The Cheese Thread

[keezawitch]

Nice one! Was it the recipe out of the Home Cheesemaking Book by Ricki Carroll? I'm getting 10L of whole goats milk next week and I'm keen to try that recipe. I just made a farmhouse cheddar on the weekend, about to wax it tomorrow...

No I still had problem working out how much culture, although I greatly appreciated the conversion.
The one I used I got off www.allotment.org.uk/allotment_foods/cheese-making/ .
The article is "Making Cheese - Cheddar Cheese by Katie Thear."

There is a whole printable section on cheesemaking and It is in very plan english for dummy me. She gives both types of measurements and I added 1.25ml of Calcium Chloride to increase my yeild.

I used 5 ltres of goat milk and ended up with a 600gram cheese.

Good luck with yours, The goat milk makes a lovely white cheese.

 

[keezawitch]

I recon a bulk buy on cheese making gear would get a big response on here. I know id be interestrd

Baskets bulk buy would be great, hard to find them in nsw so I sent to your end of the country for some for my gbjenet and really should have got more.

 

[keezawitch]

Good.

Getting very interested in adding cheesemaking to my list of things.

Last year I made my own fettucine to accompany a carbonara made with my own pancetta, eggs from a relative's backyard and homemade parsley (cream, garlic and parmesan bought). The more ingredients I can contribute either locally or from my own hands, the happier I am with the results.

So - next winter - cheese and salami.

Yum, definately give cheesemaking a go, I have a ball just throwing in different herbs for flavour in the soft variety and i also make a nice alcoholic dried fruit one, cant eat it and drive though When we kill peppa pig or her babies I want to have a go at curing the meat too. Thinking of homemade cheese, home cured pancetta and home grown figs. All in the nearish future I hope

 

[benno1973]

No I still had problem working out how much culture, although I greatly appreciated the conversion.

I tend to ignore her culture amounts and just use the amount specified on the packet. I think it said 1/4tsp per gallon of milk or something like that. It has always worked so far, so I guess I'll continue with that.

Thanks for the link to the cheddar cheese recipe, I'll check it out. I also want to make a soft goats cheese and mould ripen it.

We had home made haloumi, home made pancetta and home brown figs the other day, allstacked and grilled til the fig was caramelised and the haloumi browned up. Tasted great, but there's definitely something extra from having done it yourself...

 

[keezawitch]

I tend to ignore her culture amounts and just use the amount specified on the packet. I think it said 1/4tsp per gallon of milk or something like that. It has always worked so far, so I guess I'll continue with that.

Thanks for the link to the cheddar cheese recipe, I'll check it out. I also want to make a soft goats cheese and mould ripen it.

We had home made haloumi, home made pancetta and home brown figs the other day, allstacked and grilled til the fig was caramelised and the haloumi browned up. Tasted great, but there's definitely something extra from having done it yourself...

drooling here, was the haloumi hard to make?, I am trying to be patient and wait for dads dark figs to ripen, rain is causing havic with that. I have been concentrating on quick cheeses as I am often time poor, as I am the only driver for daughter in law I often get called in the middle of things, Have you made Quark, i am in love with it so versitial. I use the soft cheese recipe in cheesemaking cookbook and it works well with the flavoured cheese i make. I am thinking of a camb cheese also, better get myself another nanny in milk. Oh give gbjenet(small maltese cheeses) a go if you can get goatmilk they are great freshly made and as they age they harden and are like parm.

 

[benno1973]

Haloumi was easy to make, similar to feta but you need to slowly ramp the temperature up, and then cook the curds after pressing. And it turns out squeaky like haloumi should be!

Yes, quick cheeses are good for me as well. I'm either having to make it with my 2yo around (wanting attention just when the milk needs a bit of attention), or at night after the kids are in bed. It doesn't require a lot of effort, but you do need to be constantly 'around' to monitor it! A bit like brewing I guess...

I would love to try making gbjenet - I can't seem to find a recipe quickly. Do you have one that you could post up?

 

[keezawitch]

Haloumi was easy to make, similar to feta but you need to slowly ramp the temperature up, and then cook the curds after pressing. And it turns out squeaky like haloumi should be!

Yes, quick cheeses are good for me as well. I'm either having to make it with my 2yo around (wanting attention just when the milk needs a bit of attention), or at night after the kids are in bed. It doesn't require a lot of effort, but you do need to be constantly 'around' to monitor it! A bit like brewing I guess...

I would love to try making gbjenet - I can't seem to find a recipe quickly. Do you have one that you could post up?

gbejnet(maltese cheese)

Nice and simple

3 litres goat milk unpasturised if possible)
150ml live yoghurt (i use greek style)
1/2 ml liquid rennet

100g salt for brine (I like sea salt)

Mix the milk and yoghurt, slowly warm to 40 degree celsius, take off heat and keep warm for about 45min.

