Author Topic: My Cheese has a name - Malembert  (Read 4681 times)

Offline OzzieCheese

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My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« on: July 25, 2014, 07:56:58 AM »
25 Jul 2014
(Rennet Curd bloomy Rind in the style of …. Nah its my adaptation – I name you Malembert)
This was such a success I’m doing it again to 8 litres and 600ml of 40% fat cream.
This is my own cheese, it may have a slight resemblance to a triple cream mould ripened cheese by another name but as I have changed significant parts of the recipe then I feel that the birth of ‘Malembert’ is appropriate.

8 litres of Milk and 600ml of pure cream and 1/4 tsp Calcium Chloride to make a stabilized curd.  This makes the final product a little more firm at the 6 week mark but is able to be stored out to 8-9 weeks without too much ammonisation.
There is no way I can get milk of the cream content of a nice raw Jersey milk so I must add Calcium Chloride to be able to capture more fat in the curd matrix. This will also affect the draining time and therefore will have an all-night drain as well as a prolonged ‘flipping’ program.
Although I am following the method I used the last time I am incorporating some of the pH markers, for example pH at salting I’m trying for a pH of 4.8-5.0 this with I am reducing slightly the acid in the cheese which will slows the movements of compounds though the cheese and slowing the softening process.
Interesting thing I learnt this week was that I can control the level of acid by the control of heat and of course culture.  In the book by Gianaclis’s Caldwell, the method for this cheese is warm to 34 DegC add culture and ripen for 35-45 minutes for a .05 pH drop but alas my pH strips are not that good. 
So the following is an adaption attempting pH measurements, but should that prove futile I will revert to my tried and true method. 

It is after all my cheese.

I will also now have to watch the Flocculation time as summer milk (April when I last made this) behaves slightly differently to Winter(as it is now in Oz).  I know also that although I am using store bought milk – from Maleny – they don’t standardise their ‘pasteurised only’ milk. So, there are slight differences, not that you can taste the difference, it lengthens the curd set just a little.

8 litres of 3.6 Milk
600 ml Pure Cream
1/4 tsp Calcium Chloride - CaCl2
Flora Danica – A good full dose(pinch measure) of GLA FL.D (Greenliving Australia - Flora Danica)
1/32 tsp of PC and half a 1/64 tsp of the G.C
3.5 mls of 200 IMCU (International Milk Coagulation Units) Liquid rennet.
Heat the milk over 50 minutes to 32 Deg C.

11:00 Initial ripening stage pre-activate the Flora Danica 10 minutes before hand and add to the rest at 32oC.
11:00 Add the P.C and a small mini smidge of G.C at the same time as the culture.  Add the P.C and G.C and stir together.  Keep the temperature at 32oC.
Ripening for 90 minutes.
@90 minutes add CaCl2 and mix gently.
No brine or Salt additions apart from the direct salting of the outside.

Ok… this is where this turns left when the recipe turns right.  As I had several places to be today I needed to adjust times and amounts. Normally I would add the rennet below

Add 3.5 mls Rennet.  Flocculation time:-  9:00 * 6 = 54 minutes, cut curds. 

Well, that all went out the window this afternoon.  Using the guideline in Gianaclis’s book I made the following adjustments.
Alter the Rennet by half to 1.6mls and double the curd set time and let the temp drop to 30DegC. this actually proved provident and well as things go it was nearly 3 hours before I could cut the curd.  Came back from the days appointment and the temp was still 30DegC there was a wonderful set to the curd and when I cut it, it was still delicate.
16:30 I Cut curds to ½ inch and maintaining 30DegC . And stirred for about 5 minutes then let settle for 15 minutes.  Although previously 6 moulds are used for 8 litres, the addition of cream, the prolonged curd set, provided enough curds for 7 with some left over - not enough for another  :-\
Set up the moulds and the cheese mats and boards getting ready to fill and eventually flip.
So, drain the whey to the level of the curds. And, using a ladle, scoop the curds, one ladle at a time, into the moulds.
the normal flip once every hour for 6 hours is not going to work here so I am just going to let them sit a little longer so that there is room in the top to actually flip the moulds.  I will let sit overnight and check the pH in the morning.  I am hoping to achieve a drop in pH to 5.0 
Once I get there use ½ tbls cheese salt to rub over the outside.
Place in the ripening containers and follow my usual ripening schedule. 

Because of the weird timings for the curd cut I will expect that there is a lot more whey – therefore lactose in the curds.  This will have two effects the acidification will reach a too low point before I salt the cheese and second an accelerated ripening so I’ll have to what for skin slip and over ammonisation.
So it is now 1 hour after hooping and the whey off the cheese is still about 6.2 to 6.5 as the strips are not that accurate to see point changes.

