Farmers cheese is a delicious cheese you can easily make at home similar to ricotta or cottage cheese and can be used spread on bread, crackers, with on fruit or veggies and is ready in one day! Farmers cheese works best using milk that hasn't been overly pasteurized like the milks from Cowichan Milk Company.
Equipment:
- Large pot
- Kitchen thermometer
- Cheesecloth or thin clean tea towel
- Large bowl
Ingredients:
- 1 quart of Cowichan Milk Company cream top whole milk
- 1 large lemon juiced
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped herbs (optional)
- 1 pinch of kosher salt
Directions:
- Combine the cream of whole milk by shaking the bottle
- In a large, pot, heat 1 quart of whole milk occasionally stirring, keeping the heat at medium-low to avoid burning
- Turn off the heat when the temperature reaches 200 F (this is before the milk comes to a rolling boil)
- Slowly add juice of one lemon and stir into the milk. Curds will begin to immediately form.
- Let sit for 15-25 minutes without stirring.
- If using herbs, after 15 minutes, add 3 tablespoons finely chopped herbs of choice.
- Place dampened cheescloth or clean tea towel over colander and then place over a large bowl or pot.
- Pour curds into the cheesecloth. Reserve some of the liquid whey that seeps through.
- Lift the cheesecloth and wrap around curds while twisting and squeezing moisture out.
- Place curds into a bowl. The curds will now be dry and crumbly. If you want a creamier texture, mix a small amount of the whey back into the curds.
- Add the pinch of salt and stir it together.
- Place cheesecloth onto plate and form cheese into mound on a plate. Place another plate on top and press the curds into a flat disc. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or so before removing the cheesecloth.
- Enjoy the cheese on crackers, bread, on fruit or on veggies! Farmers cheese can also be used in baking and makes an excellent cheese cake.
