Cheese Making Made Easy(er) and What Do You Do With The Whey?

Woman, you are crazy.

Do you mean to tell me that you also make your own cheese? 

Yup. You bet. And it tastes great.

 AND it's easy. 

Way easier than you think.

I know, I know, you don't believe me, but it's true. 

And the rewards are endless. 

Not only do you get some delicious cheese to enjoy, but the whey can be used for so many delicious treats! 

First, let us look at the ingredients of the average bag of shredded cheese.

I know there are things about the food industry that I just don't understand, and I know there are reasons they add some of the ingredients they do, but what is all that?

If you have no clue what it is, you probably shouldn't be eating it.

Just sayin.

Cheese should be simple. Milk. Acid. Seasoning.

I use organic milk, a little salt, and one lemon.

Simple. Delicious. Easy.

I used up about half a gallon of organic milk in the recipe.

I put that on the stove in a medium pan on medium-high heat.

Make sure to use a thermometer. I just used my meat thermometer. It's what I had, it worked, great!

Stirring continuously, heat the milk up to 165-185 degrees. Before it is boiling.

 No boiling allowed.

When that is done, take the milk off of the heat and add the juice of one lemon.

Very slowly, about 2 tablespoons at a time.

Don't worry, you will know when the curds separate from the whey.
It will look like this!

The only gross part of the process, it doesn't smell or anything, just looks really funny.
Just let it sit and separate for about 20 minutes.

Now comes the job of separating the curds and the whey.
I used a small strainer, two layers of cheesecloth, and a bowl to catch the whey.

Then you pour the whole mixture from the pot into the cheesecloth.

The whey runs into the bowl, and the curds are left behind. I leave them straining like this for about 20 minutes.

Then I take all the curds that are left over and form them with my fingers into a small patty of cheese.

 I also add about 2 teaspoons of salt, for flavor.

We as a culture eat way too much salt and add too much salt to everything, like cheese.

But without a little salt, the homemade cheese tastes like eating milk. 

Very bland.

So add a little salt. It's still better for you than store bought.

When the patty of cheese is formed, I then twist it into the cheesecloth and weigh it down with a full mason jar. This presses the cheese into an actual form. If you would like this cheese to stay crumbly, like for a salad topping, then skip this step and just strain the curds for another hour.

And then voila! You have about 6 ounces of delicious cheese!

You must refrigerate, it stays good for about a week.

It is very soft and delicious, good with fruit.

Honestly, this cheese recipe reminds me of goat cheese.

It is also delicious on salads, here is an example of a salad that I put some of this fresh, tasty cheese on.

Now wait a minute here, little hippie person, what about all that whey? What about your mantra of wasting nothing?

Hold on, there are so many uses for the whey! Just google it and try some.

One use for whey is to tenderize meat.

So I decided to try it with some skirt steak and make some fajitas!

I took about 1 cups of whey, 1 pound of sliced skirt steak, and a packet of fajita seasoning (courtesy of McCormick) and marinated the skirt steak for 3 nights.

I then fried the steak in 3 tablespoons of oil with some onions and peppers.

IT WAS SO GOOD!

Not just tasty, DELICIOUS! Melt in your mouth tender with tons of flavor.

And of course I topped my fajitas off with some of the fresh cheese that I made.

So. Good.

I also used the whey to make a lemon merengue dessert that I found a recipe for here:

http://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2013/06/lemon-whey-pie.html

I did make it a little lighter by putting in less sugar and skipping the crust.

I baked them in individual cups for the same amount of time as the pie recipe.

But so delicious. So lemony smooth and tasty.

I ate the whole recipe worth in 2 days.

Not the eating habits I recommend, but it was so good, how can you stop eating it?

Live a little people.

So if for some reason you think you are not creative enough, or smart enough, or have enough time to make your own cheese, this recipe is for you! 

Easy. Simple. Good.

The way that food is meant to be.

Blueberry Pie Baby Food Recipe

Blueberry Pie? For a baby?

Well, not really, but it tastes just as good!

And, of course, is way better for your baby than shoving pie down their precious little throat.

I recommend this baby food for 6 months and older, though you can also read some age appropriate recommendations here: http://www.babycenter.com/0_age-by-age-guide-to-feeding-your-baby_1400680.bc

As always, please please read my disclaimer before making any of my baby food recipes. 

You can read it here: http://justalittlehippie.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html

Blueberries.... YUM! I buy them at the farmer's market in Holland and they are so sweet and delicious. 

Read about why we should all be eating them here:

 http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=8

I use two cups of blueberries, two organic bananas, two organic apples (any kind really), and one small acorn squash as my fruit base. 

Take the squash, cut it in half, remove the gross insides, and place upside down in two cups of water, as shown. Bake at 375 degrees for about an hour, until they are soft and mushy. 

Save the squash water if you aren't using milk or breastmilk.

So, you have an hour to go do whatever, laundry? Bake? I dunno. Trim your toenails for all I care.

When it's done I take whatever is left of the squash water, usually 1 cup, the bananas, the apples (peeled and sliced), the squash, and the blueberries and put them in a medium sized pan on medium heat. 

As always, I recommend breastmilk if under a year, and whole milk if your baby is over a year old instead of squash water. I have my reasons for using the squash water instead, and you are more than welcome to use it for the same reasons, but my recommendation is always milk.

I also add 3 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and 1 tsp of cinnamon for flavor.
Want to know why I add these weird things? Again, please read my disclaimer here:
http://justalittlehippie.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html

Be careful with the lemon juice, or skip it, if you are using milk instead of squash water, it will cause the milk to separate.

When that deliciousness is all cooked and mushy, I add 1 and 1/2 cups of oatmeal. I use quick oats, but whatever is handy will do. Please remember that since there is oatmeal added to this recipe, there is no need to add any more baby cereal.

Read about why we should eat bananas here:

 http://foodmatters.tv/articles-1/25-powerful-reasons-to-eat-bananas

Read about the health benefits of acorn squash here: 

https://www.organicfacts.net/health-benefits/fruit/acorn-squash.html

And some reasons to eat apples, any kind, here:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/267290.php

When it is all thoroughly cooked and smelling delicious, then it is time to blend, process, or otherwise use an electrical device to make your baby's food smooth and easy to swallow.

REMEMBER: BLUEBERRIES STAIN!
Please use a bib and be careful with this delicious baby food, unfortunately it does stain their cute little clothes.

And there it is! All done! Time to eat! 

It is so good. I love the delicious blueberry flavor and all the extra nutrition all packed into a tiny bowl. This recipe makes the baby food very thick, and then I add some milk to the baby food on a bowl to bowl basis to thin it out and add a little more nutrition. If you used the squash water, I recommend that you do the same.

This recipe makes 7 cups of baby food and stays fresh in the fridge for a week. You may freeze it for up to 3 months.

Enjoy!

Blueberry Pie Baby Food Recipe
2 apples (sliced and peeled)
2 bananas
2 c. blueberries
1 acorn squash
2 c. water
1 and 1/2 c. quick oats
2 T. lemon juice
3 T. olive oil
1 t. cinnamon

Slice squash, remove seeds, place face down in 2 cups of water and bake at 375 for 1 hour. Combine cooked squash with the water from the pan*, the bananas, the apples, and the blueberries in a medium pan on medium heat. Add the lemon juice, olive oil, and cinnamon. Cook thoroughly, about 20 min. Add oats. When fully cooked blend or food process until smooth. Allow to cool fully before feeding to your baby. Makes 7 cups. Refrigerate for 1 week. May freeze for 3 months.

*My recommendation is always to use breastmilk for under 1 year and whole milk for over 1 year of age. Add 1 cup of milk for this recipe.