Farmer's cheese

[sunmountain]

I have figured out a way to eat homemade farmer's cheese everyday for lunch:

Saute a tiny amount of veggies in CO (I'm going to try chopped tomatoes next), add lots of farmer's cheese, season it (I like organic powdered coriander, garam masala, turmeric, salt), slip it into a pita pocket, top with homemade tzatziki sauce, top that with a bit of shredded cheddar. Pack in foil for work lunch. Delicious! Endless variations with what veggies to add.

So. The only problem I have is I'm using 2% milk to make FC. I'm trying to keep fat very low to let me body burn more fructose. Has anyone made FC with skim milk? Do you get LESS cheese because milk is skim? Does it taste better or not?

The pita pocket sandwich is an amazingly versatile thing. I have put ground beef in it too, and my daughter loved it. (I'm not eating ground beef any more regularly).

Next I want to figure out how to put in some shrimp.

I know it's not perfect because of the gluten in pita, but I've never had issues with gluten, and need to eat more solid food to meet calorie requirements. I try not to eat too much gluten anyhow.

 

[sunmountain]

Also how does ricotta cheese compare with farmer's, peatishly?
thanks

 

[tara]

I've made the cheese with skim milk as well as 3% milk. Yes, you get less cheese. Personally I prefer the taste and texture with the higher fat milk, but it was OK with lower fat milk too, and with all the other flavour you are adding, I expect it would be delicious.

 

[sunmountain]

I just made it with nonfat milk, and yeah it's less cheese. Taste might not be much different.

Which is more Peatish, farmer or ricotta?

 

[tara]

Ricotta is made from the whey left over when you take out the mostly casein curds. I think a higher proportion of its protein is tryptophan than in farmers' cheese (or whole milk). Peat is not a fan of high tryptophan diets, at least in part because it can contribute to higher serotonin levels. This is one of the advantages of farmers' cheese. There are some claims that some people who have trouble tolerating whole milk proteins can tolerate ricotta, which might make it preferable for those people, but not for everybody.

 

[sunmountain]

Interesting. I'm intolerant to milk. Can have in tea and oatmeal, but not glasses. So this solution to eat farmer's and ricotta in pita opens the door to eat a LOT of cheese everyday, something I've not done until very recently.

I can definitely eat more farmer's than ricotta, but ricotta makes a nice change. I had ricotta tonight with spinach and garlic in a pita, and it was delicious! I'll have to double the quantity of milk for farmer's if I'm using nonfat milk, but that's ok.

Thanks

 

[pboy]

if you are not a farmer, you cant have farmer's cheese

 

[sunmountain]

ok, pboy, I'll eat paneer then...

 

[pboy]

haha nice

just to add, a lot of the ricotta sold in US supermarkets is actually closer to a farmers cheese, paneer style food...where its drained curds that are left slightly watery. I think youd have to check the individual labels to really know...but I suspect these ones are still a pretty balanced source of nutrition, though they probably have additives most of the time you might not want. If you actually made ricotta by boiling the whey...its alright in terms of nutrition, I don't know for sure its amino profile...I think Peat would say the casein portion is better. The whey though, ricotta, would still be pretty good in my estimation, its a lot of the B vitamins and potassium and iodine and some other good stuff in the milk, maybe it had excess tryptophan and that's why Peat doesn't recommend it

 

[lindsay]

I made homemade cottage cheese once - with raw milk. You have to skim the fat off to make it, but you can add it back in later for a creamier taste. It was okay - reminded me of Russian tvorog (cheese curd). I keep meaning to try making it again.

Regarding store bought brands, I only tolerate the full fat versions of ricotta - no additives in it. But you can make ricotta at home pretty easily I think. Another recipe I keep meaning to try.

 

[sunmountain]

I eat Natural by Nature's ricotta: http://www.natural-by-nature.com/cheese.htm#javascript;

It has only vinegar and salt besides milk. It does taste a lot like watery paneer, which might be why I like it (I love paneer). I can't get myself to like cottage cheese for some reason.

Let me know if you all have an EASY ricotta recipes.

thanks

 

[lindsay]

I eat Natural by Nature's ricotta: http://www.natural-by-nature.com/cheese.htm#javascript;

It has only vinegar and salt besides milk. It does taste a lot like watery paneer, which might be why I like it (I love paneer). I can't get myself to like cottage cheese for some reason.

Let me know if you all have an EASY ricotta recipes.

thanks

My favorite use for Ricotta cheese is cheese pie (similar to cheesecake in flavor, but much lighter) - I posted it over at Peatarian, so I am copying and pasting the recipe here:

Here is the Recipe for a modified Russian cheese pie (they call it Zapekanka). You will need a pie plate for baking, or circular pan. You can double the recipe if you want and make in a large pan, but I'm not sure how long it lasts. I usually get 4 servings out of one pie.

-1 cup of full fat Ricotta cheese (you can use a little more or less if you want)
-2 eggs
-1/3 a cup of sugar (more is fine, although usually it is served with fruit preserves, honey or maple syrup is good too)
-Sour cream (just a couple large spoonfuls)
-1 or 2 tsp. of vanilla (depends on how much you like vanilla)
-2 tbsp. of flour (I use rice flour, but you can use whatever you tolerate)
-1/4 tsp. of baking powder (not necessary, but helps rise!)

Butter or Coconut oil to grease the pan or pie dish - don't put in recipe!

Note: I've made it without the flour and it's not such a great consistency. Would definitely use some kind of flour. White rice four works great if you are off gluten.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease baking vessel and set aside. In a bowl, mix eggs with sugar. Add in all the other ingredients one at a time and mix together well. I use a hand mixer, but a good vigorous hand mixing will work fine I'm sure. When all ingredients are mixed, pour into the baking vessel and bake for about 25 or 30 minutes, or until a fork comes out clean when poking it. Serve with extra sour cream and honey or other sweet topping, or just eat as it is. It's quite tasty and filling! Enjoy!

 

[sunmountain]

Yum! I will be making it this weekend!!

Thanks, Lindsay!

 

[sunmountain]

I finally made it today! It's a winner! I subbed flavored greek yogurt for sour cream, and used oat flour. It's so delicious! I will be taking to work to eat at lunch too!

Thanks!

 

[FredSonoma]

Would farmer's cheese not have any calcium because the whey is drained out?