Lancashire
Recipe from 200 Easy Homemade Cheese Recipes by Debra Amrein-Boyes
(My notes are in parenthesis)
14 quarts whole milk
2 quarts partly skimmed (2%) milk (I use a total of 5 gallons milk)
1/2 tsp mesophilic culture (I use 1 2/3 cup cultured buttermilk)
1/2 tsp calcium chloride (not necessary if using raw milk)
1/2 tsp liquid rennet (I use 1/8 tsp powdered calf rennet)
3 tbsp pickling or kosher salt (I use 4 tbsp kosher salt)
White or cider vinegar
1) Blend milks and warm to 88* F, stirring gently. Turn off heat.
2) Sprinkle culture over surface of milk and let stand for about 5 minutes to rehydrate. Using skimmer and an up-and-down motion, gently draw culture down into milk without breaking surface of milk. Cover and let ripen for 45 minutes, maintaining the temperature at 88* F.
3) Dilute calcium chloride, if using, in 1/4 cup cool water. Add to milk using the same up-and-down motion.
4) Dilute rennet in 1/4 cup cool water. Add to milk using the same up-and-down motion to draw the rennet down into the milk until well blended. Use skimmer to stop the motion of the milk. Cover pot and let set for 50 minutes, maintaining the temperature.
5) Check for a clean break. If necessary, let set for another 5-10 minutes or until clean break is achieved. Using a long-bladed knife and skimmer, cut curd into 3/8 inch pieces, using the skimmer to lift and move the curds gently to ensure all are cut. Let curds stand for 5 minutes to firm up.
6) Stir curds for 10 minutes until they release more whey, become firmer and float freely in the whey. Let settle about 5 minutes.
7) Pour contents of pot into a cloth-lined colander. Return curds to pot and press down with your hand to knit them together. (I twist the cheesecloth around the curd to expel some more whey and to help them knit.) Put the lid back on the pot to keep the curds warm. (I run some hot water in the sink and place a weight on top of the lid to help keep the curds warm). Let stand for 15 minutes. Turn the cake of curd over and hold for 15 more minutes. (Mine tends to break - just do the best you can)
Cut cake of curd in half and pile one piece on top of the other in the pot. Cover and hold for another 15 minutes. The two halves will knit together into one piece.
9) Place curd on a cutting board and cut into 1-inch by 1/2 inch pieces (I cut into cubes roughly 1 x 1/2 x 1/2). Place in a bowl and toss with salt.
10) Fill prepared mold with curds. Pull cloth up neatly around curds and fold excess snugly over the top, with as few wrinkles as possible. Put on the lid. Place mold on a rack in a draining container and let drain overnight. (this last sentence is the thing I did differently the second time - I put the mold directly into the cheese press. I won't do the overnight draining again.)
11) In the morning (or right away if you like) place mold in cheese press at medium pressure (I use 20 lbs) for one hour. Remove from press and re-dress the wheel of cheese. Continue pressing at medium to firm pressure (I use 40 lbs) for six hours (I've gone as long as 8 hours overnight).
12) remove cheese from press. Unwrap and place on a cheese mat in a ripening container. Ripen at 54* to 60* F at 85 - 90% humidity for 4 to 8 weeks, depending upon your taste. Turn cheese daily for the first week, then twice weekly thereafter. If mold appears, wipe rind with a cloth dipped in vinegar. (I find that kosher salt works well to scrub mold off, then I wipe down with cider vinegar.)
Let me know if you try this cheese and what you think of it.
