Ricotta gnocci part I

There is a ricotta gnocci recipe in the new Cook's Illustrated that I'd like to try, so I thought I'd use my cheesemaking kit to make fresh ricotta.

The process differed from the mozzarella protocol in that I just added citric acid and salt (no rennet) and heated it up to 195 degrees F.

Curdage started to happen around 120 degrees:





At 195 degrees I removed the curds/whey from the heat and let the steaming mess sit for 10 minutes:





After the ten minutes I ladled everything into a cheese cloth-lined colander, tied it from the kitchen faucet, and let it drain for an hour. R. thought it looked like a "giant white scrotum" so I'm guessing nobody really wants to see any photos of this step.

While waiting I took a pizza break: carmelized purple onion + corn + cheddar on a whole wheat crust:




It's looking rather radioactive here but trust me, it was good!

And here's the finished product:



I was surprised at how much it made - enough to fill a 32 oz. yogurt container, and plenty for the gnocci. Stay tuned....