Creamy homemade mascarpone cheese is an easy (2 ingredient!) homemade cheese recipe that’s fun to make right in your own kitchen — use it in authentic Italian tiramisu, risotto, and more!
You know I love me a good DIY project like this homemade mascarpone cheese. This one was especially satisfying because mascarpone, the creamy Italian soft cheese, is such a high end product. It can be hard to find, and it’s expensive when you do find it. You probably know it as a critical ingredient in tiramisu, and I l love to sneak it into risotto to give it a rich finish. I blend it up with whipped cream as a topping for my No Bake Strawberry Cheesecake Squares and it’s even in my Roasted Fig Ice Cream!
To qualify as a great DIY project a recipe has to be relatively easy to pull off, and the finished product has to be a spot on version of the original. This homemade mascarpone ticks both boxes deliciously.
What is mascarpone cheese?
Mascarpone cheese is a rich, creamy Italian cheese made from cow’s milk. It’s known for its smooth, velvety texture and very mild flavor. It’s considered a fresh cheese because it’s not aged, and this puts it in the same category as cream cheese, ricotta, and cottage cheese.
Mascarpone is called a ‘cheese’ in the technical sense, but it is very close in flavor and texture to a British clotted cream, so it’s perfect on scones and biscuits, too.
The closest American product to mascarpone cheese is cream cheese, and it can be used in many of the same ways.
What you’ll need to make homemade mascarpone
- heavy cream
- fresh lemon juice
- a medium heavy bottomed saucepan
- a clip-on thermometer for the side of the pan
- a mesh strainer
- a clean thin-weave kitchen dish cloth or napkin
- you can use cheesecloth, but you’ll want several layers or your thickened cream will drip through.
how mascarpone is produced (both commercially and at home)
Like many fresh cheeses, this is a snap to make and easy to reproduce at home.
- Acidification:
- Heavy cream is heated to around 190°F ~ this is basically a low simmer.
- An acid like lemon juice, vinegar, or citric acid is added to the cream.
- Thickening:
- The cream is maintained at this temperature for several minutes. It’s creamy and smooth rather than forming distinct curds.
- Cooling:
- The cream will thicken slightly as it cools.
- Straining + chilling:
- The cooled cream is strained through a fine cloth or a cheesecloth in the refrigerator for 8 hours or overnight. This step removes excess liquid and results in a rich, smooth, and spreadable cheese.
homemade mascarpone tips
Cook the cream and lemon juice until thickened
- If the specified time has passed and your cream is still quite thin, you need to keep cooking until it coats the back of your spoon. The cream should be hot but not furiously boiling. A gentle simmer is perfect.
make sure you cool your cream before straining
- I like to place the bowl in an ice bath to hasten the process. This step is essential and I like to get the cream to a cooler-than-room-temperature before straining.
Use a fine weave cloth to line your strainer
- Cheesecloth can be too porous and your thickened cream can flow right through. If this happens to you, start over again with a thicker cloth.
Double the recipe to get more yield
- Making homemade cheese requires a lot of liquid dairy to start with, so if you want a bigger batch of mascarpone, double the cream.
For best results use regular pasteurized cream, not ultra-pasteurized
- Most heavy cream is ultra-pasteurized nowadays, because it results in a longer shelf life, look for regular pasteurized cream at Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s and local dairies, Fyi I have made mascarpone with ultra-pasteurized cream, but it comes out a little softer.
Use the leftover ‘whey’ for baking
- In the case of a cream based homemade cheese the leftover ‘whey’ is still quite rich and can be used like milk or buttermilk in baking recipes. This means there is no waste in this recipe:
how I use homemade mascarpone cheese
- One of my favorite uses for mascarpone is in tiramisu. It’s a key ingredient in this rich Italian dessert ~ I use it in my easy no bake slab tiramisu, but also in my fresh summery Berry Tiramisu, and in my more decadent Nutella Tiramisu.
- Mascarpone can be used instead of or with cream cheese to make rich cheesecake.
- Substitute mascarpone for the cream cheese in cake frostings and cookie frostings.
- Mascarpone is stirred into risotto to make it extra rich and creamy. Its mild flavor means it can go with any recipe, but I particularly love it with Mushroom Risotto.
- Use mascarpone in creamy dips and spreads that call for cream cheese or sour cream.
- Try it in my Homemade Boursin Cheese Recipe!
- Use as a spread for scones or muffins.
Homemade Mascarpone
Equipment
- medium saucepan
- mesh strainer
- multiple layers of cheesecloth or light dish cloth
Ingredients
- 2 cups heavy cream, non-ultra-pasteurized is preferable
- 2 Tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
Instructions
- Pour the cream and lemon juice into a medium heavy bottomed pot and heat on medium until it just comes to a simmer (about 190 degrees F on a thermometer.) Heat the cream gently so it doesn't scorch, and stir almost constantly with a silicone spoonula which helps scrape down the sides and bottom of the pan efficiently.
