Need some easy recipes

[Shayanna]

and ways to use goat milk.... I want to make some easy cheeses. I will be making butter this weekend. Any ideas on use for the buttermilk? I would like to use some ingredients on hand. I have white vinegar, and I have lemon juice... Lots of spices... Once I get into the swing of using goat milk I don't think I'll have too much of a problem, but it seems right now I don't have enough containers so I need to use some up. Ideas? I tried the Cheesemaking sticky and didn't find it helpful for beginners, because I don't know diddly about cultures and such... I also do not have a liquid thermometer. So any tips there would be appreciated.

[Backfourty,MI.]

http://www.mymexicanrecipes.com/desserts/cajeta.html

Alice posted the recipe above for all of us earlier this year & this is the one I use to make Cajeta. It's wonderful & so easy.

We use it as a fruit dip, ice cream topping & I've even used it for a dip with crunchy gingersnap cookies.

[Cannon_Farms]

I got a nice cream cheese recipe from Alice, I make a soft cheese then add just a little bit of preserves such as apricot or blue berry, one with lightly soaked craisens is the best though in my opinion. Opps cheese that are not really fit to eat the chickens and dogs find an absolute delight, even milk thats going sour can have vinegar added to it let clabber and feed to the chickens, will cut cost of feed and oyster shell needs too.

Its always fun to make caramel but the fastest way to use up milk is cheese, its amazing that one gallon will only make a fist size ball.

[Ford Zoo]

I havn't made farmers cheese for a while, so the vinegar/lemon juice may need to be adjusted to get a good curd, but this is soo easy.Alls you need is the ingredients you have. A meat thermometer would work or try heating until little bubbles appear around the edges after you stop stirring for a bit, or until there is a slight simmer and the top is foamy-that's a guestimate.

Heat a gallon whole goats milk slowly to 195 degrees, stirring frequently. If you have skimmed the fat off, add up to a pint of half and half.
Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup white vinegar or the juice of 4 lemons. You should see it start to curd-the curds will be little, smaller than baby peas.
Poor mixture into cheesecloth lined strainer, here you can also add herbs and such as it drains-I like garlic and fresh shredded basil, maybe a bit of sea salt.
When most of the liquid has passed thru, gather the ends of the cheese cloth and
place in an old margerine bowl with holes in the bottom for draining-weight it down over night in the fridge with a can of veggies.
HEre's the step that makes it really good-brine it for part of the next day: In a large bowl or ice cream bucket, add enough salt to water so that your unwrapped cheese wheel partially floats. Let it soak several hours at room temp. This firms it up and seasons it. I usually go 6 hours, flipping it over half way thru.This cheese only lasts a few days in the fridge, but usually gets eaten up pretty quick here.

[Ford Zoo]

While I have never made buttermilk, here is a recipe that we also love using goats milk and store bought buttermilk for the culture.
Creme fraiche (crem fresh) the fancy version of sour cream, and much better, cooks great to make cream sauces and is yummy with fruit preserves.

Heat 1 cup goats milk to 105 degress, remove from heat and add 1 TBSP butter milk. Let sit in a clean canning jar at room temp for 24-36 hours, until it starts to thicken, stirring or shaking every 6 hours. The longer it sits, the tastier it gets. Put in fridge and let it age a few more days. Will keep in the fridge 7-10 days and keep getting better each day.

[KrisD]

Go to New England cheese making buy some mesophilic culture. Take 2 QTs of milk and add some cream if you have it so it's closer to half and half. Warm milk to 72degrees. Stir in 1 culture packet. Stick in a cold oven with the light on and the door cracked. Wait 12 hrs. Line a colander with a clean handkerchief and tie the corners together. Hang until it stops dripping. Add a tsp salt and you have cream cheese that is WAY better then Philly. I add sun dried tomatoes and basil and it's Devine! I can eat a pound of it in a sitting.

[Shayanna]

I am going to have so much fun....

[tentance]

ice cream!!!

[Ford Zoo]

And goodle chocolate pudding, I don't have the recipe handy, but it's made will real cocoa. And warm, you can drizzle it over that ice cream!