Mix rennet with a bit of cooled boiled water add to milk gently mix it in, leave for another 45min keeping warm or until you get a clean break.Cut the curds let sit 30min pour off whey and carefully spoon whey into moulds, (I use little baskets I got from cheeselinks and a cheesecloth lined rectangle shape basket) drain for 12 hrs. If you use baskets with nice pattern in bottom after a few hrs gently turn the cheese onto your hand and gently turn over and put back in mould. After 12 hrs you are ready to brine. Mix salt with 1 ltre of water cut rectangle mould into smaller peices or just take out of little baskets, pop them in brine leave for 1 hr drain refrigerate and enjoy. You can roll them in fresh herbs or cracked pepper at this stage if you like.

Simple recipe but must be a true to type one as my maltese friends are now lining up for some.

Good Luck.

Have you made Quark? If not I can give you a recipe for it too,

 

[keezawitch]

Meant to ask how do you cook curds after pressing?

 

[benno1973]

Thanks for that, the gbejnet recipe looks great. If you want to dry into a hard parmesan like grating cheese, do you just air dry them for a couple of days ebfore aging them like parmesan?

I've never made quark, in fact I only ate it for the first time last week. Delicious!

With the haloumi, after you've pressed the curds you cut them into large chunks. Then bring the whey to about 85C and drop the curds into the whey for an hour. When they're cooked, they float to the top. I assume that the long cooking time gives the squeaky taste.

 

[keezawitch]

Thanks for that, the gbejnet recipe looks great. If you want to dry into a hard parmesan like grating cheese, do you just air dry them for a couple of days ebfore aging them like parmesan?

I've never made quark, in fact I only ate it for the first time last week. Delicious!

With the haloumi, after you've pressed the curds you cut them into large chunks. Then bring the whey to about 85C and drop the curds into the whey for an hour. When they're cooked, they float to the top. I assume that the long cooking time gives the squeaky taste.

No need to air dry, just leave in fridge, I have mine in a tupperware thingy that has a tray in it so cheese off bottom and 2 covers one has holes in it and the other is clear plastic, if you want to dry it leave with the holey one for a few days in fridge to get a rind then leave with both covers on it just hardens with time in fridge. Quark soooo easy, i will post the recipe later, to lazy to get up and find it, but i must stress the buttermilk has to be as fresh as you can get, it is made from 2 ingredients, goats milk and buttermilk.

When I make the haloumi I will have to remember to save the whey then and not toss it into an imal food straight away, I made a Neuf yesterday, just have to find more people to eat the cheese i am making.

 

[benno1973]

Speaking of saving whey, I've just been looking into what to do with it. I hate giving 6L of whey to the chickens, it seems like such a waste. A litre or so is fine, but there's so much whey left over that it seems criminal to waste it. I made bread with it the other day, and I hear that it's a great starter for fermented foods (like kimchi) as it has all the lacto already there. Other uses that I haven't tried are...

• stock replacement for soups/sauces etc
• base liquid for a marinade
• add KoolAid or some sort of powdered cordial and it makes a refreshing drink for the kids
• shampoo ?!!!

What do others do with it?

 

[keezawitch]

Speaking of saving whey, I've just been looking into what to do with it. I hate giving 6L of whey to the chickens, it seems like such a waste. A litre or so is fine, but there's so much whey left over that it seems criminal to waste it. I made bread with it the other day, and I hear that it's a great starter for fermented foods (like kimchi) as it has all the lacto already there. Other uses that I haven't tried are...

• stock replacement for soups/sauces etc
• base liquid for a marinade
• add KoolAid or some sort of powdered cordial and it makes a refreshing drink for the kids
• shampoo ?!!!

What do others do with it?

well bugger me didnt think it could be used for anything but animals, could you give me the bread recipe please, I will have to have a look see what else to use it in.

 

[Airgead]

Speaking of saving whey, I've just been looking into what to do with it. I hate giving 6L of whey to the chickens, it seems like such a waste. A litre or so is fine, but there's so much whey left over that it seems criminal to waste it. I made bread with it the other day, and I hear that it's a great starter for fermented foods (like kimchi) as it has all the lacto already there. Other uses that I haven't tried are...

• stock replacement for soups/sauces etc
• base liquid for a marinade
• add KoolAid or some sort of powdered cordial and it makes a refreshing drink for the kids
• shampoo ?!!!

What do others do with it?

Its used a a starter for anything lacto fermented. i have seen recipes for naturally fermented ketchup and also mustards using it.

Cheers
Dave

Edit: Oh yes.. and if you believe the hippies it cures everything from dandruff to cancer. If you use apple cider vinegar as well you will be practically immortal.

 

[keezawitch]

Its used a a starter for anything lacto fermented. i have seen recipes for naturally fermented ketchup and also mustards using it.

Cheers
Dave

Edit: Oh yes.. and if you believe the hippies it cures everything from dandruff to cancer. If you use apple cider vinegar as well you will be practically immortal.

cool man :lol: must try it, i think they think if tastes bad its gotta be good for you, apple cider vinegar yuk

 

[benno1973]

I use apple cider vinegar to wash my hair, along with bicarb, so count me in with the hippies!

