The Greening of Gavin

Operation Mozzarella & Ricotta

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I may have mentioned before, but in case you missed it, I love making cheese.  In fact I love it so much that a few years ago, once I had about 20 varieties under my belt, I thought it was high time to pass on my cheese making skills.

That’s one of the reasons why I started the Little Green Cheese website & Podcast, and why Kim and I started our small business, Little Green Workshops.  We have added other courses besides cheese making, but my favourite is our Mozzarella & Ricotta workshop.   I have so much fun, and I believe (from all reports) that the students have a ball as well.

Let me walk you through the setup  from a class I taught yesterday.  One of the venues we teach at is the Melton South Community Centre which has recently moved into a new premises (just across the road).  It has a massive training kitchen with lots of bench space and two stoves.  Ideal for a smallish sized cheese making class.

Melton South Community Centre Kitchen

Training Kitchen

There was also room to put a couple of trestle tables that allowed space for two microwave ovens.

Melton South Community Centre Training Kitchen

Training Kitchen (different angle)

It also has two sinks which makes draining curds and whey a cinch.

So, we had the space to teach five eager people who wanted to learn the art of cheesemaking.

Firstly after a showing all the ingredients and a sanitisation brief, I gave a Ricotta demonstration that took about 30 minutes.  As I was using pasteurised/homogenised milk, it wouldn’t play the game and curdle, so I had to add extra acid and in the end I got desperate and added a little rennet and left it to stand for about 30 minutes.  That seemed to do the trick, and the 4 litres of milk yielded about 600gm of creamy, albeit tangy, whole milk Ricotta.  Kim is going to use it to make her Chocolate Ricotta tart tomorrow.  Yum!

Operation Mozzarella & Ricotta - student workstation

Mozzarella – student workstation

After a quick walk-through of the Mozzarella recipe, it was now the student turn to have a go at making cheese.

I find it best if we all step through the procedure together, firstly measuring all the ingredients into cups and diluted with the required amount of pure water.  Then I guide them through heating the milk, adding each ingredient, and finally draining the curds and heating it up for stretching.

Colander and loose weave cheesecloth

Colander and loose weave cheesecloth

Once it is stretched, they then lightly knead unto shiny, form into one large ball (mozzarella) or little balls (boccaccini) which are then dunked into iced water so that it cools quickly and maintains its shape.

It is about this time that the students get their first taste of real cow’s milk mozzarella.  Smiles all round!

Simone & Gavin

Simone & Gavin

Gavin & Darren

Gavin & Darren

And oh, the wonderful Mozzarella!  Some of you who follow my cheese blog may have seen Darren before.  He featured in Episode 4 of Season 2 of the Little Green Cheese Podcast.  This is one man who loves making cheese as much as I do.

Little Green Workshops cheese sales

Our little onsite cheesemaking shop

Once everyone have washed up their pots, I invite them to peruse my little on site shop.   I always take along a few things to sell, because someone always wants to make more cheese when they get home!  I remind them that there is a comprehensive range of cheesemaking kits, ingredients, and equipment over at Little Green Workshops if they get bitten by the turophile bug.

We then say our goodbyes and I start cleaning up the kitchen.  I like to leave it cleaner than when I arrived, because it helps the community centre out.  It is the least I can do.

So there you have it.  That is how Operation Mozzarella & Ricotta panned out yesterday.  Loads of fun, and a great way to spend a day off on the weekend.

Did I mention that I loved making cheese?

TGoG 104 – Budget Cooking without Waste

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Listen to the Episode Below (00:43:55)
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Budget cooking without waste is our theme this week.  We talk about all the ways we save money in the kitchen feeding our family.  Includes 101 things to do with Zucchini (just joking)!

Also during the show we talked about using quality ingredients, growing and using herbs, growing your own veg, how to get your kids to eat veggies, how to use leftovers effectively, how to get 3 meals out of a single roast chicken, and how you can save up to $75 a week by taking your own lunch to work.  We also drooled over Kim’s freshly baked Cranberry & Macadamia cookies and Chocolate Muffins.

Kim's home baking

Kim’s home baking

This episode is chock o block with tips and tricks to save money, and still be green in the kitchen.  Budget cooking without waste!

Don’t forget that this show is financially supported by you, the listener, via Patreon.  If you believe the show adds value to the sustainable living community and you would like to support the show, please pledge your support at http://www.patreon.com/greeningofgavin.  Any pledge small or large is most welcome, as it keeps the show growing week by week.

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Making Quick Mozzarella

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Quick Mozzarella is as its name says.  It’s quick to make, usually under 30 minutes with a bit of practice, and it is one of the tastiest soft cheeses around.

Delicious on pizza.  Devine with Cannelloni, and amazing just served sliced with basil and home-grown tomatoes.

So how do you make this fantastic cheese?

Well that is the topic of this weeks video.  http://youtu.be/yLEMX5–yh4


 

Now, because I am a really nice guy, and to help out those who would rather have the recipe and method, I have pulled the recipe from my cheese making book Keep Calm & Make Cheese.

Quick Mozzarella

The ingredients and method are very simple.Quick Mozzarella

Ingredients

  • 4 litres of full cream milk,
  • 1½ teaspoons of citric acid mixed with a ½ cup of non-chlorinated water,
  • 1 teaspoon of non-iodised salt,
  • ½ teaspoon of liquid rennet or ½ a rennet tablet mixed with a quarter of a cup of non-chlorinated water,
  • 1/8th of a teaspoon of lipase mixed with a quarter of a cup of water (let this sit for 20 minutes before hand).
  • ¼ teaspoon of Calcium Chloride in ¼ cup unchlorinated water if using homogenised milk.
  • Kitchen rubber gloves

Method

  1. Sterilise your utensils and leave to air dry.
  2. Heat the milk to 13°C (55°F) then add the citric acid solution to which you add the calcium chloride.  Add the lipase and stir well and continue to heat.  The milk will curdle a little on the surface due to the increased acidity.
  3. Heat to 33°C (90°F), then add the rennet solution and stir gently for 1 minute.  Wait for 5 minutes for the rennet to set.  If you have a solid curd cut it crossways.
  4. Slowly heating the milk to 38-40°C (100-105°F) and the curd will begin to come away from the edges of the pot.  This happens in about 5-8 minutes.
  5. Pour off some whey, and scoop the curds with a large serving spoon into a microwave bowl, or drain through cheese-cloth.  The whey becomes clear and yellow.  Drain as much whey from the curds in the bowl and then put it in the microwave for 1 minute on High.  Put on your gloves as the curd begins to get hot during handling.
  6. Drain the whey again, then into the microwave for another 30 seconds on High, drain and form into a single mass, and back into the microwave for a final 30 seconds.
  7. Add the salt and start kneading quickly like bread dough until it is smooth and shiny and it can be stretched like melted cheese.  Form the cheese into smaller balls and then put them in a big bowl of iced water for 10 minutes.  This helps the cheese to form the same consistency throughout as it cools rapidly.
  8. Take it out of the iced water and try a slice on a cracker with fresh tomato and freshly cracked pepper and salt.  It is delicious!

Quick Mozzarella can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a few days, but don’t expect it to last that long.  The addition of lipase enzyme gives this cheese a big boost of flavour.  The cheese increases in flavour within 24 hours.  Without the lipase, I found that it was too bland, but everyone has their own preference.

So what are you waiting for?  Get stuck in!  Nom, nom.