The second of January may be the worst possible day to have a birthday. Mr Snail, however, does his utmost to ensure that I have a good day and this year was no exception… a lovely lunch at The Harbourmaster and then an evening at home with a glass or two of something sparkling.
Although we don’t do presents for Christmas/Yule/Chanukah, we do give each other birthday gifts. This year I asked for a cheese-making kit. I thought it might be a fun skill to acquire and it is something that I have never tried before. Proper cheese, especially the hard stuff, has relatively little lactose in it and so I am able to eat it in moderation.
Cheese-making kit
So, today I have been playing with milk. My first attempt is a soft cheese as this is quicker than a hard cheese and is easier to make in small quantities… I decided that starting with a recipe that requires 6 litres of milk was just too ambitious! There has been heating of milk and subdividing the ‘starter’… there has been a water bath, rennet, lots of sterilising (using boiling water so as not to taint the cheese with chemicals) and quite a bit of mess. I didn’t manage to achieve the cubes of curds described in the recipe, but I have finally got three molds filled with curds so that the whey can drain off. The next step (in about an hour) is slipping the developing cheese out of the molds and turning it… that sounds like something that could go horribly wrong! Anyway, here is progress so far:
By tomorrow I may have three small soft cheeses … or I may just have a pile of curds and a bowl of whey… only time will tell. Anyway, thank you to Mr Snail for buying me such an interesting birthday present… I’ve never wanted perfume and flowers and it’s a good job he understands this!
Now, I’d better work out what I can use all this whey for.
The Snail of Happiness 
margaret21
/ January 3, 2015What briilliant fun! My London childhood was punctuated by regular cheese-making – soft curd cheese only – because in those far-off fridge-free days, sour milk was a regular occurrence and throwing it away was unthinkable. I hope you’ll tell us all how the project develops.
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The Snail of Happiness
/ January 3, 2015Now I have to work out what to use all the whey for!
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margaret21
/ January 3, 2015Here are 16 suggestions 😉
http://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2011/06/16-ways-to-use-your-whey.html.
Oh! Look! Here are 18 suggestions:
http://www.salad-in-a-jar.com/recipes-with-yogurt/18-ways-to-use-whey-a-by-product-of-greek-yogurt.
Not all look entirely practical…..
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The Snail of Happiness
/ January 5, 2015Some good ideas… I managed to cook with some and then I fed the rest to the chickens yesterday mixed with their layers mash – they loved it!
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Sharon
/ January 3, 2015Whatever you use it for, be sure to remember that whey contains a lot of lactose.
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The Snail of Happiness
/ January 3, 2015Lactase enzyme already in the whey for use tomorrow!
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sarahfoto
/ January 3, 2015Fantastic present! Looking forward to seeing the results. I’m not sure I dreamt this but I think someone said whey is really good for the body and that someone was soaking the hen food in it. My husband sometimes makes Paneer, very easy and very nice to fry instead of meat.
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The Snail of Happiness
/ January 3, 2015Great ideas… I’ve also realised that I can make ricotta cheese out of it first. I think that the hens will be getting quite a bit of the left-overs too!
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thecontentedcrafter
/ January 3, 2015Happy Belated Birthday!
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The Snail of Happiness
/ January 3, 2015Thank you!
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iamsimplyhooked
/ January 3, 2015They whey is really good used instead of water in bread making……
And Happy Birthday!
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narf77
/ January 3, 2015Happy Birthday Ms Snail! I fear you have it wrong by the way. December 25th is the most awful, bad luck rubbish day to have your birthday. Ask my friend and don’t even MENTION combined gifts 😉
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Andrea
/ January 3, 2015Use fresh whey anywhere in the kitchen that you’d use water. Breadmaking, cooking pasta or rice, soup bases … you get the idea. One word of warning, if you give it to the dog in any quantity (who will love you for it if you do) be prepared for erm… explosive results.
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katechiconi
/ January 3, 2015Happy Birthday belatedly… I agree that January and December birthdays are both fairly pants, but they seem to run in the family for both of us… My sister in Dorrigo makes cheese on a regular basis (ie, once a week) and she’d tell you that practice makes perfect. Her first attempts were dreadful, but now her cheese is definitely eatable and tasty. One word of advice if you progress to something more interesting than curd cheese; don’t wrap the cheese in greaseproof paper. It sticks. Use muslin instead. And the Girls will love a bit of whey, full of protein.
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Andrea
/ January 3, 2015When I first started making cheese I downloaded a huge list of uses for whey. It included recipes for making whey wine and whey beer. Now isn’t that something that could put you off alcohol for life?
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davidprosser
/ January 3, 2015Huge Penblwydd Hapus wishes, though a little late. It sounds like you’ve had an interesting day with what might be a very successful day to come. I’ve got my fingers crossed for you. Jon couldn’t have chosen a better gift.
Have a wonderful evening.
xxx Massive Hugs xxx
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insearchofitall
/ January 3, 2015Happy Belated Birthday. I always gave the bigger gifts for birthdays than for Christmas. I love the idea of the gift of something to do, or learn, not something to dust or find a home for. If I could just convince my son of that. I have learned more from this post about cheese and whey than anywhere else. My son kept trying to get me to drink whey protein shakes. I couldn’t digest it. I’m lactose intolerant and have found age cheeses the only kind my body will handle kindly. Thank all of you for the information. Sometimes the comments are as informative as the post.:)
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arlingwoman
/ January 4, 2015Whey is really great in biscuits, which I think you call something else–makes them light and fluffy the way buttermilk would. Scones, but not really scones…Good luck with the cheese. I’ve only gone so far as yogurt making…
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nerdinthebrain
/ January 4, 2015What an awesome present…that looks like so much fun! 😀
Happy Birthday!!!
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urbanoveralls
/ January 4, 2015Good luck with your cheese making! Can’t wait to see the photos of the final product.
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Karen B
/ January 4, 2015Belated Happy Birthday Wishes. What a great gift and a great way to start a new year with such an exciting challenge. Fingers crossed!
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KerryCan
/ January 4, 2015Now, that’s a cool birthday present! I’ve read that making mozzarella is not too hard and was intrigued but have never gotten past that stage. Does your kit come with instructions for different kinds of cheeses? Just think–the possibilities are almost endless!
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ayearinredwood
/ January 4, 2015What fun! Looking forward to seeing and hearing about the result…. and of course belated birthday wishes!
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katythenightowl
/ January 4, 2015I hope you keep having fun with your present, Jan – it’s so much a ‘you’ gift, isn’t it? 🙂
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gentlestitches
/ January 4, 2015What a great gift from a lovely guy! ❤
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Nanette
/ January 5, 2015A belated happy birthday…..I agree, a not long after Christmas birthday is not always fun. Your gift is wonderful though, I like practical do-something-with gifts too. Look forward to hearing more of your cheese making adventures,
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The Snail of Happiness
/ January 5, 2015The trouble with 2 January is that it is exactly the day when everyone is switching off from celebrations – no one wants to party, and many people are beginning a diet. When I still worked in an office I stopped taking in cake or biscuits for my birthday because having them rejected was just too depressing!
These days, however, Mr Snail makes sure I have a good day and this year I’m hoping to repay him in cheese!!
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