For the last month, I have been busy trying to find new and interesting ways to use my new Nutricook Smart Pot 2. My 12-year-old daughter even gave it a try making spaghetti with it. The result was a huge success and everyone loved it.

I challenged myself to find a recipe that many people would never think of using the Smart Pot for. Ricotta cheese! Ricotta is so versatile - I use it in quiche, lasagna, or just as a spread on fresh bread. To be honest, I was a little doubtful that this would work out and I definitely didn't expect it to be this quick and easy. The whole process took less than 30 mins from start to finish!

All you need (besides the Smart Pot) is:

- 8 cups of milk

- 1/3 cup of lemon juice (about 1-2 lemons)

This will make approx 250 grams of cheese.

To make the ricotta:

1. Pour 8 cups of milk directly into the Smart Pot. Press the 'yogurt' option and make sure it is set to boil. Put a standard lid on top of the pot. Any lid that fits will do, just don't put the Smart Pot's sealed lid on there as you need the condensation to evaporate.

Press start and let it do its thing until it automatically turns off.

2. Once the Smart Pot has finished boiling the milk, take the pot out and put it on a trivet. Pour in the lemon juice and stir gently. The milk will start to curdle. Once you see it start the process leave it to stand for 5 minutes.

3. Get a muslin (or cheese) cloth and please it over a sieve. Pour the milk into the sieve slowly. The water (or whey) will go through the cloth and separate. The whey is extremely healthy so put it in the fridge to drink later or leave it to cool down and water the plants with it.

4. Depending on how dry you want the cheese depends on how long you leave it. The longer you leave it, the dryer it will become. I will normally transfer it into a bowl after it stops dripping.

5. The result is your ricotta cheese - mix it with some salt and it's ready to eat! Enjoy!

I made this using the Nutricook Smart Pot 2, but you could also create this using the original Nutricook Smart Pot.

You can find the Smart Pot in the following online stores along with extra discount codes that can all be found on this website:

- Mumzworld

- Carrefour

- First Cry