Any cheesemakers out there?

[david123]

We have been making cheese for a while now, in fact virtually all the food we eat we make from scratch. Just pulled a year old Parmesan out of the cheese cave. (read wine cooler). we used to make small amounts, say one or two pounds at a time, of the type of cheese we like. We now make it in 4/5 pound wheels, as we find it far more convenient. I worked on a chefs web site for about 9 years helping answer foodie questions and cheese (hard cheeses that is) was one of the few things that I had never made from scratch, and felt we where missing out. We are no experts as we have only been cheese making for two or three years, but are thoroughly enjoying the journey.

 

[marcros]

one day, i will have a go!

 

[david123]

It is great fun Marcros and worth the effort to learn.

the cheese you make will often be far better then some you buy in the shops and a few will be binned in the early days others will be different to what you expect, and my not taste as say, the cheddar you buy in the shops (if its cheddar that you are trying to make).
It has been, and still is a great adventure.

Good luck, for when, and if you decide to take it on in the future

Like reading about dovetails in a book and then trying to make them....I know lol. but that is what makes it all worthwhile.

 

[nev]

apparently they are bless-ed

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I was waiting for that one!

 

[david123]

Only when we get it right [-o<

 

[Harbo]

Many, many years ago my mother used to make soft cheese from milk that had gone off - strained it through a muslin cloth for a few days.
Cannot remember what it tasted like now though?

Also had a gadget that made cream from butter and milk I think?
But those were the days of ginger beer, marrow rum, homemade bread etc etc!

Rod

 

[marcros]

can you get hold of unpasturised milk still? or is it not necessary?

 

[david123]

No, we use ordinary milk from the supermarket, either whole, skimmed or goats milk, depending on the type of cheese that you want to make.

soft cheese is pretty easy to make and there are lots of recipes on the internet, probably the best way to start.

 

[Glynne]

Be careful Mark, knowing Dave as I do he'll soon have you apprenticed without you even knowing it!

 

[marcros]

if i was nearer i would book some lessons!

 

[Cheshirechappie]

One of the good developments of the last twenty years or so is the rise of many small artisan cheesemakers. If you hunt around the farm shops and delicatessens you can find locally made cheeses in huge variety. You don't realise how bland the supermarket plastic cheeses are until you taste the real thing.

I'm fortunate to live near a city with a specialist shop selling nothing but British and Irish artisan cheeses - there must be hundreds of them! Personal favourites are Kirkham's Lancashire, Bourne's Cheshire, Ticklemore Goat and the soft and creamy Tunworth.

Hats off to anybody prepared to have a go themselves. Eating a meal you've cooked yourself from decent ingredients is far more tasty and satisfying than eating a supermarket ready meal - I'd imagine eating your own home-made cheese is similarly satisfying too.

 

[marcros]

There is an excellent shop in Harrogate too- sounds similar. The Cheese Board IIRC.

 

[bugbear]

Also had a gadget that made cream from butter and milk I think?

http://www.someoneelseskitchen.com/2007 ... iance.html
http://sussexgoodlife.typepad.com/susse ... maker.html

Edit; I was going to post that there must be at least ONE other cheese
maker on here, because I remembered "someone" working
with Dodge to make a cheese press.

Searching revealed it to be ... david123!

BugBear

 

[Kalimna]

Dave - Im glad someone asked you about sourcing milk, as I have had a notion to make some cheese for a while now (I have the cheesemaking book from the Self-sufficiency series http://www.amazon.co.uk/Self-sufficienc ... eesemaking , which although not very detailed seems to have enough info to make a start of it).
May I ask you a couple of questions? If you were to make a cheddar (say), what quantity of milk would you be starting with? Just looking for ball-park numbers. And can you recommend any other cheesemaking books?

Cheshirechappie - If the shop you are talking about is the one in Chester, then I know it well, but for the life of me cant remember what it is called!

Adam

 

[david123]

One of the good developments of the last twenty years or so is the rise of many small artisan cheesemakers. If you hunt around the farm shops and delicatessens you can find locally made cheeses in huge variety. You don't realise how bland the supermarket plastic cheeses are until you taste the real thing.

I'm fortunate to live near a city with a specialist shop selling nothing but British and Irish artisan cheeses - there must be hundreds of them! Personal favourites are Kirkham's Lancashire, Bourne's Cheshire, Ticklemore Goat and the soft and creamy Tunworth.

Hats off to anybody prepared to have a go themselves. Eating a meal you've cooked yourself from decent ingredients is far more tasty and satisfying than eating a supermarket ready meal - I'd imagine eating your own home-made cheese is similarly satisfying too.

