Making Artisan Cheese (25 page)

With patience, this pungent, crumbly cheese can be all yours at home. The secret to good flavor and texture lies in the aging of this cow’s-milk cheese.

Romano

Romano is one of the world’s oldest cheeses, dating back to the Roman Empire. The authentic Romano, known as Pecorino Romano, is made with sheep’s milk. Considering that the availability of sheep’s milk is limited for the average home cheese maker, I suggest using cow’s milk and adding the enzyme lipase. This will give the cheese more of the tangy flavor that is associated with Romano. An alternative approach, for a fuller-flavored cheese, is to blend one gallon (3.8 L) of goat’s milk with one gallon (3.8 L) of cow’s milk.

INGREDIENTS

2 gallons (7.6 L) whole milk

5 ounces (142 g) prepared thermophilic mother culture, or ¼ teaspoon (about 2 ml) direct-set culture

¼ teaspoon (about 2 g) lipase powder dissolved in ¼ cup (60 ml) cool, unchlorinated water

¾ teaspoon (about 4 ml) of liquid rennet or ¼ tablet dried rennet diluted in ¼ cup (60 ml) cool, unchlorinated water

Brine solution (see
page 86
)

TECHNIQUES

For illustrated steps and tools, see Intermediate Cheese-Making Techniques,
page 82
.

PROCEDURE

Heat the milk to 90°F (33°C), then stir in the starter culture. Add the lipase, cover, and let the milk ripen for fifteen minutes.

Maintaining the target temperature of 90°F (33°C), add the diluted rennet, and stir for two minutes. Cover and let it sit at target temperature for forty minutes, or until you have a clean break (see
page 83
). Once you have a clean break, cut the curds into ¼" (6 mm) cubes. Let the curds rest for ten minutes maintaining target temperature.

Slowly heat the milk to 115°F (46°C); this should take forty-five minutes. Stir frequently with the whisk. Once you reach the target temperature, maintain it for another forty-five minutes, continuously stirring to keep the curds from matting. Drain the curds through a cheese cloth–lined colander set over a catch bowl.

Pour the curds into a 2-pound (900 g) cheese cloth–lined mold. Cover one corner of the curds with the cheese cloth, top with follower, and press at ten pounds for thirty minutes.

Remove the cheese from press, and slowly unwrap the cloth. Turn over the cheese, rewrap it in the cloth, and press at twenty-five pounds for three hours. Repeat this procedure, pressing at forty pounds for twelve hours. Repeat again, pressing at twenty pounds for twelve hours.

Romano cheese is an enduring favorite with Italian meals, and although traditionally made with sheep’s milk, you can closely approximate the flavor by adding special enzymes to cow’s milk, or by making it from a blend of cow’s and goat’s milk.

Remove the cheese from the mold, and unwrap the cheese cloth. Immerse the cheese in the brine solution. Flip the cheese occasionally, and let it sit in the brine for twenty-four hours, at 70°F (21°C).

Take the cheese out of the brine solution, pat dry, and place on a cheese board. Put the cheese in the refrigerator at 55°F (13°C) at 80–85 percent humidity for ten months. Turn the cheese daily for the first three weeks of aging, and then weekly after that. Remove any mold that forms on the exterior of the cheese with the washing solution (using a clean cloth dipped into the brine solution).

After one month, rub the cheese with olive oil to keep it from drying out, and again after a week. Repeat again every month.

Yield: 2 pounds
(900
g
)

Bra

Bra originated in the town of the same name, located in the mountainous region of Italy known as Piedmont. Originally, farmers added sheep’s or goat’s milk to supplement the cow’s milk.

INGREDIENTS

2 gallons (7.6 L) low-fat milk

8 tablespoons (60 ml) thermophilic mother culture, or ¼ teaspoon (about 2 ml) thermophilic direct-set culture

1 teaspoon (5 ml) liquid rennet, or ¼ tablet dry rennet, diluted in ¼ cup (60 ml) cool, unchlorinated water

Brine solution (see
page 86
)

TECHNIQUES

For illustrated steps and tools, see Intermediate Cheese-Making Techniques,
page 82
.

PROCEDURE

Heat the milk to 90°F (33°C), then stir in the starter culture. Cover and ripen for thirty minutes.

Maintaining the target temperature of 90°F (33°C), add the diluted rennet, and stir for two minutes. Cover the pan, and allow it to set for forty minutes at the target temperature, or until you have a clean break (see
page 83
). Make one cut through the curds with a curd knife to test for a clean break. Once you have a clean break, cut the curds into ¼" (6 mm) cubes.

Slowly heat the milk to 100°F (38°C); this should take thirty minutes. In order to get the curds to the proper size, use a whisk. Stir frequently with the whisk, using an up and down twisting motion.

Pour the curds into a cheese-cloth-lined colander, and quickly transfer from the colander to a 2-pound (900 g) cheese-cloth-lined mold. Cover the curds with a corner of the cheese cloth, and place the follower on top. Press at ten pounds for ten minutes. Remove the cheese from the mold, unwrap the cheese cloth, and use your fingers to break the cheese into small pieces in a bowl. Repack the cheese into the cheese-cloth-lined mold and press again at ten pounds for fifteen minutes. Remove the cheese from the mold, unwrap the cheese cloth, and break into pieces again. Repack, and press at thirty pounds for fifteen minutes. Repeat this procedure, and press at forty pounds for twenty hours. Repeat again, and press at fifty pounds for twenty-four hours.

Remove the cheese from the mold, and unwrap the cheese cloth. Immerse the cheese in the brine solution for twenty-four hours, turning it every six hours.

Take the cheese out of the brine solution, pat dry, and place on a cheese board. Put the cheese in the refrigerator at 55°F (13°C) at 80–85 percent humidity for six months. Turn the cheese daily for the first two weeks of aging, and then weekly after that. Using a clean cloth dipped into brine solution, wash the cheese once a week.

Yield: 2 pounds (900 g)

Master Cheese Maker
GAIL HOLMES, COBB HILL CHEESE

“It takes time to develop a feel for the curds and determining the right moisture content. This comes with practice.”

Cobb Hill Cheese is part of a cooperative living arrangement in the Four Corners region near Hartland, Vermont. Cobb Hill Cheese was formed as a way to provide income for the dairy farmers who are part of the community.

Gail Holmes and her partner, Marsha Carmichael, focus on making two varieties of cheese: Four Corners Caerphilly and Ascutney Mountain (which is similar to a Gruyère).

Cobb Hill Farm uses milk from Jersey cows, which is rich, sweet, and high in butter fat. Because the cows are grass fed, there can be considerable variability in milk quality throughout the year. “Starting in May, the cows produce much more milk, and we are forced to make more cheese,” Holmes says. “The milk is also more yellow and gold in color, and it makes great cheese.”

The cheeses she produces require quite different techniques and present separate challenges for the cheese maker. “Caerphilly, because it has a natural rind, needs the proper humidity and temperature. If it gets below 65 percent humidity (in the cave), it can develop cracks, which then get moldy.” As for advice for the home cheese maker, Holmes suggests starting out with making a fresh cheese to understand the basics. She also points out that it takes practice to get the cheeses that you want. “It takes time to develop a feel for the curds and determining the right moisture content. It is also important to get a good understanding of how pH, temperature, and moisture interact. This comes with practice.”

Mozzarella

Mozzarella is one of the most popular cheeses in North America, but it is difficult to find one in a store that is as good as it is homemade.
Mozzarella, with Provolone, is part of the family of pasta filata cheeses. Pasta filata means to spin threads. These cheeses have their curds heated and kneaded, which gives the cheese plasticity. This kneading process is significant for the preservation of the cheese as it expels most of the whey, making these cheeses better suited for warmer climates.

INGREDIENTS

1 gallon (3.8 L) milk (you can use low-fat or skim, but the flavor is best when made with whole milk)

8 ounces (220 g) thermophilic mother culture, or
teaspoon (about 1 ml) direct-set thermophilic culture

½ teaspoon (about 3 ml) liquid rennet or

¼ tablet dry rennet dissolved in ¼ cup (60 ml) cold water

Brine solution (see
page 86
)

TECHNIQUES

For illustrated steps and tools, see Intermediate Cheese-Making Techniques,
page 82
.

PROCEDURE

Heat the milk to 90°F (33°C), then add the starter culture. Let the milk ripen for forty-five minutes.

Add the rennet to the milk, and stir for five minutes. Let the milk sit at the target temperature (90°F [33°C]) for one hour. Insert a curd knife, and make one cut through the curds to check for a clean break (see
page 83
). Once you have a clean break, cut the curds into ½" (about 1 cm) cubes.

Reheat the milk to 90°F (33°C), and maintain this temperature for thirty minutes. Next, slowly raise the temperature to 105°F (41°C); this will take thirty minutes. Once you reach the target temperature, allow the curds to cook for another five to ten minutes.

Drain off the whey by pouring the mixture though a cheese cloth–lined colander with a catch bowl underneath. Place the curds into a double boiler; the water in the bottom pot needs to be at a constant 105°F (41°C). You will have to drain off some additional whey periodically as the curds continue to cook. As the curds are heated at the bottom of the double boiler, additional whey will continue to be expelled from the curds. Periodically drain off the whey. Cook the curds at 105°F (41°C) for two to three hours, flipping them occasionally so that they are evenly heated. They will form a paste at the bottom of the pan. After two hours, test the pH of the curds; it should be in the range of 5.0 to 5.3. If it is not in this range, the curds need to be cooked a little longer.