2011: A year in (photo) review

  I was going back through older posts of mine, and came across my very first one from December of 2010. In it, I had listed some of the things we had accomplished in our farm lives to date, and also goals for 2011. So I decided to compile a little photo review of last year and see what all had been done. Here was my goal list for 2011, "Add on to the orchard, plant/not kill a garden, add a beehive and rabbits, brew beer, make an aged cheese, and slaughter more chickens!".


1. I did indeed add on to the orchard. We now have peaches, figs, apples, plums, pears, blueberries, blackberries, and kiwis. Phew. 2011 was, however, the last year I will be planting anymore fruit trees here, as we hope to move to a "real" farm someday soon.

 2. Planted/didn't kill three gardens actually! The first was a large raised bed for cool weather crops like lettuce, kale, beets, turnips, carrots, peas, broccoli, cauliflower, radishes, and fennel. The second, a perennial herb garden containing rosemary, lavender, sage, thyme, and oregano. And lastly, Chad tilled a large portion of the front yard into a summer patch for corn, squash, zucchini, watermelon, green beans, peanuts, and sunflowers. All in all, everything was pretty successful, save for the Watermelon Massacre of '11 (which is what got me to thinking about putting chickens in the freezer), and the squash/zucchini. Squash bugs are vile creatures.

3. Added ducks and rabbits. I still very much want bees, but I unexpectedly acquired ducks last Spring instead. A weekly outing to the feed store for seeds resulted in me caving for 2 tiny ducklings that were all alone in a giant brooder pen. Seriously, how was I supposed to resist that? Turns out Pekin ducks are a fantastic heritage breed that consistently lay huge decadent eggs. Not to mention they are just damn entertaining. We also finally added meat rabbits to our menagerie. I was lucky enough to purchase 2 very rare American Blue Rabbits from Broad River Pastures. They will be my breeders for future rabbit dinners and fur blankets.

4. Brew beer and age cheese I did not. Ok, I slacked off here. I did not brew any beer, and have yet to age a cheese at my own home. I did manage to make several fresh cheeses like mozzarella and ricotta, and cure quite a few meats like pancetta, bacon, and duck prosciutto. Beer and aged cheese this year, I swear!

5. I butchered more poultry. Ok, I admit I didn't do this one in 2011. It was actually early 2012. But it still kind of counts, right?

So what's in store for 2012? Beer brewing, cheese aging, turkey chicks, sewing, and composting!

You say Tomato, I say Mozzarella

  This time of year is the pinnacle of tomato season. And with an overabundance of those acidic red orbs, comes a plethora of dishes that include basil and mozzarella. Now, while I admit that this trio has been overused much in the same way prosciutto and cantaloupe/asparagus has (and oh how it has...), there is a very good reason for it. It's tasty. You may be thinking Caprese salad, I am thinking pizza, but I am always thinking pizza. I like all sorts of bizarre wonderful toppings, but a classic Margherita is tough to beat.
  You could always spring for the stuff packed in water that's $9 a container, or you could make your own. Now, there are a few specialty ingredients needed to make fresh mozzarella, and you will probably need to order them off of the Internet. But most will last you for a long time, aren't terribly pricey, and can be used to make countless other cheeses. The New England Cheese Making Supply Co. is my personal favorite for such business.
  I would like to share with you how to make crazy delicious mozzarella at home, but first, I want to answer a few burning questions I know you have always had about the ingredients to come.


Q. What is rennet? Why the &*@! is it in my cheese?

A. Rennet is a mixture of enzymes that are traditionally derived from the stomach of a calf (or kid, or lamb) that aid in the coagulation of cheese, causing the milk to separate into curds (milk solids/future cheese) and whey (leftover liquid). It is usually the byproduct of the veal industry. Rennet can be bought as either a liquid, powder, or tablet. There is also vegetable rennet, microbial rennet, and Chymosin (or genetically engineered rennet). Vegetable rennet can be made from a number of things such as thistle and nettle, but is most commonly mold based for commercial rennet. Microbial rennet is also mold based, and can be very difficult to use in aged cheeses due to it's bitter taste. Chymosin is a rennet who's origins start as cow genes that are then spliced into bacteria to create a genetically modified rennet that can be considered suitable for vegetarians. Junket rennet tablets are a very weak form of rennet that will not work for aged cheeses. Besides, it has Junk in the name.


