Sweeter Hours: 30 Minute Mozzarella Cheese

This year the husband and I decided that we needed to stop buying each other gifts for birthdays. It was more out of necessity because really who doesn't like getting a beautifully wrapped box with something pretty inside? So- I had to get creative, real creative.

For Valentine's Day I got him a Jamaican Cooking class at the local tech school. He loved it. He has really been into cooking lately so I figured we could do some sort of cooking together. To curb costs I had a friend watch our 3 year old. I decided we were going to make mozzarella cheese! People thought I was crazy, loopy and a bit insane but it worked! ( and was DELICIOUS.)

The photos for this post are a mix of both the first batch made in a controlled climate ( one infant, 2 adults, our eyes focusing just on the boiling pot) the second batch was made by me with 2 screaming children at the bewitching our of 5 PM on a Friday. Yeah, so clearly the first batch was better.

The second batch wasn't as smooth as the first. It tasted fine when melted but just didn't look the same.

I will not pretend to give you directions on how to do this, I will leave it to the professionals. I will say though that it is EASY. ( as long as you pay attention...)

Be sure to check out these directions from New England Cheese Making: You will need two special ingredients other than non UHT milk (locate the best fresh milk you can find not heated to ultra high temps) citric acid and rennet tabs. For around $15 you will have enough for 30 or so batches. If you live locally you can find these ingredients at the Homebrewers Emporium in West Boylston. They feature an array beer, wine and cheesemaking products. Great little shop!

Here are a few little photos of the process. It is really interesting seeing how cheese comes together. We look forward to making hard cheese next!