Ricotta is a soft white Italian cheese. It is mild, wet, and a little grainy, not stretchy like mozzarella and not as sharp as many fresh cheeses. Makers heat the leftover watery part of milk (whey) a second time until soft curds rise — that is why the Italian name means 'cooked again'. Cooks use it in lasagne, stuffed pasta, and sweet things such as cannoli. In a shop it often sits near cottage cheese; they look a little alike, but they are not the same, and they do not cook the same way. The word stays Italian in English; we do not usually make a verb of it.