I'm Cheesy and I Know it!!

I don't mean in the wokka wokka way either, though Lord knows I am more than cheesey that way too.  Just ask anyone who has had a conversation with me for more than a few minutes (refer to southerner gas station life story in previous post).  I mean in the cheese and crackers... cheese and wine... cheese and... well cheese sort of way.  The good creamy edible homemade kind.  Note I say edible, because I say it for a reason.  When I read the recipe for this cheese I was pretty sure I knew what I was going to end up with.  An inedible blob.  It just sounds wrong.  I mean, I've made sour milk for a buttermilk replacement when baking bread using pretty much this same recipe, with out the heat.  But I was so excited to see if I could do it (figuring it would take years of practice before something even close to palatable would occur and I would start trying to figure out how to buy cheese at the store for the rest of my life and pull it off as mine.  I am so not above that).  Cheese is daunting in thought.  I pictured huge factories taking years of aging to eek out minimal amounts.  I figured that justified the cost of said cheese in the grocery store.  Besides, I was sure it was going to be like a monkey doing theoretical physics.  It'd be impossible if it wasn't for the fact that i would try that (<- he he he... nerd joke).  To say it simply... It'd be so had I could only imagine actually doing it, and even then it'd be a fail.  That hard.  Of course, I was wrong.  Surprise.

I decided when I was grocery shopping a few weeks ago that every week I would try to cook one more recipe from scratch that I never had before.  It could be corn or chicken or cherries jubilee... it didn't matter how easy or hard, I had to make one new thing, from scratch.  Don't ask me why, the first week I decide to actually walk the walk and do it I chose cheese.  It was actually simple, fun, very delicious, satisfying, and kid approved!  They can even, very easily, help make it - Mine did!  I chose not to salt mine during the making process so I would have a neutral base.  I could use it with strawberries or garlic and it's fantastic.  I was so nervous leading up to it and had to check the recipe and read reviews I found online of the same recipe I had given to me to make sure I didn't destroy a perfectly good bottle of buttermilk.  When we realized we had success, we all start hooping and clapping and dancing like we won the lottery.  Awesome thing about it, it actually felt like we had.   Then... oh then... When we opened it this morning *AHHH*, Angels sang.  Ok, maybe not that... but we all stood breathless in awe staring at the beautiful white ball still swaddled in our kitchen towel. 

I took a TON of pictures of the entire process to make a tutorial for all of you.  You will need some supplies though.  A large pot, a meat thermometer that goes up to 195 degrees, a Large spoon or whisk, a heat source, a non terry dish cloth (cheese cloth is generally two wide of a weave for this cheese unless you use a LOT of layers, this is just easier), a colander, a large bowl (or a second pot) that said colander will fit, twine, and a ceiling hook.  You probably don't really need the ceiling hook, but I loved the one I put in (I love ceiling hooks, I don't know why.  I have a container of hooks on stand-by for just said occasion).

Ingredients:
1/2 Gallon of Buttermilk
1/4 Cup Vinegar (we used Apple Cider Vinegar)
Salt to taste (we used none)

That's it.  This is what it's going to take to make awesome cheese in your home, by yourself.  You don't get many more hard core points than making your own cheese!  My kids think I'm freaking magic right now.  "Mom! You can conquer the world because you can cheese!".  I kind of lost it then.  I was honored and felt so loved and confident but I couldn't stop laughing at "you can cheese"!  Good thing she lost it with me until I stopped laughing and hugging her and could say thank you properly.  I have great kids! 

1. The first step to  this recipe is to fill the big pot with the half gallon of buttermilk.  The entire thing!

2. Put pot on stove on medium heat and start stirring.  You will be stirring for a good minute.  Kids love to help with this part, so let them.  Your arms will thank you later.  You need to heat the butter milk until it is 195 degrees, or just until it boils.  You do NOT want it to actually boil.  As it heats you will see fine curds already start to form.  But keep stirring and do not let it scorch.

3. Once the milk is up to temperature, you need to pull it off of the heat and mix in the salt (optional) and Apple Cider vinegar.

4. This step is REALLY hard.  You ready?  Let it stand 10 minutes. *hahaha*

5. You need to pull the spoon through the curd to see if it has separated from the whey.  If it has the white curd (could be small or large chunks, mine were really small) on top and a clear yellowish liquid underneath.  If you have this then you are ready to move on to the next step.  If it doesn't, then put it back on the heat until it comes back up to temperature and let is sit another 10 minutes.

6.  Place your colander into the large bowl or second pot.  Line your colander with the non terry cloth dish towel and carefully pour the separated milk into the dish cloth.  Allow the whey to drain out of the cloth and the curd left behind is pretty much your cheese.  Use a fork or spoon to scrape to center to make a rough shaped "ball".  (Your whey should be clear and yellowish.  If it is not, you still have milk solids in your liquid.  Pop the liquid back on the stove and reheat, re-vinegar, re-wait, re-drain.  You will get even more cheese!)

7.  Carefully pull your towel up out of the colander with out losing any of your curds.  Gather the towel around the top of the curd and twist gently to help express the whey (don't squeeze too hard or the curd will squish through the weave of the towel.  Just an fyi).  Tie twine tightly around the towel, close to the cheese and hang from a ceiling hook centered above your large bowl/pot of whey.  Let drip for 1 - 2 hrs.

8.  Move your cheese to your fridge to finish setting.  Try to find a way to hang it so it can age evenly all the way around.  We used a banana tree for this purpose (I have a brilliant hubby!).  Chill over night.  Save the whey and put into the fridge too.  Use it in place of water when baking/cooking for added protein or give it to your animals as a treat!  Too much goodness in it to just throw it away.  You can also use it (supposedly) to make ricotta.  Guess what I'm going to be trying?  lol

9.  In the morning remove cheese from fridge, cut twine, unwrap, and enjoy the goodness! Mmmm.... that first bite!

We had ours for breakfast with Strawberry muffins, raw honey, and fresh strawberries.  Then we had some for lunch on a grilled cheese with garlic, pepper, sea salt, parsley, oregano and fresh tomato slices paired with a hard boiled egg and more strawberries.  I will be honest, that was the absolutely best grilled cheese I have ever had in my life.  Pure Heaven!  This is "Farmers Cheese".  It's a bland soft cheese that's creamy and able to be mixed with pretty much any flavors you want to add.  It's really a neutral type palate.  So there you go.  Cheese!  Fresh, homemade, you did it yourself, can't stop eating it, cheese!  Exciting, right?

I also realized this week that I tend to focus on the negative a little too much.  What with wars, famine, Monsanto and the such that I made the resolution this week to start noticing every day the good side of things and being thankful.  So everyday at supper, around the table, the girls and I not only talk about our day, but what we're thankful for and something of value that we learned.  Even if it's as simple as "Bees don't like water guns being sprayed at them". 

So today, we have 2 small steps, but I have every faith that you can handle them.  First...  MAKE CHEESE!!!  It's fun and oh so freaking tasty!  The second, be happy, be grateful, find the silver lining to the clouds, be your own Pollyanna...  Play the Glad Game.  Sometimes all we need to do to change the world is to simply change our attitude.

Today I hope you are grateful... and a little bit cheesy!