Learning to make goat cheese~Recipes anyone?

[savingdogs]

So I'm milking my goats for the first time and wanna learn to make cheese!

Freemotion suggests chevre, which Java says she bought store bought and it tasted like vomit.

After all this effort, I am hoping for something I will love, not vomit over.

Any great recipes or links for what has worked for you?

Feta recipes as well would be welcome. Or tips for Java and I about how to acquire a cheese making kit...................

 

[Javamama]

Yeah - we need the very basic, cheese for Dummies on the cheap, bare bones info.

 

[savingdogs]

Like where in the heck can I get cheese cloth....can I just use a sterilized dish towel or something?

I have mini goats, so each milking I'm not getting a heck of a lot. So I don't want my hard earned milk to become another one of my failed recipes.

I'm not the greatest cook.......

I've made things that look like cheese LOTS of times in the back of my fridge though.

I was hoping to do a little better!

 

[Farmfresh]

I actually found cheese cloth in the hardware store of all places. Our local Westlake's has a kitchen section in it. They also carry canning supplies, and new rubber seals for the pressure canner.

I have tried cheese a few times. Still learning.

The thing that most hold me back is no good source of fresh milk.

I did find a Hoegger's cheese press with all it's bits and bobs on eBay a while back at a very good price. I have only used it once though. Most of my cheeses so far have been mozzarella, soft cheeses, and yogurt cheese. The time I used the press I made a cheddar, but it went really funky somehow?

 

[ohiofarmgirl]

ok Cheese Chickens! gather round cuz i'm gonna break it down for you.

first go and order (or SD they probably have a brewing/winemaking/cheese shop in Portlandia; Java i have not found a store in columbus that sells it but Lehmans does its just too far for me to drive):

mesophilic culture
rennet (either liquid or tablets)
real cheese cloth

and i know that you hang on my every word that i post on my blog (HA) so look here for a list of suppliers and links to their sites:

http://adventuresinthegoodland.blogspot.com/2011/02/what-you-need-to-make-cheese-glorious.html


from any of the cheese places.

then go and squeeze your goat until you get about 1/2 a gallon of milk. bring it in the house. strain it into a big stainless steel pot.

mix in:

about 1/8 teaspoon mesophilic culture.
stir it with a stainless steel spoon.
then mix in 1/5 drop of liquid rennet*****
stir it with a stainless steel spoon.

cover the pot and let it sit there over nite.

the next morning it will look like the first picture in the blog post above.

line a colander with the REAL cheesecloth (not the crap from the grocery store) and set it over another big pot. spoon or carefully pour the whole shootin' match into the colander so the whey strains out.

you can use the whey now for lots of stuff.

cover it again and let it sit for oh.. about a day.

then its done! really! salt it, season it with herb, put it in whatever pan you want and voila! cheese!

and yes its really that easy. no muss, no fuss.

now get out there and order your cheese supplies and no it doenst taste like vomit!

hee hee hee hee



*****fiasco farms explains it this way:
Measure out 5 Tablespoons of water into a small cup. Add to the water 1 drop of liquid rennet and stir well. Now measure out 1 Tablespoon of the rennet dilution (this one Tablespoon contains 1/5 of a drop of rennet) and add it to the milk. Stir well.

 

[Javamama]

It's going to take a month to get a 1/2 gallon at the rate I'm going Thanks for a starting point and patience with the newbies!

 

[Farmfresh]

cover the pot and let it sit there over nite.

the next morning it will look like the first picture in the blog post above.

I think THIS is where I got in trouble with mine. I was in too big a hurry. My cheese just did not want to curd in two hours. :/

 

[savingdogs]

Thanks! I'm getting bookmark-happy these days......

 

[freemotion]

You can speed things up with temp control. And Java, if you save it up, you can re-warm it right in the jars in a sink of hot water (start with cool or you may break your jars. Ask me how I know....and I should've known better! )

Chevre is a very popular cheese so a lot of people must really like it! It is very mild and I am more of a sharp cheese person. And if I herb something, I want the flavor to still come through, so it is just too boring for me....it didn't have any bad flavors, though, certainly not vomit!

I'll see if I can find a link to my feta recipe. I copy/pasted it off the internet a while ago and that was before I got smart enough to include the link so I could share it later.

Eventually, you'll need more equipment if you get enough milk to get serious, but for now, chevre and feta will keep you busy! You could also try a whole milk ricotta. There is a recipe, I think, on www.cheesemaking.com.

 

[freemotion]

Found it: http://www.countrysidemag.com/issues/83/83-3/Mary_Jane_Toth.html

I do not pasteurize for any of these recipes.

I use the Traditional Greek Feta recipe in this article. It is amazing. I had more buttered popcorn with grated feta on it last night. Total yum! It is good on eggs, pasta, veggies (especially roasted veggies), casseroles, etc. I'm not a cheese-on-salad person, but I love my homemade feta!