On Saturday we attended another course at Reaseheath on how to make cheese for ourselves. After donning white coats, white wellies and blue hair nets we were let loose in the dairy where we heated milk, added starter culture and rennet, stirred and strained.
The actual process of making cheese is not difficult, but it is essential to get the temperature and the timing spot on.
We ended up with a block of Cheshire cheese about a pound in weight, which is sitting in the back room where it’s warm ‘maturing’ for three days. It’s been a long wait though, as every time I tip off the excess whey, you can smell the tang of the cheese and the temptation to break a bit off and ‘test’ it is strong. 
On a larger scale, things are still following the same rigour and basic recipe, where you take 45 litres of milk:
Add starter culture and rennet and allow to coagulate at the right temperature before draining off the whey to reveal curds that will become, after a week's maturing, Cheshire cheese:
And after three months, Cheddar:
Finally, time for a sit down and a brew. 
Nice boots ;-)
2 comments:
Cheese making is a perfect hobby for such pedantic people like ...you know who :-)
I think there is a fair chance you would like milk from a really contented cow who had been grazing unfertilised, flower-rich pasture. It's a pity you don't live closer!
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