Hello all, my name is Marissa and I'm excited to discover this forum! I've struggled with a few cheese issues and haven't had much luck troubleshooting on other forums that have cheese making subsections.
I've made paneer since I was a kid (Indian neighbor growing up) but I guess I never realized normal everyday people could make "real" cheese! A few years ago my family got together and started a farm including a small dairy goat herd so we had to figure out something to do with all that milk. I took 2 classes at
Homestead Heritage which I highly recommend for any beginners that live in the area. It's the same place that makes Brazos Valley cheese if you've ever had that. I started out with their book and have gone from there.
I have "mastered" feta, chevre, queso fresco and quick mozzarella. I've made cheddar, colby, brick, manchego, gouda, romano and edam - and considered them all edible. My cheese cave needs some serious reworking before I will ever get a good aged cheese.
And we are going down the route of becoming a grade A 'Raw for Retail' dairy so we can sell raw milk and cheese. I'm working on some new ideas for cheeses that will be unique in my area (there's a goat dairy not too far that makes incredible mold ripened cheese). Hopefully I can get some tips and ideas here!
