Thursday, October 21, 2010

Say "Cheese!"

I just got home from teaching a Cheesemaking Class at the Good Food Store Co-op.  I love this photo taken at the end of the class because it looks like everyone had fun!
Miller is the Cheese Whiz at the Co-op and he invited me to demonstrate how to make fresh mozzarella.  (I know he really wanted Cadence, our farm's most intrepid cheesemaker, but she is in Mexico.)  I had made quite a few wheels of hard cheeses after Cadence left for school, but truth be told, I hadn't tried mozzarella until I was asked to teach the class.  It's not that difficult, however - it is the first cheese we ever made using Barbara Kingsolver's instructions in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle. 
The cheese-making action was interspersed with  tasting and learning. Miller is extremely knowledgeable about cheese and had prepared samples of many mozzarella-type  cheeses for  everyone to compare.  The last step of mozzarella-making involves pulling the cheese like taffy and rolling it into little balls. This part was hands-on for everyone.  I am happy to say our  home-made cheese compared pretty favorably with the professional samples.  Better yet, I think we have inspired six new cheese-makers!

5 comments:

Susan Tomlinson said...

By golly, this year I'm going to try it!

Unknown said...

Oh you made it look so easy...lol! Yep, I'm gonna give it ah go!

daphne sy said...

I always have time to think about this kind of activity but sad to say for now I have triple job. It seems fun I guess, I am jealous=(
my blog, healthy flat

Susan said...

You might be surprised, Daphne-- You can make this mozzarella in just 30 minutes start to finish. Here is a link to the basic recipe: http://www.food.com/recipe/ricki-carroll-s-30-minute-mozzarella-homemade-280238
The most important thing is to not use ultra-pasteurized milk. I also use a bit of lipase- it seems to make the cheese softer and more flavorful, but it is not required.
I wish you a relaxing day off from your 3 jobs!

Karla said...

Hi! I'm a new follower of your blog. I've really enjoyed the posts I read today and I'm looking forward to more. I would love to attend a cheesemaking class. We hope to have our own goats in the not to distant future.

I found your blog at Community Chickens. I'm a fellow blogger there.

Stop by my blog if you get a chance.
http://workschoolkids.blogspot.com/