A newbie who is full of questions and want to...

[kookookachoo]

Hi, Karen!

That's pretty much what my hubby said, too, "Don't you want to try the other soft cheeses first?"  I figured, while I have the parmesan aging, I will try other ones, too.  I will say that I'm absolutely terrified to do it!  I am, but I'm willing to try-I love parmesan & Romano...we have an area in the basement set up as the "cave"..have been checking the temp & humidity daily-a few times a day-and it seems to be the perfect spot.  It was the old canning cellar for the previous owners, we've opened it up & cleaned it before, as it's where I store vintage fabrics I collect-costume velvets, silks, etc (I will have to find a new home for them now).  I've actually been trying to talk myself out of it..but, there's not really any other "beginner's" cheese I like, so the thought of making them isn't appealing at all!   I don't eat cottage cheese,  I've got paneer down pat, as I've been making it for years.   So, for me, I don't see any other avenue.  I'm actually still mulling it over, as I didn't make it this weekend as planned.  I've chickened out.   LOL

Anyway...I've got my feta hanging for a couple of days now..and this is something new, I didn't see from my previous feta-making...the sides are kinda turning yellowish/dry (?).  It doesn't smell repulsive, smells about the same as expected, should I go ahead & brine it now & not wait until tonight (for the full 24-hour hanging)?

Here's how it looks.  (Thanks Boofer for the pic link tip!)  And I'm a bit worried about that little crack on the side, too.  Granted, I will be cutting it up...it's not something I should be worried about...right?   TIA for the help!

[smilingcalico]

The yellow from what I can tell just seems like the cheese is drying out. I'm not sure what will happen once you brine it.  You might consider just cutting it off. You could even cut it off and brine it separately so you can see what happens.

[kookookachoo]

Yeah, I figured it's a wee on the dry side.  I caved, though, and took a bite..it tastes good unsalted right now.  We've already gone through a quarter of it     I made moussaka today & was soooo happy the feta stayed crumbly & didn't get all gooey & melty.  I was worried about that.  I've not cooked my homemade feta yet, just have been eating it on pita & adding to Greek-style salad. 

[iratherfly]

I would wait with the Parmesan. I know you want to start early because it's a year long project (at least!) but trust me, what you will learn over the next 6 months about cheese, moisture, acidity and aging (not to mention the better techniques and equipment you'll have by then). It will cause you to look back at that hunk of cheese which still needs many more months of care for and say to yourself "Hmmm.... Probably a waste of time; I doubt this one will be very good".

My advice: practice first on some other semi hard and hard cheese that you can check and taste within the next 45-60 days.  Tomme is a generic, reliable, versatile and liberal cheese that can so it for you. You can also try Colby or Jack or even a farmhouse cheddar (the latter needs more than 60 days though). While it ages, continue working on soft fresh and surface ripened cheese in short 14-21 day cycles.

[kookookachoo]

Oh poo!  Iratherfly, VERY, very good advice.  And I definitely am backtracking now with the semi-hard as well as hard that don't age as loooong.  That said, against ALL cautionary inner-voice yelling at me (really loudly) in my head, my obsessive-impulsive  self warred & let curiosity get the best of me & I DID make the parm.  I have to say, though, right about half-way toward the end'ish of it,  I was really regretting it.  I have since made a big note for me on the fridge, "Resist!" (in all caps) & explained to everyone at home (hubby & kids) what it meant.  They thought I was talking about food in general.  Ha.  For me now, this round block of drying/hopefully-aging-toward-something-good parmesan is a testament to my foolishness & general idiocy.  Sigh.

Like I said, I am backtracking & doing a lot of reading-no cheesemaking this week at all (my inner voice sternly admonished myself), just lots of reading & even more research. 

Thank you all of you for your inspiration!!

[MrsKK]

You sound a lot like me, in all honesty.  For aged cheese, I started out with cheddar - not very successfully, I must say, only producing one that had truly good flavor and it was dryish and crumbly to boot.  I moved on to Colby, which turned out okay, but I preferred the fresh curds to the finished cheese.  Some of the aged ones turned out good, but not with the creamy texture I really wanted in my cheese.

This year, I've been much more pleased with aged cheesemaking.  I'm three years into it now and teach cheesemaking classes - Am I crazy or what?!  I started out with Havarti, my first venture into using a ripening container.  Then Sailor got me turned on to Lancashire, which is going to become a staple cheese in this house.  My first one is only six weeks old right now.  We tried it at 4 weeks and enjoyed the flavor.  Just cut into another quarter yesterday and are very, very happy with how much the flavor has developed in just another 12 days.  See Learning Lancashire and Lancashire Recipe for more information.

