So, sometime ago I had shared a post about how I had taken some of the items from my makeshift garden and do something really bizarre with them; actually make a meal. Now, granted, at the time there really wasn't much in the way of garden items to use, but I was able to harvest some really nice, large romaine lettuce leaves to use as a hamburger wrapping. I really enjoy using lettuce leaves to wrap burgers instead of buns; the lettuce is healthier, has far less empty carbs, and leaves the taste of the burger. Needless to say, it was nummy.
I remember a brief conversation with @bdmillergallery about it and how it would have been neat if I had made my own cheese for it, too. Well...
Behold! Cheese!
"Farmers Cheese," in fact. Why is it named Farmers Cheese? Honestly, it doesn't take a big imagination to figure this one out. It's easy to make and was made by farmer's as their basic cheese. Ingredients:
- Milk - 1 gallon
- Lemon Juice - 3/4 cup
- White vinegar - 2 tablespoons
A close inspection of the ingredients I have put out will reveal a bottle of Strawberry Lindemans. That was for me, and not actually used in the production of cheese.
Making farmers cheese is really quite simple: bring the milk to a near boil, like this:
While it's on the stove boiling I was able to prepare the rest of the items. I wanted to use fresh lemon juice and not that pre-bottled stuff that is available in the grocery store, which I'm never entirely sure of is actually real lemon juice anyway. So, to squeezing lemons I went. This was a great time to discover that I did not, in fact, have any small cuts on my fingers.
Once the milk begins to boil the juice and vinegar need to be mixed in. The time to curdle is really quite fast; nearly immediately, in fact.
Looks good, no? Mmmm. Cheese curds... and the left over whey. Mmm.
Finally it had to be strained. This is why we have cheese cloths. "So that's why they're called cheese cloths!!" Aha. A definite aha moment. I used the cheese cloth, colander, and a bowl to hold the whey.
Curds
Whey
Yes, whey is the leftover liquid from the cheesemaking process. There are two types of whey: sweet whey, from cheese made from rennet, and acidic whey, from cheeses made from curdling. This is acidic whey; it's full of lemon juice and vinegar. This liquid whey will make ricotta at some later date.
I need to admit, ultimately, the next day when the cheese had dried and been pressed, it was really tasty! My original plan was to use it for cheeseburgers wrapped in romaine lettuce, but ultimately I felt that there was something much more Canadian to do with fresh cheese curds.
Poutine!
Even the gravy was homemade. The interesting part of this is that I do have potatoes growing in the back yard, too! My "garden," such as it is, is pretty small, and I'm enjoying the few bits of food I'm getting from it. Now, I'm not about to buy a cow or goats for fresh milk, but I am definitely beginning to understand the thrill behind growing your own food.
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(c) Victor Wiebe
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You make the cheese making process look relatively simple. I am almost brave enough to try it myself. I 100% approve of the poutine, obviously that should be the first meal you make with homemade cheese curds.
You should try it! It really is quite simple:
I ended up pressing the cheese overnight under a weight, but I've seen that others will hang the curds in the cheese cloth to drip dry. I'd love to hear the result if you try.
And yes to poutine; it was the obvious choice. :)
If I get around to making cheese I will definitely make a post about it and let you know how it went! It is on my list of cool things to try along with clotted cream which I've yet to have an opportunity to taste!
I love that you shared your method for making cheese, many times I have been tempted to make cheese by my own hands, I was even able to make tofu with a similar method. Greetings.
Thanks! Now that I've finished this once I'm ready to try again with a new method. I also have some herbs in an herb garden that I would like to try to use as flavouring.
I'd love to see how you made the tofu!
What fun. I may have to try this sometime! Of course, my cheese addiction does not need any more fuel than it already has. That said, I agree with you that it's so great to make your own stuff. It's so gratifying. Like homemade pesto from basil you grow in your garden.
I predict it's only a matter of time before you have a goat. :-)
Hahahaha. No, I'm not going to get a goat. I already do a poor enough job of cleaning up after the dog. :)
And yes! I have basil, and some other things I might try. I'm quite excited. The largest variable is the milk; I think I'm going to look for a new place to buy some more inexpensive milk.
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Curds... Yes.
And whey!
Whey to go!
How cool is this! I remember the conversation. Looks like you know what your doing here. Maybe time to quit the day job and get the farm off the ground. lol. Enjoy the cheese and remember to put a bit on your Memorial Day burger today!!!😁
And wrapped in more romaine lettuce leaves! Mmmm.
The farm is going to need to wait. The garden, such as it is, is about all I can handle right now, though I'm likely going to expand it next year. I might even start it indoors under UV lights! Hmmm.
This looks mouth watering! It probably doesn't help that I'm hungry right now. 😆
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Hey, thank you very much! It was a lot of fun to do. Hopefully I can get to making the ricotta from the leftover whey this weekend and post about that, too.
This looks interesting, I'm keen to try making this cheese! My aunt had a German husband and they often made their own cottage cheese using yogurt using a similar process.
Thank you for sharing @wwwiebe.
Have a great Wednesday.
How neat! I hadn't even thought about cottage cheese, which I really like. Maybe I ought to hunt down a recipe for that, too.
Hahaha. If I ever get the opportunity to find out I will definitely let you know.