituted for water when making a half whole wheat version of no-knead bread dough for pizza; and I made corn muffins with it too. I also froze some by the cup in small freezer bags for future pancakes. It has the tang of buttermilk and can be used in its place.

Next time, I would add another teaspoon of salt at the point of adding the vinegar (the recipe gave this option if the curds wouldn't be used for dessert) as I found the ricotta bland. The curds were also firmer than I would have liked, so next time I'm going to try the buttermilk curdling option, which I think would be gentler, as well as letting them drain naturally instead of by brute force. If you have some time, it's definitely an easy way to create inexpensive ricotta.

I had fun, ate all the end result and will try it again. Experiment: successful.

Grown up rice

Why do kids get immovably loyal to white grains? White rice, white bread, cream of wheat...all waaay better in my kid's mind than rolled oats, multi-grain bread, brown rice. While I'm no radical - baguette from Manuel Latruwe is beautifully, blissfully white - the only white rice I have in my cupboard is arborio, for risotto, and that's only because I haven't found a brown version.

As I was in the NE, I decided to stop at T&T Supermarket, with its fascinating mix of Asian groceries. It was also a way of avoiding the insanity at home - we're replacing the flooring, and with a one bedroom condo, that means mountains of furniture, endless dust and me, fleeing the premises on construction days.

I brought home a couple of cool looking items I wanted to try for my personal-cheffing client (because she's paying me to experiment with new ingredients, right?!) who is looking for healthy and whole grain. This Kingo brand Multi-Grain Rice is totally over delivering - it contains 7 whole rices plus 5 other whole grains. (photo taken on beautiful new walnut floor) The kaleidescope of kernels from ivory through blonde to chili red and ebony looked great in the bag but with the proof being in the pudding, it was time to get it into the pan.

It took a little longer than a brown rice to cook, plumped up to about double and I thought needed a little more salt at the finish. At first bite, the most stand out sensation is the texture: being a mix of grains means some variation in density, even when fully cooked. I had a transitory moment of fear that this was going to be yucky 'Sunny Boy' porridge all over again, and then the nutty, almost roasted flavour kicked in and I was hooked. Now that I mention it, toasting the grains before cooking would probably intensify that delicious flavour. Will try that next.

I also bought these 'Green Label' soba noodles to try. (photographed on the lovely cork floor) I know that great soba noodles are made fresh by a master, but like most home cooks, I don't make my own Italian pasta either. Buckwheat is not actually wheat at all but is exceptionally good for you, having loads of amino acids and medicinal properties that make me think someone's going to name it a superfood soon. In any case, these noodles don't take long to cook and were great with the Thai stirfry I made to top them; distinctive and yet mild flavoured enough not to get all uppity and take over the dish.

Speaking of rice, my mom thinks I need to post this recipe, since it has revolutionized her rice making. She hadn't considered that aromatics could be added to rice as it cooks to provide

flavour and colour. You could call this a pilaf, which is cooking rice - or any other grain - in a seasoned broth. It's more an approach than a recipe, the idea being you add appropriate vegetables and spices for whatever you're serving the rice with. Here's the basic concept:

Vegetable Pilaf

1 cup of rice - yes, white will do!

1 carrot, peeled and diced

1 stalk celery, diced

zest of 1 lemon, peeled off with a potato peeler, left in strips

chicken broth

Rinse rice and put in pan. Add vegetables and lemon peel. Top with enough chicken broth to cover the rice, plus as much broth as the depth of your index finger tip up to the knuckle; put the lid on. Sounds screwy, I know, but I think people are nervous about exact proportions with rice, and this method, taught me by a Chinese chef, has served me well. Brown rice takes another quarter inch or so of liquid. If the rice is done and there is still liquid in the pot, take off the lid, stir the rice, and let it evaporate. If the rice should be done and no steam is left when you lift the lid, add another couple of tablespoons, put the lid back on, and give it 5 more minutes. It's not a mystery, people, you can do it!

So back to method: bring the liquid to a boil, turn the heat down to minimum and let it steam. White rice will take about 20 minutes, brown about 40. When the rice is cooked, remove the lemon peel, add salt and pepper to taste, a little knob of butter, perhaps a squeeze of the naked lemon and voila!

make it your own:

• get creative with the liquid: use part or all orange or apple juice, plain yogurt, wine, tomato juice...
• focus on a cuisine: for Indian style rice, add a cinnamon stick and a few cardamom pods to the rice before cooking. Top with raisins and nuts. Mediterranean style rice: cook the rice in tomato juice, adding zucchini, carrot, a bay leaf and crushed garlic. Top with sliced olives.
• top with something yummy: chopped green onions, sunflower or sesame seeds, lemon zest, caramelized onions, halved grapes, chopped tomato, a handful of grated cheese, pomegranite seeds...