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CHEESE TYPE BOARDS (for Cheese Lovers and Cheese Makers) => RENNET COAGULATED - Semi-Hard "Sweet" Washed Curd => Topic started by: Danbo on February 03, 2015, 07:27:41 PM
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I just had to make a cheese with cumin. It's pretty common here in Denmark as well as the rest of Scandinavia and in Holland. It's a taste that you love or hate...
I found the recipe for Leiden (I added Cumin) in the book "200 Easy Homemade Cheese Recipes".
The make went without trouble and according to the recipe.
Still need 8 hours more in the press...
:-) Danbo
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This is one of my (many) favourite cheeses. ;D
I think it was about the fourth or fifth cheese I made as I hadn't seen it anywhere here in Oz... A week later, there it was in the cheese section at Woolies.
Congratulations on another fine looking cheese. ac4u!
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Danbo, did you roast the cumin seeds firt to bring out the oils?
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Al: No, they were just boiled...
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Wow this looks delicious! Great distribution of the seeds. AC4u :)
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Schnecken: Thank you very much. That's typical... Here in Denmark it's very common and you can get it in most supermarkets and of course in cheese shops. :-)
Mermaid: It was very easy to blend in actually. Thanks for the cheese. :-)
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Good looking cheese. AC4u
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Looks awesome Danbo. I can't say I've tried a cumin flavoured cheese. A cheese from me too.
Shane
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What is leiden cheese by the way? I've never heard of it. Easy to make? I want to try!
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AC4U. I've been wondering about adding cumin. How strong is the flavor?
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Thanks for the cheeses! :-)
Leiden (or Leyden) is a cheese originating from Holland. It's like a gouda in shape and texture and very often cumin seeds are added to the curds. The cumin taste is strong and people either hate it or love it. It's very common here in Scandinavia and of course in Holland. It goes very well with ice cold beer(s) and a dark homemade (Danish type) rye bread made on sour dough and malt.
It's a very easy cheese to make (hope it turns out well) and you don't have to stir for hours... The curds are washed in warm water twice at different temperatures. The only thing that is important to remember is to have enough boiled water ready cooled to the right temperatures. The recipe in "200 easy Homemade Cheeses" is easy to follow but there are no PH-markers and the recipe just calls for a mesophile culture. I used Choozit Kazu as it should be very good in Scandinavian cheeses. If I hadn't had Kazu, I would probably have used Choozit MA4000.
Here is a picture of the final cheese ready to go into the brine...
:-) Danbo
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Top looking cheese.
AC4U once I work out how to do it.
Might try this one myself next time, looks like something that will really make the cave look complete.
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Danbo,
How did you choose how much cumin to use----I like cumin, but to much can be overpowering----that's what happened the only time I tried it?
Another cheese for you.
Qdog
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Thanks both. :-)
Qdog:
It's a matter of taste... I like a cumin cheese to have a very strong (almost overpowering) taste of cumin seeds. I used 45 ml of cumin seeds for a 24 liter batch.
:-) Danbo
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Very nice looking cheese!! As usual!!!! ;D
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Al: You are too kind... :-)
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Sounds like the taste of the spice will be "cumin" on strong ...
:) couldn't resist. But it does look beautiful, and I do love the taste of cumin ... might have to give this a try, though at the moment, space in the "cave" is growing limited.
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In a few months I can tell you if it's worth making... :-)
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Did you do anything to the cheese between your first and most recent posts? To me looks a like the cheesecloth marks went away. If so, how did you do this?
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At the end of the pressing I simply undress the cheese, flip it and press without cheese cloth for half an hour or so. Sometimes it requires a bit longer depending on how firm the cheese is and how deep the marks are.
The cheese can be a little harder to remove from the mould - it sucks itself to the mould. If the cheese is dry on the surface it can be damage because some of it sticks to the mould. Ideally the mould should be a bit damp/slippery. i usually remove the follower, turn the mould upside-down and give it a few bumps on the counter.
The marks from the cloth will typically become less visible, but the cheese will have some "Warts" where the cheese has tried to escape through the drain holes in the mould. These "warts" can be trimmed with a sharp knife after brining, but over time the usually get less visible.
I find that the worst cloth marks are from where the cloth is folded over the cheese under the follower. I found a very good technique to reduce this, but I think that it will require a video (maybe I will do a short video on this some day)... As an alternative I sometimes do not fold the cloth over the cheese during the last 1/3 of the presssing periode.
