Congrats! Doesn't look too bad. I would say you pressed too quickly (airspace) or not heavy enough to compress fully.
I would say you're right, it wasn't pressed heavily enough. I had to come up with a spur-of-the-moment makeshift press for this one, so that's understandable
.
Is it crumbly?
Actually, it was surprisingly firm. Not as crumbly as some of my others, anyway.. but still a bit. I expected worse when I cut it open.
That recipe sounds like the basic hard cheese on Fankhouser's site. http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/Cheese/Cheese_5_gallons/CHEESE_5gal_00.htm
I made it a month or more ago but haven't cut it open yet.
You know, I tried this recipe, too! I had a problem with that batch, though, unfortunately (my fault, not the recipe's).
Congrats, Meg--you are absolutely right--if you enjoy the taste you have reached your destination. Enjoy!
I know I should've clarified before, but I'm actually Meg's daughter, Annie. When I took an interest and started making cheese, I used her account on this forum to ask some questions. With that said, thank you! My success certainly encourages me.. maybe we'll get this cheese thing after all!
I'll be interested to open my next cheese that was made with the same recipe as this one, the only difference being it was bandaged instead of waxed. I hope it's as good. We'll see. I'll post the results when I open it (always an exciting moment!).
