Did you know you could make your own ricotta cheese? It takes only milk and buttermilk, nothing that's difficult to find. Here's a recipe for it on DC Foodies. If you don't feel up to making your own, Organic Valley Farms has a great page about ricotta and what goes into producing their organic cheese. Their foods are available at my local grocery store and probably at yours too.
1/2 cup broccoli florets
2 cups ricotta cheese
1/2 small red bell pepper, very finely chopped
1 small carrot, very finely grated
4 slices whole-wheat bread, crusts removed
Bring 1 inch water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add broccoli. Cover; let steam until soft. Drain. Let cool; finely chop.
Stir together ricotta, broccoli, bell pepper, and carrot in a medium bowl. Spread 1/4 cup ricotta mixture onto 1 slice of bread. Top with second slice. Cut into quarters. Leftover spread can be refrigerated in an airtight container up to 4 days.
