I have over the years tried making a wide range of different cheeses (see links at the bottom of this post), fascinated by the way you can get very different products with essentially the same starting ingredients. When I recently made Spinach & Paneer Curry I used store-bought paneer but realised that this was another style of cheese that I hadn't made before - so of course I had to give it a go. It is extremely simple and doesn't require any special ingredients or tools. 1.5 litres … [Read more...]
Making Skyr – an Icelandic cultured dairy product
Making Skyr seemed like a good way to reminisce about my trip to Iceland in these times of no travel. What on earth is Skyr? you ask. Skyr is an Icelandic cultured dairy product that has been part of Icelandic cuisine for centuries. It is technically a cheese (classified as a fresh sour milk cheese) but is eaten more like a yoghurt. It has the consistency of a thick and creamy strained yogurt, but with a milder slightly sour dairy flavor and a hint of sweetness. 1 L skim/low fat milk or soy … [Read more...]
Making Colby Cheese
I bought a Mad Millie Cheese Making Kit and have been making my way through the different types of cheeses. I am continually amazed by the wide range of different types of cheese you can make with the same starting ingredients. This time I decided to try making Colby cheese (similar to cheddar but slightly moister and with a mild creamy taste). It was my first venture into making hard cheeses that require a cheese press and aging. It was still described as being "easy" - which it is - but it … [Read more...]
Making Fresh Quark Cheese
Quark (the dairy product rather than the atomic particle) has always sounded rather exotic to me so I was keen to try making it. I was somewhat disappointed to discover that it is almost the same as the yoghurt cheese that I wrote about in a previous post, although it differs in the type of bacteria used to sour it. The recipe described it as a "quick and easy cheese, which is loved for its nutritional value"; "quark is a high protein and low fat food with lots of versatility". According to … [Read more...]
Making Halloumi
Halloumi is a cheese that originates in Cyprus. It is a very unusual cheese in that it requires no acid or culture to curdle the milk. It has a high melting point so can be grilled or fried and keep its shape. This makes it a great alternative to meat when served with salad or stir-fried vegetables. Or you can serve it on toasted crusty bread. I bought a Mad Millie Cheese Making Kit and have been making my way through the different types of cheeses. I am continually amazed by the wide … [Read more...]
Making Home-made Cultured Butter
What on earth is cultured butter? Most of us will be familiar with what happens when you beat store-bought cream too much: it turns yellow and lumpy and leaves a liquid (buttermilk) behind - this is uncultured butter. This is the standard butter (sometimes referred to as sweet butter) that you buy from the shops (at least in this part of the world). Back in the old days (and now if you live on a farm), milk would be left out overnight to let the cream rise to the top of the milk. … [Read more...]
Making Mozzarella
Making mozzarella was one of the things that convinced me to purchase my Mad Millie Cheese-making Kit in the first place. But it has taken me quite some time to pick up the courage to try it. I watched the Mad Millie video quite a few times before finally taking the plunge. With the other cheeses I've tried the curd is scooped into baskets and allowed to drain but with Mozzarella you heat a scoop of the curds in hot water and then stretch it before moulding it into balls. And once you get … [Read more...]
Marinated Feta
After my first attempt at making feta, I was inspired to try marinating it to see what different flavours I could get. Also not everyone likes the saltiness of brined feta so I was interested to see whether preserving it in oil would reduce the saltiness. Many people like to use olive oil for the flavour it gives, but olive can congeal in the fridge so I find that it is better to use an oil like canola that doesn't have that issue unless you plan to eat it fairly soon. Canola oil is also … [Read more...]
Making Mascarpone
Mascarpone is a rich Italian cream cheese that is used to make desserts like Tiramisu and Cannoli. It is mysteriously expensive to buy and yet so easy to make. I have been inspired by my Cheese-making Kit and am working my way through all the different cheese types, but this recipe is so easy you can make it at home without any special ingredients or equipment (you will need a cooking thermometer). In fact the hardest part was trying to keep it at the right temperature. You will need: 1 … [Read more...]
Making Feta Cheese
In an earlier post I described the cheese making kit I had got from Mad Millie. My second foray into cheese making was a feta cheese. Feta is great crumbled over salads or dishes like risotto. This is also an easy cheese to make but is a completely different process from the ricotta I tried first. The milk is heated to 37C before a starter culture is added with rennet and calcium chloride and then left to set in a water bath. The curds are cut and gently stirred before scooping them into … [Read more...]