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That's great, PredFan! I've just jarred up almost a gallon of premo yogurt and have a batch of feta processing. I've got several requests for feta, so it's a good time to whip up a batch. Tuesday I'm going to start a Swiss cheese and see how it goes.
You will find that your patience pays off and will greatly enjoy the fruits of your labors.
Feta is probably the only cheese I don't care for. It is too bitter for my tastes, however I will eventually make it because my wife likes it.
Ok so I've had my first two fails, and one success.
I decided to make my own recipe for a cheese. Basically it's a Farmhouse Cheddar but I wanted to increase the fat content because fat=flavor. To the recipe I added a half a cup of heavy cream. Well apparently when the fat level is that high, it won't make curds. Fortunately, all it cost me was the price of a gallon of milk.
The second fail was one of my buttermilk cheeses. I apparently didn't let it dry out enough before I waxed it and unbeknownst to me, it was molding inside if the wax. Yuck!
However, the good news is that I opened the first Farmhouse Cheddar I made and it was delish!
Ok so I've had my first two fails, and one success.
I decided to make my own recipe for a cheese. Basically it's a Farmhouse Cheddar but I wanted to increase the fat content because fat=flavor. To the recipe I added a half a cup of heavy cream. Well apparently when the fat level is that high, it won't make curds. Fortunately, all it cost me was the price of a gallon of milk.
The second fail was one of my buttermilk cheeses. I apparently didn't let it dry out enough before I waxed it and unbeknownst to me, it was molding inside if the wax. Yuck!
However, the good news is that I opened the first Farmhouse Cheddar I made and it was delish!
Blue, green, and some red molds actually make good cheese. If you get black or slimy brown mold, the cheese is done, though.
Very cool!
Congratulations on the successful batch of cheese. What are you going to make next?
Mozzarella! A wheel for grating, and some mozzarella balls!
Very cool!
Congratulations on the successful batch of cheese. What are you going to make next?
Mozzarella! A wheel for grating, and some mozzarella balls!
Mozzi is also pretty easy to make.
Mozzarella! A wheel for grating, and some mozzarella balls!
Mozzi is also pretty easy to make.
Yeah, and it doesn't have to age.
I'm doing the italian cheeses at the moment because I have a lot of thermophilic starter and lipase powder. I'm going to move to the french cheeses next.
I've been making feta lately. I have a couple of people who want some for the holidays. I found a recipe for beer cheese soup recently, too. It calls for two cups of red cheddar and two cups of white. Well, I don't add annato to my cheese, so all I have is white. That's the only alteration I'll be making, using all white cheddar. I'm looking forward to trying this cheesy dish.
Mozzi is also pretty easy to make.
Yeah, and it doesn't have to age.
I'm doing the italian cheeses at the moment because I have a lot of thermophilic starter and lipase powder. I'm going to move to the french cheeses next.
I have everything I need to make brie, I just haven't worked up the courage. It starts out pretty firm, like the cheddars, but as it ages it gets runny inside the mold coating. You have to tend to it pretty closely.
I've been making feta lately. I have a couple of people who want some for the holidays. I found a recipe for beer cheese soup recently, too. It calls for two cups of red cheddar and two cups of white. Well, I don't add annato to my cheese, so all I have is white. That's the only alteration I'll be making, using all white cheddar. I'm looking forward to trying this cheesy dish.
Saw a recipe for beer cheese the other day where beer is added to the recipe. The photo showed a cheese that had stout added. It made a beautiful marble look.
I've been making feta lately. I have a couple of people who want some for the holidays. I found a recipe for beer cheese soup recently, too. It calls for two cups of red cheddar and two cups of white. Well, I don't add annato to my cheese, so all I have is white. That's the only alteration I'll be making, using all white cheddar. I'm looking forward to trying this cheesy dish.
Saw a recipe for beer cheese the other day where beer is added to the recipe. The photo showed a cheese that had stout added. It made a beautiful marble look.
