A group for those who make cheese to share their experiments, learnings and failures.
A person who makes cheese is called a ... Cheese Maker. I prefer the French term, Fromager.
This group is for Fromagers and Turophiles alike.
We have two "how to" instructional videos:
Location: Brisbane
Members: 41
Latest Activity: Mar 6, 2020
My mate, Jerri Case from the New England Cheese Making Company has been kind enough to give me another feature on their blog.
The link is for my: Glasshouse Blue.
I'm proud that our BLF site and the Cheese Makers group was able to grab some international attention from the site of the "Godmother of home cheese making" (Andy's phrase, not Rikki Carrol's).
Started by Dianne Caswell. Last reply by Sophie Mar 6, 2020. 2 Replies 0 Favorites
The Cheese Makers Group has been very quiet, where are all our Cheese Makers, I would love to hear what all of our group are making now.Today I have been making a couple of Cheeses that are New to me. The first is a Lactic Cheese Recipe, it is a…Continue
Started by Andrew Cumberland. Last reply by Andrew Cumberland Aug 1, 2018. 63 Replies 2 Favorites
A place where we can store specific recipes (including links to recipe sites) to MAKE CHEESE. Not a place to post recipes that use cheese - they are under Using Cheese Recipes. Continue
Started by Dianne Caswell. Last reply by Valerie Jul 24, 2018. 3 Replies 1 Favorite
I am wanting to make Cheese on Saturday 28th (Feta, Ricotta and Camembert Cheese) & Sunday 29th (a Hard Cheese). I am looking for someone to make Cheese with as it is nice for me to have someone else working alongside me.Please bare in mind I am…Continue
Started by Dianne Caswell. Last reply by Andrew Cumberland May 29, 2017. 3 Replies 3 Favorites
The Cooler weather is my time of year to make Cheese and Bread and wonderful Pies. Last week end Sophie and I made Cheese, you can see the beginnings of the adventure on …Continue
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I can't understand how on earth they got Listeria if they used pasturised milk. That's the whole reason Australia had a ban on raw milk cheeses for so long.
You already have all the knowledge you need to make Camembert Dave. Your biggest issue will be about having somewhere with the right temps to age it.
I use whey from yogurt in some of the fermenting I'm experimenting with..but I see that it isn't necessary as most harvested veg will carry lactobacillus on their skin and leaves.
While not necessary...its use will speed up the fermenting process.Also useful as additions to sourdough starters.
But then Asher's book describes 3 types of whey:
with the primary difference being in pH and cultural demographics. He offers a great discussion on whey, whey cheese starters and whey cheeses..and the uses of whey as food and probiotic fertiliser.
I'll take you up on the Camembert, offer,thanks, Andy ...when I get my skillset up .
But then I was researching the Camembert I've been eating -- Jindi -- and a Listeria outbreak in their soft cheese products killed 4 people (all vulnerables) in 2013.
And it takes 70 days for “listeriosis” to manifest!
The potential contamination product list was large: Jindi, Jindi Reserve, Aida Valley, Blue Cow, Coles Finest, Dynasty, Emporium, Enterprize, G&K, Harris Farm, International, Kenilworth, Kingaroy, Old Telegraph Road, Raw Materials, Siena, Tomewin Farm, Tomme Farm, Top Paddock, Wattle Valley and Willow Grove.
In contrast -- methinks -- fermenting vegetables is absolutely benign!
Andrew, I don't pickle, I ferment and I only use dairy whey for dairy ferments. Using dairy whey in vegetable ferments is not recommended. I can make ricotta from dairy whey but just need more time - as do most people these days ;)
There are some great recipes for pickles that also use whey Jude.
Last week I tossed out 1L dairy whey as I had no use for at the time. Still have quite a bit now. When I kefir milk and then drain it for the kefir cheese, I end up with lots of left over whey from raw organic milk
I'm in 100% agreement with you. The good news is that you really just want to focus on Camembert at the moment. I can give you the tiny amount of the 3 cultures you need to do one cheese. That will give you enough whey to be off and running and you'll know you have the right cultures in there. What? No Dave. It's not overly generous of me - we are talking between 1/8 and 1/32 of a teaspoon of each. An't remember the exact amounts right now, but it is miniscule.
Thats' what I'd think but the book says:
“Many cheesemakers suggest keeping a separate whey starter for each different style of cheese. I would argue, though, that keeping so many starters is unnecessary; the microbial community within a raw-milk whey starter is diverse enough to develop into any style of cheese!
I often reuse whey from a mozzarella to use as a starter for a cheddar, then use that leftover whey from that cheddar as a starter for a blue. And even if I reuse the starter from the blue cheese (with a residual collection of added Penicillium roqueforti fungal spores) for making a Camembert, so long as I handle the Camembert cheese in the correct manner by washing its rind, the cheese will show no signs of blue...A strong and diverse whey culture can be used and reused for almost any style of cheesemaking, so long as the whey isn’t cooked to a high temperature–above 110˚F (43˚C). A whey starter will contain a diversity of starter cultures–some mesophilic, some thermophilic– along with many ripening cultures. This diversity allows the starter to adapt to any style of cheesemaking.”Excerpt From: David Asher. “The Art of Natural Cheesemaking.” p496
That doesn't make microbiological sense to me. But I do know I can make different veg ferments with the same whey starter -- but thats' using more inputs than just cows milk.But then I use yogurt whey to make lacto-fermented vegetables and spices.
That's the great excitement for me. And I even add yogurt whey to my fertilizer ferments.As I add pickling whey to my oats overnight...Looking at the science -- the chronology -- different microbes kick in at different times/ages and temperatures -- even with yogurt.
Again: this is all hypothesis. I've not made cheese. I am just very interested in the whey business. But I'd expect that the best course for camembert, to protect yourself, would be to get some cheese specific inoculant first before beginning the routine of recycling whey.
It would need to be whey from a camembert cheese Dave. Otherwise, the bacteria will be all wrong.
Of course I know nothing and am a dabbler.
Here's a Camembert sampler. Whether I'll proceed or even could be succesful is something I can address via my 'to-do' list in the time a head.It may even take me years to skill up. Probably. But my Camembert addiction is a financial burden...
Good book -- by the way this The Art of Natural Cheese Making -- offers a sort of cultures discourse I'm most interested in.Chapters on whey, sourdough,..and, most interestingly, whey starters.
I feel so wheyward. I think there should be temples built to celebrate whey.
Ingredients
1 gallon (4 L) good cows’ milk
1 ⁄ 4 cup (60 mL) kefir or active whey
Regular dose rennet (I use 1 ⁄ 4 tablet WalcoRen rennet for 1 gallon milk)
Salt
Equipment
1-gallon (4-L) stainless pot
Wooden spoon
Long-bladed knife
1 Brie-sized (7 inches [18 cm] across) cheese form or 3 Camembert-sized (4 inches [10 cm] across) forms
Draining rack setup
Thanks Andrew Cumberland. Lots to learn. I always seem to be chopping, squeezing, massaging, bottling, smelling and eating fermented foods. That's why I'm so interested in cheese making - just another way to ferment and preserve yummy foods.
We're lucky here in Brisbane as we have great raw milk and cream
Always add photos using the "From my computer" option, even if you are on a mobile phone or other device.
Added by Doug Hanning
Added by Doug Hanning
Added by Doug Hanning
Vetiver grass helps to stabilise soil and protects it against erosion. It can protect against pests and weeds. Vetiver is also used as animal feed. (Wiki.)
GrowVetiver is a plant nursery run by Dave & Keir Riley that harvests and grows Vetiver grass for local community applications and use. It is based in Beachmere, just north of Brisbane, Australia.
Talk to Andy on 0422 022 961. You can Pay on this link
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