Much easier to make than it might seem, homemade mascarpone is a tastier and less expensive alternative to a store-bought cheese. It’s marvelous with ripe summer berries, finally appeared at our farmer’s markets.
Makes about 12 oz
Ingredients:
- 500 ml whipping (36 %) pasteurized (not ultra-pasteurized), preferably organic cream
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Preparation:
Bring 1 inch of water to a boil in a wide skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low so the water is barely simmering. Pour the cream into a medium heat-resistant bowl, then place the bowl into the skillet. Heat the cream, stirring often, to 190 F. It will take about 15 minutes of delicate heating. Add the lemon juice and continue heating the mixture, stirring gently, until the cream curdles. Do not expect the same action as you see during ricotta cheese making. All that the whipping cream will do is become thicker, like a well-done crème anglaise. It will cover a back of your wooden spoon thickly. You will see just a few clear whey streaks when you stir. Remove the bowl from the water and let cool for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, line a sieve with four layers of dampened cheesecloth and set it over a bowl. Transfer the mixture into the lined sieve. Do not squeeze the cheese in the cheesecloth or press on its surface (be patient, it will firm up after refrigeration time). Once cooled completely, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate (in the sieve) overnight or up to 24 hours.
The first time I made mascarpone I had all doubts if it’d been cooked enough, because of its custard-like texture. Have no fear, it will firm up beautifully in the fridge, and will yet remain lusciously creamy.
December 4, 2009 at 6:39 pm
Vera?i have a question like the one Praveena asked, do you need a thermometer for this?or just the timing or approximation is enough?i really do wanna try making one since the store bought is so expensive, and also the part where you put the cheese in a sieve lined with cheesecloth that’s to remove the liquid?
November 21, 2009 at 12:19 pm
Wow, this works perfectly! So easy, and such a good deal compared with buying it in the store (I love mascarpone cheese, but it is SO expensive!). Awesome – I will definitely be doing this again! :)
November 19, 2009 at 12:29 pm
Memoria, I’m glad you liked it :)
Ilya, you can make the mascarpone with the ultrapasteurized cream without any problem. I just like the flavor of the pasteurized cream better.
November 19, 2009 at 10:36 am
Hello,
did anyone here try making this with ultrapasteurised whipping cream?
November 13, 2009 at 1:06 pm
It came out perfectly! Thanks for a great recipe!
November 12, 2009 at 9:28 am
Vera, I made it already, and it is sitting in the refrigerator. I chose to make mascarpone because it is less tangy, which is what I don’t like about sour cream and what I’ve heard about ricotta. Thank you so much for your help. I hope my mascarpone turns out right!
November 11, 2009 at 11:12 pm
Memoria, thank you. It is not similar. It’s very smooth in texture, mild-tasting – not salty or tangy. I could compare it to ricotta, but since you’ve never tried the ricotta either… I guess, the best way to find out is to make it.
November 11, 2009 at 9:20 pm
I’m debating on whether I should make this. I’ve never had marscarpone and am wondering what it tastes like. Is it similar to the taste of cream cheese or sour cream or what? I’ve never had ricotta either. Thanks for the lovely photos and great recipes!
November 2, 2009 at 5:42 pm
I’m making this now, I can’t wait to see how it turns out!
September 21, 2009 at 2:43 am
Vera,
I made the cheese using this recipe and made a Tiramisu cake out of it! Thank you!!
You can see it here : http://riascollection.blogspot.com/2009/09/tiramisu-cake-with-homemade-mascarpone.html
xx
Ria
September 7, 2009 at 5:30 pm
Wow! Vera thank you so much!
I love Tiramisu and have always been put off by the cost!
Will try…but I don’t have a thermometer…do you think approximation will suffice or shall i invest in one?
Thanks!
August 24, 2009 at 4:27 am
Thanks Vera.. :)
Shall try it with full fat cream and then report back to you!
Thanks again..:)
August 21, 2009 at 7:26 am
Hi, Shibani!
Thank you for your compliments! You’re too kind!
As for the cream – yes, you can use it, but try to find the one with the highest fat content.
August 18, 2009 at 8:09 am
Hi Vera,
Must firstly compliment you on your work… You’ve got immense talent….. Great recipes and beautiful pictures to accompany them!
I’m from India. This recipe in particular caught my attention as, while we do get mascarpone cheese now in India, its very expensive and not very good quality. I’d love to try this recipe at home but do not get the kind of cream you have listed. Can we use normal full fat cream instead?? Please advise.
Thanks a ton!
July 14, 2009 at 4:58 pm
Just made it a few days ago for my father’s bday cake Vera. Paired it off with the choc genoise you’ve posted in the grappa cake. Best cake I’ve ever made. Fabulous recipes, both of them. Bless you dear Vera! You are inspirational!!
July 12, 2009 at 5:26 am
This is just brilliant! Here mascarpone cheese is soooo expensive. Everytime I longingly look at the tub of it and walk past. Now I can make some, thanks to you! YAY! :D
June 18, 2009 at 1:10 pm
cremosissimo…complimenti!
June 17, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Thanks for your recipe. Mascarpone cheese’s so expensive in my country. Thanks again.
May 20, 2009 at 7:21 pm
Cathy, I am happy you liked the mascarpone! Thank you very much for a feedback!