I've seen stuff like that. I'm not ready for that kind of combo. I have been making brunost (gjetost or mysost, depending on whether you use goat or cow milk). It's actually a whey cheese and I hate wasting all that whey. I'm thinking that after I get established in my other place I'll have a few pigs to feed the whey to. That makes some tasty pork.
Why does Italian Cheeses have to be so COMPLICATED!
Why does Italian Cheeses have to be so COMPLICATED!
OK, I'll bite. What's up with your Parmesan? That's what you've been making, isn't it?
I finally got my feta recipe down and have been making very uniform cheese, batch after batch. My mozzarella is almost to that point, too. Broached a cheddar from last year for the end-of-semester potlatch and everyone loved it!
Why does Italian Cheeses have to be so COMPLICATED!
OK, I'll bite. What's up with your Parmesan? That's what you've been making, isn't it?
I finally got my feta recipe down and have been making very uniform cheese, batch after batch. My mozzarella is almost to that point, too. Broached a cheddar from last year for the end-of-semester potlatch and everyone loved it!
No, the parmesan is great, but the mozzarella was a disaster and looking at the provalone, it's a major chore.
OK, I'll bite. What's up with your Parmesan? That's what you've been making, isn't it?
I finally got my feta recipe down and have been making very uniform cheese, batch after batch. My mozzarella is almost to that point, too. Broached a cheddar from last year for the end-of-semester potlatch and everyone loved it!
No, the parmesan is great, but the mozzarella was a disaster and looking at the provalone, it's a major chore.
What happened with the mozzi? I haven't tried either parmesan or provalone because I don't have the time, but what's up with the mozzi?
No, the parmesan is great, but the mozzarella was a disaster and looking at the provalone, it's a major chore.
What happened with the mozzi? I haven't tried either parmesan or provalone because I don't have the time, but what's up with the mozzi?
You have to "work the curds into a ball while keeping the temperature at 170 degrees. It is supposed to develop a shiny surface. I worked it and worked it, looking for a shiny surface, then it deteriorated into mush.
I won't try mozarella again because the instructions said that it could be kept in the fridge for "up to a week". That isn't even worth the effort really. Moving on to provalone, if I can figure out the instructions.
How do you maintain the pressure? Is it supposed to be under a 50 pound weight or pressed at 50 psi?This picture is of my press that I made. Right now, though you can't see it, there is a 2 pound block of Farmhouse Cheddar in that press under 50 pounds of pressure and will stay that way until morning:
Easiest solution...buy a wine cooler.Good. This is what I had planned. I have a frige in the garage that has been keeping beer and colas in it. I'll move those to the house and use that one for cheese. If the temp will go up to 55.
My cheese "cabinet" stays at around 50-52F. A little low but it just means a longer ripening time for most cheeses. Where temp is really critical is when you start making moldy cheeses, like Brie or bleu.
Apparently the highest I can get my fridge to go is 44 degrees. Unless I can figure something else out, it will take eons for my cheese to cure.
How do you maintain the pressure? Is it supposed to be under a 50 pound weight or pressed at 50 psi?This picture is of my press that I made. Right now, though you can't see it, there is a 2 pound block of Farmhouse Cheddar in that press under 50 pounds of pressure and will stay that way until morning:
Easiest solution...buy a wine cooler.My cheese "cabinet" stays at around 50-52F. A little low but it just means a longer ripening time for most cheeses. Where temp is really critical is when you start making moldy cheeses, like Brie or bleu.
Apparently the highest I can get my fridge to go is 44 degrees. Unless I can figure something else out, it will take eons for my cheese to cure.
Allavino KWT-18SS Thermoelectric 18 Bottle Wine Refrigerator with Stainless Steel Trim Door | BeverageFactory.com
This thermoelectric wine cooler is designed for maximum cooling of 26 degrees Fahrenheit below ambient temperature. When the ambient temperature is around 77 degrees Fahrenheit (25 degrees Celsius) or less, the unit can maintain a temperature range of 51-64 degrees Fahrenheit (11-18 degrees Celsius).
Hardest solution....design and build a cheese cellar...depth below grade depending on where you are.
Ground Temperatures as a Function of Location, Season, and Depth
I would go with the wine cooler!
