The Best Homemade Mascarpone Cheese Recipe

Mascarpone cheese is an Italian soft cheese with a slightly tangy taste. Mascarpone cheese is made by combining heavy cream and an acid, then straining the liquid in a cheesecloth and collecting the leftover solids. It has plenty of savoury and sweet applications, as you’ll see later on in this post! The cheese’s incredibly smooth texture make it wonderful for spreading, and it is an iconic cheese that’s used in desserts such as tiramisu and cannoli, but also the perfect choice for pasta.

While these cheeses do seem very similar, there is a difference in how they’re prepared. Cream cheese is made by boiling whole milk whereas mascarpone is made with heavy cream As a result, mascarpone has a higher fat content that makes it creamier and smoother. Additionally, while the lemon juice gives mascarpone cheese tangy, the tanginess of cream cheese is much more prominent. Furthermore, cream cheese is firmer and not as smooth as mascarpone. In my serving suggestions for mascarpone cheese below, you most certainly can substitute mascarpone in a lot of recipes that call for cream cheese, but I wouldn’t necessarily do the reverse substitution. I think recipes that call for mascarpone won’t be AS GOOD if you’re using cream cheese, but if you’re using mascarpone in place of cream cheese, I think your recipe will be wonderful!

No, again, there is a slight difference. When you compare the texture of ricotta and mascarpone, you’ll notice that ricotta cheese is more crumbly and more airy than mascarpone, which is smooth and thicker. Ricotta cheese is made from whey, which is the liquid that results from adding lemon juice and after you’ve strained the cheese curds from your boiled milk mixture. You can use leftover whey to make bread, pizza or pasta.

The process for making ricotta cheese is much faster than mascarpone since you basically have it ready immediately once those curds rise to the top of the pot where you’re boiling the milk. You just need to allow time for the cheese curds to strain so that they become firm. This process is actually very similar to the similar Indian cheese product Chhena. The only difference is that I use a combination of buttermilk and whole milk to make chhena.

Substituting mascarpone for ricotta is certainly possible. For instance, I actually don’t like to put ricotta cheese in my lasagnas most of the time because I dislike the crumbliness. I’ve not done it, but I think that using mascarpone in a lasagna may yield better results because I don’t like it when it dries out. Due to the higher fat content of mascarpone, this shouldn’t happen. I think the only recipe that you must use ricotta and can’t substitute with mascarpone with is ricotta toast… but you can just make mascarpone toast in that case :)

While I haven’t done it, after doing some quick research, it turns out that you can and there are a variety of ways to do it. You can use soy milk as it has a little bit of a sour taste, along with your lemon juice. Because of the protein content of soy milk, it seems to be the best milk that will curdle. Additionally, you would want to add some sugar to make it a little sweet as mascarpone would be with heavy cream. Some recipes use firm tofu so that you don’t have to curdle the soy milk, however, it will yield a stronger taste. You can even use vegan yogurt and/or coconut cream. I’ve also seen recipes throw in nuts such as cashews and/or almonds to replicate the nuttiness of mascarpone. Please comment below what the best way to make a vegan mascarpone cheese is as I really have no opinion!

The final texture should be thick and viscous, resemble whipped butter or creamy mashed potatoes. The consistency should be thick enough to be spreadable.

While checking out ways to use DIY Mascarpone Cheese, I discovered plenty of ideas that I hadn’t even thought of until now! As I mention in my Make Cooking Fun! free motivational guide to inspire you in the kitchen, using what you already have on hand can open a whole new world of possibilities. One simple ingredient can really go a long way, and you’ll see how with this comprehensive list!

• Lasagna: Mascarpone would be excellent in my Lasagna alla Bolognese or Creamy White Sauce Chicken Lasagna.
• Tiramisu
• Cannoli
• Parfait: You can whip it and add some honey and serve with some berries in a trifle dish.
• Cheesecake
• Carrot cake
• Tarts
• Galettes
• Add it to your whipped cream for stabilized whipped cream
• Brownies or blondies
• Pancakes or crepes: Mascarpone would be a perfect topping on your favourite pancakes or even to layer your stack! Homemade Mascarpone will be the star of my Lemon Mascarpone Crepe recipe!
• Pasta: Wherever you’d want a creamy sauce, you could use mascarpone cheese! Try substituting the cream cheese in my Garlic Oil Cream Cheese Tomato Chicken Pasta for an even smoother and luscious sauce!
• Pizza: You can top dollops of it over your favourite pizza! Now I definitely want to try this out!
• Mashed potatoes: When I’m craving heartier mashed potatoes, I throw in some sour cream. Mascarpone cheese will sure make your mashed potatoes incredibly smooth and unbelievably creamy and delicious!
• Pie: I’ve mixed peanut butter and cream cheese in my No-Bake Peanut Butter Pie and Homemade Vegan Nutella with cream cheese in my No-Bake Nutella Pie. Try substituting the cream cheese with mascarpone in your pie filling for a smooth and luscious filling!
• Overnight oats: You can use mascarpone as part of your base recipe if you want to switch it up from Greek yogurt! In fact, you could even make a tiramisu overnight oatmeal!
• To spread: You can simply spread it on toast but it would also be amazing in sandwiches, such as my Cucumber Tomato Sandwich. If you’re looking for some unique sandwich combinations where you can use mascarpone, check out my Guide to Prepping the Best Sandwiches for Amazing Lunches!
• Eggs: Another scenario where when I’m looking for creamier scrambled eggs, I throw in some sour cream. Adding mascarpone will definitely take your scrambled eggs to the next level!

The FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD at the bottom of this post will have all ingredient quantities and will allow you to save the recipe for later. You can also scale the recipe based on how much mascarpone cheese you’re looking to make. By default, the recipe makes 1 cup.

Your Mascarpone Cheese should be smooth and creamy. If the cheese is curdled, that’s probably because of an issue with your heavy cream. Most likely, your heavy cream has expired and this affected your cheese. Always check the freshness of your cream before you start!

Because this is a fresh cheese, I wouldn’t keep it in the fridge for longer than 3 to 5 days or else it will be very likely to spoil.

The best way to store your Mascarpone Cheese from Scratch is in an airtight container or in a mason jar. Then, you can easily spoon it out for all of your favourite recipes!

I would not freeze mascarpone cheese at all. It’ll definitely split when you thaw it, and it won’t be smooth and creamy as when it was fresh!