Just don't get discouraged.  This is such a great hobby (minor career for me now, too) but it does take patience.  Everyone takes their own route to success.  Maybe someday we'll get together and open our first parms.  Hey, mine will be three years old in August!

[ArnaudForestier]

I second, the notion of "sounding alot like me," kookookachoo.  I can tell you that I'm an obsessive freak (you will see me on board here, most nights, anywhere between 2-4 a.m., local time), to an assured fault.  And I tap some truly gifted people here, as much as they'll put up with, for everything they've got.  It's been an enjoyable ride, in a short couple of months. 

That said, at the end of the day, I hope we're all doing this, ultimately, from a sense of pleasure; for ourselves in the make, and in the eating, and for others, with whom we share our efforts.  So at the end of the day, if we depend on more experienced others, it's our own sense of things that has to guide the show. 

I personally applaud both your "obsessiveness," and your ultimate desire to make parm, a cheese you love.  Take what I say with a grain of salt (I really am new), but I don't think there's ever a make to truly regret - it's all learning, if painful, at times, to one's perfectionist sensibilities.  A platitude, but still a truthful one, I think. 

Best of luck.

Paul

[iratherfly]

kookookachoo, I hear you and I agree with Paul and Karen too. We've ALL had bad batches and wasted energy and milk. There has never been a more appropriate time than cheesemaking to remind people not to cry over spilled milk
Even with a bad Parmesan experience, you still learned something and practiced your technique and that's priceless.

[kookookachoo]

Thank you, guys!  I have to say, "regretting" making the parm would be a really strong.  I was a bit...uncomfortable...with myself, that I was so quick to jump in against all logic & caution.  Having read your posts, though, I've reassured myself that I'm not alone in this.  I did learn a lot of things:  I enjoy making cheese (it's almost close to the love stage, really), I will be learning new heights of patience, and ask plenty of questions!    

Karen, thank you for the link, sounds like something we would enjoy, plus the added bonus of not waiting too long to reward (hopefully) our efforts (mostly mine, but my hubby DID make the press!).  I read about not waiting overnight to drain!  Would it be ok to print the recipe you amended? 

Paul, I think I've stayed up past my bedtime so many nights these past couple of weeks than I have in a long time.   It's mostly the only time I get to have peace & quiet to concentrate on reading-process the information I've read & take down notes! 

I'm off to do a LOT of reading & looking for cheese recipes for Sunday (I don't think I can wait longer to make again). 

Iratherfly (sorry, I didn't catch your name), I think I maybe sobbed a little bit. 

[Boofer]

There are lots of semi-hard cheeses you can make that will mature well before a parm would. Then you really would be able to fine-tune your technique and equipment...and derive that much more satisfaction and confidence. I'm on my 24th cheese in not quite two and a half years and I have yet to make a parmigiano. Hey, but it's on my to-do list! 

-Boofer-

[kookookachoo]

I'm convinced.  I've got a list of cheeses I'm going to make "soon".  Based on the advice of many to novices like me, seems like tomme & gouda are the way to go.  I'm also partial to the taste of cotswald, asiago, romano, colby & jack.  I'm going to look right now for the aging time of some of the cheeses in my list.  I'm sure I'm not alone (it may even be nightmare-producing situations) in thinking, "Wonder how this tastes?" and I've only really made a couple of other-than-soft-and-fresh cheeses.  I honestly applaud everyone for not caving in to temptation!   

That being said, the process for tomme & gouda are a bit daunting!!  I'm extremely nervous but my hubby is especially enthusiastic about aging the tomme in marc.   He brews beer & makes wine.  He's only made wine from grapes a couple of times, preferring other fruits (not from scratch, though), but he said he'll do it a couple of times this year for me. 

I'm sure I'll be sending out an SOS (aka whining) here again this weekend!  Hope everyone has a good evening! 

[MrsKK]

Go ahead and print out the recipe.  I wouldn't have put it out here if I didn't want to share it.  Credit for the not waiting overnight to press goes entirely to Sailor - it was a major improvement in the process. 

I'm out here in the middle of the night now and again,too.  Tonight because I'm working third shift and all the laundry is done.  Have to do something to stay awake!

[taylor22]

I am new as well and am completely overtaken by how many different things of cheese everything there is!!  SO much to learn and to know...a true cheese connoisseur is impressive.