Recipe sticky

[Gregore]

Recently I have noticed a lot of failed cheeses by new members where it really was not their fault but the fault of the recipe . Some are just plain bad and others are suspect based on differing supplies ( milk) and subtle mistakes that lead to a failed cheese .  A good recipe is enough in the middle of each step that needs to be taken that even varying a little still leads to an expect ed outcome.

I would like to suggest that we have a seperate section( easier for newbies to find but bad in that it is less organized) or a sticky ( easier to keep organized  in reference to cheese type) at the top of each cheese type where approved recipes can be placed .

Approved would mean to me, that at least 2  or 3 members have  tried the recipe and approved that they indeed did get the cheese outcome that was expected .

There are some fabulous recipes on here that are almost a no fail  but they are scattered .

I remember when I first started out looking on here for a good recipe to follow , it took me a while and I really had no clue if it was really a good one or not or just looked good because it was super detailed .

Thankfully I chose correct as it was Linuxboys tomme recipe.  Then I was smart enough to choose his reblochon recipe . Those 2 cheeses taught me almost every thing I now know about cheeses . But only because of a lucky guess .

Now having said all of this I will add that at least a few of those fails have come from outside websites  or book recipes and nothing we do here will effect that , and then the best we can do is console the new bright eyed cheese maker and help them try again .  And maybe point them to a section of good recipes .

Anyone have opinions on this good or bad ?

[Duntov]

I think it is a fabulous idea!  It would also be nice if these chosen recipes used some kind of standardization such as psi instead of a generic pound weight for pressing.

[Dorchestercheese]

As a newbie.  I see where commercial companies that sell cultures and the like also post recipes.  Some of the recipes on their website are complete others are half written...leaving myself always to questions..did they leave out the Calcium Chloride, a culture  for a reason this time? or are they not editing their recipes?  I expect that from blogs but not from commercial sites. 
Also some hints on what the product should feel like at each step...should it look like cottage cheese? paste? etc.  I find videos more useful I can see texture, how fast the person is whisking to get 'rice' size pieces etc.
I hate the feeling of not knowing until 3 months or more of aging has past that i screwed up at step one.

[Boofer]

Those 2 cheeses taught me almost every thing I now know about cheeses .

Wow! Really?

But there are so many cheese styles and techniques. I'm still an eager novice maker of cheese. So much to learn. So many edges to fine-tune....  

I have endeavored to post helpful threads along the way so that there might be some history and method for handling differing cheese styles. I have also tried to provide a source for make failures so that those who follow can see what NOT to do.

Did you mean Yoav's Reblochon treatise, rather than Linuxboy/Pav?

The SEARCH function can provide a consensus and structure for different cheese makes.

-Boofer-

[Gregore]

Yes thanks for the correction boofer , it was yoav's recipe  for reblochon ( still my favorite cheese )

And surprising those 2 cheeses made over and over for over a year taught me so much about cheese making , not to say reading on here and watching videos and books , did not teach me , just that when you can nail a cheese in your sleep . You "know " that cheese , and once  i owned that cheese I had this epiphany   of being able to look at a recipe and see exactly where it was different and what that change would create .



And yes  Boofer your one of the ones I have learned from , your successes and failures , thanks .
Actually I learned from every one that ever posted , even their  major failures .

What I find great is even the biggest mistake is rarely not edible.

[Boofer]

What I find great is even the biggest mistake is rarely not edible.

Oh boy, early on I had a couple of really nasty cheeses that defied taste description. The texture, if you can define the collapse of the paste as "texture", was objectionable. The taste had a nebulous, slightly bitter, vomit-like character.

Here are just a couple of my spectacular inedible masterpieces:

• Boofer's Fancy
• Blueberries & Cream

-Boofer-