Q. What is Calcium Chloride?

A. Calcium Chloride is a salt solution that is used to restore the balance of calcium that is lost to heat treatment in milk. It helps to speed up the coagulation process when rennet is used.


Q. What is cheese salt? Sounds delicious...

A. Cheese salt is simply an noniodized coarse salt that is used to flavor the cheese. It is not cheese flavored salt. Kosher salt can also be used, as long as it is iodine free. Iodine inhibits lactic bacteria and slows down the aging process.



Fresh Mozzarella


Ingredients

1 1/2 teaspoons calcium chloride dissolved in 1/2 cup cool water
1 gallon pasteurized whole milk (if using raw milk, skip calcium chloride)
1/4 teaspoon liquid rennet dissolved in 1/4 cup cool, nonchlorinated water
1 teaspoon cheese salt


Special Equipment

large stainless steel pot
stainless steel slotted spoon
thermometer
heavy duty latex or rubber gloves


Pour milk into pot over medium/low heat.
When milk reaches 55 degrees, stir in calcium chloride mixture.
Heat milk to 90 degrees (milk will start to curdle).
Slowly stir in rennet mixture in an up and down motion while heating milk to 100 degrees.
Turn off heat.
When the curds get larger, start to pull away from the pot, and the whey is fairly clear, they are ready (3-5 minutes).
Using the slotted spoon, scoop out curds into a microwave safe bowl.
Press the curds to expel as much of the whey as possible.
Microwave the curds for 1 minute.
Put on gloves (trust me) and drain off whey, then knead curds as you would dough. Very, very hot dough.
Microwave two more times for 35 seconds each, kneading after each time.
Add salt after last heating and knead until curds stretch like taffy.
Roll curds into balls or squeeze in between the hole of your index finger and thumb as if you were making a cheese balloon, then pinch with thumb.
Eat right away while still warm and gooey, or store in water in refrigerator for up to a week.





Just add face



Easy Cheese


  With all of this meat curing that has been going lately, I admit I have strayed from my first true love. Just like with curing, cheese making can also be incredibly intimidating. There is so much involved: sanitation, science, a bit of alchemy, sensitive raw ingredients, crappy electric stove tops. But as with any new skill, it's best to start out with the basics and work (or rework) your way up. And so with making cheese, ricotta is about as basic and simple as one can get.
  Traditionally, ricotta was made from the leftover whey of cheeses such as Pecorino Romano. Reheating the whey after a make created a small fine curd that was used fresh, and often times derived from sheep's milk. Unfortunately, I don't have any sheep's milk hanging around in the refrigerator (yet) so common cow's milk will have to suffice. While ricotta can be made using leftover whey, it can be made from whole milk as well, which also increases the yield. All you need to form soft curds is a little heat and acidity. I use lemon juice, but a good quailty vinegar could be used also.

Cheese at Work

 

Fresh Ricotta (yields 2 cups)



Ingredients

2 quarts whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 tsp salt
3 T lemon juice


Line a colander with cheese cloth or butter muslin and set inside a large bowl.
Very slowly heat the milk, cream, and salt in a heavy bottom pot, stirring occasionally. (Do not walk away from milk on the stove to go check your email! No, not even if it will take "just a second"! It will boil over! Yes, I do it everytime)
When the milk comes to a slow rolling boil, add the lemon juice and stir until curds form, about 2 min.
Pour curds into lined colander. You may need to suspend the cheese if your bowl is not deep enough, as I have done here with twist ties and rubber bands. Sophisticated, I know.

Let the cheese drain for 1 hour. 
Remove the cheese and mix in a little heavy cream or milk for a smoother consistency if you like.
Save the whey for pancakes, biscuits, or smoothies.
Save your cheese cloth and wash it, it is reusable.
You can keep your lovely handmade cheese in the refrigerator for 2 days, but I can't imagine why it would stick around for that long. So good in pasta, in eggs, in pastries, I'm sure you can find plenty of uses for it.


  Since summertime in Georgia doesn't exactly scream lasagna weather, I adorned a simple pizza with mine. Piled high with fresh cheese, a hundred different vegetables from the garden/CSA, and served with a glass of cheap wine, it's nearly the perfect meal. Now, if I could only find time to make the damn crust...

Summertime and the living's cheesy easy