Learn To Make Cheese

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.

I used to say the most important thing in making cheese is milk.  Then I starting saying that the most important thing to have is patience.  But one thing I left out is the importance of being able to discuss the trials and tribulations of your home cheesemaking adventures with others.   Whether you can meet in person with other cheesemakers directly, or you congregate at online cheese discussions and websites, it’s great to be able to learn from others’ successes and, um, not successes.

For this reason, we were thrilled to come across Forging Fromage, and their post on cottage cheese making at home.  Readers shared photos of their efforts, all of which looked delicious and rewarding.

forging fromage: Rounding up Cottage Cheese results…from our first Forging Fromage adventure!.