A huge part of being self-sufficient is producing your own milk from goats or cows. We have recently changed over to the cow, and I will post more on that later. Goats are relatively easy to keep and not as costly as a cow. I will post on the differences between goats and cows for milk in an upcoming post. I don't want to step on all my goat lover friends, but I have to say, I'm really enjoying the cows! While cow milk is more versatile, there's alot you can do with the goat milk. One thing is soft cheeses. Here's my recipe for an easy and delicious soft goat cheese:
16 c. raw milk
1/2 c. vinegar
Heat the milk in a stainless steel pot until bubbles form around the edges and it's steaming. Remove it from the heat and pour in the vinegar. Stir until curds appear, which will be very quick. Drain this in a strainer and let it sit for 10 minutes. Transfer the cheese into a container and refrigerate or freeze it. You can blend this if you want it creamy, such as using it for pasta dishes, or leave it in small curds and use as a dip. Experiment with adding things to it. The photo above is one I made for a spaghetti topping and on top of garlic bread. I added salt, garlic, and fresh basil. You can add pineapple with nuts, garlic with crushed red pepper, dill, minced marinated olives with garlic, etc. Have fun and enjoy the fruits of your labor!
Lori, will this work for making soft cheese with raw cow's milk?
ReplyDeleteShannon, you can use raw goat or cow milk for any soft cheese. Cow's milk is needed for most hard cheeses though.
ReplyDeleteOh good! So, 16 c. of milk? Is that supposed to be six cups?
ReplyDeleteShannon,
ReplyDeleteIt's 16 cups. If you don't have that amount, it's easy to half the recipe.