Author Topic: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese  (Read 26906 times)

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« on: December 22, 2009, 04:55:31 AM »
I had this in Wisconsin and I really enjoyed it. It's a simpe cheese to make and makes a great snack or breakfast. I made a batch tonight and substituted eggnog for the cream and it was great!  Much like brother Sailor I can not get enough of the stuff this time of year and put it in anything that needs milk, puddings, pies and now Leipäjuusto.

I've included three photos

the curd draining
the curds on the pan (use foil the whey burns on the pan pretty good)
the finished cheese

I think if I do anything different it would be to make it a little thicker. It does shrink and I layed t out about 3/4 inch thick and it ended up about 1/2 inch think. Wonderful stuff though you have to try it!

Leipäjuusto - Finland (Squeaky Cheese or Bread Cheese)

http://www.beatrice-ojakangas.com/2008/08/two-finnish-cheeses_05.htm

The formula for this recipe is based on one that Lauri Sauko (director of Salolampi language camp) talked about. It enhances the milk with extra milk powder and heavy cream. The dry milk adds a great deal of bulk to the cheese. Rennet can be ordered through the internet from cheesemaking supply houses.

1 gallon skim milk
3 cups Carnation instant dry milk (Lauri says Carnation works best)
1 quart heavy cream
1 Junket Rennet tablet
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon salt

Mix milk, dry milk and cream well in a large, heavy pot and place over lowest heat until milk reaches 110 degrees F.

Crush rennet into the water and add to the milk; stir in the salt. Cover and do not stir anymore. Turn off the heat and let stand 1 hour until milk curdles and looks like a custard. It is okay to let it stand 2 to 3 hours, in fact some recipes call for putting the pot into the refrigerator at this point to stand overnight.)

With a long spatula or knife, cut the curd into 1 inch squares. The curd and whey should separate. If curd is very soft, place over low heat again for about half an hour.

Line a colander with dampened cheesecloth. Place over a large bowl or pan to collect the whey. Pour milk mixture into the cloth lined colander. Drain well.

Transfer curds to a large rimmed cookie sheet or pizza pan. Press into a firm, evenly thick round cake.

Broil until cheese shrinks from sides of the pan. Pour off whey. Invert cheese onto another pan and broil to golden brown. (I had to invert mine several times onto another pan and broil again).

This recipe makes a large squeaky cheese, which can be cut into portions, wrapped, and refrigerated until you’re ready to eat it.
« Last Edit: December 23, 2009, 01:34:18 AM by DeejayDebi »

Zinger

  • Guest
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #1 on: December 22, 2009, 07:50:27 PM »
Debi,

This looks like something I want to try. Is the rennet that you call for something like Junket, or can I use the rennet that I use for Cheddar? Ifo so how much would you recommend?

Zinger

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #2 on: December 23, 2009, 01:32:28 AM »
Actually I did used Junket rennet. Sorry I'll fix that. I should have been more clear. It's a great snacking cheese I think you'll love it.

Zinger

  • Guest
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #3 on: December 24, 2009, 12:39:00 AM »
Debi, if I choose to use liquid rennet, do you have any thought as to how much? I have it in the house, but not Junket.

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #4 on: December 24, 2009, 09:41:04 PM »
Zinger -

Here is the relationship according to Junket:

Junket Rennet                       Liquid Rennet                  Gallons of Inoculated Milk
1 Tablet                        20 drops or 1 teaspoon                      5 gallons
1/2 Tablet                   10 drops or 1/2 teaspoon              2 to 2 1/2 gallons
1/4 Tablet                     5 drops or 1/4 teaspoon                1 to 1 1/4 gallon

I would guess from this about 5 drops or 1/4 teaspoon of liquid rennet. My Junket was rather old at least 2 years old so I used quite a bit. You really want a kind of soft curd and don't over drain as it will continue as it's cooking.

Zinger

  • Guest
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #5 on: December 25, 2009, 06:29:29 PM »
Debi,

Thanks so much for your response. I look forward to trying this recipe.

Steve

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #6 on: December 25, 2009, 06:32:56 PM »
Your welcome Steve. I find it very enjoyable hope you do to. We have waiting lists here on the college campuses for this stuff. The good thing is it seems to have replaced fast food as the snack of choice.

