Intermediate Cheesemaking: Beyond chevre

[RockyToggRanch]

Check out this site for a curd recipe.

cheesemaking.com sorry, don't know how to post a link.

This is also where I purchased my moulds.
They have awesome pix and instructions of many recipes.

 

[freemotion]

Hey everyone!

This is a cool thread.

I'm going to make fresh cheese curds today. I anxious to try some aged hard cheese, but everyone is begging for curds.

I've made them twice and they were really good, but they tasted bitter after a few days. The chickens still loved them though. I think it may have been from the salt I was using. Anyway I'm switching recipes and salt.

Are you using vegetable rennet or veal rennet? Veg rennet can impart a bitter taste with age, too.

If you put the www. in front of it, it will automatically be a link. www.cheesemaking.com Voila!

 

[Wildsky]

I took out the goats milk cheese today, and tried the one I added garlic and herbs to..........




Chickens are eating one of them now, I have two more I put in the fridge.

 

[RockyToggRanch]

Hey everyone!

This is a cool thread.

I'm going to make fresh cheese curds today. I anxious to try some aged hard cheese, but everyone is begging for curds.

I've made them twice and they were really good, but they tasted bitter after a few days. The chickens still loved them though. I think it may have been from the salt I was using. Anyway I'm switching recipes and salt.

Are you using vegetable rennet or veal rennet? Veg rennet can impart a bitter taste with age, too.

If you put the www. in front of it, it will automatically be a link. www.cheesemaking.com Voila!

It was veal rennet. I didn't know that veg rennet could do that. I have a vegan daughter and was considering using veg rennet.

 

[RockyToggRanch]

So I made the cheese curds. Better than the other recipe. Only thing is, in the step where they're pulled apart into "curd" size pieces, mine do not separate. I cut them into smaller pieces.

Definately squeeky and pretty good tasting. Not what I buy at the Colasse cheese store down the road, but pretty darn good. We'll see if the hold up or get bitter.

I have an order for 6 lbs of cheese from a chef friend of mine. It includes 2 lbs of curds. I hope I can get this right.

 

[freemotion]

You have an order for cheese? Six pounds? Wow! Cool! I don't get enough milk to sell cheese. I could use several more goat's worth of milk for our own use!

The Camembert was a hit! I brought it to my friend from Holland who has eaten cheeses all over Europe and has a very educated palate. She said my cheese could be served at the best cheese house in Manhatten! She said she couldn't buy cheese this good in the US since it has to be imported and it is not handled properly once here and is often over-aged. I am thrilled! My first thought is that I wish I'd given her more, as she is an hour's drive away. I will be serving one tomorrow when my folks come to dinner.

Here is how to serve it: Place the cheese on a cheese board or cutting board and cut a quarter wedge from it and set that piece a bit away from the main cheese so it can all breathe and age. Let it sit at room temp for at least three hours for the full flavors to develop. Serve it after dinner on a warm, crusty baguette. (This is the place for white flour! ) Wrap the cut edge with plastic wrap to store leftovers in the fridge.

When she and I opened the wrapped cheese at her house at 2 PM, there was no ammonia smell and you could see layers on the cut edge....there was a definite center that was firmer, and a softer layer around that and just under the thin, firm crust. It continued to soften as it sat out. Later, the ammonia smell came back a bit, then disappeared again before she tried it.

She said that when she is shopping for similar cheeses at the high-end shops, she presses her finger in the cheese to test for that softness. She did that when I handed her the cheese, but I didn't catch it. She explained what she was doing later, when the cheese was a success.

I am SOOOOO pleased! I can't wait to try it myself....but it must be done properly and with correct ceremony, so I will attempt patience.....


ETA: Oh, and serve with a red wine...

 

[Henrietta23]

 

[RockyToggRanch]

Congrats on your success! I have never tasted camemert...or brie. I confess. It looks like a fun experiment though, so I will be tasting my own and won't be influenced by the taste of store bought

I have soooo much fresh cheese every week that I don't know what to do with it. I'm going to dry off one doe. I may regret it in a month, but I just can't keep up with the three right now. I'll try making cheesecake with chevre this week. My friend is a hobby chef and tasted my feta, curds and basket cheese. He quickly put in an order for 2lbs of each for a party he's catering in 2 weeks. I just gave him chevre for a stuffed mushroom recipe he wanted to try.
I have chevre and feta in the freezer. More than I have eaten in my lifetime. I have family who loves it, so it won't go to waste.

I must try some aged cheese soon. I should order wax right now
I have the breathable cellophane sheets.

I found recipes for goat cheese stuffed squash blossoms...mmm. must try this week.

 

[Henrietta23]

I am looking at the www.dairyconnection website. How do I know which Mesophilic culture I need to make feta? Several of theirs say they're for feta.

Hm, went back to New England Cheese Making and may have found my answer. Feel "Free" to chime in anyway!

 

[freemotion]

That just goes to prove that they are pretty interchangable. I got MA11 from them after talking to them on the phone. I will be calling them before my next order, if I end up needing another order this season, since I am using a different book this year. The lady I talked to asked me where I was getting my recipes before advising me on which items to purchase, and we also discussed some of my problems and how to solve them. I was so impressed.

I try to pay that back by mentioning them online as much as possible! www.dairyconnection.com !!!

RTR, I've never tried many cheeses besides cheddar, mozzarella, and the basic ones that you will find as a store brand. Not that I've only tried store brand cheeses, its just that I haven't ventured beyond a few basics because of the extreme reactions my body has to most commercial dairy products. I am so excited to be able to try different flavors and textures, and I don't know what they are supposed to taste like, either!

What a shame that such good cheese will be "wasted" on such cretins!!! Well, the only way to educate one's palate is to experience fine foods, right?