Author Topic: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe  (Read 17003 times)

Tea

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Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« on: November 23, 2008, 10:40:52 PM »
Came across this recipe, and as I still had 6lt of goats milk to use decided that I would try it out.  Would be interesting to do a comparision with cows milk later too.

Bring milk to a setting temp of 23 C and add 50ml of Type A starter for every 10 lt.  Mix in well.

Add rennet at a rate of 1ml per 10 ltr diluted as usual, and stirred in well.

Leave milk to set for around 18-24 hours.  (As it is very hot here at the moment I only left for 12 hours as I seemed to have a good set.)

Next morning spoon curds into basket taking care not to disturb the curds too much, and let drain for another 24-28 hours.  Baskets don't need to be turned, but if you do, take care and this is a very soft cheese curd.

Remove carefully from baskets and sprinkle dry salt onto the surface of the cheese, about 50gr for each kg of cheese.

Store cheese for two weeks at 11-12 C, or they can be sprayed with a solution of white mould spores and then stored in high humidity until covered.  Ready in 2-5 weeks after making.


Cheese Head

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #1 on: November 24, 2008, 12:22:00 AM »
Thanks Tea, looks great, very similar to Camembert if use the white spores, but using goats milk of course.

Just finished two very hard old dry camemberts over the weekend, two to go and then some other homemade cheese, then after US Thanksgiving Holidays it's cheese making time again!

Tea

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #2 on: November 24, 2008, 09:44:36 PM »
Why were the camembert hard and dry?  Didn't you wrap them?  Bet you can't wait to get cheese making again.  What are you hoping to start with?

I wanted to try this cheese because there is absolutely no cutting or stirring of the curd.  You just set and scoop, which was something that I hadn't come across before.  I decided to see if I could turn the cheeses, because I didn't like the irregular surface, and at the 3 hour mark turn them very gently.  Then my 20mth old, decided that once again he had to test the cheese for me, so they were turned again to get rid of the finger poke marks.
I have decided that I am only going to let them drain for 24 hours, due to the hot weather here.  I don't want them over ripening at this stage.  Will update as I go.

Tea

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #3 on: November 25, 2008, 06:50:53 AM »
Turned these out today and they are still soft and moist but not so that they can't be handled with care.
I have salted them, but not with the recommended amount as it seemed too much to me.  I have also spritzed them with a solution of white mould.  They are now in an esky in a humid environment at 10-11 C.  Here's hoping.


Tea

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #4 on: December 01, 2008, 09:54:26 PM »
At around day 3, two of these developed a couple of small black mould sections.  I rubbed in some salt and thinly sliced off the offending mould the next day.  No more black mould developed or grew back.
Today I decided to wrap and refridgerate as it is very hot and the esky is struggling to stay cold enough and they were completely covered in white mould.  Tore the mould a couple of days ago while turning, but most of it grew back.  Very slowly peeled off the cheeses and wrapped in a silicone baking papper and alfoil.  Then into the fridge for another couple of weeks.  The cheese seems to be developing like a brie.  Will be interesting to see what develops.
« Last Edit: December 02, 2008, 07:53:53 PM by Tea »

RRR

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #5 on: December 21, 2008, 02:53:50 PM »
Tea, have you opened any of your Maure yet. I tested one of mine yesterday. It was ok, but had not fully developed that runny characteristic I'm hoping for so I will age it longer.

Tea

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #6 on: December 21, 2008, 08:22:47 PM »
Neither has mine, but it looks like it is just starting too though.
The flavour at the moment is very strong, and I am wondering if they did indeed get too hot in the esky.  They are edible, but there is a strong after flavour.  Not unpleasant though.

I have been wondering if these cheeses (camembert, brie style) need air flow while maturing to dissipate the ammonia smell/flavour.  I seal mine in a container for the humidity part, and I am wondering it they shouldn't be sealed during this process and should have airflow?

