Sunday, August 21, 2011

More Fun With Milk

Little Miss Muffet
Sat on a tuffet,
Eating her curds and whey. . .
 
Here's a fun bit of kitchen chemistry that you can do to produce your own curds and whey.

Call it panir or queso blanco or vinegar cheese -- this is the quickest, simplest cheese imaginable.

Heat a gallon of milk to 190 F (just short of a boil.) Off heat; add a half cup of vinegar or lemon juice. Almost immediately the milk will separate into curds and whey.

Let the curds and whey cool a bit, then spoon the curds into a colander lined with cheesecloth ( or a white handkerchief.) The whey can be saved and used in cooking or, as I do, to moisten the dogs' kibble.

Add a teaspoon of salt to the curds, You can also add a little cream and whatever herbs or spices appeal to you. For this batch I used some herbs de Provence. Chives would be nice; Justin once made a batch using tarragon vinegar and it was wonderful!

Vinegar cheese is mild --- some might say bland. I find it delicious.  You can stir it into pasta or use it in cooking but be aware that it doesn't actually melt -- not a great pizza topping. It keeps about a week in the refrigerator.
 

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15 comments:

Ms. A said...

I had no idea! Wish I had known this when my dogs were still alive. I'm going to pass this along to my daughter.

Christine said...

I think I could do this! And daughter's little dog would love the whey on her dogfood. But of course she'll be begging for some of the cheese too!

Merisi said...

This type of fresh cheese is used a lot around here, in spreads like yours, with a bit of sour cream added, or fillings for danish pastries, even strudels.

Brian Miller said...

nice...have never made out own...my boys love cooking and experiments though so we will def give it a try...

Vicki Lane said...

This would be fun to do with kids. Of course, I'm just making use of some of the great quantity of milk the Jersey Girls are putting out.

Justin is actually feeding this cheese to our freezer-bound chickens. Milk fed chickens -- sounds like a luxury item on a fancy-schmancy menu.

JJ Roa Rodriguez said...

Another good one...

Have a great week ahead!

JJRod'z

Carol Murdock said...

OH the joy of owning your own Jerseys! I'll have to stick to my Country Girls Milk and it's really sticking to me...I've gained 9 pounds since I started drinking it and I know it's all that cream in it! HA!

Louise said...

Oh, that sounds like fun. Do you use whole milk, or would any of the lower percent milks work, too?

BB said...

You never cease to amaze me with all your kitchen creations. You are a very multi-talented lady! Sounds good.

Thérèse said...

So interesting!

Marilyn & Jeff said...

Fabulous, thanks so much for this. I must try it.

Folkways Note Book said...

Vicki -- hmmm -- sounds delicious -- barbara

Callie Brady said...

Didn't know about vinegar cheese... mmm... sounds delicious! Thank you for the great photos and directions.

Thérèse said...

Vicki,
to answer your question: the white ones on the first picture are unripe "better boy" tomatoes...

tipper said...

Always wanted to try this-I should now : )