:-) Danbo
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Wow I'll try this today! Pressing cheese now .
I'd love to see a video of the technique you mention - the cheesecloth marks drive me crazy!
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Please let me know how it went... :-)
The cheese cloth technique I mentioned are in no way rocket science and I bet that 99% of all cheesemakers just do it without thinking about it... For me though it made a major difference.
I hope that I can shot a video soon (if I forget it, please remind me)...
:-) Danbo
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I come down on the side of not liking cumin, but I can still appreciate a beautiful cheese. Another cheese for you. :)
Larry
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Thanks Larry! it's either hate or love... ;-)
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Now put some caraway seed in and you'll really have something! :)
PS- My wife HATES caraway. lol
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LOL ;-)
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Now put some caraway seed in and you'll really have something! :)
PS- My wife HATES caraway. lol
:) My wife hates cheese! But that just means more for me!
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I'm lucky (or unlucky, depending on your point of view) that my wife pretty much likes all the cheeses I've made so far.
Tonight I'm making a Tartiflette with a Reblochon I made a couple months ago.
Larry
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Sounds delicious! :-)
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Danbo- I tried your tip about pressing the cheese without the cheesecloth and it worked great! Thanks again!
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I'm glad to hear. :-)
I promised you a short video on how I pack my cheeses in the moulds. When I started making cheese I just folded the cloth over the cheese, put on the follower and tried to tigthen up the cloth. The problem was that I could only tighten up some of the cloth and it gave some serious marks in the cheese.
I found out that it works better for me if I lay the cloth on to op the mould keeping the fold outside the mould. That way I can tighten the cloth all the way around the mould. First I tighten the sides and then the top.
Maybe this is actually the way you all do this but I made a short video (hope it works) showing the way I do it - it's not rocket science though...
:-) Danbo
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Can anyone confirm that the video actually work? My stupid iPad won't show it... :-)
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Good stuff Danbo! Works fine for me on an android tablet. I do similar but with muslin. All instructions I saw suggested folding over the main cheesecloth under the follower. I found it easier to use a small extra piece around the follower. The top looked much better also.
Shane
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Hi Shane,
Glad you likied it. Your method has excatly the same result: Less wrinkles!
:-) Danbo
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This is the Cheddar from the video. :-)
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Nice. :-) What do you do with all of this cheese? Are you massive eaters of cheese, or do you share around? And another cheese for you. :-)
Shane
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Thanks! :-)
I share with family and friends. And most cheeses like time, so I they can just age for a loooong time...
When I want to learn something new I always go all in. I am really into cheesemaking right now (and I think that it will last). It's so exciting every single time a cheese is born - big or small, simple or complicated.
I am actually by nature not very patient. Cheesemaking challenges this. You can't hurry - and then the only thing that I can do is to make a lot of cheese. At the moment I think that I have around 50 kgs of cheese ageing.
I'm still a novice and making a lot of cheese does not per definition make me an expert - I strive to becomming a good amateur. There as so many in this forum that I look up to and I just love to hear all the stories and watching all the amazing pictures.
I love it! :-)
:-) Danbo
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Excellent. 50kg.... That is massive. You have very lucky family and friends.
Oh and I'm the same with patience. My plan to overcome this is to make often so that there is always something around the corner coming up ripe.
Shane
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That's a good plan! :-)
If anyone is planning a trip to Denmark, I'll offer them cheese... ;-)
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Very nice. :-) Would love to visit Denmark.
Shane
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Danbo- the video isn't working on my iPhone - I will try it on my MacBook later. Thank you so much for making a video! I love to travel and Denmark is certainly on my wish list!
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I really love to go to both Australia and the US - and a lot of other places....... But who is going to babysit my cheeses? :o
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I have software that can convert to/from a variety of video formats -- if you can't get it to work on your Macbook, or if anyone else needs a different format, I'll be happy to help.
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Thanks Awakephd, you're very helpful. :-)
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A cheese for the nice video. I've found that I don't even need to fold the cloth over the top of the cheese. I've never had problems with curd sticking to the follower.
Your demo of how to pull up the sides of the cloth is excellent. I was just trying to explain that concept in my Parm thread. I'll point to this video.