Be careful Mark, knowing Dave as I do he'll soon have you apprenticed without you even knowing it!

Thanks glynne .
it was great meeting up again the other weekend, always a pleasure. The only problem is we always spend to much ccasion5:

Cheshirechappie

You are right the boom in Artisan food is growing, and I for one cheer them along, Brilliant.

Its a shame that we have stopped teaching kids how to cook at school (I think a few of then still do, but I am a bit out of the loop now so can't be sure). One of the greatest pleasures of my life and my involvement with food, is being on a panel of judges that gives grants to students to further their culinary education. Some of their stories are amazing.

We virtually make everything from scratch here, including sausages, butter, bread and sauces etc. We also try and grow as much veg as we can in our small garden, and roast a verity of green coffee beans to grind and blend. Buying fresh green coffee beans is a bonus, as they will keep in the green state for a couple of years without deteriorating. It means that we can roast enough beans to keep us going for a couple of weeks, and that way they are always at their peak of freshness, and of course it is cheaper to buy in bulk

I also understand, that today people lead very busy lives, and are not all as fortunate as I am.

 

[Cheshirechappie]

Dave - Im glad someone asked you about sourcing milk, as I have had a notion to make some cheese for a while now (I have the cheesemaking book from the Self-sufficiency series http://www.amazon.co.uk/Self-sufficienc ... eesemaking , which although not very detailed seems to have enough info to make a start of it).
May I ask you a couple of questions? If you were to make a cheddar (say), what quantity of milk would you be starting with? Just looking for ball-park numbers. And can you recommend any other cheesemaking books?

Cheshirechappie - If the shop you are talking about is the one in Chester, then I know it well, but for the life of me cant remember what it is called!

Adam

It is the Chester one - The Cheese Shop. It's only a small shop (on Northgate Street about half way between the Town Hall Square and the Northgate through the City walls) but oh boy do they pack plenty into it! For anybody visiting Chester, it's well worth seeking out. The lady who owns and runs it, Carole Faulkener, is a bit of a local powerhouse in the good food scene, and has done much to raise the profile of craft food makers and purveyors in the area.

 

[david123]

Dave - Im glad someone asked you about sourcing milk, as I have had a notion to make some cheese for a while now (I have the cheesemaking book from the Self-sufficiency series http://www.amazon.co.uk/Self-sufficienc ... eesemaking , which although not very detailed seems to have enough info to make a start of it).
May I ask you a couple of questions? If you were to make a cheddar (say), what quantity of milk would you be starting with? Just looking for ball-park numbers. And can you recommend any other cheesemaking books?

Cheshirechappie - If the shop you are talking about is the one in Chester, then I know it well, but for the life of me cant remember what it is called!

Adam

Bugbear

I was going to post that there must be at least ONE other cheese
maker on here, because I remembered "someone" working
with Dodge to make a cheese press.

Hi
Your are not wrong, it was me that went to Dodge to get help making a press.

I tried without success to buy a Dutch style press, using a fulcrum. I made one after using bodybuilding weights as a press. The trouble was, although I have done a bit of woodwork, my skills where not of a very high quality. I took my effort along to Dodge (bit red in the face with embarrassment at my effort, no he didn't laugh) and although the finished article was the same as the one I took with me , it was a wholly different animal and a joy to use and look at. He also taught me a whole new bunch of skills to go with it,and a great guy to boot. Thanks again Dodge

Kalmna

We used to press 2 lb cheddar cheeses and that required;
14 pints of full fat milk
Starter
Lipase .....We get ours from the States, its cheaper.
Liquid rennet
Sea salt

All books vary in their recipe's. One of the books we turned to when we first started was given to me by a chef who I know in the states and is "200 Easy Homemade Cheese recipes" by Debra Anrein-Boyes. and we still use it the most even through we have bought a few more. It may be that the one you have is just as good, but in case I am asked this is the one we most use.
Please feel free to ask if I can be of any help

 

[nanscombe]

Also had a gadget that made cream from butter and milk I think?

http://www.someoneelseskitchen.com/2007 ... iance.html
http://sussexgoodlife.typepad.com/susse ... maker.html

BugBear

Oh yes, the Bel cream maker. My dad had one of those around 40 years ago.

We only made cream with ordinary, salted butter once, thinking it would be alright... wrong! :shock:

After that we specifically bought the unsalted stuff. :lol:

 

[Kalimna]

Dave - thanks for the info. I shall look into acquiring a few more books I think... 14 pints into 2lbs of cheese. Thats a fair amount of milk. But I thoroughly enjoy making other things at home (bacon, corned beef, yoghurt, sourdough, jams, etc), so why not cheese too?

adam