Let's make some cheese! I'm so excited to learn how to do this. There is nothing better than a good piece of savory cheese on a salty cracker or tortilla. I decided I should start easy and work my way up because as I have researched, some of my favorite cheeses seem insanely hard to make! I found this great looking recipe for queso fresco in a special edition of Better Homes and Garden Magazine last month and I think it looks easy enough for even me to do. Queso fresco is a soft and salty Mexican cheese used for topping tacos, quesadillas, crumbling over salads and you can even incorporating into a tomato and basil bruschetta or anything else; it's a really versatile cheese. I can't get enough of this stuff, and usually have some on hand in the fridge, but I have always had the store bought kind in the little round wheel. Going with the premise that everything tastes better from scratch, my taste buds are just dancing at the thought that it could get any better.
In a big pot (6-8 qt) add your milk and salt, stir, then bring up to 190 degrees F using a candy thermometer. Stir frequently.
2. Remove from heat and gradually add the vinegar as you stir the milk. Let it sit for 5 minutes, then gently stir. This is where you will notice the curd separating from the whey.
3. Line a colander with a double thickness of cheesecloth and pour in the contents of your pot, discard the whey (the liquid). Let the curd drain for about 15 to 20 minutes.
4 &5. Now you can either spoon it into a container, or if you want a firmer cheese you can take the ends off of a tin can, put the can on the plate, spoon the cheese into the can, put the lid over the top and top the lid with a weighted can(see illustration below). I just used a can of beans I had in the pantry :). Then you can chill it for a few hours (4-24) and it will get nice and firm.
6. Cut the cheese--haha-- into smaller wheels, wrap in saran wrap, then you can either chill and use the individual wheels, or share with friends. See, easy right?
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| Step 1. Bring milk and salt up to 190 degrees F, while stiring frequently. |
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| Step 2. Remove from heat, gradually add vinegar. Let sit for 5 minutes |
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| Step 3. Drain whey from curd, 15-20 minutes |
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| Step 4. Chill cheese, or pack it unto a cylinder (can) and press for 4-24 hours, then chill. |
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| Step 5. Weight lid down with another can to press cheese and make it firmer |
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| Step 6. Cut cheese into wheels, wrap in saran wrap, and chill or share with friends. |
This was such a fun project and was so easy, I let my nine year old niece help me and she had a blast. She had so much fun, but was a little sad she didn't get to get messy. The great thing about making cheese is it's pretty simple and clean, no need to ruin those manicured nails. Making cheese is a great activity for kids, not only because it's fun, but also because they are actually learning about the food that they eat and how it's made. The more kids understand about food, the easier it will be for them to distinguish the crap from the good stuff later in life.
So overall this whole cheese making experience was great, I knew making this cheese would be easy, but this was a piece of cake! I am definitely ready to try my hand at some harder, more intricate cheeses; but for now I'm going to enjoy my queso fresco. It does taste a little different from the store bought queso fresco. It's a little more mild, and has a consistency between queso fresco and ricotta; It's really good. I put some on top of my pizza last night, threw some in my salad for lunch today, and think I will make some tostada's with it tomorrow. I may even try mixing it into a lasagna; the possibilities are endless.
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| My nine year old niece enjoys making cheese as much as I do :) |
Update 2.25.11
I was nominated for Blog Of The Month on the site Just For Blogs! If you like what you see here, please go to their site and vote for Preserving the Past in their March poll. This would be the best birthday present ever. Thanks! :D
