Queso Blanco

So, what am I up to now?

 

Well, I took another class last night and today I am making homemade cheese.   In class, the procedure was so easy and fun...except for that woman who almost poured an entire pot of HOT milk, curds included, on me.  She missed the bowl and I was lucky enough to be quick enough to jump out of the way. The instructor is well versed in ‘back to basics’ stuff such as herbal remedies; bread making; canning; soap making; and homemade, natural cleaners.  I have signed up for another class to be held in April.  You will have to check back to see what else I will be learning.

Dee, the instructor, demonstrating the draining process.

 

Now, for the cheese…

 

I am using store-bought milk since our cows are beef cows; but, I am already putting my own twist on the recipe by incorporating my dried Roma tomatoes and my dried sweet basil, both of which are home grown. I hope we , meaning Glenn and I, like it.

 

 

heat milk

add acid, curds form

drain whey from curds

 










The recipe itself is quite simple: heat milk, add vinegar, drain curds, add salt/tomatoes/basil, and drain again. Voila - homemade Queso Blanco cheese.





drained curds

adding salt, dried tomatoes, dried basil



mixed cheese curds/crumbs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And, the taste…..well, I will not know for hours because that it the time needed for the second drain.  Actually, that second drain can be anywhere between one hour and overnight, but I am going for a four-hour drain. Correction…I must have done something wrong as I did not need a second drain.  I thought I was supposed to twist and squeeze the cheese wrapped in cloth before draining…guess not. So, I unwrapped my cheese ball and it is more like cheese crumbs; fortunately, the cheese crumbs taste great.  My version should be a tasty addition crumbed over salad, spaghetti, baked potatoes…

 

And the resulting liquid from the drain, the whey (remember Little Miss Muffet eating her curds and whey?), will not go to waste.  It can be reheated resulting in a ricotta cheese.  And, the resulting whey from the ricotta can be used in bread, in other recipes requiring water, watering plants, or to water the chickens.  I think I will opt for bread, first.

 

Wrong again as I did not get any, and I do mean NOT ANY, ricotta formed during the reheating of the initial whey.  I think I will nix the bread this go around and recycle my whey to my chickens.  They will eat/drink anything.

 

OK… so, cheese making looked like it was going to be easy.  Maybe I need a cheese-making refresher course already…and, better luck next time!

 

P.S.  Those cheese crumbs were a fabulous flavor topping for our dinner salads; so, not a complete failure.