The Home Creamery: Make Your Own Fresh Dairy Products, Easy Recipes for Butter, Yogurt, Sour Cream, Creme Fraiche, Cream Cheese, Ricotta, and More!

227 Pages·2008·2.44 MB·English

THE HOME CREAMERY
THE HOME CREAMERY
KATHY FARRELL-KINGSLEY
The mission of Storey Publishing is to serve our customers by
publishing practical information that encourages
personal independence in harmony with the environment.
Edited by Margaret Sutherland
Art direction and design by Dan O. Williams Front cover photograph by © Susie
Cushner Photography
Back cover photographs left to right: © Food Collection/Stockfood, ©
Maximilian Stock–StockFood Munich/Stockfood, © Michael Grand/Stockfood
Illustrations by Alison Kolesar, with additional decorative art by Dan O.
Williams
Indexed by Christine Lindemer, Boston Road Communications © 2008 by Kathy
Farrell-Kingsley All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced
without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may
quote brief passages or reproduce illustrations in a review with appropriate
credits; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording, or other — without written permission from the
publisher.
The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our
knowledge. All recommendations are made without guarantee on the part of the
author or Storey Publishing. The author and publisher disclaim any liability in
connection with the use of this information. For additional information, please
contact Storey Publishing, 210 MASS MoCA Way, North Adams, MA 01247.
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Printed in the United States by CJK
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Farrell-Kingsley, Kathy.
The home creamery / Kathy Farrell-Kingsley.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-60342-031-0 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Cookery (Dairy products) 2.
Dairy products.
3. Cookery (Cheese) 4. Cheese. I. Title.
TX759.F37 2008
637’.3—dc22
2008005663
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION: Setting Up Your Home Creamery
PART ONE: CULTURED DAIRY PRODUCTS
YOGURT
KEFIR
BUTTER
PIIMA BUTTER
BUTTERMILK
CRÈME FRAÎCHE
QUARK
SOUR CREAM
PART TWO: SOFT, UNRIPENED CHEESES
CREAM CHEESE
COTTAGE CHEESE
RICOTTA
GOAT CHEESE
MOZZARELLA
MASCARPONE
PART THREE: RECIPES FROM THE HOME CREAMERY
COFFEE AND
NO FORKS REQUIRED
NOT JUST FOR LUNCH
THE MAIN EVENT
SUPER SIDES
DESSERTS GALORE
GLOSSARY
SOURCES
INDEX
INTRODUCTION
SETTING UP YOUR HOME CREAMERY
There’s an old saying that cheese is milk’s leap toward immortality. And
perhaps no one feels more passionately about this adage than those who make
their own dairy products and soft cheeses. It’s an ancient piece of edible culture
that Americans are just now beginning to appreciate.
Home-produced soft, unripened cheeses and dairy products have a wholesome
good taste that no shop product can imitate. By making these products at home,
you’ll enjoy a fascinating and very satisfying craft, with a delicious and healthy
end result. It’s hard to beat the fresh flavor, nutritional value, and low cost of
homemade dairy and soft, fresh cheeses.
You don’t need a commercial kitchen to produce great-tasting dairy products and
fresh, soft cheese at home. Dairy products and most soft cheeses can be made in
a matter of hours with equipment that you probably have on hand.
INGREDIENTS
The basis of cheese, of course, is milk, and almost any kind will do. Raw, fresh
milk (as opposed to pasteurized) can be used, but it has many more variables to
work with, particularly in the handling. Some cheese makers, especially the
French, prefer to use raw milk because they credit the naturally occurring
bacteria in the raw milk for adding depth of flavor. Raw milk, also known as
unprocessed, contains milk fat, which rises to the top as cream. When the milk is
processed, most of the cream is removed from the milk. The amount of fat
remaining determines the type of milk that is produced, such as whole, low-fat,
or skim.
Unless you own cows or goats or are friends with a farmer, it’s not easy to
find raw milk in the United States, though sometimes raw milk is available at
farmers’ markets or at the farms themselves. In most states, it’s illegal to sell
milk raw because of potential contamination. If raw milk is not kept cold
enough, bacteria will start to grow and by the time you get to cheese making, it
could be curdled and/or contain harmful bacteria. So the key word here is
caution: The safest milk to work with is pasteurized, unless you really know
what you’re doing.
Pasteurization is the process of heating raw milk to at least 145°F for at least
30 minutes or to 161°F for 15 seconds. The milk is then cooled quickly to 45°F
or lower. Ultraheat pasteurization involves heating the milk to 274°F for 2 to 4
seconds. Ultraheat (UHT) pasteurized milk, however, does not work well for
making cheese. The high-heat process affects the whey proteins in the milk, and
they will not form curds — white, custardlike masses — that are firm enough for
cheese making and dairy products.
Cheese is made by coagulating, or curdling, milk solids into curds. Curds start
off soft, then release liquid called whey as they continue to firm. Using
pasteurized milk will give you more control over outcome, and in the end it will
result in your cheese making being more successful. Skim and low-fat milk
varieties can be used, but keep in mind the end products will be less rich and
may have less flavor than cheese made with whole milk or cream.
To make the fresh cheeses and dairy products in this book, you can use cow’s
milk or goat’s milk or even sheep’s milk. Just always purchase the freshest
possible and highest quality milk or cream. Whole milk will always work the