Quick and Easy Cottage Cheese

This week's FNCCC chef is Alton Brown. Everyone seems to love him, and I think he's a bit of an oddball. That's okay though, being an oddball doesn't have to be a bad thing!

Although there are about 90 gazillion recipes of his on the Food Network site, I was able to choose just one- Quick Cottage Cheese.

The cook time listed on the site says 5 minutes, but I think that's a LIIIIE! It took at least 15 minutes to get my milk up to temperature. I halved it since Martijn doesn't like cottage cheese and wouldn't be helping me eat it. Plus, I had other things I needed space in my bike bags for besides four 1 litre cartons of milk (no gallon jugs here folks!). I followed the instructions pretty much exactly other than that and just salting to taste.

Quick Cottage Cheese
Courtesy Alton Brown

Ingredients
1 gallon pasteurized skim milk
3/4 cup white vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt*
1/2 cup half-and half-or heavy cream

Directions

Pour the skim milk into a large saucepan and place over medium heat. Heat to 120 degrees F (1). Remove from the heat and gently pour in the vinegar (2). Stir slowly for 1 to 2 minutes. The curd will separate from the whey (3). Cover and allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Pour the mixture into a colander lined with a tea towel and allow to sit and drain for 5 minutes. Gather up the edges of the cloth and rinse under cold water for 3 to 5 minutes or until the curd is completely cooled, squeezing and moving the mixture the whole time (4). Once cooled, squeeze as dry as possible and transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the salt and stir to combine, breaking up the curd into bite-size pieces as you go. If ready to serve immediately, stir in the half-and-half or heavy cream. If not, transfer to a sealable container and place in the refrigerator. Add the half and half or heavy cream just prior to serving.

*Keep in mind that kosher salt has much bigger grains that regular table salt, so it measures differently. I didn't add any while I was making it and just salted to taste when I ate it.

The Verdict: If you are expecting this to have the same texture as store bought cottage cheese, I think you will be disappointed. I thought it was a little bit dry, but that could've been solved with the addition of some more liquid at the end (I'm wondering if buttermilk would work instead of the half and half or cream). Not bad though, I may even make it again sometime!

In addition, be sure to check out Tasty Tuesday @ Balancing Beauty and Bedlam and Tempt my Tummy Tuesday @ Blessed with Grace for more yummy recipes!