Cheese Making Questions.....

Ok... I have TONS of questions!

Non of my Nigi girls have ever been milked, and I don't own a milking stand.... so I had thought about purchasing some milk from a local Nubian farm to try making cheese... what do you think? Do you know any good EASY recipes for beginners? How hard is cheese to make? Any pointers? Can the milk be from frozen or is it better fresh? How long will the cheese keep? Any good recipe books you could recommend? Any help would be greatly appreciated! I had thought I might give the lady a call next week and see how much she would charge me for a couple of gallons.

 

Thanks everyone!

Thank Liz! I am going to go look at that right now!

Yes, when I rebuild my herd next Spring I plan on having a milking stand (my hubby has all of these ideas for all of these things he is going to build me.... the trick will be getting them all done :roll: but he means well :wink: ). I can't wait! I have been wanting to give milking a try ever since I got my girls last year, but just haven't had the time since we had so many. Now that I am being forced to sell out temporarily, I plan on having everything in order where I can do exactly as I want next Spring AND my herd won't be as big. The last of my girls are being picked up this weekend and then I will be goatless until next year :sigh:

Anyways, I am going to take a look at the book you recommended, AND that starter kit :wink: Thank you so much!

 

Thank you! :thumb: Tomorrow I plan on ordering the kit Liz referred to. I spoke to the lady with the Nubians today and she has plenty of milk on hand, so I am going to go pick some up next week... I can't wait to get started :leap:

 

Since I don't have my recipe book yet... how much milk does it normally take to make cheese? Also, how long will the milk keep when frozen?

 

Thanks Liz! I was trying to decide how many Gallons of milk I want to buy...

AND I just ordered the kit! It's called "The Cheesmaker's Pantry", does that sound like the one you got? It was $45.50 plus shipping and handling. This is everything it includes:

#1- Goats Produce Too, the 136-page book with clear, easy-to-follow instructions on using both goat and cow milk for everything from cheese making to soap making.
#2- Liquid rennet (the coagulant that makes the milk into cheese).
#3- Citric powder (the secret ingredient that makes the Mozzarella cheese stretchy).
#4- Buttermilk culture for making your own starter.
#5- Two square yards of REAL cheesecloth (the kind the store sells is gauze, not cheesecloth!).
#6- A high quality cheese making thermometer.
#7- Four Chevre Molds (to give your cheese that professional look).
#8- Stainless steel skimmer.

I can't wait to get it here and give it a try!!! BTW it meantioned that the book includes soap making recipes... have you tried any of them?

 

Ok.... I realize that this is probably going to sound really, REALLY stupid... but being a beginner to the cheese making and all (and have never actually been able to milk any of my own goats, other than to give to kids that aren't nursing) I have a few rather silly questions :doh: so please don't laugh too hard

#1- When doing this (soaps, cheeses, etc.) do I use raw milk?
#2- If not, what exactly do I have to do to the milk, or will it tell me all of that in the book that comes with my kit?
#3- I guess I need to ask the seller if the milk he sells is raw milk or not... right?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated! When it comes to this, I am a COMPLETE green horn! :doh:

 

Yeah! Ok, as soon as I get it I will post all of my experimentations!

 

K, thanks! I wanted to try that and mozzarella first :wink:

 

Thanks for the tips! I am sure that as soon as my kit gets here I will have TONS of questions! I am hoping that it will be here the beginning of next week :leap: