Finally! We made bread and cheese!

[daddyofbob]

Well, I say finally, but we had attempted bread before but it always turned out like bricks.

The cheese was so easy that my wife and I will now make it regularly it we can find a reasonably priced source of milk. We didn't weigh it out, but I was guessing that we got 500g from about 4 pints of milk. We added salt, chilli flakes and some other spices and it tastes amazing!

 

[erinszoo]

Whoo Hoo!! Making cheese for the first time is amazing isn't it? It's easy to get hooked though. Soon you'll be finding sources for all kinds of milk to try to make cheese with.

What kind of bread did you make?

 

[daddyofbob]

The bread was a wholemeal one which I adjusted from a Delia Smith recipe. I have found that its better to cook it outside of the tin in a large bun type loaf - not sure that's the right terminology?

 

[sumi]

Oh lovely! I've been baking bread or years, our favourite is a herb loaf. After letting it rise, I knead the dough and roll it, not too flat, maybe 1-2 inches thick and sprinkle fresh herbs and chopped up sun dried tomatoes on it. If you want to you can sprinkle a little olive oil on as well. Then I roll it up like you'd do a Swiss roll and pop it in a bread pan and bake it. Yummy!
I haven't made cheese yet, but I really want to. Am actually thinking goat's milk cheese, but if I can get hold of some good cow's milk (not the watered down stuff we buy in the shop), I'll have a go. How did you do yours?

 

[daddyofbob]

Thanks for the bread idea! We'll try it!

The cheese is dead simple. Heat milk to just before boiling, take off heat, stir in a tablespoon of lemon juice and keep adding a spoonful at a time, until it curdles and splits into curds and whey. Then leave to cool a little longer and strain through a cheese cloth. After a few hours, put in bowl with a pinch of salt, herbs, chillie flakes - pretty much anything you fancy and vigorously whisk up. And there you have it! Cream cheese to put on that lush bread that you've just baked!

R

 

[sumi]

Thanks! I'm going to do that. Just need some "real" milk now.

 

[daddyofbob]

Here's a little tutorial that I have put together:

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151971778075214.884529.644010213&type=1&l=b3048b7da7

 

[mississippifarmboy]

Did you use Cows milk or goat milk? We're covered up in fresh cow's milk... but no goats yet.

 

[sumi]

Thanks, Daddyofbob, I'll have a look when I get my internet connection sorted. At the moment I have difficulty getting pics to load

Am wondering who I can charm into parting with some fresh cow's milk. I do know a lady with cows, but she puts it in a tank by someone's house and that someone's been adding water to the milk....

I used to work on a dairy farm, I can tell. Watered down milk's not going to get me very far. Am thinking I'll try and get some direct from the lady. Would love some home made cheese. Can't wait 'till we can get some goats!

 

[daddyofbob]

We made ours from cows milk as goats milk is sold at a premium here. I will try goats milk next time though as we have friends with about 50 of them.

R