This is meant to be English Farmhouse Cheese, something I have made several times with good results. As you can see on the left, the results were not quite what I was hoping for. For some reason the curd was not as firm as it should have been (more rennet, I suspect) and we had a structural problem transferring the curd. And then, of course, releasing the cheeses from the molds (I use ricotta molds because they are what I have - sadly, they are not ideal).
There are fixable problems, of course. More rennet is easy enough to add and I am looking at new molds (I think I found some Chevre molds that will do the trick). And I did try some this afternoon - sure enough, no matter what the appearance, it tastes just as good as ever (for soft cheeses, I recommend honey over them. They make a great dessert).
The point of this (I think) is to remind all of us that not everything we try to do to be skillful or self-sufficient works out quite as we had anticipated. That is no reason not to try, though. We only make the effort time and time again to get better.
After all, you cannot fall off the floor.
Isn't that cool!
ReplyDeleteMaybe it was a commentary on yesterday's election, before the results were even known...
ReplyDeletePraise God, we live to try again if we survive the next two years. ♥
Thanks Glen. Surely not best effort, but it tastes just as good as the other ones.
ReplyDeleteLinda - not sure I have read an augury out of a cheese. I will just chalk it up to bad technique and not enough rennet and try again.
ReplyDeleteLOL, love that last sentence. I find cheesemaking remarkably unpredictable. But I'm not quite experienced enough to always pinpoint the exact problem. However! Your "failed" farmhouse looks like it would be perfect for cheesecake!
ReplyDeleteThanks Leigh! That makes me feel endlessly better. And I never thought of using it for cheesecake, but that sounds like a marvelous idea.
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