Quilting

I'm addicted it quilts, thanks to this lady from Folk Fibers. I mean who knew you could make the most beautiful hand dyed fabrics using onion skins. (Love the roses).

There's a nostalgia behind quilting. The idea of neighborhood women sitting around a table busying their fingers with needles and thread, while their mouths busy themselves with gossip. Quilts often knit together stories, relics, heirlooms, and history. Can you think of anything else that weaves so many wonderful things together?

I have a pile of beautiful old sheets and fabric laying in a pile in my spare bedroom and I've done something both amazing and bad at the same time. I've convinced myself to make a quilt over Christmas (or at least start one). This will be my first and hopefully not my last. Wish me luck and look for updates!

In the meantime check out these beautiful pictures from Folk Fibers.

Love the hand stiched signature.

Another.

Me in a dream.

VW bus!

Sweet love to a new family.

Wonderful Inspiration.

 

What do you want me to write about?

I feel awkwardly absent of words as I have finished my cheese posts. This morning as I was searching for words to write my mind kept drawing back to the little bits of crumbly mozzarella left in the cheese drawer of my fridge. The last remaining piece of my first time making cheese. That remaining piece is so full of nostalgia and I almost don’t want to even eat it, but alas I do. Thank goodness for cheese at breakfast time.  So as I sit here looking for words to write, I ask you, what do you want to learn about? You name it, I’ll do it. You can call me your guinea pig.

Making Cheese Part 3

Welcome to Part 3 of Making Cheese! This is the last and final part of my cheese series, though I won't promise my blog will be void of info about cheese in the future. In fact, I plan to experiment in baking with whey and I do promise I’ll write about my endeavors, but this is the last of the three part making cheese series. Read Part One and Two here for info on how to make fresh mozzarella and mysost. 

After making the Mozzarella you have to let it sit in cool water for a few hours and then refrigerate for a few hours more. After that the cheese has “set” and you can wrap in plastic and store in the fridge for 8-10 days. That’s about all for storing.

Now for the fun part, cooking with your homemade mozzarella. I recommend making pizza with your fresh cheese, especially if this is your first time making cheese (like me) and your cheese turned out a bit different from typical store bought motz. Here’s a fun Pesto Pizza Recipe for you cheese making folks out there.

Ingredients:

Dough - You can find fresh dough in the produce section of most groceries stores. I purchased mine from Food Lion.

Toppings – My go to are pepperoni, green pepper, and olives.

Pesto – homemade if you’ve got it.

Motz – homemade of-course

Parmesan- for topping

Olive Oil

Oregano - optional

Basil - optional

Make your boyfriend, husband, or significant other roll out the dough into pizza shape. We do a square because that’s the type of baking sheet we have. Place rolled out dough on greased baking sheet. Top with pesto followed by your toppings (sliced how you like) followed by your homemade mozzarella cheese and topped with Parmesan. Add spices if you’d like. Then bake as directed on the dough packet. Fin-ite.


And now a narrative:

Adam and I made delicious-o pizza and devoured half of it before I remembered to take pictures. I jumped straight out of my seat, fresh salad greens from my CSA, carrots, green peppers, and olives flew everywhere. Lola cleaned up what fell to the floor thanking Somerset Farms and her messy Mama for the veggies, as I occupied myself with these few photos.

With crisis averted, Adam and I sat back eating our pizza, washing it down with IPAs. It was good. The natural curiosity in ourselves and the excitement that flooded us as we ate homemade cheese (we didn’t think it was possible) made our conversation naturally turn to the cheese making process.

We started to pick apart what cheese really was, an odd reaction like making yeast bread combined with a simple ingredient, in this case milk to create a marvelous thing that melts when heated. Is that all?

Our Make Cheese Kit gave us the power to make cheese. A little teaspoon of this, a little teaspoon of that and poof. But what are those little spoons filled with?

As a child I was told cheese was made from mold. I imagined little spores growing like mushrooms expanding and expanding until at a specific point in time a mouse tiptoed over to this mass of mold, took a little nibble and squeaked out “Presto, it is cheese!” But while I was making my cheese, delicious as it is (and I tasted it in every bite as I ate my pizza), I didn’t have to make mold, grow mold or add mold. Instead, I added citric acid and rennet.  

I knew what citric acid was, a simple chemical compound added to things to create a reaction. But this rennet thing, could this be the mold?

