Marinated Mozzarella Balls

Ok.

It’s Movies and Munchies time again and I have an almost identical recipe to last time.  Is that weird?

So here’s the tea…after watching last month’s movie, Nonnas, I made homemade mozzarella for the first time and I was tickled pink and shared a fantastic Caprese Salad to really show off that mozzarella.

Having made mozzarella once, I was itching to do it again and to try making mini mozzarella balls and marinating them.

Then I watched this month’s movie, Toscana.  Toscana is a Netflix movie that felt like a Netflix movie.  It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t fantastic either.  It was basically like those Lifetime or Hallmark romantic comedies that pop up at Christmas time.   You know the ones, an unlikely couple not looking for love falls in love with some self discovery on the side.

Anyhow, most of the movie takes place at a restaurant in Tuscany.  Our main man slowly learns that the key to this well-loved restaurant is fresh ingredients and infusing love and joy into cooking….awwww….

Which brings us back to the mozzarella because I am still really proud of myself for that one.  Now that I’ve been through a couple times, I’ve refined the process and I’m comfortable sharing the cheese recipe and a couple ways I used the mozzarella in Marinated Mozzarella Balls and Caprese Bites!

Marinated Mozzarella Balls

8 ounces freshly made mozzarella (recipe below)

1 tablespoon dried herbs (basil oregano, rosemary, crushed red pepper, garlic)

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Olive oil to coat

Stir together and marinate overnight.  Use within 1 week.

Use on pizza or make mini caprese skewers.  Use leftover herbed olive oil in any recipe that uses oil (I used mine in pizza dough!)

Homemade Mozzarella Cheese

Adapted from Justine Snacks & Serious Eats

1 gallon whole milk

1 ½ teaspoon citric acid diluted in 3 tablespoons water

¼ teaspoon rennet diluted in 2 tablespoons water

1 teaspoon salt

Pour the milk into a large pot.  Stir in the diluted citric acid.  Heat over medium-low heat to 90 degrees F.

Stir in the diluted rennet.  Stir for 15 seconds.  Keep on heat for another 2 minutes undisturbed, then move off heat and let the mixture rest for 15 minutes.

At the end of 15 minutes, the curds should have risen to the top, and the mixture should give slightly when pressed and be approximately the texture of gelatin.

Use a butter knife to cut the curd into 1-inch squares.  Line a colander set over a bowl with cheesecloth and pour the mixture through to separate the curds (solids) and whey (liquid).  Allow to drain for 5 minutes, then gently squeeze to remove the remaining whey.

Pour half the whey back into the pot and half into a bowl.  Heat the pot of whey to 180 degrees F.

Meanwhile, remove the curds from the cheese cloth and knead the teaspoon of salt into the curds, forming a rough ball that just barely sticks together.  

Divide the curds into 3-5 portions.

I like to place a flatten piece of curds (small pieces for mini balls, larger for a sliceable cheese) onto a slotted spoon to dip into the hot whey for about 10 seconds.  Remove onto a heat proof cutting work surface and knead 3-4 times, then return to the spoon and hot whey.  Repeat 3-4 times or until the cheese stretches and creates a smooth ball.

Once the cheese is formed, return to the bowl or room temperature whey.  Use right away or store, refrigerated, for 3 days before enjoying.