Blessed are the cheesemakers

When I was a kid, my grandmother made Queijo Fresco - Azorean Fresh Cheese all the time. We would have a slice of it on a hunk of the fresh Portuguese bread she had made - crunchy crust on the outside, buttery soft on the inside. She would put a pimento on top of the cheese, drizzle EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil) on it and finish it all off with a little sprinkle of salt and pepper. 

 

And that, my friends, was a mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack of champions.

 

Her "cheese molds" were cans of cat food or beans or vegetables that she "rescued" from a neighbor's trash. She'd boil them in water on the stove, then she's punch holes in the sides and bottom for the whey to drip through. She'd use her old, threadbare dishtowels as the cheesecloth. 

 

So now, two generations later, I have fancy-schmancy cheese molds of various shapes and sizes, and I buy "super fine" cheesecloth but I do believe I have captured the taste and consistency of my grandmother's cheese. It's a farmer's cheese but it's more the consistency of a mozzarella. 

 

The key, I'm convinced, is in the squeeze.  You really have to separate the curds from the whey. Curds are the by-product of coagulated milk. They happen naturally when milk sours. The whey is the liquid that is left over. 

 

Whey is jam-packed with protein, good bacteria (AKA "probiotics") and calcium. It also contains zero fat and aids in digestion. Some sports jocks use it to rehydrate after a strenuous workout.

My grandmother never threw anything out - the woman used old cans as molds for her cheese and old newspaper and calendars for toilet paper (hand to Jesus!) - so you know she never threw out the whey. She used it in some of her recipes for puddings or breads instead of water or milk. I've heard some people use it in smoothies.

I'll tell you what, though: You don't want to drink that stuff on its own. It is, as they say, an acquired taste. 

She made large vats of the stuff. I've cut down her recipe to make two medium blocks of cheese. It's not difficult to make and there are only three ingredients: milk, salt and rennet powder. It's just the process that's time consuming. 

I couldn't find rennet powder anywhere around where I live - not in stores or health food places. I couldn't even find it online. I did find rennet tablets which I pulverized in my mortar and pestle to a powder and it worked just fine. 

 

I also got the cheese molds online but, you know, if you want to make your own with old cans of cat food, beans or veggies, just make sure you make lots of holes in the side and bottom. You'll be amazed at how much whey there is in milk. 

I have not made this with anything but whole milk. I am going to try 2% and see how that works. I'll let you know.

So, here's how you make two medium molds of cheese which makes 10-12 servings

Queijo Fresco - Azorean Fresh Cheese

1 gallon whole milk

1.5 tablespoons salt

1 teaspoon rennet powder (about 4 tablets, crushed and pulverized)

 

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F. As soon as preheated, turn off the oven and keep the door closed. 

Pour milk into a Large stockpot and add salt. Warm milk on the stove top on medium heat until lukewarm, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Once milk is lukewarm, immediately remove from heat. Be sure not to overheat or allow to boil. 

In a small dish, add approximately 1/3 cup of warmed milk and rennet powder. Stir until rennet powder is completely dissolved and then pour back into the stockpot. Stir well to incorporate dissolved rennet evenly throughout. 

Cover stockpot containing warmed milk and place into the oven. Be sure the oven is no longer on, but is warm after having been preheated. Leave milk in the oven until it coagulates and has the appearance of yogurt - approximately 1-2 hours. 

Once milk has coagulated, remove from oven. Cut through the milk with a knife, making horizontal and vertical cuts throughout, into a crisscross pattern. Leave uncovered for approximately 20 minutes to allow the whey (liquid) to separate from the milk curds. 

Place a cheesecloth or very thin dishcloth in a large colander/strainer on top of large bowl /pan and set in the sink. Pour or spoon coagulated milk into colander and allow to drain for approximately 20 minutes. After much of the whey has drained, grab ends of the cheesecloth, bringing the ends together and squeezing into a ball to drain more liquid from the milk curds.

When you think you have squeezed enough, squeeze again. It's easier at this point to separate most of the whey from the curds. Take advantage of it. 

Place drained milk curds in a cheese mold on a flat plate. Set a clean cheesecloth / dishcloth on top of cheese in the mold and press firmly with your hands to squeeze out more of the whey. To drain the liquid out of the plate, carefully hold the cheese mold and tilt the plate into the sink. 

 

Repeat the process of pressing cheese with your hands several times to get most of liquid out of cheese. Exactly how much liquid you want to squeeze out is a matter of preference, depending on whether  you like a more or less watery cheese. 

As for me and my house, we prefer this cheese the consistency of mozarella. But, you do you.

When the majority of liquid has been removed from the cheese, sprinkle a little salt on top and around the sides and then place the cheese mold in the refrigerator overnight. Discard any additional liquid that drains out onto the plate. 

To serve, remove cheese from the mold and carefully place on a serving dish. Serving possibilities are limited only by your taste and imagination.

 

I like to set the cheese onto a cheese board and then surround it with possibilities:

 

EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

Salt and pepper

Pimento

Italian seasoning 

Syrian bharat seasoning

Red pepper jelly

Honey (I love lavender honey best)

I like to include plain crackers, a crusty bread (French, Italian, or Portuguese), baked pita chips, garlic bagel chips. You might also like to serve it on vegetables like slices of zucchini or cucumber or fruit like apples or pears. 

BTW, I also use this as a pizza topping instead of mozzarella.

 

Note: I understand some people like to add seasonings like fresh, copped basil or thyme in with the curds as they pack the mold. I've not tried it, but you might. If you do, let me know how it works. Personally, I like the simplicity and versatility of it. But, you do you.