Chef Forum banner

Need help using up ingredients....

2K views 33 replies 13 participants last post by  kccjer 
#1 ·
Help!  I have an overabundnce of fresh milk, farm fresh eggs and ricotta cheese.  I've been doing quiche, but that's getting old fast.  I've done lasagna too.  Are there any other suggestions?  Ice cream has been suggested and that sounds fantastic!  But....since everyone in my family tends to have a slight weight issue, that's not a good everyday option.  
 
#4 ·
When I say an overabundance I mean....this morning I'm processing 3 gallons of milk into cheese with another 1/2 gallon reserved for drinking, cooking, etc.  AND....I only have 16 doz eggs in my fridge.  Nope, not a typo....16 doz!  I think 3 of those are bantam and pullet eggs, so they are small eggs, but still.  That's a lot of ice cream.  I've been doing deviled eggs, but we're getting kinda tired of those after a couple weeks.  I've got some in pickle juice.... I'll be getting another gallon of milk tonight after milking too.... 
 
#8 ·
If you have so much and can't find something healthy to make with them (let's face it, ice cream will keep the longest and you could use less sugar), why not donate them to a local soup kitchen where people can really use them?
 
#13 ·
LOL I know! But none of us needs ice cream very often! There is absolutely nothing that can compare with homemade ice cream....
Maybe none of us need it very often, but ricotta, fresh basil, and cracked black pepper, olive oil ice cream topped with fresh strawberries should be one everyone's bucket list; and squirreled away in the freezer ain't such a bad idea either.
 
#15 · (Edited)
Ricotta, Basil, and Cracked Black Pepper, Olive Oil Ice Cream

Weight or Volume Ingredients

6 tablespoons black peppercorns

1 cup manufacturing cream

6 tablespoons basil leaves

2 ½ cups ricotta

1 lemon zest

1 cup sugar

1 pinch kosher salt

6 tablespoons basil, blanched, chopped

1 tablespoon limoncello

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Procedure:

Toast and coarsely crack the peppercorns. Add half of the pepper to the cream and bring to a simmer. Cover. Turn heat off and let steep 30 minutes. Strain through an etamine and then chill cream. When cream is cold, bring some heavily salted water to a boil and briefly dunk basil leaves. Remove and immediately add to cold cream. Bring cream to a simmer. Cover. Turn heat off and let steep for 30 minutes. Place in a blender and puree. Strain through an etamine. Put ricotta, zest, sugar, and salt in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add limoncello and strained cream. Blend. Refrigerate until well chilled. Add reserved black pepper, chopped basil, and olive oil. Mix well. Freeze in ice cream maker.

If you want to go over the top, after you top the ice cream with fresh strawberries drizzle with some aged balsamic such as http://www.m5corporation.com/Il-Grande-Vecchio-100-Year-Aged-Balsamic-Vinegar-p/m1940.htm
 
#18 ·
Already making cheddar.  Haven't got the courage to try a washed curd cheese yet.  But I don't use many eggs in my cheese!  LOL  The cheddar is pretty good, definitely not store bought and it does taste a little different since this is goats milk I'm talking about
 
#19 ·
If you have so much and can't find something healthy to make with them (let's face it, ice cream will keep the longest and you could use less sugar), why not donate them to a local soup kitchen where people can really use them?
Can't donate perishables to any place around here. We live in a very rural area and there aren't any soup kitchens....too bad cause that would be a fantastic idea
 
#23 ·
Hi kccjer,

I'm intrigued. Why exactly do you have so much gorgeous produce on hand? Do you live on a farm? Do you have a dairy benefactor?...You lucky person you!

Do Tell
Live on a farm. We raise chickens, goats, pigs, etc. I make my own chicken stock out of carcasses and feet from ones that we butcher. We are milking a couple of the goats and getting about 1 gallon per day and we only milk once a day! Right now the chickens are laying about 1 1/2 to 2 doz eggs daily! We butcher pigs and goats and had 3 deer given to us by hunters last year. I try to do a big garden too, but last year didn't get much out of it due to weather. I've also got a lamb that we butchered last year and 2 pigs in the freezer.....
 
#24 · (Edited)
Make some yogurt. Very easy, and uses up a lot of milk. Of course, you do end up with a lot of whey.... but it is very healthy!

For the eggs (and maybe the ricotta) you could make a few strattas or frittatas.
Already making yogurt. And I use the whey either for myself or give it to the 4H pigs to help stretch their feed. I found a recipe for "grandmother bread" that uses whey....fantastic flavor in the bread and pretty easy to make. I also use the whey as liquid in just about anything I bake or cook but I usually have a gallon of whey in the fridge and make fresh every 3 or 4 days. It's a little hard to use that much whey....
 
#25 ·
yum! I'll definitely have to try this. But 2 probably stupid questions....what's "manufacturing cream"....can I just use the cream I skim off the top of the milk? And what's an etamine???
They are not stupid questions at all, I didn't know the answers either until someone told me. Manufacturing cream is the heaviest cream. Heavy cream that you can buy at the grocery store is a little lighter but not enough to make any difference. I have no idea if you can just skim the cream off your milk at the farm. Perhaps you can enlighten me on that one? An etamine is a fine chinois or strainer like cheesecloth.

 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top