I imagine that you could use the whey to ferment salamis before stuffing them into the casings, hanging and drying, but I can't seem to see a reference to it on the web. You can use a tablespoon of yoghurt, so I think a bit of whey would do the same thing.

The bread recipe is pretty basic. We have a very basic bread recipe as we used to cater bread for a milk-protein allergic kid and we were on a health kick ourselves, so we wanted it as basic as possible - no milk, minimal salt/sugar/oil and something we could repeat easily week in week out when time was short. The final recipe after a bit of trial and error was...

515g water (can vary depending on the type/brand of flour you use)
900g flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp vege oil
2tsp salt
2 tsp yeast

Throw this all in the Kenwood Chef and mix with the dough hook for about 15 minutes. Leave to rise until it's doubled in size, then punch down, re-knead, halve (this makes 2 loaves) and put in loaf tins to rise again. We bake in a 200C over for 23 minutes.

My whey version just substituted the water component for whey, and it was delicious. I've also been playing around with adding the fruit/vege pulp from our juicer to add a bit more fiber. It's tasty, but requires a bit more flour as the pulp obviously still holds a bit of liquid.

On the downside, my daughter refuses to eat the bread, and prefers the Coles $1 loaves chock full of preservatives, salt, sugar and fat...

 

[keezawitch]

I use apple cider vinegar to wash my hair, along with bicarb, so count me in with the hippies!

I imagine that you could use the whey to ferment salamis before stuffing them into the casings, hanging and drying, but I can't seem to see a reference to it on the web. You can use a tablespoon of yoghurt, so I think a bit of whey would do the same thing.

The bread recipe is pretty basic. We have a very basic bread recipe as we used to cater bread for a milk-protein allergic kid and we were on a health kick ourselves, so we wanted it as basic as possible - no milk, minimal salt/sugar/oil and something we could repeat easily week in week out when time was short. The final recipe after a bit of trial and error was...

515g water (can vary depending on the type/brand of flour you use)
900g flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp vege oil
2tsp salt
2 tsp yeast

Throw this all in the Kenwood Chef and mix with the dough hook for about 15 minutes. Leave to rise until it's doubled in size, then punch down, re-knead, halve (this makes 2 loaves) and put in loaf tins to rise again. We bake in a 200C over for 23 minutes.

My whey version just substituted the water component for whey, and it was delicious. I've also been playing around with adding the fruit/vege pulp from our juicer to add a bit more fiber. It's tasty, but requires a bit more flour as the pulp obviously still holds a bit of liquid.

On the downside, my daughter refuses to eat the bread, and prefers the Coles $1 loaves chock full of preservatives, salt, sugar and fat...

Good for you using it in your hair, it does give it a nice shine, to be honest I am a bit of a hippy too, love natural ingred, colorful clothes, and hair :blink: , my thoughts are if your not hurting anyone why not enjoy life.

Thanks for the recipe i will throw it in the bread machine, not such a hippy that i wont use mod cons , next time i make cheese. Typical kid, 2 of mine are the same and they are 26 and 28 at least the oldest is happy to try homemade stuff and he also gets in and helps, he plans to help me make cured meats when we kill peppa pig or her babies not sure yet if we are going to use her to breed or just eat her. So we can use the whey in salami i hope.

 

[benno1973]

Yep, this thread shows that whey can be used in salami ferments, as well as sourdough starter, kefir, yoghurt, etc. Keep in mind that the culture affects the final taste, and the commercial starters are designed to reproduce commercial salami flavours (although are very expensive).

Anyway, back to cheese making...

 

[keezawitch]

Yep, this thread shows that whey can be used in salami ferments, as well as sourdough starter, kefir, yoghurt, etc. Keep in mind that the culture affects the final taste, and the commercial starters are designed to reproduce commercial salami flavours (although are very expensive).

Anyway, back to cheese making...

talking about cheese, I made a neuf yesterday, dont think i put enough salt in, bit bland, soooo I have poped it in a nice seasalt brine, better get it out.

Oh and here is the quark recipe,

3 litres goat milk pasturised
100ml cream
4 tablespoons fresh buttermilk, I put more in depends on how long i have had buttermilk fresher the better

heat milk and cream to 31 degree celsius, add the buttermilk, mix well, leave at room temp(warmish) for 24 hrs, should have thickened, I then drain it through cheesecloth for about 12 hrs buy then it is nice and thick, put in container and refridgerate. p.s. if day very hot drain in fridge .

Enjoy
keeza

 

[keezawitch]

made a quick farmhouse cheddar yesterday, it seems a bit crumbly, will see what it is like in a month or so and compare to the other cheddar using different recipe i already have aging.

 

[benno1973]

Mine was nice and firm, although I used cows milk which I assume can make a bit of a difference. Still, I remember reading something about it being a bit more crumbly than the regular stuff. It'll be interesting to see how it compares, let us know!

Went and got my 10L of goats milk yesterday. They were being milked as I arrived and the kids even got to have a go at milking them, which they were excited about (city kids). Also managed to take home some feta, baked ricotta, camembert and blue cheese that she makes. Delicious!