Larry
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Thanks. :-)
Normally I use cloth under the follower for the first presses and then I omit it for the following presses. The very last press I normally do with any cloth at all to make a smooth rind...
:-) Danbo
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Here are a couple of alternate versions of the video for those who are having trouble viewing the .mov file.
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Danbo, you need to do a house swap with another cheese maker.Then you can both happily flip each other's cheeses and you can see the sights of each other's country.
Shane
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Awakephd: Thanks a lot. :-)
Shane: Why didn't I think of that? ;-)
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Maybe it should be called cave swapping. And no I'm not volunteering at the moment. :-)
Shane
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Cave swapping ! I love that idea !
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Thank you for the very nice video, worked on my laptop.
Videos like this really help the newbies like myself become more familiar with making cheese from scratch. I wish there was more!
Ken
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A cheese for you Danbo for the informative video
A cheese for you awakephd for making the video into another format!
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Shane and Mermaid: I smell a new trend here... ;-)
KenK2:
Sometimes it's the smallest things that are helpful when you are new to cheesemaking. If there is anything that you need info on then just ask in the forum!
I'm still asking basic basic questions from time to time, and I get great help every time. For example I don't know the difference between a butter muslin and a cheese cloth. Maybe you do? It's important not to be embarrassed to ask the most basic questions.
And remember that your own ideas can be worth a lot for even more experienced cheesemakers - don't hold yourself back - share, share, share...
OzzieCheese sums it all up in just one sentence in his signature: "Usually if one person asks a question then 10 are waiting for the answer - Please ask !"
If you want videos on other parts of the cheesemaking process just ask. :-)
Mermaid: Thanks for the cheese! :-)
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Shane and Mermaid: I smell a new trend here... ;-)
For example I don't know the difference between a butter muslin and a cheese cloth.
Butter muslin has a higher thread count (finer weave) than cheese cloth. The count for butter muslin at New England Cheese is 90 TPI and cheese cloth is 60.
Larry
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Hi Larry,
Thanks for claifying. :-)
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A cheese for you Danbo for the informative video
A cheese for you awakephd for making the video into another format!
Thanks! I think I like this -- Danbo does all the work, and I get a cheese! :)
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You deserve it. :-)
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Danbo- you inspired me to make a cheese with seeds. I had dill seed and I like the flavor. I will post pictures of the cheese I made, but I have a question!
How will you age the seeded cheese? I assume traditionally it's waxed? I don't have any wax. I usually do natural rinds and I have a big cheese cave. Worried about molds finding their way in because the seeds create space for air between the curds.
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Hi Mermaid,
Right now the cheese is vacuum packed - I would like to wax it at a later time though.
I think that it will have to be sealed with something, but I'm not sure what to use instead of wax, cheese plastic or a vacuum bag.
I hope that someone else in here has got an idea...
:-) Danbo
Ps: I have posted make notes for the Butter Cheese that you wanted. :-)
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Here is the dill cheese
Thanks for posting the butter cheese make! Is a press necessary?
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Hi Mermaid,
Is's a very nice cheese! Maybe I'll make one just like it! :-) A cheese for you...
I used way too much force on the Butter Cheese (didn't hurt the cheese though). I think that I would use much less pressure (1/3) next time.
I wouldn't go lower than 2 psi on the final press myself, but I found this post: http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,12693.msg98432.html#msg98432 (http://cheeseforum.org/forum/index.php/topic,12693.msg98432.html#msg98432)
In this post Jeff press the cheese i warm water - that requires less press (1,43 psi). Maybe it's even possible to use even lighter press, but I'm not sure...
I don't know the diameter of the moulds that you use, but this is how you calculate the weight needed:
Weight needed = psi * 3,14 * radius of mould * radius of mould
Example (mould diameter: 8 inches, psi required: 2 psi):
Weight needed = 2 * 3,14 * 4 inches * 4 inches = 100 pounds
:-) Danbo
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Opened this cheese today. Great taste. It is a fragile though and easily breaks - would have expected a more flexible cheese.
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I found the same crumbliness with mine although I put it down to either some interaction with the cumin seeds or by my using low fat milk (2%)
Anyway AC4U for another great looking wheel.
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Welcome back! +C for your lovely queso.
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Thanks guys! :-)
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Welcome back!
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Thanks! :-)