Patty's Cheese Bits   December 2000

Basic Hard Cheese (mild cheddar) Take 1 1/2 gallons of milk at room temperature, and add 2 cups of starter. Cover this and let sit in a warm place for 12 to 24 hours, or until thickly clabbered. If you are using rennet, add it now, otherwise let the milk sit an additional 24 hours, or until the curd is formed, and the whey is seperated. You should add 1 rennet tablet, dissolved in 1/2 cup cool water. Stir the milk after you add the rennet, recover the container, and let it sit about 45 minutes. At this point the curd should be well set, and you can cut it. There is no easy way to describe the process of cutting curd, so I have included the following image to help out. Just click on it to see it in a larger size, then use the back button on your browser to come back here. Basically, you want to cut the curd into 1/2 inch cubes. You do this by slicing straight down every 1/2 inch, then slanting the knife as far as you can and cutting along the same lines. You then turn the pot 1/4 turn, and repeat the process at right angles to the first cuts. Then stir the curds gently with a spoon, being careful not to break them. If you see curds that are too large, cut them smaller. Arrange your double boiler, and heat the curds and whey slowly so that it heats up at the rate of 2 degrees every 5 minutes. It should take you 30 to 40 minutes to reach a temp. of 100 degrees. You will hold the curd at this temperature until the curd gets as firm as you would like. You will want to stir the curds and whey gently during the heating process so that the curds don't stick together. A good test of firmness is to take a small handful and squeeze it gently. If it breaks apart easily and doesn't want to stick together, it is firm enough. Pour the curds and whey into a large container that is lined with cheese cloth. When you lift out the cheese cloth, the whey will remain behind. Place the curd and cheese cloth into a large strainer to drain (a large can with holes in the bottom will work). When the whey stops draining, place the curds in a large container and work is gently with your hands, to keep it from sticking together. You can pour off any residual whey that drains out. Once the curd cools to about 90 degrees, it is ready to be salted. Use 1 to 2 tablespoons of salt, and sprinkle it over the cheese, mixing it in well. While it is disolving, line your cheese form with cheese cloth and get your press ready. When the cheese reaches 85 degrees, put the curd into the cheese form, and cover with another circle of cheese cloth. Place the form in the press, insert the follower, and place 3 or 5 bricks on top for 10 minutes. Remove the follower, drain the form of any whey that has not drained out of the holes, and return the form and follower to the press. Add more bricks, or weights, to the top until you have about 30 lbs. Pressed under this much weight, the cheese should be ready to be "dressed" in about an hour. Take the cheese cloth wrapped cheese out of the form. To do this, turn the form upside down, so it can drop out. You may have to pull gently on the cloth, to get it started. Unwrap the cheese, and dip it in clean, warm water. This will remove any fat clinging to the surface. Use your fingers to smooth out any small holes, or tears in the surface of the new cheese. Wipe the cheese completely dry. Cut another piece of cheesecloth about 2 inches wider than the cheese is thick, and long enough to wrap around the circumference of the cheese and overlap. Cut two circles of cheese cloth to cover both ends, and place it back into the form. Press in the cheese press for 24 hours, with 6 or 7 bricks on top. After the cheese has been pressed a second time, remove it, unwrap it, and wipe it with a clean, dry cloth. Wash the cheese in hot water and seal any holes by dippin the cheese in warm water and smoothing with your fingers. Then put the cheese on a shelf in a cool, dark, dry place. Turn the cheese and wipe it down daily, until the surface feels dry and a rind has started to form. Usually, this will happen in 4 or 5 days.   AD SPACE

While the rind will help protect the cheese, you certainly don't want to end up with an entire cheese consisting of rind. So, you will want to cover the cheese in paraffin wax. You can get paraffin from most grocery stores, or in the candle making section of major craft stores. Heat 1/2 pound of paraffin in a disposable pan (wax is hard to clean out of your good pans), over hot water. Don't use direct heat as it may burn, and is definitely flamable! The pan should be deep enough so that you can submerge half your cheese at a time in the melted paraffin. Dip the cheese in the paraffin, and hold it there for about 10 seconds. Remove it and let it harden on that half for a few minutes. Then flip the cheese over and dip the other half. Make sure that the entire surface of the cheese is covered with the wax. 11. Now comes the hard part.....keeping your hands off it until it ages! Generally, the longer it ages, the sharper the taste of the cheese. Put the cheese on a shelf in a dark, cool, dry place. Turn it daily. You need to remove the shelf at least once a week, to wash it and dry it in the sun. Put your cheese back on the shelf when the shelf is through drying and be patient. After 6 weeks of curing at around 50 to 60 degrees, the cheese will be firm and have a mild flavor. Generally, colby is aged 30 to 90 days; and cheddar for at least 6 months. As promised, here is the mozzarella cheese recipe plus another cheese recipe that's a favorite with adults and children who visit our home. These recipes were given to me by a friend, who got them from another friend. . . Enjoy! Patty   Mozzarella & String Cheese   4 gallons whole goat milk 5 1/2 tsp. citric acid 1 cup cool water 1 tsp. liquid rennet   Heat milk to 88 degrees. Add citric acid which has been dissolved in cool water. Stir for three minutes. Add rennet dissolved in 1/4 cup cool water. Let sit 10 minutes, then cut curd into 1/2-inch cubes. Let rest for another 10 minutes. Heat slowly about 15 minutes, to 105 degrees; stirring constantly. Turn off heat but continue to stir for 10 minutes more. Dump into colander and let drain for 5 minutes. Cut curd into one-inch strips. Drop curd strips into one gallon of 170 degree water. Stir, stretch, and beat for 10 minutes. Cheese will become smooth and silky. Remove from water and knead like bread, then shape into loaf and cover with cold water until firm. Soak in brine for two days.   STRING CHEESE: Make mozzarella cheese, but do not make in loaf instead submerge into a second gallon of 170 degree water and continue to stir and beat. Take cheese out of water, stretch out as much as you can, then double and twist together tightly. Keep on stretching, doubling, and twisting, until you can't twist anymore. Soak in brine three days. Pull apart into "strings" to serve.   CHEESE   5 quarts fresh whole goat milk 1 cup yogurt (with active culture) 1/2 Junket rennet tablet 1 T. cold water   Heat milk to 86 degrees. Add yogurt and heat milk back up to 86 degrees. Dissolve rennet tablet in water. Add to milk and stir for one minute. Remove kettle from heat and let set until curds form (20 minutes to 2 hours). Break up curds with your hands. Drain cheese through cheesecloth. For a firm cheese, reheat to 102 degrees after curds have formed and before draining. Drain the curd through cheesecloth, then add salt to taste. Put the cheese in the cloth under weights to form a solid cheese. Takes about six hours. May add spices at draining time. (Spices - caraway seed, chopped chives, garlic, parsley, onion, pepper, etc.) I slice this cheese and serve with assorted crackers. A favorite!