How to make mascarpone

Mascarpone cheese is incredibly easy to make and its a lot of fun.  It only requires two ingredient and about 10 minutes of effort for thick, creamy and delicious mascarpone cheese the next morning.  

A lot of recipes on the web call for heavy cream, which in Australia is most similar to pure cream.  Don’t use thickened cream as it often contains a thickener such as gelatine.  Pure cream works beautifully, just make sure it contains a minimum of 35% milk fat. Once you have heated it on the stove, leave it to cool to room temperature before adding it to the cheesecloth, if a little of the mixture strains straight through its ok, it will settle and the whey will slowly strain away over night (a few tablespoons only) and in the morning you will have mascarpone cheese. 

Print Pin

5 from 1 vote

How to make mascarpone cheese

Ingredients

• 2 cups pure cream - minimum 35% milk fat (heavy cream for my US friends)
• 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice

Instructions

• Add the cream to a saucepan and slowly bring the temperature up to 82 degrees C (180 degrees F). (I used a candy thermometer) Simmer at this temperature for 3 minutes, giving an occasional stir
• Add the lemon juice, stir and simmer for a further 3 minutes at 82 degrees C (180 degrees F).
• Leave to cool for about 45 minutes. Sit a fine strainer over a bowl and cover with 4 layers of cheesecloth. Pour the mixture in and refrigerate over night. It will be ready to use in the morning

Notes

A lot of recipes on the web call for heavy cream, which in Australia is most similar to pure cream. Don’t use thickened cream as it often contains a thickener such as gelatine. Pure cream works beautifully.