Homemade Mascarpone Cheese!!!

Yes, you read the title of this blog post correctly.  HOMEMADE Mascarpone Cheese.  HOMEMADE.  As in made in your kitchen.  And SO easy.  There are only TWO ingredients.  Yep, two.  I am so thrilled that I found this.  Mascarpone is fairly expensive, especially if you need a decent quantity for your recipe - think tirimisu....  To  know that I can make this at home with very little effort, well, it is like a shining light from heaven just appeared in my kitchen!  I had to tell you about this as soon as possible!  This cannot be a secret any longer!

Are you ready for this?  Here are the two ingredients:  Heavy cream and fresh lemon juice.  That is it!  You will also need a saucepan, an instant-read or candy thermometer, and some cheesecloth. 

Let's begin.  Heat 2 cups of heavy cream in a large saucepan over medium heat, until the cream gets to a light simmer and reaches 190F.  Stir in 1 TB of freshly squeezed lemon juice, and continue to cook for 5 more minutes, keeping the heat at 190F.  This is somewhat tricky and you may have to turn the burner up and down to keep it here.  The cream will thicken slightly and will coat the back of a spoon.  Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

Line a sieve with several layers of cheesecloth (at least 4) and set the sieve over a bowl.  Pour the cooled cream into the sieve, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours or overnight.  Here is where you have to practice your measure of patience.  You might want to do this part right before you go to bed so the time passes more easily as you await your amazing mascarpone cheese.  You must wait.

When you finally bring the sieve and bowl out of the refrigerator, you will see that there is a small amount of whey that strained out of your mixture into the bowl.  Throw this away.  What you are left with is a little over a half pound of creamy, luscious mascarpone cheese.  Put it into an airtight container and keep it in the refrigerator.  Use within the week. 

Now you can jump for joy and do the happy dance all over your kitchen.  Plus you can amaze your friends with the fact that you made your own mascarpone cheese.  Mr. Clever Mom was thrilled.  "Bring on the Tirimisu", he exclaimed.  Indeed.  Bring. It. On.

Homemade Mascarpone Cheese
adapted from Pastry Affair
Ingredients
2 cups heavy cream, pasteurized but not ultra-pasteurized
1 TB freshly squeezed lemon juice

Instructions
Heat the heavy cream in a large saucepan over medium heat, until the cream gets to a light simmer and reaches 190F.  Stir in the lemon juice, and continue to cook for 5 more minutes, keeping the heat at 190F.  This is somewhat tricky and you may have to turn the burner up and down to keep it here.  The cream will thicken slightly and will coat the back of a spoon.  Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

Line a sieve with several layers of cheesecloth (at least 4) and set the sieve over a bowl.  Pour the cooled cream into the sieve, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours or overnight.  Here is where you have to practice your measure of patience.  You might want to do this part right before you go to bed so the time passes more easily as you await your amazing mascarpone cheese.  You must wait.

When you finally bring the sieve and bowl out of the refrigerator, you will see that there is a small amount of whey that strained out of your mixture into the bowl.  Throw this away.  What you are left with is a little over a half pound of creamy, luscious mascarpone cheese.  Put it into an airtight container and keep it in the refrigerator.  Use within the week. 
Printable Recipe