“Adam, do you know?” “Noooo” and he shook his head.

“Siri, do you know?” And of-course she did, “Rennet is a complex of enzymes produced in any mammalian stomach. . .”

Siri’s computerized voice was interrupted as my pizza almost catapulted out of my mouth. My teeth caged it in.

“Repeat that Siri.”Adam instructed. “Rennet is a complex of enzymes produced in any mammalian stomach, and is often used in the production of cheese.”

I slowly finished chewing my mouthful of mammalian stomach enzymes finishing with a swallow difficult to gulp down. As Siri kept talking, I imagined rennet being siphoned from the stomach of a baby cow. “Natural Calf rennet is extracted from the inner mucosa of the fourth stomach chamber of slaughtered young, unweaned calves.” I felt myself exported in time. I was once again a freshman on ASU's campus, averting my eyes away from the public speech area where activists stood with animal cruelty pamphlets. Look with your eyes. Could it be true “slaughtered young, unweaned calves”? Is this really what cheese is made of? I felt as if I was just told that Santa Clause wasn’t real. I had believed for the longest time. I was almost in high school before accepting the truth behind all the deception. 

Rennet is created in the stomach of young mammals to break down milk. I thought of breast feeding babies, their tiny stomachs breaking down mama’s milk. How did someone even think of this?

I took another bite of my pizza, the mozzarella hot, the pesto garlicy, the pepperoni spicy and me freshly educated in the makings of cheese, from the birth of the rennet to the digestion of the result. Profoundly educated, I’d say. But I’d also say, some things never change.

I will always be naïve.

We are too far removed from our food.

And I will always eat cheese.

Thanks to Wiki for the info about Rennet.They need money, help donate. 

How to Make Cheese Part 1

How to Make Cheese Part 2

Making Cheese Part 2

Did you know that out of one mozzarella packet you can make 3 different cheeses?

Once you make mozzarella, you will notice you have a lot of left over whey. You know that yellowish liquid that you squeezed out of the motz and collected in the pot? Yeah, that stuff is called whey or milk serum, it's basically a by product of making cheese and in this case it can be used to make two other cheeses. Read what wiki has to say about it here.

Here's what type of cheese you can make with whey:
Ricotta
Mysost

Since I'm not a big fan a ricotta, I skipped that cheese and went straight to the mysost, but don't worry if you want to make both you can. Download directions at the bottom of this page, plus a fun video.

As for the Mysost, it's real simple., Reduce leftover whey until it forms cheese. This may take you anywhere from 4 to 10 hours depending on the amount of whey you decide to reduce. I reduced about a cup of whey (and still had 2 mason jars leftover) for approximately 6 hours. Be sure to pay close attention to your mysost in the last 30 minutes. The process accelerates rapidly at this point going from liquid whey to mysost almost instantly. This cheese can burn quickly, so beware. Mine was in fact a bit over done. I blame that on Adam and his distracting tactics.

So what is mysost you say? Mysost is a Norwegian cheese (Yay for my peeps being super resourceful and figuring out what to do with all the leftover whey). It's brown in color, sweet and salt. It's very thick and is good spread over crackers, I can attest to that. It's also known as gjetost.

I made it the easiest way, by simply boiling down whey, but you can also add cream to the whey and reduce to create a creamier mysost.

Here's some things I read before making mysost:

http://www.paprikahead.com/2012/09/mysost-caramelized-whey-cheese.html

http://dingodavedelightfullydaringdelicacies.blogspot.com/2009/05/mysost-cheese.html

http://persnicketypalate.com/2011/10/01/cultured-butter-ricotta-salata-and-mysost/

Sorry, but there's no pictures in this post. I have 2 more mason jars of whey left over. One is frozen and the other is waiting in the fridge for my next attempt at making mysost, which I promise to document in photos. I also intend on baking some bread with the whey, as it seems you can add it to almost anything as a replacement for milk or water.

I'm learning a lot here.




How to Make Cheese: Part 3

How to Make Cheese: Part 1

Making Cheese Part 1

The kit I purchased from Make Cheese included everything needed to make the mozzarella minus the utensils and milk. That is, the kit contains directions, rennet, citric acid tablets, salt and a cheese cloth (needed if you decide to make ricotta cheese from the leftover whey.).

