Homemade Mascarpone

Mascarpone cheese is one of those "luxurious" things that I don't use frequently, mostly because it's both expensive and hard to get in good quality. Most of the ones in the supermarket taste distinctly unfresh, something that's impossible to disguise if you plan to use it raw in a dessert. It's also a bit of a waste, since it's so easy to make at home... there's really no reason not to.

The homemade version is a completely different species from the storebought variety. It's intensely creamy-tasting (as one would imagine, being almost entirely just cream) and rich, velvety and smooth. It's got a bit of tang, but other than that, is very mild in taste and accommodating to many applications both sweet and savoury. 

It only requires that you have non-ultra high temperature processed (UHT) whipping cream (I've tried it with UHT cream and it didn't go so well, though it might have been another factor confounding that result. If I had more time and money, I'd experiment more, but for now just take my word for it and use non-UHT) and a lemon. A candy thermometer (or any kind of good baking thermometer), a small pot, a strainer and a cheesecloth are all the equipment. It takes only around 15 minutes of active time, and a few hours of waiting, and you've got fantastic mascarpone.

Depending on how long you strain it for, you could end up with slightly more or less product. Thicker mascarpone is better if you want to make a cheesecake or something else firm, but if it's destined for something like a sauce or a trifle, only 4 to 6 hours of straining time is needed.

I made this batch to use in a torte, along with some of my new favourite homemade quark. Hopefully soon there'll be a sale on organic whipping cream so I can finally try making tiramisu...

Homemade Mascarpone
From Two Tarts

500 ml. Whipping cream, 35% (not UHT!)
1 TBSP Fresh lemon juice

Heat cream gently to 190℉ in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, while stirring constantly. Whisk in lemon juice and cook at 190℉ for 5 minutes, or until thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Let cool for 30 minutes, then strain into a colander or strainer lined with several layers of cheesecloth. Leave the whole unit in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or up to overnight, to strain.

Remove the mascarpone and store in a tight container for up to 10 days.

Homemade Quark- German Fresh Cheese

For the longest time I've mourned the fact that you just can't get the insane variety of dairy products available in Germany in Canada. Particularly quark cheese, which is the backbone of a classic Käsekuchen, not to mention a key ingredient in countless other doughs, dishes, and fillings- I've seen one ultra-low fat 0.25% version for sale, but I don't want to make a pastry with that! Vastly superior would be something of at least around 10% fat. 

Of course, there are other types of quark. Magerquark is, to my knowledge, any quark with less than 10% fat- but something to the higher end of that spectrum is better for baking, while that with less fat can be eaten like yogurt with fruit or jam. Topfenquark, which is used in a ton of strudels, Auflaufs, and pastry fillings, is about 20% fat. And Speisequark is about 40% fat, and can be used as a bread spread amongst other uses in giving richness to dishes. 

When I found this recipe for homemade quark that didn't need rennet and could be done within the temperature range that my oven offers, I was suspicious that it was too good to be true. And while this isn't "true" quark in that it isn't cultured the same way... it's definitely a good enough approximation for me! I made mine with half 18% cream and half 3.8% buttermilk to get something with a slight amount of richness, but not too much- perfect for enhancing bread doughs, or for the Quarkstollen that I plan to be making. I'll definitely be trying the recipe out with different fat proportions, like a 20% fat version made partly with whipping cream... then I can try my hand at Topfenstrudel and Topfenpalatschinken. And delicious German cheesecake, of course.

I got just over 400 g. of quark out of this batch, but because I drained it in the fridge overnight, it was really a lot firmer than one would be used to for quark- but that's good, because you typically want to wring out as much whey as you can. Then, you can remoisten it to the desired level by adding some buttermilk or cream. I froze the majority of mine (hey, Google told me I could, but only time will tell if that was really a smart idea) but reserved a small amount to try right away. I added a spoonful of extra buttermilk, some chopped green onion, and some salt and pepper to make a spread for some freshly-baked buns, and it was received with great enthusiasm.

I never would have expected something so good to come of a recipe so simple and easy- any sort of homemade cheese always feels intimidating, but it's really not. My grandmother used to make her own fresh cheeses this way, and in my humble opinion, it tastes much better fresh and homemade.

You can also control the quality of all your ingredients very easily! I'm going to try my hand at other fresh cheeses in the near future. And get back on that Quarkstollen.

Homemade Quark
Adapted from chefkoch.de
(makes 400-500 g.)

500 mL.Buttermilk, 3.8%
500 mL Light cream, 18%

Mix both and let sit for about 15-30 minutes. Pour into a large Dutch oven or other baking pan. Place in an oven preheated to 100℃ and bake for 2 hours. Let cool. 

After cooling completely, strain for 2 hours (or better yet, longer in the fridge- I drained it overnight) with cheesecloths over a pot or bowl. Squeeze the curds dry and add a little buttermilk or cream to get a suitable consistency- you usually want it to be about as thick as Greek yogurt.