- Gently simmer the cream for another 5 minutes, stirring gently. I found it easiest to keep moving the pot on and off the flame to maintain the gentle simmer.
- Let the cream cool completely. I like to transfer the hot cream to a glass container and place the container in an ice bath to hurry the process. The cream is ready for straining when it has a slight chill to it. Note: this step it critical: the cream will thicken as it cools.
- Line a mesh strainer with multiple layers of cheesecloth or a light kitchen cloth or napkin, and set that over a bowl to catch the dripping whey. Pour the cream into the lined strainer. Cover loosely with plastic and refrigerate for 8 hours. It is during this time that the thickened cream will transform into mascarpone.
- Remove the cheese from the cheesecloth and keep in a tightly closed container in the refrigerator until ready to use.
- Makes approximately 1 ~ 1 1/4 cups. Plan to use this fresh cheese within a week or so.
Nutrition
I’ll be honest, I don’t know if this is the recipe I used when I made the BEST cake I ever made (IMO) I only had Lime juice at the time, and accidentally realized AFTER it was done that it was CONCENTRATED lime juice! It turned out even better than the stuff I’ve bought though. It was SUPER tangy/tart. Home made has a much smoother, creamier consistency than store bought too in my experience. I have an electric stovetop and had to really monitor the milk. I used coffee filters instead because for some reason the store I went to was completely out of cheesecloth (or maybe I was just distracted and overlooked them, that happens) I taste tested it to make sure it was safe (cause, as I said, concentrated juice instead!) and after another day and being 100% fine I used it to make the frosting for my cake! (Blueberry Lemon Curd, my home made marscarpone, and cool whip because I tend to overdo my whipped cream) The cake itself was a tweaked, scratch, french vanilla recipe I added lemon flavor to instead for more of a “spring” flavor to go with the frosting. IT WAS AMAZING. I was even told to talk to a local restraurant for them to have on their menu. (I didn’t because I got discouraged by someone)
Basically saying, as ditzy as I am, this is SUPER easy, SUPER delish, and TOTALLY worth making!
What a wonderful post! Your dessert sounds so amazing and yummy. Love that you used lime juice. BTW I have found cheesecloth in the sewing section and the paint department also of stores so it’s an elusive animal in different stores!
I made the cheese for use in a tiramisu. The first time i used a pot on the stove and think i overheated it. Flop. 2nd try, instant pot yogurt boil function. Add the lemon juice etc etc. IT WAS AMAZING as was the tiramisu. I need to go on that page and share my experience with it.
The ricotta recipe is pretty simple too!
Thank you
How does mascarpone taste and what consistency is it supposed to be?
I made this and its been in the fridge for maybe 8 hours but I have no idea.
Hey,
I don’t have any heavy cream, and there isn’t any in my whole province.
Is it possible to use 35% fat whipping cream to make the mascarpone instead?
35% fat cream should work fine H.D.
also how many tbsp of lemon juice should I use?
It says 1-2 but I need exact measuremnets.
Can you shape it into a ball?
It’s thick enough to shape into a ball, if you’d like.
Thank you for this! I’ve made the ricotta before and like it so much better than the flavorless, grainy stuff we have in the stores here. Mascarpone is REALLY expensive here, too, so excited to try this and use it on your mascarpone/maple syrup tart. One question: Since you collect the whey, what do you do with it?
Thanks!
I’m not Sue, but I do know you can use the whey to lacto-ferment veggies, ie cabbage for sauerkraut. Just google it…loads of recipes. Or go to the Weston A Price Foundation website and check there. Also, I use whey in my smoothies when they are too thick to pour and/are drink.
Do you make homemade bread or rolls? The whey works nicely as the liquid in it.
Chickens love the whey and it’s good for them!
Someday I want to raise chickens…
Tirimisu?
Going to a Sunday dinner next week to an Italian friend of ours. I normally make the dessert and this year along with my signature 100+ year old recipe little layer chocolate cake with this year being in Easter colors alternating layers pale green, yellow(normal), pale blue and pink. I’m also going to make a Kahlua Tiramisu with homemade mascarpone. Should be great with such a GREAT recipe!!
Is there room for a plus-one??
Can I use heavy whipping cream in place of heavy cream. How much difference will it make?
You can use those interchangeably Jk.
I need 32 oz (about 4 cups) of marscspone for a recipe. Can I quadruple your recipe and still have it set properly, or make it 4x or something in between?
I would just do it in separate batches, meaning do it in separate containers to be sure Kathryn.