RRR

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #7 on: December 22, 2008, 12:39:07 AM »
Mine was pretty pungent as well. However, where the mold had begun to do its work on the inner cheese (where it was beginning to become runny), the flavor was very mellow. I also found that if the cheese was warmed, I put mine near the wood stove, it was better as well.

I have tried to leave mine out in the air and it began to crack, so I have it wrapped in cheese wrap.

I began to age mine on 11/25, so maybe I'll try it again on New Years.


Tea

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #8 on: December 28, 2008, 08:48:12 PM »
Well I opened one of mine yesterday and took some photo's, but the computer just ate them.  grr  Not sure where they went.

So once again I found that the exterior of this cheese was quite gooey, almost too runny, and the interior has still to mature.  mmm still trying to work out what I am doing wrong.  There was also still a very strong flavour of ammonia which was disappointing. 
I do think that wrapping them in the silicone paper has kept them better than the plastic wrap, but they are still retaining the ammonia gases.
Any suggestions?

Cheese Head

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #9 on: December 28, 2008, 10:32:58 PM »
Tea, I've never made this cheese, but it's similar to Camembert and I think that like Camembert, the ammonia smell or taste is I believe a sign of an over ripe cheese.

When I researched Camembert I posted some info links here but can't find the ammonia reference there, but I have found one in wiki here.

Hope helps, good luck.


Tea

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #10 on: December 29, 2008, 09:16:02 PM »
I think I have come to the conclusion that I am not able to keep this cheese cool enough during aging, which is why I seem to be getting the uneven ripening of the cheese.  I have been tempted to put a batch in the fridge and age there.  Might be worth the experiement and see what happens.
Thanks for the links too, they were informative.

Tea

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #11 on: December 29, 2008, 11:12:36 PM »
Hey I found my pics in the trash can, so here they are.  As you can see, only again I have very uneven ripening happening.


Cheese Head

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #12 on: December 30, 2008, 01:32:45 AM »
Thanks for pictures, still looks good enough for me to eat, even with uneven ripening. I think you've posted in other thread but what are you using for wraps for your Saint Maure and Camemberts? Thought it was tin foil?

RRR

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #13 on: December 30, 2008, 03:29:28 PM »
Tea, I am aging mine in a fridge at 45-55 F, still strong ammonia odor. But, when forming my cheese I had a bit too much to fit in my molds so I hand formed a few fist size buttons. These smaller versions of the cheese do not have the strong ammonia character. They did at first but lost the odor as they grew older.

I aged these smaller versions at first in the open air of the cooler, and when they began to show signs of drying I put them in a zip lock. They have been aging 6 weeks now.

I just took some out last night and brought it to room temp...65 F and just gave it a go. A very slight ammonia but the flavor was great. I think if I would have removed it from the zip lock and let it air a while the slight ammonia scent would have gone away.

Also, the ammonia smell developed almost immediately on my larger versions.

I actually have never tasted a professionally generated St. Maure. Do you know what it is supposed to taste like. I need to drive to the city and go to some of the cheese shops.

Tea

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Re: Sainte Maure Cheese Making Recipe
« Reply #14 on: December 30, 2008, 08:25:09 PM »
CH I used to wrap in plastic wrap, but I found that that was retaining moisture and my brie's especially were going off from the middle out every time.  So now I am wrapping in silicone baking paper and then alfoil.  I unwrapped last week and found the silicone paper damp, so replaced and rewrapped.

RRR I too have never tried this cheese, so I am unsure what I am shooting for also, but then I am finding that most homemade cheese is quite different from the "store bought" variety, so I am learning not to rely on them as a guide to flavour and texture.

I am also wondering if I need to have a constant air flow/exchange when ripening.  I put them in a closed tupperware container with a water bath for the extra moisture, and I am wondering if the confined closed area is retaining the ammonia gasses, and well as the small esky that I use to ripen further.  I am still experiementing, but with summer now in full swing, I will probably be leaving trialling again until winter.  That is unless I am able to set up a better cave.
Pleased that your are turning out, and interested in how you have been storing them?