Home Made Cheese [General]
2012 Jul 15
Funny in the fall I offered a few 'homesteading' classes where we went out and milked the cow and made mozza. The people that came were a hoot!
Wish I could quit my day job and just homestead with a bit higher quality of life than the 1800's but I digress.
My cow is about to calf this week and it will take a week for her colostrum to pass. Then may I suggest a sat AM spent milking the cow and making mozza?
leeners.com had an excellent video on it, not sure where it went. some things to keep in mind, rennet is much better than junket. cultures can be had from glengarry cheese (web search). fresh milk does wonders. I can spot you some rennet for a batch if you are willing to drive out near Munster.
mozza is one of those things if you watch someone do it, it becomes sooooo much easier than trying yourself and having to toss it. you will want to make brie too as it is very easy. feta is easy too and makes me wonder how come it is so expensive in the store.
oh and for your mozza stickyness, did you nuke it or in a water bath? for me, the microwave is best and it has to be so hot you cannot hold it with bare hands.
krusty,
Wish I could quit my day job and just homestead with a bit higher quality of life than the 1800's but I digress.
My cow is about to calf this week and it will take a week for her colostrum to pass. Then may I suggest a sat AM spent milking the cow and making mozza?
leeners.com had an excellent video on it, not sure where it went. some things to keep in mind, rennet is much better than junket. cultures can be had from glengarry cheese (web search). fresh milk does wonders. I can spot you some rennet for a batch if you are willing to drive out near Munster.
mozza is one of those things if you watch someone do it, it becomes sooooo much easier than trying yourself and having to toss it. you will want to make brie too as it is very easy. feta is easy too and makes me wonder how come it is so expensive in the store.
oh and for your mozza stickyness, did you nuke it or in a water bath? for me, the microwave is best and it has to be so hot you cannot hold it with bare hands.
krusty,
2012 Jul 15
"mozza is one of those things if you watch someone do it, it becomes sooooo much easier than trying yourself and having to toss it. you will want to make brie too as it is very easy. feta is easy too and makes me wonder how come it is so expensive in the store."
My instinct is to say supply management, but I don't know how much either of those cheeses costs in the States. Balls of mozzarella and packages of feta can both be bought for under a dollar in most UK and European stores. Cheese (decent cheese) was the only food I could reliably afford as a student in London. With dual incomes in Ottawa mozzarella balls are usually out of the question.
My instinct is to say supply management, but I don't know how much either of those cheeses costs in the States. Balls of mozzarella and packages of feta can both be bought for under a dollar in most UK and European stores. Cheese (decent cheese) was the only food I could reliably afford as a student in London. With dual incomes in Ottawa mozzarella balls are usually out of the question.
2012 Jul 15
Krusty,
if that's an honest invitation, I'll take it! Mind if I bring along the girlfriend and son (2yrs old)? He'd love the animals, and I'd love the company for the long drive! How far is Munster in relation to Smiths Falls? (and yes im going to google it... lol ;) )
Brian- If I were to live in London, I'd surely be in heaven! Cheese has always been something I truly love, but can never afford to buy quality... cracker barrel just doesn't cut it anymore...
If I can successfully make a few simple cheeses, I've got plans for a simple home cheese press, and am considering getting a spare fridge for a cheese cave... All to satisfy a regular craving.... isn't life grand?
if that's an honest invitation, I'll take it! Mind if I bring along the girlfriend and son (2yrs old)? He'd love the animals, and I'd love the company for the long drive! How far is Munster in relation to Smiths Falls? (and yes im going to google it... lol ;) )
Brian- If I were to live in London, I'd surely be in heaven! Cheese has always been something I truly love, but can never afford to buy quality... cracker barrel just doesn't cut it anymore...
If I can successfully make a few simple cheeses, I've got plans for a simple home cheese press, and am considering getting a spare fridge for a cheese cave... All to satisfy a regular craving.... isn't life grand?
2012 Jul 16
You are funny Smoker Guy! You could take a tractor home if needed.
Salami should be ready for samples in 3 weeks, and of course we could smoke some fresh mozza too. Ppl tell me all it needs is 30 mins for really good flavor.