May 19, 2009 at 3:02 pm
i tried making this mascarpone cheese last night and it turned out beautifully!
can’t wait to use it to make tiramisu!
Thanks for the recipe!!
May 15, 2009 at 9:05 pm
Thank you, guys, for your kind words!
Sherry, I’m so glad you liked it! Thanks for letting me know!
Patricia, I hope the mascarpone will turn out just as well :) I’m happy you liked the ricotta.
George, it is certainly a shame :) I probably wouldn’t bother if I could find a real top quality stuff in stores here.
May 13, 2009 at 9:19 am
I’m going to try this out soon, shame it will most likely work out more expensive than top quality shop bought for me though.
May 13, 2009 at 6:29 am
Vera, that is going to be so useful to me, you can’t imagine! Mascarpone is so expensive here… I have made ricotta at home and it was fabulous, I’ll be trying this recipe too!
Tks for sharing such precious tip!
May 12, 2009 at 7:17 pm
WOW…gracias dear Vera. Dropped by to do a quick recheck on the ricotta which I’m making again…& found this! Bless you dear girl…xoxoxo
Tiramisu here I come, but next week!!
May 12, 2009 at 12:05 am
i tried your recipe at the weekend, Vera, and it turned out beautiful! i then used it to make a tiramisu which tasted so much nicer than usual! thanks so much again for the recipe! :)
May 11, 2009 at 5:37 pm
Been meaning to try homemade fresh cheese for the longest time. Love the pattern that the cheesecloth leaves on the cheese.
May 8, 2009 at 12:19 am
Brilliant! I will try it for sure, thanks!
May 7, 2009 at 2:38 am
Thank you so much, Vera for this one. We don’t get mascarpone cheese here and I’ve always wanted to make Tiramisu and never could.
Now I can do both! :D
May 6, 2009 at 11:35 pm
Wow!!!! Mascarpone cheese, one of my favorites… I gonna try to do this….
May 6, 2009 at 8:39 pm
Wow, I never thought of making homemade mascarpone, but now I’m glad I saw your post! I just made a homemade ricotta, and loved it! Also, great photos of the cheese..I couldn’t get a decent one to save my life – white white white!
May 6, 2009 at 1:46 am
So it’s that easy…good to know :)
May 5, 2009 at 7:07 pm
Thank you all for your kind comments!
Nadia, that’s exactly what I meant. The bowl will be sitting in the hot water.
May 4, 2009 at 5:32 pm
Very interesting…love to try…great picture!
May 4, 2009 at 11:59 am
Vera.
Does it mean that the bowl will sit inside the skillet and will be touching the water?
I think I’m just confused on that part.
Otherwise, seems pretty easy and I’m sure it’s delicious
May 4, 2009 at 9:02 am
I can’t believe how simple this is to make! I almost bought cheesecloth yesterday.. I really should have because everything else I have on hand. This would make a wonderful project with the kids. :)
May 3, 2009 at 10:04 pm
I never realized that making marscarpone was so simple! I can’t wait to try this. I’m so glad that you posted the recipe. Your marscarpone looks stunningly creamy and delicious.
May 3, 2009 at 9:03 pm
Thank you so much for the recipe, Vera. Your instructions are superb; very concise and straightforward. I can’t wait to try it!! Will let you know how it turns out.
May 3, 2009 at 10:43 am
WOW – how fabulous! I have to try this!
May 3, 2009 at 10:35 am
Wow! thank you so much for this recipe Vera! I love mascarpone cheese! Will definitely give this a try! :)
May 3, 2009 at 8:01 am
Mmm, luscious! It wold be nice to save some money, and increase the flavor just by doing this myself. Thanks for the instructions. :)
Kate
May 3, 2009 at 4:19 am
I had no clue you could make your own. It costs sooooo much at the grocery store
May 3, 2009 at 3:24 am
As Rosa said : awesome !!!!!!
I can’t wait to try this, use it for a strawberry tart for example
thanks Vera !
May 3, 2009 at 1:56 am
Awesome! I really love that cheese.
Cheers,
Rosa
May 2, 2009 at 11:25 pm
Gorgeous photos and love the detailed recipe! I’ve made mascarpone at work before, but admit to being too lazy to make it at home.
May 2, 2009 at 10:22 pm
Thanks for the nicely written instructions. I should try some cheese making again. I’ve had some successes and some failures, which are discouraging. I’m beginning to wonder if the milk I buy is ultra pasteurized without the label mentioning it. Ultra pasteurization ruins the milk or cream as far as cheese making goes.
May 2, 2009 at 9:43 pm
Abby, Natalie, Swapna, thank you!
Charlotte, yes, it does. I personally prefer to use a skillet since I can fit a bowl of any size inside it, as well as not to worry about a bottom of the bowl touching boiling water. I like to see what’s going on and be able to control heat. This method works great for melting chocolate, cooking custards, for anything that requires a delicate heating.
May 2, 2009 at 9:18 pm
This is sounds really interesting….will definitely try this….thank you so much for the recipe :)
May 2, 2009 at 9:12 pm
Does a double boiler work for this? It sounds to me like sitting the bowl in hot water is the dame concept.
May 2, 2009 at 8:48 pm
this is really interesting. I d like to try it :)
May 2, 2009 at 8:01 pm
Thank you so much for this recipe. I can’t wait to try to make marscapone cheese by myself. I have been thoroughly enjoying your cheese recipes.