Just another day here on the homestead. When you are trying to be as self-sufficient as possible, every day is an adventure. We do a lot of food prepping and today’s preparations go to (doo dodo doo do doo doooo; horn blowing 🎺).. cheese. It may seem like an easy task. I mean you get the milk, prep the kitchen, follow recipe and TA DA…..Cheese! Well, not exactly.
First things first, “get the milk”. There is a lot to be said about milking goats. It is a lot of fun to milk goats however I can definitely relate to the old saying of “don’t cry over spilled milk”. When one is learning to milk, it is a proud moment to just get a cup of milk! We show it off proudly as if its our first born child…. “look did you see my milk,” We say to our friends as we hold our cup of milk using hand gestures that would make Vanna White proud. I believe I even took pictures of said milk, proudly displayed in a pretty mason jar for my instagram audience. I’ll admit it.
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Proof of said “proud moment”.
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But, its those moments of terror when a goat decides she doesn’t want to cooperate and kicks over a whole quart or two of milk UGH; Let me just say, the crying over spilled milk has happened….. a lot!. I do not mean a simple tear or two, I mean full blown, on the floor ugly cry. It’s a sad thing. So when I say, “get the milk” I’m saying so much more.
Now that you get the drift on milking a goat, the next step is to prep the kitchen. Here is what you need:
2 big pots
A gallon of fresh raw goat’s milk
A food thermometer
1 cup of Vinegar
Fairly large potato sack cloth
Colander
Seasonings
In one of the large pots, bring the gallon of milk up to 180 degrees. Once 180 degree temperature is reached, turn off heat and add the vinegar.
You will notice that the curds will begin to separate from the whey. While that is separating, set the colander in the empty pot. Drape the sack cloth over the colander. After letting the curds and whey separate for just a few mins, carefully pour over the sack cloth straining your cheese away from the whey. Everything will be extremely hot so do be very careful with this step. I usually have my pot in the sink with the colander and cloth. I do this incase I spill anything. The whey will strain slow but if you take the cloth by the four corners, you should be able to move the curds around a bit to let more whey strain through. When you are able to lift the cloth with the four corners of the cloth leaving a clump of curd in the middle, tie the cloth onto a cabinet handle above the pot to let the whey finish straining. Once the whey has sufficiently been stained you will be left with a warm chunk of cheese. Scrape the cheese off the cloth and season your cheese. To do this use the seasoning of choice and mix well with your hands into the cheese. Last step before storing is to pat firmly into a ball. The cheese pictured below is made with a garlic and oregano seasoning and garnished with some wildcrafted gourd blooms. If you don’t eat it all right away you can store the cheese in the refrigerator. It will grate and slice nicely once it is cold.
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In the picture above; I stuffed those gourd blooms with that cheese. Then i coated the stuffed blooms with flour/cornmeal and cooked in coconut oil till golden brown, May I say, “YUM!!” Hope you enjoy this recipe. I will be posting more soon.
Many more cheesy blessing,
Kate