Ok....how'd you do that?

Oh Yes! That looks wonderful. We need a recipe & an explanation of what you did :~) I love to try new things

Yep - inquiring minds!! It looks very interesting....

Here are a couple of links on the basics of making it (I could only put one in the add-on link). I only use regular cow's milk from the grocery store - I've used everything from skim to whole and of course, whole makes a creamier cheese. I never add any flavorings (as the one link suggests) although I think cracked pepper would be good, since we salt it before eating. It's very mild, with the texture of a firm cottage cheese. I like to store it in a little bit of its whey, to keep it moist. I read somewhere that instead of throwing away all that whey, to boil it down until it turns golden and you can scoop it out to spread on crackers, etc. DON'T waste your time! . . . I tried this last week and it took hours and hours and the stuff was nasty!!!

Disclaimer (after the Hot Milk Cake :) . . . if you're looking for a strong flavor, this cheese isn't it. But if you're looking for a creamy, soft cheese that squeaks when you chew it, this is like heaven on earth - hubby and I keep track of who has had more than their fair share :) Don't forget to salt your slices before you eat them!

http://www.beatrice-ojakangas.com/2008/08/two-finnish-cheeses_05.htm

Here is a link that might be useful: finnish squeaky cheese

Oh yum! So8unds a bit like curd which I love. Squeaky, mild and yes I salt it! Curd is very pricey here so I think I'll give this a try.

Thanks

where do I get liquid rennet?

linda, I've seen junket rennet on the shelf at Walmart, but I buy mine (I've used both tablets and drops) from my local harvest co-op market (keep it in the freezer - lasts a long time.)

It looks really good. Now I'm off to read the links that you provided. Thanks for sharing!

(Sigh) cannot find rennet where I live. But, what is new? Al

Al, you can buy the rennet online and the Junket Rennet tablets are pretty cheap from the Junket company directly. Perhaps someone or several people would like to go in with you on a number of boxes. They're only a dollar fifty each but the shipping is six fifty for where I live. You could reship for less than a dollar so it would pay for several people to get together. One rennet tablet is equal to one teaspoon of liquid rennet or 20 drops.

Pixistix that looks excellent. I love fresh cheeses. I'll have to make some soon. Thanks for the idea, recipe and links. Smiles.

Here is a link that might be useful: Junket tablets

Al, I buy liquid rennet from a small store here that supplies beer, cider and wine making supplies. The tablets are easier to find and store, though.

Pixistix, I've been working on "perfecting" my mozzarella, since I took that cheese making class with the boss. When making mozzarella you can take that whey, heat it to 200, keep it at 200 for 5 minutes, then pour it into a cloth lined sieve. It'll make about a cup of really nice ricotta if you let it drain several hours. It might make more, depending on how much milk solid is left after you remove your curd.

Maybe that would work with the whey after you make the squeaky cheese. Since you've already strained it through a cloth, I don't know, but it might be worth a try and it only takes a few minutes of cooking time and the rest of the time is just letting it drain.....

Annie

thanks, Annie, I'll give it a shot . . . it seems like such a waste to throw all that whey out, and I'd be thrilled with even a tiny bit of ricotta from it :)

Good luck, I was astounded at how easy it was to make ricotta!

Be sure to let us know how it turns out.

Annie

Thanks Coconut_nj! I have always wanted to make cheese but not being able to find any Junket tablets was my problem. I wouldn't mind getting the entire box if they would ship to Canada. I did send them an email asking about their shipping policy. Hope to hear back from them soon.

Annie, I have tried a lot of places here in Calgary but didn't have much luck. I even tried the local cheese factory but they just ignored my inquiry.

Chase, do you know something that I don't? Where do you get your Junket? Maybe I can give them a call or email them?

Al

Annie, I don't know what I do wrong but I have never been able to make ricotta with the leftover whey.

I even let it sit overnight to ripen.....nada. I tried it two days ago. I don't think I will bother again.

I would like to know the method you used for the mozzarella. Have you posted it before?

I am using Willow's raw milk.

I have made two delicious batches of cottage cheese using no rennet or anything. Just start the already warm from the cow milk with a cup of my own cultured buttermilk. That is the whey I am using.

The Finnish cheese sound like solid curd cottage cheese without the acidity of clabbering overnight.

I have bought supplies from the New England Cheese Company. They seem to be a very reliable firm.

Here is a link that might be useful: Cheese supplies

gldno, I used Ricki Carroll's 30 minute mozzarella method, there's a whole thread here complete with pictures, called Cheese Making 101, but my Vista won't let me copy and paste a link.

I also posted the recipe on another thread, but since I can't link one, it's easy to find if you do an internet search. I like the method where you put the cheese into the microwave instead of back into the hot whey, it's less messy.

Annie

I made FARMER CHEESE (a soft cheese) last weekend so that I could make some cheese blintzes. They were wonderful! I hadn't had them in over 30 years, since I moved to N.C. I just can find whole milk Farmer cheese here. Sometimes you can find skim, but it's too hard of a cheese to make blintzes. It was very easy! I will attach the site on ALLRECIPES where I got it.

When I lived in S.Florida, a wonderful lady in the neighborhood taught me how to make them and I still have the original recipe I wrote down. I had to make them from memory, as I have the recipe but need to find it.

I made ricotta the next day with the whey. Surprised myself!

I have never made cheese before in my life! I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was!! Well, almost...

I tried to make mozarella yesterday, but it never did make a 'break'. I will try again some other time.
I will be make ricotta again today with the whey. I read where you can freeze ricotta, so that is good to know!

June Lynn

Here is a link that might be useful: Farmer Cheese

Can someone tell me how to print out the page from pixi's clickable link? It opens to a page from a book that's been scanned and when I hit print, it only prints out the border and book info.

Thanks!
Tracey

Tracey...try right clicking and highlighting the recipe. Then click copy, bring up your notepad, which is under your start menu. Paste it to that and try printing there. I hope that made sense. :)

Disregard Tracey...it doesn't work. Hmmmmmm...I finally just put my word pad up...made it narrower and typed it out.

Now...if I can find rennet...the cheese will be mine! :)

That's the thing-you can't right click! Instead of the arrow, there's a hand and you can't do anything except scroll up and down the page. I'll keep trying. Thanks!

June, that ricotta is amazingly easy, isn't it? As for the mozzarella, if you don't get it hot enough, it'll not stretch, and it'll be rubbery, it's all a matter of how it "feels". The mozzarella is still good, though...

Annie

Not locally but found them in the next town, about an hour away. I emailed the factory and they said a box of 100 tablets cost $26 plus $8 shipping. They said I could drive there for the pick up if I didn't want to pay the extra $8. Not sure if I want to drive an hour to save $8. But I certainly will order a box. What is the shelf life of these tablets? Do they last forever? I hope I will enjoy cheese making or what am I going to do with 100 of them? LOL Al