Mom was right

Once upon a time, my mother told me that milk glasses should be rinsed with cold water before washing. I'm sure she told me why, but I must have stopped listening before that part. At the cheesemaking workshop I learned why: to prevent milkstone. What is milkstone? you ask. It's a white film that forms on metal and glass from repeated contact with milk. Containers and utensils may look clean, but the film reappears unless removed with something like vinegar. I know this because my cheese vats suffered from this affliction until I cleaned them and mended my ways.

This morning's rain brought a reprieve from weeding gardening, so I spent the time mostly in the kitchen, making yogurt, baking dog biscuits, cleaning strawberries, making Jeni's Darkest Chocolate Ice Cream in the World, cooking bacon which magically turned into Quiche Lorraine for supper. I was too lazy to drive up to the grocery store for a pie crust, so made my own (from LARD). It has been a long time since I made a pie crust. The funny thing is, it wasn't my hands patting and rolling the dough, but my mother's. She passed away when I was 20. The older I get, the more I think about her. And apparently, the more I resemble her. Looking back, I realize I could really have used her help and advice while raising my kids. Hopefully, I would have listened better than I did about milkstone.

Say "Cheeeeese!"

Every year I travel to Massachusetts one or more times on what I call my "family obligation vacation". For most trips I try to plan something special to do while out there (click here for an example). This year the trip managed to coincide with Cheesemaking 101 workshop offered by the New England Cheesemaking Supply Co. and taught by the Cheese Queen herself, Ricki Carroll.

(Sorry for the poor quality of these photos - I was the photographer, my cell phone the equipment.)

While my SO rambled about the area near Ashfield, doing his thing, I spent the day with 30 other apprentices, learning how to make five different cheeses. I have been dabbling in cheesemaking for a while, but it really helped to watch an expert at work. Ricki was very generous with her knowledge, much of which will help me improve my technique and results.

The only "hard" cheese we made was a farm house cheddar, which gave us the opportunity to become familiar with the cheese press in the first photo; since cheddar requires aging, we did not get to taste the results of our labor. The other cheeses were fresh cheeses, including 30-minute mozzarella, all of which I have made myself. Regarding the latter, it's one thing to follow directions in a book and another to see how stretchy and shiny the final product can be.

All the cheesemaking books I have referenced talk about how important it is to use pasteurized milk, so I was quite delighted with Ricki's acknowledgment that raw milk usually produces the best cheeses because, even if the carton does not say "ultra pasteurized", the milk may still have been heated too high for cheesemaking. She also ranted a bit about buying food from local farmers. (I think we are soul mates, except she is much more artistic than I am - her house is a work of art in itself).

Ricki started the workshop by saying this was going to be her last one for a while, maybe forever, but by the end, she was recanting, evidence that she loves what she does. If this is the last one, I am extra glad I attended. Now all I need is a cheese cave.

Gotta have a plan

I like to cook and I like to read about cooking, but I don't consider myself a foodie per se. I'm more of a farm-to-fork kind of person in the sense that I am interested in cooking from scratch-scratch. I garden, and what I can't raise in my backyard I try to buy locally, including meat, eggs, and milk.

As frequent readers of this blog (and its predecessors) know, I own a share of a dairy herd. I pay a monthly boarding fee and in exchange am entitled to receive fresh (unpasteurized, unhomogenized) milk, usually two gallons every two weeks. This is a bit much for one person to drink, but I've been experimenting with other uses.

Ice cream: As a gift for my fifteenth anniversary at work, I selected an ice cream maker (because the KitchenAid stand mixer was not available). So far, I have made vanilla ice cream, chocolate ice cream, and (last night) (burnt) butter pecan. The device comes with a recipe book, which has been a starting point for developing my own recipes.

Yogurt: I eat yogurt almost everyday, and in a previous life kept our family of four well supplied. I wish they still made that particular Salton yogurt maker, but I am making do with a non-electric one.

Frozen yogurt: Homemade ice cream is great, but there is only so much cream on top of each gallon. So now I have started making frozen yogurt. Most commercial fro yo tastes like ice cream, but it's not supposed to - it is supposed to retain that yogurt tang. Mine has that tang, which goes really well with fruit.

Butter: And if I am not using the cream for ice cream, I can use it for butter. So far I have made butter only once, using the old fashioned method of shaking a jar of cream until the butter magically separates. And then you also have buttermilk. If I had that stand mixer, this would be a much easier process.

Cheese: I've already listed the cheeses I have made. Making cheese and consuming cheese are two different things, though. It helps to have a plan for fresh cheese, as it won't keep as long as store-bought. Last night I started a batch of fromage blanc, which is now draining. It is going to become cheesecake, one of our xmas traditional foods. Next up is mozzarella and, from the whey, ricotta, for lasagna.