I have used store milk when I started and the more I read, the more I learned that fresh milk is the way to go. Begged and pleaded with some dairy farmers for raw milk and you can image how that ended up.....bought me a Jersey cow ;)
Salami should be ready for samples in 3 weeks, and of course we could smoke some fresh mozza too. Ppl tell me all it needs is 30 mins for really good flavor.
I have used store milk when I started and the more I read, the more I learned that fresh milk is the way to go. Begged and pleaded with some dairy farmers for raw milk and you can image how that ended up.....bought me a Jersey cow ;)
2012 Jul 18
No need for a candy thermometer. I use my cheap digital pen thermometer from my Independent Grocer :)
www.leeners.com
is the recipe I use and same method. The tricks are to know when it had formed up and more importantly when it is hot enough to stretch and be done.
www.leeners.com
is the recipe I use and same method. The tricks are to know when it had formed up and more importantly when it is hot enough to stretch and be done.
2012 Jul 19
Was in the store and saw a Selection candy themometer in the clearance section of all kinds of kitchen tools and pyrex and it was only $2.50 so bought it.
I do not have a digital food thermometer, only one for human and not sure I want to mix it even with disinfectant. I only use a digital thermometer when am feeling under the weather.
I do not have a digital food thermometer, only one for human and not sure I want to mix it even with disinfectant. I only use a digital thermometer when am feeling under the weather.
2012 Jul 22
I agree that watching to learn mozzarella making is the best way to go. I also took a class with a cheesemaker friend of mine and it made all the difference! I also followed the method posted here when I forgot details about the process: thecanadianfamilycow.proboards.com
If you can take a class with Krusty, go for it. Seeing is sometimes the best way to learn something.
I also agree that a good thermometer is very important, and I found that a candy thermometer didn't have the precise range I needed. I bought a simple metal cheese thermometer from, uh,,, I can't recall which cheese place it was. Glengarry or New England Cheese maybe? It was a while back, sorry!
Other things to note: store bought milk might need Calcium Carbonate, really hot water can be needed for a good stretch, and for a uniform saltiness salt your stretch water rather than brining the balls after.
If you can make mozz, you can also make bocconcini, and cheese strings! I sometimes make smaller mozzarella balls for the kids to have. In the picture is the slab before I made the mozz and some of the cheese strings I made for the kids lunches.
Be warned, once you have homemade, you'll never go back to store bought!
If you can take a class with Krusty, go for it. Seeing is sometimes the best way to learn something.
I also agree that a good thermometer is very important, and I found that a candy thermometer didn't have the precise range I needed. I bought a simple metal cheese thermometer from, uh,,, I can't recall which cheese place it was. Glengarry or New England Cheese maybe? It was a while back, sorry!
Other things to note: store bought milk might need Calcium Carbonate, really hot water can be needed for a good stretch, and for a uniform saltiness salt your stretch water rather than brining the balls after.
If you can make mozz, you can also make bocconcini, and cheese strings! I sometimes make smaller mozzarella balls for the kids to have. In the picture is the slab before I made the mozz and some of the cheese strings I made for the kids lunches.
Be warned, once you have homemade, you'll never go back to store bought!
2012 Jul 23
I have had some amazing success at making a form of cream cheese.... suuuper yummy, and I found a great way to flavour it too....
1 tub of all natural full fat plain yoghurt
flavouring of your choice
cheese cloth
Triple layer the cheese cloth to keep the yoghurt in
mix in flavouring (i chose fresh strawberries and raspberries for one, pureed garlic and chopped chives for another, and a bunch of herbs for a cooking cream cheese) into the tub of yoghurt
place cheese cloth on a strainer, and pour in the yoghurt. tie into a bundle, making sure the yoghurt doesn't spill.
Hang at room temperature for about 8 hrs with a bowl underneath to catch the dripping whey, then transfer to the fridge and let drip overnight.
In the morning, enjoy your fresh and tasty home made cream cheese! Makes about a full size container of flavoured store bought cream cheese... and there's no sugar, salt or any other additives!
1 tub of all natural full fat plain yoghurt
flavouring of your choice
cheese cloth
Triple layer the cheese cloth to keep the yoghurt in
mix in flavouring (i chose fresh strawberries and raspberries for one, pureed garlic and chopped chives for another, and a bunch of herbs for a cooking cream cheese) into the tub of yoghurt
place cheese cloth on a strainer, and pour in the yoghurt. tie into a bundle, making sure the yoghurt doesn't spill.