Making cheese is actually quite easy, even though I'm sure these directions look tedious. They did to me too, but I took it step by step and when I was done I was like damn, I just made cheese and I think you'll feel this way too!



Photo from Make Cheese on Etsy

First, you sterilize all the utensils. Then dissolve the rennet and citric acid in water. I used left over cooled water from the sterilization process. Then you heat the milk to take the chill away. Once it reaches 90 degrees Fahrenheit, as indicated in the direction pamphlet, add the rennet and citric acid. Stir thoroughly for no more than 30 seconds. Remove from heat and let the milk mixture sit undisturbed for 5 minutes. This is when the curd starts to form.

If the curd can somewhat hold it's shape than you are on the right track. Make Cheese says it will look like soft tofu, which it does. Another way to describe it would be that the milk will thicken like curdled milk but is still able to be stirred easily.

Once you reach this consistency, cut the curd into small manageable squares, lengthwise and widthwise to form a grid. If the curd is not holding its form, which I didn't run into this problem, but some people may (I think this is where my sister had issues), heat to 110 degrees Fahrenheit, remove from heat and wait 5 more minutes. Your curd should be formed now!

After the curd forms and you cut into a grid, put back on the burner and heat to 105 degrees Fahrenheit. The squares will be easily distinguishable and appear more like firm tofu! Once the temperature has been reached, remove from heat and let the curds sit for 10-12 minutes.

Use a slotted spoon to pull out curds, square by square, piece by piece. Place in a colander over a bowl (to collect excess whey). The curds will form one large mass. Once all curds have been added press down several times with slotted spoon to release whey, aka. the yellowish liquid leftover in the cheese making process. Save all this liquid because it can be used later and in my eyes this stuff is like gold.

You have almost made cheese, just a few more steps.

Place the whey liquid back on the burner and heat to 175 degrees Fahrenheit. Use a sieve to submerge the cheese in the hot whey for 1 minute. Remove and knead, really knead like bread 6-7 times. Beware the cheese will be hot, dip your hands in a cold ice water bowl before handling cheese. Do this a few times, dipping in whey for approximately 30 seconds, kneading, repeat until cheese begins to stretch like a rubber. I’m going to go ahead and warn you, this is where I had difficulty and my cheese ended up being crumbly. I was scared to overstretch. I don't think over stretching is possible, or over kneading. So knead and stretch your heart out! Unless any cheese experts are reading this and can direct us otherwise?

You just made cheese. Told you it was easy!

Now that I have inspired you, want to buy the Make Cheese kit? Find it on etsy.

Also, photos to help you visualize different parts of the cheese process. 

How to Make Cheese: Part 2
How to Make Cheese: Part 3

A "Cheese"y Weekend

It’s been the most educational weekend, in terms of cheese that is.

Last year, I purchased a cheese making kit for my sister and after her attempt to make cheese and failing (see photo below), she turned the kit over to me in attempts to see how messy I could make my kitchen.

Paige's attempt at cheese

But alas, instead I made cheese. The most crumbly mozzarella cheese ever (I didn't stretch and knead it enough, more on that later) and then I used the whey to make mysost a Norwegian brown cheese (more on that too). I’m pretty proud of my cheese. It’s not perfect but it sure is tasty. And now for some cheese or cheesy photos!

All my utensils

The cheese has made curds! This is what it will look like after cutting and heating.

Pulling out the almost cheese

This helps you save your fingers from burning off



The motz before squishing out excess whey

storing in water to keep fresh

Are you interested in making cheese? This is the cheese kit I purchased and used from etsy.

And stay tuned for more cheese stories later this week. ---Make Cheese Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.

DIY LAUNDRY SUDS // HOW TO

Let me begin this by saying, I love this DIY tutorial. Here are a few reasons why: It’s  super easy, super cheap, and super DIY.

What you will need:

1/3 bar of Colgate Octagon soap, shredded (You can also use Fels Naptha Laundry Soap, Zote, or Ivory.)

½ Borax

½ Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda

All of these materials can be found on the laundry isle, unless you live in no-man’s-land like I do and then you’ll have to order the Arm & Hammer Washing Soda from amazon.

Melt shredded soap in 6 cups of water on low heat. Add borax and washing soda and 18 cups of water. Stir to dissolve and voila. You got yourself some homemade suds.

I stored mine in old laundry containers. Click here for a really great tutorial from Frugally Green. This is where I found my recipe. Thanks Frugally Green! 

