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Friday, 1 July 2011

Making My Own Cheese


If you read about how clever I thought I was Making My Own Yogurt in the Slow Pot can you imagine my delight in discovering I can then (with a twist of magic), turn that yogurt in to Cheese!  I love cream cheese.  It has a constant presence in my fridge.  I love it on bagels, on toast, on crusty bread and in cheesecakes.  I like it plain, with chives, herbs and garlic or my current favourite with chilli.  When I was pregnant with both of my sons I used to eat it spread very thickly on toast with Strawberry Jam.  I had not eaten like that before I was pregnant or since, yet at the time it was a heavenly combination to me.
I was reading in Blogland when I came across A Trifle Rushed and a wonderful Blog post about making homemade cheese.  It sounded so simple I tried it straight away.  It was magical.  Just add three quarters of a teaspoon of salt to 1 litre of Natural Yogurt and stir.  Pour it into a Muslin Cloth and leave it in a sieve over a bowl, overnight in the fridge.  The 'Magic' starts to happen almost immediately the yogurt starts to solidify and a clear liquid drains off.  By Morning you can pick up the cheese and form it into a ball.  (I didn't have a muslin cloth I just used a clean tea towel.  I have since purchased a straining cloth for the Raspberry Liqueurs though, so that will double up as my  'Cheesecloth'.)
Delicious spread on Homemade 'Sunflower Seed Bread' and sprinkled with freshly picked Chopped Chives

I also added dried chilli flakes to some of it and took it to work for lunch (two days in a row) with bread, cherry tomatoes and sticks of red pepper.  When I eventually get some eggs I am going to feel fantastic, I feel like an Urban 'Farmer'.  I need a little goat in the back yard now!  (Preferably Cashmere).

The 'Tour de Fleece' starts tomorrow to coincide with the lesser known 'Tour de France'.  My posts should become increasingly 'Crafty' again as I begin this 'Epic Event with Fleece'.  It will be my first year competing in such an event and I am a proud member of:
The aim is to Spin for each day of the Tour which runs from 2-24 of July, it includes two rest days.  I will be recording my progress for prosperity. 

12 comments:

  1. oH HOW LVELY, GOT TO HAVE A GO AT THAT. i LOOK FORWARD TO THE SPINNING. Sorry for the caps def not shouting.

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  2. ohhhhh! I love your blog. Always something interesting going on.
    Kindest Regards Linda

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  3. ooooo nom nom nom!!!!
    That looks delish! To have cheese and jam together is normal in our house. When we were kids and went on our holibobs in the caravan we used to snack on cheddar on digestives with jam (pineapple jam was my favourite).
    Love
    Tickety-boo
    xx

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  4. That sounds so simply and yummy! I have some plain yogurt I might have to put to use now :) Cheese and toast is a lovely combination. I'm so excited to see how things go with your Tour de Fleece! I've seen your little Kiwi tag and often wondered what it was. You'll most certainly have to keep us posted! Best Wishes!

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  5. Hi Lucy!
    Your cheese looks delicious~cream cheese is a favorite around here, too. Who knew you could make it at home :)

    So that's what "Team Kiwi" is all about! Can't wait to see the spinning results. GO KIWIS!!

    Happy Friday!

    MJ

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  6. Hi Lucy, my, that cheese looks good.
    Look forward to following the Tour de Fleece.
    Carol xx

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  7. Genius !! cheese looks so beautiful

    also, you must join Team MHE Friends, I will be showing off prizes over the weekend :)

    H x

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  8. Dearest Lucy, OH MY.. you are so wonderful! I love that you made your own cheese and yes, you need a goat in the back yard to go with the chickens. You could milk it twice a day and have all your own milk, yogurt, cheese and ice cream! I speak from experience as we raised Nubian dairy goats for years, and the kids showed them at county fair and it was great! So proud of your Tour de Fleece..can't wait to see pix!!
    ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

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  9. Your pregnancy combination doesn't sound too bad wwhen you consider that cream cheese is 50% or so of a fresh cheesecake mix and that goes with strawberries.

    I love regualr philli, esp spread inside a hot toasted pitta bread. yum!

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  10. Ooooh! I am sooo glad this worked for you, isn't it fab! (sorry I didn't leave a comment earlier, I'm just catching up after an exhausting week!). Judith x
    PS Your wool in the other posts looks fab! I've put a link to your blog on my front page (it makes it easier for me to follow you using my iPad!)
    Love it!

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  11. Bookmarked to make one day, I do have cheese recipes, but this looks so simple and SO creamy! Another lovely entry into Herbs on Saturday - many thanks Lucy!

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    Replies
    1. Karen this is one of those Culinary experiences that works like magic! I can't believe you can make such delicious cream cheese so simply. It is such a versatile ingredient too, it can be used simply or combined to make increasingly sophisticated deliciousosities!

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