by Linda on September 12, 2012
We’re still in the Spring egg glut situation, so for a little while yet, expect Tuesday Night Vego Challenge recipes to feature eggs. And though we don’t have cows or goats, people who do will know that milk is also a Spring glut produce. Both are good protein foods, and eggs are also a good source of lots of vitamins including the hard to get B12, and they are rich in choline, which is important for memory. And low fat ricotta is a great way to get enough calcium without too much saturated fat.
And baked ricotta is so good! Something in the process transforms it. This recipe makes it into the half hour of the rules by the skin of its teeth and only if your oven heats up fairly nicely and evenly. But most of the time is just waiting for it to bake.
The Recipe:
Makes 6 Texas muffin sized baked ricottas. Leftovers are good cold for lunch.
Turn your oven on to heat up to medium.
Steam a packed cup of herbs and leafy greens very briefly, just to wilt them. I used a mixture of flat leaf parsley, spring onion, dill, thyme, and spinach.
In a food processor or blender, blend together
- 500 grams low fat ricotta
- 3 medium sized eggs
- 50 grams grated parmesan
- a heaped teaspoon of grated lemon rind
- salt and pepper
When they are well blended, add the wilted greens and pulse just to chop them in. You want them finely chopped, (rather than turning the whole mix pale green).
Oil a 6 cup Texan muffin tin well and put a little circle of greaseproof paper in the bottom of each cup. (This is important – they tend to stick otherwise). Spoon the ricotta mix in and smooth out the top.
Bake for around 25 minutes till they are puffed up and softly set. They will be cooked before the tops brown, so be careful not to burn them. Loosen around each ricotta with a knife then tip them out and peel off the paper.
Steamed or grilled asparagus goes really really well with the creamy lemony-ness of the baked ricotta.
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by Linda on February 5, 2011
Brydie over at cityhippyfarmgirl posted a post just recently about chevre, or goat’s cheese. Serendipitously, I’d just finished making some – purely by accident – my sister in law had left a litre of goat’s milk in my fridge after a visit and it was in danger of being wasted. Super simple, and very yummy on sourdough with tomato and black pepper.
The Recipe:
Heat the goat’s milk until it just starts to froth, then turn it off and put the pot in a sink of cold water for a few minutes to cool back down to a temperature where you can comfortably hold your little finger in it, but only just.
Whisk in a good spoonful of plain yoghurt. I used lowfat cow’s milk yoghurt just because that was what I had. Pour into a clean glass jar with a lid.
Keep the mixture warm for about 8 hours. There are many ways to do this – put the jar on the dashboard of a car parked in the sun or in the warming oven in a wood stove or on top of the hot water system, or (my preferred method), put the jar in a wide mouthed thermos and fill around it with boiling water, wrap the lot in a towel and leave overnight.
The result should be a thick yoghurt.
Line a strainer with a loose-weave cloth like cheesecloth (where the name came from!) and put a bowl under it. Pour the yoghurt into the strainer. If it is cool you can just leave it out to drain, but in warm summer weather best to put the lot in the fridge to allow it to drain. You will be left with thick, creamy, spreadable curds. I like to add a little salt at this stage. You could also add herbs if you like. If you would like it even thicker, to the point of crumbly, put a saucer on top, weigh it down, and allow it to continue draining.
A litre of milk yielded me this nice little pot of ricotta-style cheese, about 200 grams I guess, though I’d eaten it before I thought to weigh it!
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by Linda on November 15, 2010
Our blueberry bushes are bearing and the farm up the road is selling bags of blueberry seconds so this is the second in the Muesli Bar Challenge series featuring blueberries. Last week’s muffins are a hard act to follow. This recipe is just as healthy, low in fat and sugar and featuring ricotta, yoghurt, eggs and wholemeal flour along with the blueberries. It takes a little longer to make but still within the Challenge rules of being easy enough for busy parents or kids themselves to make.
The Recipe:
This recipe makes lots – around 20 squares, depending on how small you slice them. I have a shallow baking tray 33 cm by 23 cm which is perfect for it.
Before you start, turn your oven on to heat up and grease the baking tray with butter.
The Crust:
In the food processor, mix together
- 2 cups wholemeal plain flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 good dessertspoons of brown sugar
Add 3 good dessertspoons of butter and continue processing for a minute until it resembles breadcrumbs.
Reserve 2/3 of a cup of crust mix, and press the rest into the base of your baking tray. Press down hard.
Pop it into the oven to bake for 15 minutes, while you make the filling.
Filling:
You don’t need to wash the food processor.
Blend together:
- 250 gm ricotta
- 100 gm low fat plain yoghurt
- 3 dessertspoons of brown sugar
- Juice and zest of a large lemon
- 3 large eggs (or 4 small)
Assembling:
Pour the filling over the crust. Sprinkle in 2 cups of blueberries. They should be almost but not quite covered by filling.
Sprinkle the reserved 2/3 cup of crust over the top.
Bake in a medium oven for another 35 to 40 minutes until set. It will firm up a little more as it cools.
Cool in the tray, then slice up and remove with a cake slice.
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