Caldwell Rennet Curd Bloomy Rind

[soniaR]

I was thinking of making Caldwell's Rennet Curd Bloomy Rind  (p.187), which calls for 3 gallons of milk, but instead using 1 gallon of pasteurized goat milk (of course I would scale down everything by a third). Is there any reason this would not be a good idea? Are there adjustments or changes I should make? I would be using Camembert forms.

[mikekchar]

No problem at all.  In fact, I have used similar recipes with only 2 liters of milk (one cheese in a 11.5 cm mold).  Actually, I'm doing a triple cream tomorrow :-)

[soniaR]

Thanks, I will get going on it then! Good luck with your triple cream.

[Lancer99]

I don't mean to disagree, but IME (admittedly limited) rennet doesn't quite scale linearly, (even though it should) so I would use a bit more than the 0.6 ml called for if you do 1/3 the recipe.  There's certainly no need to cut the 1/8 cup water by three.  Keep us posted!

-L

[soniaR]

Thank you, Lancer99. I saw your suggestion about rennet after making the cheese so did not increase it. I have double-strength so used .3 ml. I did have to wait a little longer than stated for a clean break. Otherwise, I think things are going well, but then again I always think that on Day 2 or 3! It's once the molds start coming, or more likely not coming, that disappointment sets in. I sprinkled them with ash so it will be fun to watch. This make was more laborious than previous cams because (a) I think Caldwell has a few additional steps, but mainly (b) it's my first time using a pH meter and I checked the pH a lot, sometimes waiting until it dropped more. I will post results!

[soniaR]

I have partial results to report. The make went well, I followed the method very closely (did decide to use ash), and on Day 6 the first white mold started appearing on the sides, and today, Day 7, it's appearing on the top. The RH fairies have been on my side; during the drying phase and now the ripening phase, I'm able to maintain the necessary level. This is a first for the 7 or so times I've attempted bloomy rinds. The cheeses are actually doing what they're supposed to be doing!

[scasnerkay]

Congratulations on your excellent looking cheeses!! And a thumbs up for you!!

[soniaR]

Thank you, @scasnerkay!

I'm seeing today, Day 8, that the gridlines from the mats are not allowing the mold to spread evenly on top and bottom. Today it's even more pronounced than the picture above. I've removed the mats and have the cheeses directly on the plastic larger grid below them. I don't know if that's what I should do, or it there's any way to ensure that the white mold will recover and spread over the ash gridlines. Any tips on what I should have done earlier, or what I should do now would be appreciated.

[soniaR]

On Day 12, I wrapped the cams. I was hoping the white mold coverage would be better but I was going by the smell, and I think it was ready to wrap.

[soniaR]

We opened and ate this at five weeks. It is really delicious and I'm very happy with it. I probably could've opened it a bit earlier, but am very pleased with it as is.

[MacGruff]

Looks beautiful!

AC4U

[Lancer99]

Well done, perfect.  Definitely AC4U!

-L