Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1878-12-13
Cheese in Small Diaries,

For making cheese under any circum-
stances few things are absolutely nee
essary. One must have vessel large
enough to hold the milk. 1t may be
any clean tub, boiler or kettle. A
wooden tub is best, because it will lose
the least heat while standing. There
must be means for warming, which can
be supplied by a cook stove. Rennet
for coagulating the milk must be pro-
vided and soaked beforehand. A strong
hoop for pressing the curd, with a ca
pacity of at least six cubic inches for
every quart of milk used, and power for
pressing equal to at least the weight of
a ton. These being provided, warm
the milk in any convenient way, with
out burning, to about eighty-four de-
grees, and add rennet enough to have
it begin to curdle in fifteen minutes,
and cover the milk to keep it from cool
ing. The quantity of rennet to use
must be found by trial. When the curd
has become so hard as to cleave before
the finger when passed through it, it
should be cut with blade that will
reach to the bottom of the vessel into
columns an inch or so square, and then
covered again to let the whey separate.
After it has stood fifteen or twenty min
utes, the whey which can be conven-
iently removed may be dipped off, and
the curd carefully broken with the
hands into pieces the size Of chestnuts
or even finer. When this is done the
whey which has been dipped off, or
what is better, an equal bulk of water,
heated to $50 degrees, may be turned
into the curd and stirred enough to
make all parts of the curd warm up
alike. The curd should again be COW
cred to prevent cooling, and left stand
ing fifteen or twenty minutes, or so long
as it can be without sticking firmly to-
gether, when the whey may again be
dipped of, the curd broken up fine
again, and more hot whey or water
turned on and mixed evenly so as not
to rile the whey and waste the richness
of the curd. Cover the curd again and
repeat the operation till the mass is
raised to blood heat. The stirring
should be repeated often enough to pre-
vent the pieces of curd from adhering
and the whole covered and left stand
ing for the curd to harden. When it
has stood so long as to become hard
enough to squeak between the teeth or
spring apart readily when pressed in
the hand, the whey may be at once
dipped off and the curd drained on a
strainer cloth laid over something
which will allow the whey to run off
steadily, like large sieve or a basket.
When the curd has been stirred till it is
freed from whey and becomes little
cool and the large Jumps broken up
fine so it will receive salt about alike,
salt at the rate of one ounce for each
ten quarts of milk. Mix the salt thor
oughly through the curd and then put
to press. AS soon as the curd is we'll
stuck together, so it can be handled
safely, remove it from the press, put on
new press-cloth, turn the under side up,
fold the cloth evenly over it and press
again till the press is wanted for the
next days cheese. Upon taking it from
the press let it stand an hour or two till
it becomes dry, then rub it over with
some soft grease, and turn and rub
daily till it is cured, which will be in
from thirty to sixty days. On small
cheese for home use no bandage will be
required. The surface must be creased
often enough to keep it from drying and
checking. .-Le10tstOp Journal.