I'll keep you posted on their progress.  It's cheese - not rocket science - isn't it ?  :P


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Offline OzzieCheese

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #1 on: July 25, 2014, 11:06:54 PM »
Last night - and the cheese were flipped several times and then left overnight - Temp in the house got to 17 degC so I'm happy with that.
So.. This morning the Cheese pH measured by the strips was 5.0 or a little lower - as accurate you can be with those.  One thing I noticed was that they were a lot softer than my previous makes but were about the same weight -180 Grams each or thereabouts. Looking after them will be a bit of a challenge.  The pictures are
1. my collection of hockey pucks.
2. The same
3. 1/2 Tab of salt - this will be dispersed over the cheese.
4. in their ripening house -  I only usually put 2 per container but 7 into 3 well...  :o
5. The way it should be.
6. Their cave for a while - at home with a Cloth Banded Cheddar - now @ 4 months; A Caerphilly @4 weeks; and a Gouda @ 3 weeks

Finally my cave has cheese  - it was looking a bit empty there for a while.  I'll keep you all posted on the Cams' progress.  This will be interesting.

CheeseOn
 8)

- Mal

 
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Offline OzzieCheese

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #2 on: July 26, 2014, 10:27:02 PM »
Checked the pH of the cheese this morning whey and there is no perceptible change, though the pH strips are difficult to read, and they have firmed up a little.  So far so good.

--Mal
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JeffHamm

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #3 on: July 26, 2014, 10:59:45 PM »
Nice to see a well fed cave!  Looking forward to the results of this make.

- Jeff

Offline OzzieCheese

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #4 on: August 22, 2014, 02:23:55 AM »
Here they are a 5 weeks.  Smelling of mushrooms and softening well, almost 1/2 way .  Because this make was interrupted I'm going to sacrifice one in the name of science this weekend and see what is happening.  I'll post pics when I do.  But, they look gooood !!

Oh I loooove these ones !

CheeseOn  8)
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Offline OzzieCheese

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #5 on: August 31, 2014, 08:09:27 PM »
Time to wrap - -Actually we have already started eating them - They don't last long..  I thought I'd share how I wrap a round object with the square one.

Hope that helps. !!

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Fundy Mental

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #6 on: September 12, 2014, 09:21:03 PM »
Hi Oz

So wrapping is actually undertaken basically at the eating stage as opposed to approx 10 days in when you have a good even fur coat on the little suckers. I have read that this is subjective and simply depends, noting that commercial products are looking for uniformity and mass appeal as opposed to artisan/home made who are looking for that more rustic natural appeal.

FM

Offline OzzieCheese

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #7 on: September 12, 2014, 10:33:23 PM »
Hi Fundy... (Great tag BTW) It depends.. I keep the in the ripening container until either - give them to friends and family or my ever lovin wants the lower portion of the main fridge to store other things - like food  :P  I have found that wrapping them too soon doesn't allow the Ammonia gas exchange and therefore get a funky smell and rind taste and sometimes ripening too soon.  I also found that wrapping them in the wrong stuff will not be a happy experience.  I get my cheese paper from Green Living Australia - come in packets of 10 and 1 sheet will wrap 4 10cm Cams.

Hope that helps.

--Mal
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Fundy Mental

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #8 on: September 12, 2014, 10:51:35 PM »
thanks Mal

I get most of my supplies from cheeselinks.com.au, Little River in Victoria. I have generally wrapped at the 10 day mark, but only because the recipe said so. Will play around with the wrapping time as I like the idea of that non commercial look, taste, experience.

FM

Offline OzzieCheese

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #9 on: September 13, 2014, 01:38:08 AM »
After having quite a few failures, I have found that as soon as the light white fuzzy covering and I do mean just barely there, I transfer the cheese in their ripening container from the 10DegC fridge to the 4DegC Family fridge.  I leave them there and turn every other day (stops the mold growing through the gaps of the plastic rank inside the container). I can then watch as the cheese ripen from the outside in.  We like them when the centre is still a little firm and tangy and outside soft but spreadable. In my opinion, and its just mine, if the cheese oozes all over the plate - it is past its best.  But isn't that why we make cheese - doin' it our way !!   8)

-- Mal
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Fundy Mental

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #10 on: September 13, 2014, 08:10:11 PM »
Morning Mal

Another observation. You spread your salt over the cheese as opposed to placing in a brine solution. Interested in the thoughts behind this . Does it achieve the same outcome and hence just a different approach?

Offline OzzieCheese

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #11 on: September 13, 2014, 09:29:13 PM »
Hey !! you're up early... Yes you can do both but I found that if you brine the cheese you will need to 'spritz' the outside with the PC and GC.  And the people I gave them to comments on the differing salt levels. depend on how high the salt content of your brine is and how long you leave them in. All a bit complicated and I don't have room the store different brines at various percentages of salt.   I found that hand salting 1 tsp per cheese - that's for top bottom and sides just right. As the salt draws out the whey it dissolves and sets up the rind for the PC & GC added to milk in the first part and I haven't yet had to re-apply them.  Again, this is a depends answer....

-- Mal

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Fundy Mental

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Re: My Cheese has a name - Malembert
« Reply #12 on: September 13, 2014, 09:42:45 PM »
thanks. yes the body clock has me up around 0530 ish most days