Sometimes I can't use up the milk before it turns. Soured milk can still be used in a variety of ways. If all else fails, it can be poured on the garden as a fertilizer or on the compost pile as a booster. And acid-loving plants appreciate a dose of whey left over from cheesemaking.

Good thing I am not lactose intolerant.

Domestic nerdvana

Since we have a wonderful library system here and my house is small, I rarely buy books, and the ones I do buy tend to be reference books, like cookbooks, books on gardening, etc. But since I was placing an xmas order on Amazon anyway, I decided to treat myself to a few "hobby" books. (I am an Amazon "associate" but since I have earned a total of $0.17 for my efforts AND they complicated the linking process, I won't bother with that part.)

Hobby: Gardening
Book: Grow Fruit Naturally, by Lee Reich
I probably read about this book on a blog. After borrowing it from the library, I decided I wanted a copy of my own, as I hope to plant a few fruit trees in the back yard. My son expressed an interest in creating an orchard, has one tree so far, so he is getting a copy, too.

Hobby: Cooking
Book: Food in Jars, Melissa McClellan
There is actually a blog called Food in Jars which I read about on another blog. I also borrowed this book from the library before succumbing to its siren call.

Hobby: Baking
Book: The Bread Baker's Apprentice, by Peter Reinhart (Ron Manville photographer)
I forget how I found out about this book, but I downloaded a sample to my Nook, back when I was thinking the Nook would be one way to buy books without filling up my little house (and that would be a good idea if my eyesight were better). The recipes make me swoon.

Hobby: Making cheese
Book: Artisan Cheese Making at Home, by Mary Karlin and Ed Anderson
My interest in making cheese stems from the abundance of raw milk that finds its way into my house - the herd is producing so well, they distributed extra milk at the last delivery. This is the first cheese making book I have found that specifically addresses the differences in using raw vs. pasteurized milk.

(Unfortunately, the Indiana BOAH may bring my raw milk days to an end. After inviting input from the public, they released a report recommending either raw milk not be distributed to off-farm consumers at all or that dairies that do so fall under their jurisdiction for inspections, etc. I think the report is balanced, but I am wary of too much government interference in what is basically a direct transaction between the farmer and the consumer. Where I differ from most raw milk advocates is that I am against selling raw milk in stores, as the introduction of "middlemen" will leave the product vulnerable to mishandling and contamination, plus it would separate the consumer from the producer.)

Say cheese

Around my house, instead of a dinner bell, we rely on the smoke detector. Today I decided to try making a French Cheesecake with my homemade fromage blanc. I think the filling will turn out okay, it's the Pate Brisee crust that is failing. Instead of turning golden brown while "blind baking", the dough kind of melted and ran down the sides of the spring form pan. I decided to forge on and filled the crust with the cheesecake mixture and popped it into the oven. About ten minutes later the smoke alarm went off - something was leaking onto the floor of the oven. I slipped a baking sheet under the pan and continued to forge on (with the exhaust fan roaring and the windows wide open - good thing it is a mild day). Once the cheesecake is baked, I am supposed to turn the whole thing upside down on a cooling rack and pop it out of the pan. HA-HA! I think that is where the forging-on will come to a screeching halt.

I have been trying my hand at making cheese with some of the fresh milk I receive from my herd share. So far, I have stuck with soft cheeses because I have no place to age cheese, as this requires controlled temperature and humidity. And time, sometimes lots and lots of time. I'm a bit too impatient for that.

Some of these cheeses can be made by anyone with no fancy equipment or odd ingredients, so don't be afraid to try this at home. Just make sure your milk or cream is not ultra-pasteurized, as that process alters the milk protein which in turn interferes with the cheesemaking process.

While there are a lot of online resources, most of my information and recipes are from Home Cheesemaking by Ricki Carroll. She sells cheesemaking supplies at New England Cheesemaking Supply Co. I also patronize Hoegger Farmyard (LOVE their cheese vats!) and Cultures for Health. The next book on my cheesemaking wishlist is Artisan Cheesemaking at Home, by Mary Karlin
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My cheese list (so far):

Yogurt cheese - Yogurt cheese is just yogurt with the liquid drained out. I make my own yogurt, but you can use any plain yogurt. Just dump it into a butter muslin or cheesecloth-lined colander and let it drain for 12-24 hours. Flavor to your liking.

Mascarpone - I favor this recipe and use lemon juice.

Fromange blanc - For this one, you will need a starter culture.

Whole-milk ricotta - This recipe requires citric acid.

Queso blanco - Just milk and apple cider vinegar.

30-minute mozzarella - This can be made in the microwave, but it requires rennet and citric acid.

(The cheesecake is out of the oven. It looks like it was butter from the crust that was smoking up the house. I sampled the filling - it tastes great! I'll let it set a bit before deciding whether to try to upside down thing.)