Author Topic: Cheese hat trick plus 1  (Read 2006 times)

John@PC

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Cheese hat trick plus 1
« on: July 13, 2013, 11:51:17 PM »
I've found that if you want to make a decent cheese you don't want to do too many things at once.   I broke my rule yesterday but it looks like things turned out good.

Here's the short summary because details for 4 cheeses would be painful for everyone to read:

-  Started with 4 gal. low-temperature pasteurized, non-homogenized whole cow's milk plus 16 oz. light cream previously reserved.
-  Decanted another 8 oz. or so cream from one gallon of the new milk; added to the reserved cream and cultured with a Cream Frache DVI.
-  Decanted about 2 qts. from the same gallon and cultured with a Y4 yogurt culture.
-  Used the remaining 3.5 or so gallons to make a Tomme-style cheese (Gianiclas Caldwell's recipe and my very first "mother cultured" cheese!!)
-  Used the whey (+ 10% whole milk) to make the ricotta.

So I basically made 4 (cheeses and/or cultured dairy products) in one day ^-^, and would have to say that I was very pleased with the results so far.

Here are the yields from 4 gal. (15.1 L) whole milk (plus about a quart of extra milk added to whey):
Y4 yogurt (after draining overnight):  1.75 lbs (.8 kg)
Tomme (after brining):  4.0 lbs (1.8 kg)
marscopone:  .7 lbs (.3 kg)
whey ricotta: 1.3 lbs (.6 kg)

I sampled everything but the "big cheese" and all was good.  I'm especially pleased with the whey ricotta yield because I've not had good yields before. 

Made Manicotti (using homemade shells) with the ricotta tonight which turned out excellent, and plan to use the left over shells with some of the marscopone over fresh South Carolina peaches and just-picked blueberries tomorrow morning  :D.


Offline MacGruff

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Re: Cheese hat trick plus 1
« Reply #1 on: July 14, 2013, 12:58:00 AM »
Looks very nice and your breakfast sounds Yummy!!!

 ;D

John@PC

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Re: Cheese hat trick plus 1
« Reply #2 on: July 14, 2013, 12:44:28 PM »
Thanks MacGruff.  Actually I couldn't wait and had some last night after I posted this.  For you ricotta makers here's a couple of very simple recipes I'd like to share: manicotti and home-made shells.  Most of the time when we make ricotta we do this, because it's simple, fun and delicious.  You can also throw in some of your other left-over favorite cheeses.  Also, you can use any left-over shells for making crepes.

Offline Boofer

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Re: Cheese hat trick plus 1
« Reply #3 on: July 14, 2013, 11:56:49 PM »
Oh, John, don't burn yourself out! ;)

Here's a cheese for being out there on the end of that limb...and for being so proficient in the dairying arts.

-Boofer-
Let's ferment something!
Bread, beer, wine, cheese...it's all good.

John@PC

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Re: Cheese hat trick plus 1
« Reply #4 on: July 15, 2013, 12:20:03 AM »
Oh, John, don't burn yourself out! ;)
You not only made my day but you doubled my cheese-to-posts ratio ;D.  Whatever small amount of "dairying art"  I've acquired is due in no large part with the advice I've seen here on the forum.  I've struggled with getting a decent yield of ricotta but using some tips here I ended up with more than I've ever had!