Super versatile, can be used to spread on bread or in the preparation of recipes. Serves about 200g.
Ingredients
- 1 liter of whole milk
- 30ml lemon juice or Citrovin
- 25g butter – room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or less
Directions
Place the milk in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. As soon as it boils, reserve 120ml of the milk and turn off the heat. Add the lemon juice and mix gently.
Let the lemon juice act for about 5 minutes, until it curdles – the milk should form lumps, with a clearly visible white solid part, immersed in a slightly yellowish liquid. If it takes too long, turn the heat back on and let it boil again. Turn off the heat, stir, and wait a few more minutes until the lumps form.
Line a sieve with a fine cotton cloth (or paper filter) and place over a deep bowl. Pour the strained milk into the sieve and, with a spoon or silicone spatula, press down on the mixture to extract as much of the whey as possible.
Transfer the drained cheese to a food processor or blender, add the reserved 120ml of warm milk, the butter, and the salt. Blend until smooth – if necessary, stop blending and scrape down the side of the blender with a spatula.
Transfer the cream cheese to a glass jar and allow to cool completely before covering. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to finish firming.
Best before
Homemade cream cheese lasts 5 days stored in an airtight jar in the refrigerator.