Can I Use Ricotta Instead Of Mascarpone For The Figs For A Thousand And One Nights?

Our answer

Nigella's Figs For A Thousand And One Nights (from NIGELLA SUMMER) are figs that are grilled or broiled with a vanilla and orange blossom syrup. This helps to bring out the honeyed sweetness of the figs, particularly supermarket specimens.

The figs are served with a spoonful of mascarpone that is drizzled with the syrup and topped with chopped pistachios. Mascarpone is a high fat content Italian cream cheese that is smooth and rich with a slightly sweet flavour. Ricotta is made from whey - the liquid left over from cheesemaking - hence the name means "recooked". Ricotta is much lower in fat and as it is made by heating the whey and adding an acid to form the cheese curds. Ricotta has a more savoury flavour and a slightly grainy texture. Mascarpone would be our preferred option because of the richness, but if you only have ricotta then you could use it as an alternative. However, use a whole milk ricotta and not a non-fat version and also make sure it is not the dry and crumbly ricotta salata.