I was really in the mood for my fake Boursin...
... but had no fresh cream cheese.
Then I remembered that Italians oftentimes add fresh herbs to ricotta and, though I had no ricotta, it may be the easiest thing in the world to make!
I brought 4C of whole milk and a good splash of cream (probably 1/3 C) just to a simmer...
I then added a pinch of salt and 3T of plain old distilled white vinegar (in the past, I've used good wine vinegar or even lemon juice) and gently stirred it, still on the heat, for about 30 seconds... until the curds and whey had clearly separated. Once they had, I carefully poured it all into a towel-lined sieve and gently poured about a cup of cool water over it to wash the cheese...
I scooped it all into a bowl...
... flavored half of it with chopped herbs and salt...
... put a little bit on slices of baguette... drizzled each with good EVOO... and relished one of those miraculous tastes that comes along so rarely...
Try this! Really! It's that good.
And half the batch is still awaiting its place in homemade ravioli!!!