How to Make Mascarpone Cheese at Home

Very easy to make with only few simple ingredients, this homemade mascarpone cheese has a great taste and creamy texture.

946 ml heavy whipping cream (or any fresh dairy cream with at least 35% fat content)
40 ml lemon juice

Pour the cream into a heavy bottomed saucepan and bring it to a simmer on medium high heat stirring constantly. Then reduce the heat and add the lemon juice in two batches. Simmer the cream for 15 to 20 minutes while stirring constantly. The cream will slowly thicken and coat the back of the spoon or spatula. I like to slide my finger along the spatula, if there is a clean strip left behind then it’s done.
Remove the pan from the heat and let it cool down to room temperature.
Place the sieve strainer inside a slightly larger bowl and line the sieve with several layers of cheesecloth. Pour the cream into the cheesecloth and cover with plastic wrap, lightly pressing the plastic against the surface. Store the future mascarpone cheese in the fridge up to 24 hours.
After 24 hours the cream is set, and you can see a little bit of whey from the cream in the bowl that you placed below the strainer. Remove the plastic wrap and enjoy firm and creamy homemade mascarpone cheese.
Transfer the cheese into an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
From the specified amount of the ingredients I get about 560g of homemade mascarpone cheese.

For best result use fresh dairy cream with at least 35% fat content.

If you need less of the final product, just cut all the ingredients in half and simmer the cream up to 15 minutes.

You can substitute the lemon juice with white vinegar or cream of tartar.

The substitution ratio is 2:1 so for 40 ml (4 tbsp) of lemon juice you need about 2 tbsp of cream of tartar.