Ricotta

Whey, the spent liquid left over in the cheesemaking process, is a bit of a mixed blessing for producers.

On the one hand, it contributes unique, elemental flavors to the curd. But whey is a pain in the neck to get rid of. It clogs rivers and doesn’t break down in soil very well.

Pigs love it, though, so it often becomes fodder for them. But even that has drawbacks: too much whey in the pen means too much manure in the fields, a different environmental mess.

What to do, then? Economical Italian cheesemakers many years ago had a brainstorm: serve it to people.

They discovered that if spent whey is reheated (ricotta means re-cooked), new curds form. By draining off the now smaller volume of residual whey, you’ve created a terrific fresh cheese. (No bacterial starter is involved. Therefore, it’s not technically a cheese. Since curds form, I’ll ignore that inconvenient fact.)

Ricotta is soft and granular, bright white in color. In most cases, it starts off as the milk of a sheep (destined to be Pecorino) or a water buffalo (Mozzarella). Cow’s milk and goat’s milk varieties are also made, though somewhat less frequently.

Ricotta is a staple in cooking. It’s found in stuffed pastas of all sorts, from cheese ravioli to manicotti. Beyond filling pasta shells, though, Italian chefs get quite creative with it. It goes wonderfully with spring vegetables like asparagus. Used in desserts, it forms a less-sweet component than Mascarpone.

Though it’s rarely served on its own, you can do so. Just cut some celery, salt it, and spread fresh ricotta on top.