WHAT IS A POMELO?

It’s wintertime, which equates to band fruit in my house. Boxes and boxes of tart grapefruit and sweet oranges comingled in a breakfast bowl for weeks straight. Don’t know what I’m talking about? You must not have been lucky enough to have an older sister religiously practice marching in place while belting out tunes on the saxophone. In late fall, local high school marching bands employ students to fundraise with fruit. Check the local high school in your area for more info.

Of-course by the time I finish my band fruit, I’m addicted to citrus and hit the local grocery store to get my fill. This year I was enticed by the Pomelo. Larger than a grapefruit with a greenish yellow rind, I figured this thing had to be tasty.

And for 2 bucks of my hard earned cash, I got fooled.

I sliced open this thing with great surprise to find a rind of 2 inches or so. The pale pink flesh on the inside was about the size of a tangerine and hard to extract as I tried to cut the meaty part out first, followed by my attempt to juice the thing, but this Pomelo was too big to even fit in my hand juicer. I tried the old fashioned way, man power, but the flesh was so tough I could barely squeeze a drop out. In the trash this thing went, and I moved onto a ruby red grapefruit, much discouraged.

Keep reading to find out what this thing is and where it comes from. 

So what is a pomelo? In case any of you are so brave after my description above. A pomelo is native of South and Southeast Asia, where it is popular as a dessert. The taste is described as a mild grapefruit, but it was bland and lacking in my opinion. The peel is sometimes candied and dipped in chocolate, not in this household, or used in a marmalade or stir-fry pork.

Beware of other odd fruit appearances at your local grocery. The tangelo is a hybrid of the pomelo and tangerine. Mandelos are also some pomelo hybrid. I haven’t tried these, and I don’t think I will. It’s all band fruit from here on out for this lady. I hope my affiliation can stay true thru the rest of the winter season, unless of-course my addiction gets out of hand again. 

OLIVE GARDEN'S ZUPPA TOSCANA SOUP // RECIPE

On one of many Thursday night dinners in Raleigh, a friend taught me to make the delicious Olive Garden Zuppa Toscana Soup. As a sausage, potato and kale soup it makes a pretty awesome dinner, so this weekend I lugged out the cast iron dutch oven. You know, the one Adam found at the scrap yard for 3 bucks and we whipped or should I say scraped into shape. Oh, how I love that cheap ole salvaged thing. I call this recipe Zuppa Toscana-Dana, aka. my very own version of Tuscan Soup.

Zuppa Toscana-Dana

Please note this recipe is very specific, follow it to a “t” or your soup with be awful.**

2 onions

2 cloves of garlic

1 thing of sausage

Cook all ingredients together in the bottom of your dutch oven until practically done. If you don’t love onions and sausage as much as Adam does, than add half the amount. I doubled up to make my man happy and because I added mushrooms. Mushrooms are not his favorite.

Add 6 cups of water (or until pot is practically full), 6+ large mushrooms, 8+ leaves of kale, 1+ potatoes. Boil on low until the potato is soft or you can’t stand waiting anymore!

**Please note my above note is a joke, as I hope you can see by my quantities and directions above. I’ve stated before that I cook not based on recipes, but how it looks, smells, and tastes. I suck at baking for this reason and nothing ever turns out the same. For some recipes this can be disastrous, I know, but for most it’s quite refreshing and for soups it’s awesome! Please don’t be afraid to try cooking this soup because I didn’t provide specific quantities. Ask questions if you have them. But most of all, trust me, you can’t mess this one up. I mean come on, it’s got sausage in it. Try it. Enjoy it. Let go. Love it.

I cook much like I live, loosely defined by numbers and way outside the box. 

P.S. My kale came from the CSA Somerset Farm. Check them out. It was yummy!

Happy December!

This weekend was busy, busy, busy in the slow sense. I welcomed in December, finally completed a few projects I’d been planning for months, cooked lots of fresh food, started a puzzle, cleaned that darn bathroom shower, and even went fishing. Check back in through-out this week for details, winter recipes, and DIY Laundry detergent instructable.

Also, what I'm into lately:

http://www.adventure-journal.com/2012/11/author-why-the-largest-parcel-of-american-land-needs-protection/

http://boone.craigslist.org/reb/3389366724.html

http://boone.craigslist.org/reo/3379614656.html

http://maddieonthings.com/