How to Make Creamy Homemade Mascarpone
Only two ingredients to make this Easy Creamy Homemade Mascarpone. This Italian Cream Cheese is perfect as a filling or ingredient in recipes. So good and saves money too!
Homemade Mascarpone
I love Mascarpone, if I can substitute it in anything I will. I would choose it over cream cheese any day! I find it creamier, tastier and smoother. And the taste cannot be beat.
One day a friend of ours asked me, since I love it so much I should make my own Homemade Mascarpone, and that is exactly what I did!
I made it in Italy (actually more than once I must add). Then when I came home to Toronto and I needed it for a recipe, I knew it was one of the best things I could have done.
Not only did I have to go to 4 different stores before I found a container of the stuff I practically had to take a loan out to buy it!
Why is it the good stuff always costs so much?!
Ingredients for Homemade Mascarpone
- Cream – whole / whipping / heavy cream with at least 30% fat
- lemon juice – fresh lemon juice
That’s it!
There may be only two ingredients for Homemade Mascarpone, but you do need a little time and patience to make it! And a candy thermometer is a definite necessity.
How to Make Mascarpone
- Heat the cream to 185 F (85 C) (stirring)
- Remove from heat until it reaches 140 F (60 C)
- Replace on heat heat again to 185F (85C) and add the lemon juice
- Again remove from heat and bring down the temperature to 140 F (60 C)
- Pour the cream into a glass bowl, cover the bowl and let sit until completely cool
- Pour into a sieve lined with a tea towel or 3-4 layers of cheese cloth and refrigerate for 24 hours.
How to Store Homemade Mascarpone:
Homemade Mascarpone should be stored in the fridge and will last up to 3-4 days.
Can you freeze Homemade Mascarpone:
Homemade Mascarpone Cheese really shouldn’t be frozen because it tends to separate.
Naturally I made a few recipes with this Homemade Mascarpone, which I will be sharing but until then I hope you enjoy these.
- Mascarpone Cake with Raspberry Cream
- Fresh Strawberry Pie with a Mascarpone Filling
- Italian Mascarpone Marble Cake
- Easy Mascarpone Cream
So take your time, don’t rush it and make some delicious Creamy Homemade Mascarpone. Enjoy!
What you need to make Mascarpone
- Definitely purchase a Candy Thermometer
- A heavy Sturdy Pot for heating the cream.
- A Glass Bowl for holding the cream.
Creamy Homemade Mascarpone
Ingredients
- 16 ounces whole cream (also known as heavy or whipping cream with at least 30% fat)
- 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
Instructions
- In a medium size pot add the cream and place over medium heat, stir with a wooden spoon or rubber whisk, place a candy thermometer in the pot and heat until it reaches 185 F (85 C).
- Remove from heat and continue to stir until the temperature comes down to 140 F (60 C).
- Place the pot back on the heat and bring it back up to 185 F (85 C), continue to stir, then add the lemon juice lower the heat, keeping the temperature at 185 F and heat and stir for 3 minutes.
- Remove again from the heat and bring the temperature down to 140 F (60 C), continue to stir.
- Then pour the cream into a glass bowl, cover with a lid and cover with a tea towel, let sit at room temperature for 3 hours.
- In a clean bowl place a sieve (make sure sieve is not touching the bottom of the bowl), and line the sieve with a clean cotton tea towel or 3 or 4 layers of cheese cloth, pour the cooled cream onto the cloth, then cover with plastic wrap and a clean towel.
- Refrigerate for 24 hours. Enjoy.
- Makes about 1 – 1 1/2 cups.
Simply fantastic. I followed the recipe exactly and it tuned out perfectly! I would encourage a clean cotton tea towel over the cheese cloth. After 3 hours of chilling the cream was not very thick and it ran pretty much right thru the 4 layers of cheese cloth. I transferred to the clean cotton kitchen towel and it worked perfectly. Only the watery liquid drained through during the overnight leaving the delicious cream. Thank you!
Hi Anne, thanks so much, good idea. Glad you enjoyed it. Take care.
where can i buy whole cream?
Hi Jailene, fresh cream is in the refrigerator section in your grocery store, usually next to the milk. 🙂
Hi Rosemary,
Is it possible to mix vanilla bean seeds with the cream before it is heated and set?
Thanks
Hi Naomi, I have never added seeds to it, I don’t think it would hurt but I can’t say 100%. sorry.
Thank you Rosemary for this recipe! I’m making it again now for the second time. The first time I used the marscapone for tiramisu and as a cheese on pizza. This time I’m going for the same. It was wonderful and came out perfect!
Hi Patricia, thanks so much, and mascarpone on a pizza is so good. Have a great weekend.
How much lemon juice?
Hi Sigrid, 1/2 a tablespoon it is written in the recipe card. 🙂
I used raw milk from our organic Swedish red cows for this recipe and it was wonderful! I used it in a salmon carbonara for dinner, and frosting on a banana cake! Easy to follow, used a thermometer to be accurate, tasty outcome!
Hi Jenny, thanks so much, and that raw milk must be fabulous. Happy New Year.
Can i know if I can use bulla brand thickened cream bottle?
Hi Ros, I really don’t know what that is, but if it’s real whole cream then yes you can.
By whole cream, do you mean heavy cream? Thanks in advance!
Hi Yashika, yes heavy cream, 30% fat or over. 🙂
Any suggestions for how much citric acid to use instead of lemon juice? I was going to use 4,8g of citric acid and 600g of cream. Using this for Tiramisu.
Hi Zoe, I am sorry, I really don’t know, I have never used citric acid before.
Hi Zoe! I think it’d be 1/8tsp. of citric acid to substitute for every 1/2 tbsp. of lemon juice 🙂
I followed this pretty closely and put it in a sieve with three layers of cheesecloth and it is just so thin that it’s draining through (the cream, not the whey). Should I put it back on the stove and add more lemon juice? Cook it down longer?
Hi Amber, are you sure you are using a heavy cream? It should be at least 30% fat.
Hey! I want to understand why heat the milk twice, when the work can be done with doing it once too.
Hi Anjali, because on the 2nd reheat you add the lemon juice, not at the first.
I made this yesterday. It worked out wonderfully. I struggled a little to keep the temperature at exactly 85C – I hit 95C for maybe two-three seconds while putting in the eggs, then the temperature varied between 80-90C as I tried to balance my gas stove to hold the true 85C. I did not end up with 2 cups, I ended up with exactly 1. The flavour and texture are wonderful. The recipe I’m using it for said I could also use a full fat yogurt in place, so I’ve done half and half, as I needed 2 cups. I’ll certainly use this recipe again, keeping in mind the ratios.
Thanks Bri, glad you enjoyed it. Take care.
Can you make tiramisu with this mascapone?
Hi Dia, yes it should work. Let me know how it goes.
i have not tried this rcipe yet. i am into making ricotta i can use more help with that…..love it!
Hi Maddy, let me know how it goes. Homemade Ricotta is delicious too.
All I had was pasteurized, heavy cream and it came out delicious!! Thanks for a great, easy recipe!
Thanks, glad you enjoyed it.