Hang at room temperature for about 8 hrs with a bowl underneath to catch the dripping whey, then transfer to the fridge and let drip overnight.
In the morning, enjoy your fresh and tasty home made cream cheese! Makes about a full size container of flavoured store bought cream cheese... and there's no sugar, salt or any other additives!
2012 Jul 23
Well, Captain Caper it's been my experience that my mozz from skim milk is harder, doesn't brown as well, as isn't as stretchy melted on pizza. The full fat mozz is excellent! I only make skim milk mozz if I'm really low on milk.
In the picture, you can see one quarter of the pizza has nicely browned cheese, and the other three quarters the cheese still looks white. The browned part was the last of my full fat mozz, and the rest of the pizza was skim milk mozz.
I've also noticed that making mozz with the milk from my Dexter cow is easier than milk from my Jersey. Seems like our Jersey milk just WANTS to be butter. Look at it the wrong way, and boom - you've got butter. With cheese making, I have to be very carefully with the Jersey milk or I loose fat, and get a not-as-nice cheese.
I've been told that how you handle the curds and a host of other things will effect that final outcome as well. I'm still a novice at cheese making, so I'm just happy to have tasty homemade mozzarella that my kids love on our homemade pizza every Saturday night!
Congrats on the bull calf, Krusty! ;-)
In the picture, you can see one quarter of the pizza has nicely browned cheese, and the other three quarters the cheese still looks white. The browned part was the last of my full fat mozz, and the rest of the pizza was skim milk mozz.
I've also noticed that making mozz with the milk from my Dexter cow is easier than milk from my Jersey. Seems like our Jersey milk just WANTS to be butter. Look at it the wrong way, and boom - you've got butter. With cheese making, I have to be very carefully with the Jersey milk or I loose fat, and get a not-as-nice cheese.
I've been told that how you handle the curds and a host of other things will effect that final outcome as well. I'm still a novice at cheese making, so I'm just happy to have tasty homemade mozzarella that my kids love on our homemade pizza every Saturday night!
Congrats on the bull calf, Krusty! ;-)
2012 Jul 24
Tastes almost like cream cheese, except it has a little more bite, just a little... same consistency, better spreadability. I love it... and I'm not going to be buying any more storebought... I was thinking of trying it out in an actual cheesecake recipe, just to see how far I can push it...
2012 Jul 24
Nukem, Just noticed in your first post you mentioned Citric Acid. You should be able to make mozzarella without Citric acid, and it's best to do so. Citric acid can create a false level of acidity when the wrong kind of bacteria is present.
If you make the mozz without Citric acid, and it doesn't stretch, it's probably because something else has colonized your milk, and the acidity isn't right. With citric acid, you can get the right amount of acidity in spite of bad bacteria and get contaminated stretchy cheese.
Just something to think about.
If you make the mozz without Citric acid, and it doesn't stretch, it's probably because something else has colonized your milk, and the acidity isn't right. With citric acid, you can get the right amount of acidity in spite of bad bacteria and get contaminated stretchy cheese.
Just something to think about.
2012 Jul 24
Nukem - that's called yogurt cheese. I've been making it for years. Use it in recipes as a substitute for sour cream, not cream cheese. Great in sour cream coffee cake recipes and in dips. I love it with garlic, parmesan & artichoke hearts chopped up. Also cream cheese lasts a lot longer and had a much thicker structure, so don't use it in place of cream cheese in frosting or similar.
Edit - just adding, that when I make it, I use a fine mesh strainer and store it in a mason jar. Super easy and then you don't have to worry about all that cheese cloth.
Edit - just adding, that when I make it, I use a fine mesh strainer and store it in a mason jar. Super easy and then you don't have to worry about all that cheese cloth.
Nukem
any tips from other foodies out there? I'm planning on trying again until I get it right at the end of the month (payday, cant afford to waste money on several bags of milk right now) I'm using Junket tablets for rennet... not the best option i know, but it's all i could get a hold of on short notice... If anyone knows of a local source of liquid rennet, I'd be much obliged. Citric acid i got at rainbow foods on richmond... 5$ for 500grams.... not too bad...
and lastly... in order to make feta and other softer cheeses, I need to find "mesophilic cultures"... any ideas? looked around in rainbow and nicastros, and nothing...