Yes, you can eat it straight, but consider its use in pancakes, dips, and more
If you’ve ever made a tray of lasagna or layered a tiramisu, you might find yourself with half a tub of ricotta left over and no idea how to use it. Whatever you do, don’t toss it. Milky ricotta is neutral enough in flavor that it can go the route of sweet or savory, making the options for finishing a tub pretty limitless. Here are a few ideas to get you started.
Add it to pasta or pizza
There’s a common phrase in cheese pairing that goes, “What grows together goes together.” In this case, ricotta is an Italian cheese that lends itself to Italian dishes well beyond lasagna, such as pizza or other pastas, like stuffed shells or ravioli. Just add a couple dollops to a pie, or swirl it into any creamy pasta sauce. This will enhance their richness without adding too much salt, which can be a risk with hard cheeses like Parmiggiano Reggiano or pecorino Romano. (Or better yet, use a combination of ricotta and hard cheese for even more layered flavors).
Incorporate into pancakes
Adding ricotta to pancake batter should be mandatory (I like this recipe from NYT Cooking). The cheese adds so much moisture without weighing down the pancakes — on the contrary, ricotta can yield the world’s fluffiest pancakes. If you really want to bring out the flavor of the ricotta, add lemon or blueberries. Elsewhere in the breakfast universe, a spoonful of ricotta is always a welcome addition to crepe or French toast batter.
Whip it into a dip
For an impressive, no-effort dip, just add the ricotta to a food processor with whatever seasonings speak to you. Lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, and salt and pepper pair well with crudités and crackers, but you can also go the sweet route by blending ricotta with honey and vanilla and serving it with graham crackers. For a more substantial dip, pair ricotta with squash (and use the hollowed out gourd as the bowl). Ricotta also makes a great base for a pimento cheese ball, if you want something lighter and fluffier than mayonnaise.
Spread on a sandwich, wrap, or toast
Ricotta toast had a chokehold on Los Angeles’s breakfast scene for quite some time, and it’s no mystery why. It’s incredibly easy to replicate at home: simply spread some ricotta over a crusty slice of bread and add your favorite toppings. I like mine with figs, a drizzle of honey, and flaky salt but have also made a savory toast with tomatoes, basil, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. A smear of jam is also effective. You can think of the ricotta as an alternative to cream cheese and put it on a bagel, too. Even better, spread it in a wrap or sandwich; the mild cheese pairs nicely with turkey, ham, and fried eggs.
Just eat it straight
Look, if you enjoy cottage cheese or strained yogurt, eating ricotta by the spoonful is not a big leap. I like adding berries, honey, and vanilla bean to it, but if you want to eat it plain? No judgement.
Dina Ávila is a photographer living in Portland, Oregon.
