Learn To Make Cheese

An engaging read for any cheese enthusiast, Isthmus has a review of The Master Cheesemakers of Wisconsin (University of Wisconsin Press, 2009).  This book by Becca Dilley and James Norton provides a glimpse into the lives of Wisconsin’s famed cheesemakers through engaging storytelling and imagery.  It’s a highly personal look at some of the country’s finest artisanal cheesemakers.  We’re looking forward to checking it out ourselves!

“What Dilley does in her photographs, Norton does in his writing, creating intimate scenes rather than lists of facts. The reader follows Cedar Grove’s Robert Wills into his living wastewater treatment plant (it looks like a lily pond) and learns about his annual curd-fattened bluegill fish fry. Doug Peterson, of Mazomanie, talks about how he left a large dairy cooperative in order to develop a cheese for high-temperature pizza ovens. What this book does, unlike other primers and atlases I’ve picked up, is connect readers to the impassioned few who dream up cheeses like Faarko, maple leaf cheese, and cinnamon-rubbed butter jack.”

Be sure to check out the book’s website.

Madame Fromage: The Master Cheesemakers of Wisconsin is worth checking out – Isthmus | The Daily Page.

David Bleckmann at the Joy of Cheesemaking wrote a helpful review of Making Artisan Cheese: 50 Fine Cheeses That You Can Make In Your Own Kitchen.  Like David, you may have found an overwhelming amount of information on cheesemaking at home, but not everything is appropriate to your interests or skill level.   Some cheesemaking information gets a little too scientific for us.  Other times, a book about cheesemaking can be too technical in describing processes.  Bleckmann finds a happy medium with Making Artisan Cheese.

Here’s an excerpt:  (Full review after the jump).

“Making Artisan Cheese starts with a history of cheese and then covers some cheesemaking basics. After this it is divided into three major sections: beginning, intermediate and advanced cheesemaking. Each of these sections separates the techniques needed for the cheeses in the section, from the recipes using those techniques. This is nice because once you know the techniques you can flip through to find the recipes without wading through a lot of text. It also does not burden you with too much technique and theory too fast, and the beginner can start of quickly with making some easy, acid coagulated, fresh cheeses.”

The Home Cheesemaking Blog: Book Review: Making Artisan Cheese: 50 Fine Cheeses That You Can Make in Your Own Kitchen.

Practical Cheesemaking

Practical Cheesemaking gives detailed advice on all aspects of the complex cheesemaking process for both the commercial cheesemaker in the dairy and the enthusiastic amateur in the kitchen. Topics covered include necessary equipment and ingredients; scientific processes explained; hygiene and control tests; storage, grading, and packing; and some tempting cheese recipes. Whether you are making cheese for commercial reasons or simply for your own use, Practical Cheesemaking will help you to produce a cheese that you will be proud to serve or to sell.