With Lots of Salt
It's been a long time since I made farmer's cheese (or paneer, if you're not a farmer), but I'm starting to make it regularly.
Having no upper cupboards, we hang it for straining from the kitchen beam, where I occasionally spy helper elves perched to squeeze out whey.
They're not always the youngest elves, either.
Generous Mrs. Terry, you don't read my blog, but I'll thank you, anyway. The makeshift cheese press you gave me five years ago still works marvelously, even though my rocks were all buried in ice and snow and I had to substitute electrical insulators. You are a genius. (It must be because you're a true farmer that you know how to make cheese so well.)
6 comments :
Ya'll clearly need to get some goats so you can have all the milk you want to make cheeses and soaps!
I've never seen this so what an education. I bet it tastes wonderful, too!!!
Much love!
Nanno,
I couldn't agree more. I've read some good things about Nigerian Dwarf goats in terms of milk quality and how much it costs to keep them, due to their smaller size. Any suggestions? You know, for my pipe dreams?
Molly,
It's so easy! There's a recipe of sorts for it on buildabelly now, too.
Hello Abby! Nigerian Dwarfs have the highest butter fat content, but they give a very small amount of milk--probably much too small for a family your size. You'd do a lot better with Nubians I think. Nubians are a large breed, which means they do eat more, but they also produce more milk (MUCH more!), so they'd end up being more economical. Nubians have the highest butter fat content of the large dairy breeds. Nigerian Dwarfs have almost a half 'n' half level of butter fat (like around 10% or something). Nubians are closer to 4% butter fat, which is comparable to rich cows milk. A good Nubian can give a gallon a day compared to quart from a Nigerian Dwarf.
LaManchas another breed to consider (if you can get over the whole earless thing!). This is not a miniature breed, but they are generally smaller than Nubians and have similar production and butter fat content. They also have very nice personalities.
My goats each gave over a gallon a day last year and they were first fresheners. Both mamas had single kids so I left them on to nurse as much as they liked, so I got about half the milk, which ended up being around 2 quarts/day per goat. Goats are walking, eating milk machines!
P.S. Phil just walked in and commented that if you're thinking about getting goats, then it's clear your life is going in the right direction. =P
If our chicken coop wasn't threatening to fall down, I'd be ready to get some RIGHT NOW! As it is, we really need to figure out what to do about proper shelter before we add "real" animals to the chickens.
Thanks a million for your knowledgeable tips. I was hoping you'd come through for me! Nubians definitely sound like the way to go. I was toying with the idea of Nigerian dwarf goats because I read about how sweet and delicious their milk is, and the only experience I have with goat's milk is a bad one. Stinky, goaty, and gross are the words that sum up my past experience. I think that the high output of Nubians, as well as your personal vouching for the milk quality, makes them an easy choice. I've read that a lot of things can affect the milk's taste, too, including the presence of a male goat, so we probably wouldn't add a male to the pack. *Unless you advised us, too, that is, being the Master Goat Keeper, yourself. :)
It's funny because if we do get some goats within the next few years, here's a heads up that I'll be calling or emailing you nonstop with beginner's questions. :) Hope you're ready for it if that day comes.
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