Ricotta is a fresh cheese that we go crazy for. Its mild flavor and rich, creamy texture makes it a perfect comfort food. From pillowy gnocchi to airy coffee mousse, we’ve rounded up our favorite ricotta recipes.
You can buy ricotta at a supermarket, but it’s easy to make it at home. All you have to do is cook together milk, buttermilk, and half & half, let the mixture cool, and strain it through a cheesecloth. That’s all there is to it. You’ll never get the store-bought stuff again.
One of the simplest ways to enjoy fresh ricotta is on a crostini. Try pairing it with simple toppings like spicy soppressata, sweet broiled cherry tomatoes, or black olives, lemon zest, and mint. For something a little heartier, top your ricotta crostini with rosemary-scented cannellini beans spicy sautéed broccoli rabe.
Fresh ricotta makes for beautifully ethereal gnocchi. Check out our vibrant beet and ricotta gnocchi with wilted beet greens and tangy balsamic vinegar or earthy buckwheat gnocchi with cream, peas, and spinach. For gnocchi that are soft but still substantial, we use both ricotta and potato. Try them served in a tomato sauce with briny olives and capers.
With its tangy sweetness, ricotta is a refined dessert ingredient. It serves as the base for our easy but elegant coffee mousse, which is rich, creamy, and just a little bitter. Mixed with an egg, ricotta bakes into an amazing custard. We love topping baked ricotta with a floral cherry-orange blossom compote.
Find all of these dishes and more in our collection of ricotta recipes.
Ricotta and Egg Gnocchi with Olives, Capers, and Tomato Sauce
Buckwheat and Ricotta Gnocchi with Cream, Peas, and Spinach
Beet and Ricotta Gnocchi with Wilted Beet Greens and Aged Balsamic
Citrus Salad with Arugula & Ricotta Salata
Eastertide Tart (Torta Pasqualina)
Baked Ricotta with Orange Blossom Cherry Sauce
Swiss Chard and Cheese Dumplings (Strozzapreti)
Ricotta Scramble with Tomatoes (Requeson Revuelto)
Charred Sweet Potatoes with Pickled Shallots, Pistachios, and Ricotta Salata
Zucchini, Onion and Ricotta Pie (Torta Salata di Zucchine e Cipolle)
Ham and Cheese Calzone (Calzone di Prosciutto e Ricotta)
Broccoli Rabe, Cannellini Bean, and Ricotta Crostini
Russian Cheese Pancakes (Syrniki)
Ricotta and Roasted Pepper Frittata (Frittata con Ricotta e Peperoni)
Zucchini Stuffed with Ricotta (Zucchine Ripiene con Ricotta)
Pizza with Snow Crab, Ricotta, Shishito Peppers, and Wasabi Aïoli
Rachetta (Racket-Shaped Pizza with Mushrooms and Tomatoes)
Ricotta Crostini with Soppressata
Ricotta Crostini with Cherry Tomatoes
Ricotta Crostini with Black Olives, Lemon Zest, and Mint