Homemade Cheese Anyone?

So, my mother took on a project of making Farmer's Cheese a few weeks ago. It was so freakin' delicious that I begged her to make it again this week and spied on her during the process. Amazingly enough, it was pretty simple and did not take very long.

When my mom did it this last time she did it from memory, however she followed this video to refresh that memory :) Forgive my pictures below, I had to sneak the pictures while she was whipping this up.

To get started you will need:

• 1 gallon of whole milk, preferably not double pasteurized
• 4 cups of buttermilk
• cheese cloth
• digital thermometer
• 8 tsp lemon juice
• 3 tsp salt

Grab a large sauce pan, dump in the gallon of whole milk and turn on the stove to low heat. Stir frequently so it does not burn and so a skin does not form on top.









Monitor the heat of your milk with your digital thermometer. You want the milk to get up to 175 degrees. When you reach that temperature turn off the heat, pour in your 4 cups of buttermilk and 8 tsp of lemon juice and......

.....what it curdle! Let your concoction sit for 10 minutes. While waiting, line a strainer with your cheese cloth.

Your cheese cloth should be 4 layers thick. There should be a cord that comes with your cheese cloth. Make sure that is kept in a handy spot.

After 10 minutes, pour or ladle your mixture into your strainer. Let it sit for about 5 minutes.

Then gather up the ends of your cheese cloth, tie your cord around the cloth, and gently squeeze out some excess moisture.

Hang your cheese over a large pot to catch the moisture. Leave it for 30-45 minutes. The longer you leave it, the denser the cheese will be. After it is done draining, mix in your 3 tsp of salt, put in a jar or glass container and let it sit in the refrigerator overnight.

I like to enjoy my cheese on toasted french bread with some olive oil infused with garlic and herbs but you can put pepper, jelly, jam, spices or anything you want on this cheese. Eat it with crackers or fruit, on a sandwich, or by the spoonful...no one will judge you :)

 

 

Enjoy!

Jenn