3 ways with ricotta

image from www.lunch.com

Ricotta is a delicious, mild, fresh cheese, which I'm sure you've all encountered before (probably spinach and ricotta cannelloni?) Delicious as it is, it's also highly perishable and needs to be used up pretty quickly, but no one wants to be eating the same thing every night! So, here are three very different ways to use ricotta...

Monday - Spinach, Ricotta and Mushroom Risotto

- the twenty-or-so minutes that it takes the make a risotto seems like the ideal study-break! This one is light(ish), vegetarian, and mouthwateringly good. Much better than revision.

a handful of baby spinach leaves

3 button mushrooms, quartered

60g risotto rice

a splash of white wine

1 shallot, chopped

40g ricotta

olive oil

1 small clove of garlic, crushed

vegetable stock

Pre-heat the oven to 220C. When it is up to temperature, bake the ricotta in foil with a teaspoon of olive oil.

While the ricotta is baking, the risotto can be made. Heat 2 teaspoons of olive oil in a pan and add the shallot. Cook until clear, then add the garlic and cook until you can smell it. Add the rice and coat, before adding the wine. Cook off the wine, then begin adding the stock, a ladleful at a time. The risotto needs to be stirred constantly so that the rice becomes creamy.

After about 15 minutes, or when the rice is nearly cooked, add the chopped mushrooms and allow them to cook in the rice whilst still adding stock and stirring.

When the rice is cooked (it should be soft but still retain its bite), remove from the heat and stir in the spinach. Cover with a lid and place to one side.

Remove the ricotta from the oven. It should be slightly puffy and a little golden on the bottom. 

Plate up the risotto, crumble the ricotta on top, sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper, and serve!

Tuesday - Ricotta, Chive, and Prosciutto Omelettes, adapted from Donna Hay

- this is a little time-consuming, but definitely worth it! Tastes and looks fabulous (although my omelettes obviously aren't the neatest they could be - using an egg ring would be neater than these free-form ones, but they taste just as good.

2 eggs, separated

1/2 tablespoon single cream

35g ricotta, crumbled

1/2 tablespoon chopped chives

sea salt and cracked black pepper

10g butter

30g sour cream

a handful of spinach, watercress, and rocket mix

2 slices prosciutto

Whisk the eggwhites until stiff peaks form. 

Mix together the egg yolks, cream, ricotta, chives, salt and pepper, and gently fold this mixture into your eggwhites.

Heat a frying pan over medium heat and add the butter. Pour half the egg mixture into the pan cook for 3 minutes each side or until golden. Repeat with remaining egg mixture.

To serve, place omelettes on a plate and top with the sour cream, mixed leaves and prosciutto.

Wednesday - Spinach and Ricotta Gnocchi from Donna Hay

- I just love Donna Hay's cookbooks, they're always so beautiful (she does the styling herself). My gnocchi, however, are not so beautiful. But they did taste fantastic, and really are super-easy and quick to make, although they can be prepared in advance and then take a total of, oooh, 2 minutes from the fridge to the table!

125g ricotta

10g parmesan

1/2 egg, beaten

1/4 cup plain flour

1/2 tsp lemon rind

1/4 tbsp chopped mint leaves

a handful chopped spinach

1/4 cup semolina 

1/4 cup single cream

10g extra parmesan

10g extra mint leaves

Place ricotta, parmesan, egg, flour, lemon, mint, and spinach in a bowl and mix well. 

Turn out onto a surface sprinkled with the semolina and roll into a 30cm long rope, cut into 2cm lengths.

At this point the gnocchi can be refrigerated if you're preparing them ahead of time.

Bring salted water to the boil, add gnocchi and cook for 2 minutes until they float to the surface.

Meanwhile, place the cream in a pan on a high heat and cook for 1 minute or until warmed through.

Add the gnocchi to the cream along with the extra parmesan, round mint, seasoning, and toss to coat. Serve with extra black pepper.

Any other ideas for ricotta recipes?