A real simple soft cheese that we really like is made with sour creams as the culture. 1 gal. goat milk, room temp 1 cup sour cream (store bought is fine) 1 drop rennet Mix the milk and sour cream together and let is sit for about an hour. Mix in the rennet, stirring, gently, for about 10 minutes. Cover and let sit 12 to 24 hours. Drain into a cheese cloth lined collander and hang to drain about 6 to 8 hours. Now you can do anything with it. I've done cheesecake (YUM), lasagna, herbed cheese spreads (garlic & onion and dill and onion are our favorites), coffeecake, stuffed shells, put it on potatoes, in salad, etc. Our neighbor gave us a huge quanity of basil so I made pesto. I took some of the plain cheese and put a layer of basil in between two layer of cheese. Groan, it was sooo good. I offered it to some friends and the whole thing (it was a good 1/2 pound) disappeared in about 20 minutes
Not sure of the spelling but do you have a recipe for cheese from Norway made from the whey? DH wants to make this with goat cheese as we have extra. Thanks for the websites also.
warm 2 gallons of whole milk to 90f. add 2 oz. of buttermilk and stir thoroughly into the milk. cover and leave the milk at 90f for 45 min. if cheese coloring is desired, add it now. dissolve 1/4 of a rennet tablet or 3/4 t of liquid rennet in 1/4 cup water. stir the diluted rennet into the milk with a gentle up and down motion of the ladle for 1 min. top stir the milk gently for several min. to keep the cream from rising. let the milk set at 90f. for 45 min. or until the curd is firm and gives a clean break. cut the curds into 1/4 inch cubes as uniform in size as possible. let them set undisturbed for 15 min. stir the curds very gently. you do not want the curds to break apart from overstirring and you do not want the curds to matt together from lack of stirring. over the next 30 min. warm the curds to a temp. of 100f.. do not raise the temp. of the curds faster than 2 degrees every 5 min. gently stir the curd. hold the temp. of the curds at 100f. for an additional 30 min. stir occasionally to keep the curds from matting together. drain the whey from the curds. save the whey; it can be used in cooking or to make other cheeses (like ricotta). drain by letting the curds settle for 5 min. to the bottom of the pot and then pouring off most of the whey. pour the curds into a large colander and further drain them for several min. do not drain too long or the curds will mat. pour curds back into a pot and stir them briskly with your fingers. separate any particles that have matted together. add 2 T of coarse salt. mix in thoroughly. do not squeeze the curds. simply mix the salt into them. mix in thoroughly. allow the curds to remain at 100f for 1 hr. stirring the curds every 5 min. to avoid matting. the curds can be kept at 100f by resting the cheese pot in a sink or bowl of water at 100f. line a 2 lb. cheese mold with a piece of coarse cheesecloth. place the curds into it. add followers to the mold and press the cheese for 10 min. at 15 lb. pressure turn the cheese mold over and press at 30 lb. pressure for 10 min. flip the mold over and press at 40 lb. pressure for 2 hours. turn the mold over and press at 50 lb. pressure for 24 hr. remove the cheese from the press and gently peel off the cheesecloth. place the cheese on a clean dry cheese board or cheese mat. turn the cheese several times a day for several days until the surface of the cheese is dry to the touch. this takes from 2 to 5 days. depends on the humidity. once the cheese is dry it can be waxed. the cheese should be stored at 45 to 55 degrees for 2 to 6 months. turn daily for one week. after that once or twice a week.
No matter what I try I can't get the milk to clabber with buttermilk from whole foods store or from a buttermilk starter. And it won't form anything like its supposed to for when you cut it. Help!
My understanding its the kind that you use as spreads but alot like cottage cheese. I am new to this also jimme
Please bear with my potentially silly question. For the basic hard cheese when you say to add 2 cups starter: What is the starter? Thanks, a visitor in New England who wants goats really bad
gelt (goat) ost (cheese) But I seem to recall an odd spelling- It was my mothers favorite cheese; and seems to me that was spelled gjeltost, on the package she used to buy. I'll see if I can find out how it's made.
This site is not specific to goat cheese but the well-photographed, thoroughly explained step-by-step instructions for making several types of cheese might be of help: Fankhauser's Cheese Page
Does anyone know how to make "Farm Cheese" or "Farmstead Cheese"? I've heard of it, but never saw it in any books, etc. What about "Hoop Cheese"??? - Kathy
Here is a page showing how to make brunost, which as it happens is my very favourite cheese of all =) I've found when making our own brunost that it's -extremely- important especially as the liquid evaporates NEVER to leave the brunost or stop stirring it, as it can scorch and separate and ruin in the blink of an eye. Continually stirring it also changes the consistency of the cheese so that it has a much smoother texture. I've decided this is a lot like making good fudge... if you stop stirring it (especially as you're pouring it into your mold).. the sugar crystals become much larger and you get an almost crunchy and very grainy texture. =/ Brunost is definitely the most challenging cheese we make (and I'm not 100% sure I'd call it a real cheese, since it's not made through the action of rennin, bacteria and milk... but rather through the cooking of the whey leftover from our cheesemaking). Hope the link helps. Incidentally, if you do try this at home, just remember that practice helps!! (Lots). I have been making our own brunost for years, and I still don't get a 100% consistant product. Good luck! Annie in Norway PS It really IS supposed to look creamy tannish golden brown. ^^ I remember the first time I saw brunost and nearly didn't try it... but I was totally hooked from the first bite! The taste has been variously described as light creamy cheddar with a hint of peanut butter and velvety smooth. I'd call it more creamy cheddar-ish with a chevre undertaste...but it really IS unique in my experience. (I live in Norway, but was born in England, and just married my 'viking' =)
I tried a recipe for creme fraiche that was ok but a little stronger than I like. It was 3 c. heavy cream with 1 c. buttermilk (which I made from my goat milk) in a sterile jar. Warm and hold for 12-72 hours, until sour cream consistency. Refrigerate for 8 hours to stop process. Will keep for up to 2 weeks in refrigerator. Anyone have another creme fraiche recipe to try?
Howdy, thought I'd add the basic process/recipe I use to make soft and semi-hard cheeses from raw goat milk. Vinegar goat cheese 1. heat 1 gallon of milk to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. 2. turn off heat 3. add 1 cup of vineger 4. allow to cool to 100 degrees 5. strain curds from the whey 6. add salt, pepper and what ever herbs or spices. for semi-hard cheese, put the curds in a cheese press. (i made one out of a shortening container. makes a 1 inch disk of cheese with 1 gallon of milk.) (I now prefer to let the milk age in the fridge for a few days. imparts a nutty flavor to the cheese in my experience) peace
