So, sometime ago I had shared a post about how I had taken some of the items from my makeshift garden and do something really bizarre with them; actually make a meal. Now, granted, at the time there really wasn't much in the way of garden items to use, but I was able to harvest some really nice, large romaine lettuce leaves to use as a hamburger wrapping. I really enjoy using lettuce leaves to wrap burgers instead of buns; the lettuce is healthier, has far less empty carbs, and leaves the taste of the burger. Needless to say, it was nummy.
I remember a brief conversation with @bdmillergallery about it and how it would have been neat if I had made my own cheese for it, too. Well...
Behold! Cheese!
"Farmers Cheese," in fact. Why is it named Farmers Cheese? Honestly, it doesn't take a big imagination to figure this one out. It's easy to make and was made by farmer's as their basic cheese. Ingredients:
- Milk - 1 gallon
- Lemon Juice - 3/4 cup
- White vinegar - 2 tablespoons
A close inspection of the ingredients I have put out will reveal a bottle of Strawberry Lindemans. That was for me, and not actually used in the production of cheese.
Making farmers cheese is really quite simple: bring the milk to a near boil, like this:
While it's on the stove boiling I was able to prepare the rest of the items. I wanted to use fresh lemon juice and not that pre-bottled stuff that is available in the grocery store, which I'm never entirely sure of is actually real lemon juice anyway. So, to squeezing lemons I went. This was a great time to discover that I did not, in fact, have any small cuts on my fingers.
Once the milk begins to boil the juice and vinegar need to be mixed in. The time to curdle is really quite fast; nearly immediately, in fact.
Looks good, no? Mmmm. Cheese curds... and the left over whey. Mmm.
Finally it had to be strained. This is why we have cheese cloths. "So that's why they're called cheese cloths!!" Aha. A definite aha moment. I used the cheese cloth, colander, and a bowl to hold the whey.
Curds
Whey
Yes, whey is the leftover liquid from the cheesemaking process. There are two types of whey: sweet whey, from cheese made from rennet, and acidic whey, from cheeses made from curdling. This is acidic whey; it's full of lemon juice and vinegar. This liquid whey will make ricotta at some later date.
I need to admit, ultimately, the next day when the cheese had dried and been pressed, it was really tasty! My original plan was to use it for cheeseburgers wrapped in romaine lettuce, but ultimately I felt that there was something much more Canadian to do with fresh cheese curds.
Poutine!
Even the gravy was homemade. The interesting part of this is that I do have potatoes growing in the back yard, too! My "garden," such as it is, is pretty small, and I'm enjoying the few bits of food I'm getting from it. Now, I'm not about to buy a cow or goats for fresh milk, but I am definitely beginning to understand the thrill behind growing your own food.
(c) All images and photographs, unless otherwise specified, are created and owned by me. (c) Victor Wiebe
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Amateur photographer. Wannabe author. Game designer. Nerd.
General all around problem-solver and creative type.
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