Zinger

  • Guest
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #7 on: December 26, 2009, 07:16:01 PM »
I'm just full of questions, Debi.  I have my milk slowly warming. As I look over the recipe, it calls for one Rennet tablet. I notice on your "Junket to liquid rennet" chart that 1 Junket tablet = 1 teaspoon of liguid rennet, however 1/4 tsp of liquid rennet os required for 1 - 1 1/4 gallon of milk. Since the recipe calls for 1 tablet, do you think that I should use 1 tsp of liquid rennet or should I use 1/4 tsp in accordance wth the fact that I have less milk as the chart suggests?

Thanks,
Steve

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #8 on: December 26, 2009, 07:32:58 PM »
Zinger -

How much milk do you have? For 1 gallon I would use slightly less than 1/4 teaspoon maybe 3 to 4 drops? This cheese should be the texture of a solidly cooked omelet sort of but cheesey.

Zinger

  • Guest
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #9 on: December 26, 2009, 07:38:12 PM »
Debi

I am using the 1 gallon recipe, so I notice that on the measurement on the side of my pan that after putting in the milk, cream and dry milk, I have about 1 1/2 gallons of liquid. So, I'll use a hair under 1/4 teaspoon or about 4 drops and see what happens. Unless you advise otherwise.

Thanks again.

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #10 on: December 26, 2009, 08:05:36 PM »
In that case I think I would go just a hair over 1/4 teaspoon. Maybe 6 drops? Let me know how it comes out!

Zinger

  • Guest
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #11 on: December 27, 2009, 01:27:31 AM »
Okay, I made this cheese with mixed results.

Debi, first of all I used a hair shy of 1/4 teaspoon of rennet (got your message to late to increase it to just over 1/4 teaspoon).

I let it set for almost 2 hours before I cut the curd, even then it did not seem to be as set as I surmised that it should be. So, I went ahead and put it over very low heat for about 1/2 hour, the whey was never a nice yellow/green color that I am used to from other cheese recipes.

Finally I put it to drain although the curd was still quite soft. I went ahead and put this very soft and loose mass of curds under the broiler. I needed to flip it numerous times and I must admit that I nearly gave up on the cheese more than once during the broiling stage. But, I persevered and the outcome of my efforts are quite pleasing.The flavor of the cheese is quite buttery and has a nice nutty flavor as well. It does seem to be a little flat in flavor, which is rectified by a slight sprinkling of salt on the finished product. I wonder if next time I should increase the salt a bit in the recipe.

I am sure that something was not quite right in the process, but the results are really a success. the milky whey does not seem right to me. I am eager to try again.

Thanks to Debi for this recipe.
« Last Edit: December 27, 2009, 02:39:47 AM by Zinger »

Offline DeejayDebi

  • Old Cheese
  • *****
  • Location: Connecticut
  • Posts: 5,820
  • Cheeses: 106
    • Deejays Smoke Pit and DSP Forums
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #12 on: December 27, 2009, 04:39:24 AM »
It could be that the lack of enough rennet left the curds to soft but I think in the draining you could have gotten rid of more whey. I did squeeze the cheese cloth a bit to rush the process. I think I flipped my cheese three times to even the browning of the cheese. I really love this stuff with chopped jalepinos. red bells. peperoni, or onions. You could probably put anything you want in it. I didn't add anything in this batch because I put the eggnog in it and it made it a bit sweeter.

These curds are really soft so they drain slow. You may have to scrape the cloth with a spoon to get the whey out. It's kind of a pain but I like to use a large hankerchief so I don't loose much - but this does make draining slow.

Glad you liked it! It's quick and easy and waiting to be customized to your liking.

Tea

  • Guest
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #13 on: December 30, 2009, 08:17:07 PM »
Steve you might also find that apart from a poor set, that the whey was milkier because of the cream content.  I find the creamier the milk, or when I add cream to a recipe, that there is a difference in the colour of the whey.
Just a thought.

cvmostert

  • Guest
Re: Leipäjuusto - Finnish Squeaky Cheese
« Reply #14 on: August 12, 2011, 09:11:31 AM »
Thanks for the Recipe,

I made Finnish Squeaky Cheese last night, this was my recipe:
2 liters of milk
0.12ml of maxiren liquid rennet (6ml to 100L of milk)

I waited over an hour for coagulation - seems long.

I strained the curd but it was too dry in the end and I had trouble to make it into a patty to fry/broil.

Does anyone know what i might have done wrong? I suppose I must not squeeze ALL of the whey off?

Well, I will try it again. ( it whas my very first experience using rennet)

Cheers
Chris