Power Foods: Ricotta Cheese

Many of us know of ricotta cheese as the silky smooth interior of lasagna, but it is a very versatile and HEALTHY power food. First of all, ricotta cheese isn't really cheese. It is made from whey, a byproduct of cheese making. It has a finely grain texture similar to cottage cheese, but is lighter and sweeter.

For those on an Atkins or South Beach Diet, ricotta makes an excellent addition to your diet since it has less than 1g of carbohydrate per ounce. Bodybuilders love this stuff since the fat free variety packs 5g of protein per ounce. It is low in saturated fat and sodium and even the whole milk variety has only 49 calories per ounce. Finally, one-half cup provides 42% of the recommended daily allowance of calcium. Now you know why ricotta cheese is a POWER FOOD.

Some of my favorite recipes for ricotta cheese include:

• Ricotta Cheese Mousse- 2 ounces of ricotta cheese beaten with a wire whisk until smooth. Sprinkle chocolate chips, pistachios, drop of vanilla, maple syrup, honey or any other topping you desire. Add a tablespoon of sugar or Splenda for additional sweetness if desired. The flavors are limited only by your imagination.
• Roasted Vegetable & Ricotta Frittata- Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Rough chop some red peppers, onions, garlic, mushrooms, asparagus, squash or any other veggies you love (about 1.5 cups worth) and place on heavy duty aluminum foil. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast veggies for 25 minutes. Beat 4 eggs (or egg whites) and 1/2 cup of ricotta cheese together until smooth. Hint: adding a pinch of salt and a splash of milk to eggs will break down the protein and make them smooth. Pour egg/ricotta cheese mixture into a Teflon baking or pie dish. Set aside. Once veggies are soft, pull them from the oven and dump into the baking dish containing the egg/ricotta mixture. Place the baking dish back into the 450 degree oven for 25 minutes or until dish is firm (a knife inserted in the middle of the dish should come out clean). This is an easy dish and tastes great hot, room temperature and even cold the next day.

Links:

Additional Ricotta Recipes- http://homecooking.about.com/library/archive/blricotta.htm

More Recipes- http://web.foodnetwork.com/food/web/searchResults?searchType=Recipe&searchString=ricotta&site=food&gosearch=Search

Dr. Gourmet- http://www.drgourmet.com/ingredients/cheese-ricotta.shtml