Are there any cheese makers on the forum? It seems like a natural addition to the smoking/sausage making hobby.I've been making yogurt for a year and today I tried my hand at a hard cheese [cheddar]. I followed the method outlined in a site called cheese making for beginners. http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/cheese/cheese_course/cheese_course.htm (http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/cheese/cheese_course/cheese_course.htm) It's in my jury rigged cheese press for the night tomorrow it goes in the fridge to dry for a few days before getting a few coats of wax and then back in the fridge to age for a couple of months. I'll take some photos when it comes out of the press
Yeah we have cheese makers here too. They will chime in I am sure.
Blessed are the cheesemakers http://forum.bradleysmoker.com/Smileys/default/cheesy.gif
I know deb and caroline both make cheese.
They got me interested in it and I bought the cheese making book
and read it but before I got around to making cheese my priorities
went in a different direction.
chW good luck on the cheese and I will be watching with interest.
I had bought a brie cheese kit a few months back but just can't find the time to start it. From the directions the first few days you need to be there all the time with this kit and that just won't happen right now. :(
I took the cheese out of the press this morning and took some pics.
here it is unwrapped It weighs a few oz over a pound. This from 4 liters of milk.
http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb368/cathousewilly/2013_03060005.jpg[/img]](http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb368/cathousewilly/2013_03060005.jpg) (http://[img)
here's the contraption I used as a press. It did the job but next time I'll build a better one
[url(http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb368/cathousewilly/2013_03060007.jpg)][/url]
I just got the new Halfords catalog and they now have cheese making kits, I agree, seems like a natural next step in the hobby. That cheese looks awesome, now I really want to try it!!
Corey
The cheese is two months old and it was time to taste. It turned out very well for a first try and I'll make it again
A couple of pictures
(http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb368/cathousewilly/2013_03100048.jpg)
After 2 months and a few taste tests
(http://i1202.photobucket.com/albums/bb368/cathousewilly/cheese008.jpg)
I have been making cheese now for three months (started milking goats three months ago and have to do something with the milk beside feeding to the future bacon).
That are several good sites online for cheese making.
http://www.cheesemaking.com/ their online cheese recipes are a good place to start. I have bought stuff from them.
http://www.thebeveragepeople.com/cheese.htm They also have recipes and I have bought from them also.
I have several books, but if you search you can find the recipes online for free.
There are lots more out there, including several that are for the more advance/adventurous people. I have made several hard cheeses (Jack, cheddar), My Feta and chevre is good. Going to try some hard cheeses that you age for months and months
Keep in mind that cheese making is like sausage making, you can add salt and pepper to ground meat stuff into a casing and it is a basic sausage, nothing special. Same thing to cheese, add a little acid and you have basic cheese.