Adventures in Dairyland

Yes, it's February 2012. I know. But no matter how well we plan, sometimes busy parents have to let some things slide, and in our case, the blog, and along with it, Au Lait Du Mois slid most easily. So it took us 14 months to complete all twelve fresh cheese and dairy treats from the Gourmet Home Dairy Kit and post about our experiences, but we finally did it. Guess why we suddenly finished at the end of February 2012 instead of, say, the beginning of March or 2013?

Check out the last comment on my Panir post. Yup. Being asked to be a guest blogger by the New England Cheesemaking Supplies folks is to amateur cheesemakers, as an Oscar is to an actor. Ooo . . . now I want to carve a statuette out of cheese.

Unlike an Oscar winner, who gets a dust collector which technically, they can't even sell to the highest bidder when things go south, I won a 30 Minute Mozzarella & Ricotta Kit with which I can make up to 30 batches of mozzarella. Take that Meryl Streep.

Now, to be honest, prior to receiving this award, co-blogger Rebecca and I had planned to focus on mozzarella this year, as evidenced by my Hanukkah/Christmas/Solstice/Kwanzaa/New Year 2011 gifts to Rebecca: 10 Tablets of Vegetable Rennet, Cheese Salt, and Citric Acid. If you already have the butter muslin and dairy thermometer from following along on our Au Lait Du Mois adventure, those three ingredients are all you need to embark on our mozzarella journey.

For your consideration, here is a list of all of our Au Lait Du Mois posts:

• January's Au Lait du Mois: Yogurt
  
• Yogotherm Yogurt
  
• Yogurt Update
  
• February's Au Lait du Mois: Fromage Blanc
  
• Fromage Blanc Take Two
  
• March's Au Lait Du Mois: Paneer (Panir)
  
• March's Au Lait du Mois: Panir (Paneer)
  
• April's Au Lait du Mois: Creme Fraiche
  
• May's Au Lait du Mois: Mascarpone
  
• June's Au Lait du Mois: Sour Cream
  
• July's Au Lait du Mois: Queso Blanco
  
• August's Au Lait du Mois: Buttermilk
  
• September's Au Lait du Mois: Buttermilk Cheese
  
• October's Au Lait du Mois: Cream Cheese
  
• November's Au Lait du Mois: Kefir
  
• December's Au Lait du Mois: Kefir Cheese
  

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December's Au Lait du Mois: Kefir Cheese

 

So you've made kefir smoothies for the whole family and you still have a quart of kefir leftover? Make Kefir Cheese!

 

I drained the cheese overnight (about 8 hours) and it looks nice and creamy. I seasoned it with a little salt.

Buttermilk Cheese adapted from Ricki Carroll's Gourmet Home Dairy Kit
Ingredients:

• 1 qt. fresh kefir
• Cheese salt (optional)

Implements:

• Sieve
• Bowl
• Butter Muslin

Procedure:

• Set the sieve over the bowl and line the sieve with butter muslin.
• Pour the kefir into the muslin-lined sieve. Tie the corners of the muslin into a knot and hang the bag to drain for 12-24 hours, or until the cheese has reached the desired consistency.
• Place the cheese in a bowl. Add the salt to taste if desired.

Previous Au Lait du Mois:

• January's Au Lait du Mois: Yogurt
  
• Yogotherm Yogurt
  
• Yogurt Update
  
• February's Au Lait du Mois: Fromage Blanc
  
• Fromage Blanc Take Two
  
• March's Au Lait Du Mois: Paneer (Panir)
  
• March's Au Lait du Mois: Panir (Paneer)
  
• April's Au Lait du Mois: Creme Fraiche
  
• May's Au Lait du Mois: Mascarpone
  
• June's Au Lait du Mois: Sour Cream
  
• July's Au Lait du Mois: Queso Blanco
  
• August's Au Lait du Mois: Buttermilk
  
• September's Au Lait du Mois: Buttermilk Cheese
  
• October's Au Lait du Mois: Cream Cheese
  
• November's Au Lait du Mois: Kefir

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