I made a 4lb cheese, generally following Fankhausers recipe except used cheese culture and rennet - have made this before. The only differences this time were I also added Roquefort culture, used a neighbors raw milk (which I had used before, but this time noticed a bit of sediment at the bottom of the bucket) and kosher salt, instead of regular uniodized salt. The curds may not have cooked quite as much as usual - I was aiming for the firm scrambled eggs stage, and they might have only reached the medium scrambled stage...
The cheese was in the press for 18hrs (due to timing and need for sleep lol). During the night I did check on the cheese and some came out the bottom of the press (tasted fine) and when I went to turn the cheese, I noticed a lot of pressure when I was loosening it - and then the cheese inhaled! After I turned it and got it back in the press it seemed taller. This morning the cheese was definitely taller, and when you press on it, it kinda squishes like a soft rubber ball. The outside of the cheese has bit of a sponge texture, it is not smooth. Is this at all salvageable? or do my dogs get it? Where do you think the problem lays? The ricotta I made from the whey seems fine. I still have 13liters of the milk - was hoping to make more cheese today. Should I make a 2lb batch and see what happens? Should I try pasturizing? Never had this happen to me before and I am at a loss . . . Thank you.