Making Artisan Cheese (11 page)

14 ounces (400 g) paneer cut into ½" (about 1 cm) cubes
3 tablespoons (45 ml) vegetable oil
1½ pounds (680 g) frozen spinach, thawed and drained
8 tablespoons (120 g) ghee (see
page 159
for recipe)
1 teaspoon (2 g) cumin seed
3 cloves peeled garlic, finely chopped
2 teaspoons (3 g) ground coriander
1 teaspoon (3 g) red chili powder
4 ounces (120 ml) cream
Salt

Heat vegetable oil in a sauté pan over medium heat, and fry paneer cubes until all sides are golden brown. Remove from the pan and set aside. Add two tablespoons of ghee to the pan, and sauté spinach for four to six minutes. Transfer to a blender and purée. Heat the remaining ghee over medium high heat, and add cumin seeds. Once they begin to crackle, stir in the chopped garlic and sauté until golden. Add coriander, chili powder, and spinach. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Add paneer and simmer to heat. Stir in cream, and salt to taste. Serve immediately.

Serves 6

Fresh Chèvre

This fresh goat’s cheese is easy to make and has a great flavor. Working with goat’s milk is a little different from cow’s milk, because the curds are softer and require some care when handling. If you are using pasteurized milk, or simply find that your curds are too soft and not holding up well, add calcium chloride.

PROCEDURE

Warm the milk to 72°F (22°C), then add the starter culture and mix well. Add one tablespoon (5 ml) of diluted rennet, and stir for two minutes. Cover and keep milk at the target temperature. Cheese curds will form in eighteen hours. If it looks like curds haven’t formed after that time, let it set longer. Sometimes this step will take up to twenty-four hours.

Cut the curds and check for a clean break (for how to cut curds and check for a clean break, see
page 83
). When the curds cut cleanly, ladle them into a chees cloth–lined colander with the catch bowl underneath. Tie the cheese cloth into a ball, wrapping the ends around a wooden spoon to allow the whey to drain freely.

When the whey has stopped draining, the cheese is ready, usually within four to six hours. Take the cheese out of the cloth, package it in an airtight refrigerator container. Refrigerate for up to two weeks.

Yield: ½ pound (225 g)

INGREDIENTS

½ gallon (1.9 L) goat’s milk

teaspoon (about 1 ml) direct-set culture

One drop of rennet dissolved in 5 tablespoons (28 ml) of unchlorinated water

Calcium chloride as needed (
teaspoon diluted in 4 tablespoons [20 ml] of cool water (see
page 72
for guidelines on using calcium chloride)

TECHNIQUES

For tools and illustrated steps, see Techniques for Making Fresh, Soft Cheeses,
page 48
.

Chèvre complements both sweet and savory flavors. Try it as a spread, as shown here, or as a filling for crepês or pastry.

Artisan Advice

When making Chèvre, you will notice a layer of cream on top of the ripened milk, and that the whey has risen to the top. One of the unique characteristics of goat’s milk is that it is naturally partially homogenized. This is another reason to add calcium chloride to the milk before ripening it in order to increase its yield. Although it will take some time for the curds to set, the milk is ready when you see a thin layer of cream form on the surface.

Chèvre Chaud

The French have a fantastic recipe for goat cheese called Chèvre Chaud (literally translated as hot goat cheese), which calls for breading fresh chèvre and frying it. Typically this dish is served with a salad and light vinaigrette. It is so common in France I often wonder why we don’t see more of it here—it is delicious.

INGREDIENTS

11 ounces (310 g) fresh goat Chèvre
¾ cup (40 g) fresh bread crumbs
1 egg, beaten

Mold the goat cheese into two or four ½" (about 1 cm) -thick patties. Dip each patty into the beaten egg, and then coat it in fresh bread crumbs.

Place the cheese patties on a nonstick sheet pan and broil until lightly browned. Turn and brown the other side. When the cheese patties are lightly browned on both sides and soft in the center, remove and place them over a bed of mixed greens topped with a light vinaigrette dressing.

Yield: Two entrées, or four appetizers

Quark

Although Quark is virtually unknown in the United States, it is found in nearly every German household. Tangy like sour cream, with some additional body, it can be made with whole milk or low-fat milk, depending on your preference.

PROCEDURE

Heat the milk to 88°F (31°C), and add the culture or starter, according to package directions.

Cover the milk and let it ripen at room temperature for twenty-four hours, or until the milk has set (it should have the consistency of a firm yogurt).

After the mixture sets, pour it into a cheese cloth–lined colander, tie it into a ball, and let it hang from a wooden spoon. Let the cheese drain in your refrigerator overnight, with a catch bowl placed underneath the colander. When the mixture has drained, remove it from the colander and the cheese cloth, place it in an airtight refrigerator container, and store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

Yield: 1 pound (450 g)

INGREDIENTS

1 gallon (3.8 L) milk

¼ teaspoon (about 1 g) direct-set buttermilk culture, or 2 tablespoons (28 ml) buttermilk

TECHNIQUES

For illustrated steps, see Techniques for Making Fresh, Soft Cheeses,
page 48
.

Yogurt

Yogurt has been a staple for thousands of years in Eastern Europe, North Africa, India, and Central Asia; the word yogurt is Turkish in origin. This fermented milk product remained in relative obscurity in Western Europe until the early twentieth century, when it was discovered that the cultures used to make it provide significant health benefits. Now yogurt is a ubiquitous product found in a multitude of forms.

Making yogurt is a simple process, which allows you to produce fresh, tasty yogurt that costs half as much as what you pay in the store. Although yogurt itself is not a cheese, it can be made into cheese (see the recipe on
page 60
), and can also be used as a starter for making other cheeses.

PROCEDURE

Heat the milk in a cooking pan to 180° F (82°C). As soon as it reaches this temperature, it should be removed from the burner. Cool the milk to 108°F–112°F (42°C–44°C).

In a measuring cup, dissolve the packet of starter culture in a small amount of milk. Pour this mixture into the pan of milk and stir. Cover and keep the milk at 116°F (47°C) for four to four and a half hours until the mixture has reached the desired consistency. Spoon the finished yogurt into an airtight container and refrigerate for up to two weeks.

Yield: 1 quart (0.9 l)

INGREDIENTS

1 quart (0.9 L) milk (whole or low-fat)

1 packet (5 g) of yogurt starter (see Resources,
page 173
)

TECHNIQUES

For tools and illustrated steps, see Techniques for Making Fresh, Soft Cheeses, on
page 48
.

Homemade yogurt is an easy-to-make, healthy, and delicious treat—and it can be used as a starter culture for making other fresh cheeses. When making cheese, save the watery whey for making ricotta cheese or for baking.