I made mozzarella!

I am super pumped.

It took some outside consultation, the help of a friend, and some jerry-rigging with a clothespin, but I successfully made a ball of mozzarella cheese.  It.  is.  delicious.

I bought a kit online from Crimson Carrot.  It contains 3 rennet tablets (you only need one quarter of a tablet per batch,) fine cheesecloth (finer than the cheesecloth at the supermarket,) citric acid, salt, and a thermometer.

Adorbs.

You need to supply a gallon of milk- preferably whole, and NOT ultra-pasturized (but regular pasturized is ok.)  You also need non-chlorinated water.  I didn't read this carefully enough the first time, but they say if you leave water out overnight uncovered the chlorine will evaporate out.  You need 2 cups for a recipe.

SO.  I followed the directions inside the package.  There are duplicate directions available on the company's website, so if you have whey spillage on them or something you're still ok.  Add the dissolved citric acid to a gallon of milk in a pot, stir it, and heat it.  Then add the dissolved rennet and let it heat up further.  It kind of congeals into a mass of curds (white solids) floating in whey (a shockingly yellow clear liquid.)

Eew.

This is where I messed up the first time.  I scooped and all of my beautiful curds turned to mush.  This happened twice.  All was not lost- I'll show you what I ended up with at the end of this post.  But for the sake of continuity, I'll tell you the RIGHT way to do things here.

I wanted to trouble-shoot and figure out what I was doing wrong, so I watched a million youtube videos.  They all seemed to be telling me to do what I was already doing so I went to the Urban Cheesecraft website and wrote them an email explaining my troubles.  To my delight, I got an email back within a few hours from Cheesy Experience Officer Claudia with lots of suggestions and encouragement.  It turns out I was scooping my curds too soon and needed to let them firm up a little longer before I took them out of the whey.  Claudia also directed me to the company's facebook page which has a whole photo album of what it should look like at each step.  It was super helpful.

So when I scooped the curds out the right way (after cooking,) they looked like this:

See that 3-D chunkiness?  That is what you want.

If it's not cooked enough, it will look like this:

Basically froth.  It looks kind of like egg drop soup.

If it looks like the latter, cook it at 105-110 F for about 5 minutes until the curds get a little rubberier.  SO.  Scoop that out into a microwaveable dish.  I used a pyrex baking dish, which I recommend because the corner made it easy to pour from.  You'll be microwaving this for short bursts and draining off whey in between.

This is at the beginning of that process.

Repeat for a new rounds, kneading and draining as you go.

This is a few rounds later.  Those grid marks are from pressing with my slotted spoon.  See how it's starting to firm up?

This is what is left over:

I'll give you a dollar if you drink it.

When the curds get up to 135 F, you'll knead them gently with your spoons.  This is the time to salt your cheese.  The directions don't specify how much salt to use, so I used a little less than a teaspoon of my own fancy snobby sea salt.  I bet theirs is delicious too- I just got a new salt box and am pumped about using it.

When it's cool enough to handle, stretch it gently until it becomes shiny and then shape it into a ball.  Tear off a little to taste, and then get really pumped because it is DELICIOUS.  And you made it.  Woo!

Cheeeeeeeeeeeeese!

Hooray!

#cheeseformayor

Ok, now time for showing you what it looked like when I failed.  Spoiler:  still delicious.  When I scooped the curds too soon, I ended up with this mush that just wouldn't solidify.  I tried draining it with a cheesecloth, but that didn't help much.  It looked like this:

Womp womp.

I tried pathetically to knead it.

It mocked me so.

So I decided to shift my expectations and eat it like a soft fresh farmer cheese.  It was super good with a Triscuit and blueberries

#nofilter

and on Wasa with this toasted almond arugala pesto I had lying around.

#yuppie

Because I made 2 batches of this stuff before I got it figured out, I ended up trying it lots of different ways.  The winner may have been mixed up with all sorts of herbs and salt and pepper

please ignore the nautical spoon

 and put on cracker with tomatoes and basil:

enlarged to humblebrag

Ok, just one more.

I'm probably going to use the finished successful mozzarella in a caprese salad tomorrow, but for now I'm cheesed out.  All in all I had a ton of fun- I made a lot of super tasty cheeses, all of which I'd happily serve to guests.  I was so pleased with the support I got from Urban Cheesecraft I actually made 2 batches in one day.  

If you want your own cheese kit you can grab one at Crimson Carrot!  They're cheap, and they make a lot of batches.  Also, full disclosure, the owners are real nice kids.

Good luck!

Hamentashen

Nutty and I made vegan hamentashen!  We used a recipe that just happens to be from an Ann Arborite.  They turned out totally delish- not too sweet, with a nice wheaty flavor.  

Uncooked

We used fig, apricot, and blueberry preserves.  

Come back here with those preserves!

Also we forgot to take a picture of the finished ones till 2 days later, at which point we had become artistically lazy.

CHOMP

You should make them.

This could be you!

Peach Upside Down Cake

This cake is made from farmers market fresh Michigan peaches, and is adapted from this recipe.  I made the mistake of leaving it out on the counter for 2 days in the summer and it got moldy!  Keep it in the fridge!  Also I used a spring-form pan and all the good stuff dripped out and charred on the bottom of the oven.  Don't do that.  Even so, the pre-mold cake was delicious!

Christmas Goodies

These are tasty and pack well.  They're fine without glaze too, and pack even better!

White Chocolate Cappuccino Raisin Bars
36 bars, 350 degrees


½ C. butter or margarine
1 C. (6 oz.) white chocolate chips
1 Tbsp. instant coffee granules
1 C. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
3 eggs, lightly beaten
2 C. flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
1 ½ C. raisins (dried cherries or cranberries also work!)

Heat together butter and choc.,‘til just melted.
Dissolve coffee in 1 Tbsp water.
Stir into melted mixture with sugar, vanilla, and eggs.
Combine dry ingredients; add to mixture. Stir in raisins.
Spread in greased 9”x 13” pan.
Bake 30 minutes or until set in middle. Cool.
Drizzle with glaze.


Glaze:


Stir ¼ tsp. coffee granules in 4 tsp. water to dissolve.
Add 1 Tbsp. melted butter.
Mix in ¾ C. powdered sugar.

These are pretty much everyone's favorites every year.

Toffee Squares, from Forum Feasts

easy yield 3 dozen 350 degrees
can be frozen bake 20 minutes


1 C. butter (to soften, nuke 5 min at med heat)
1 C. light brown sugar
1 egg yolk
2 C flour
1 tsp. vanilla

Cream butter and sugar.
Add egg yolk and vanilla.
Add flour and mix well.
Spread onto a 16” x 11” sheet with sides.
Bake at 350* for 15-20 min. Watch carefully.


½-1 C semi sweet choc chips (nuke 2-4 min to melt)
½-1 C chopped nuts


While crust is baking, melt chocolate chips. Gently spread chocolate on dough gently while it is still hot.
Sprinkle with nuts, and press them into the chocolate.
Cool slightly (10 minutes?) and cut into 2” squares.

This is store-bought marzipan rolled into balls and dipped in chocolate.  It was gross.

2 out of 3 ain't bad!

Spiced Almonds

  

Heat a nonstick frying pan to medium heat.  Add one package of nuts and then sugar.  You can use more or less depending on what you're using these for.  For snacking nuts, I'd use a little more than a cup, for salad toppers I'd use maybe a half cup.  Stir constantly, as once the sugar starts to melt they can burn quickly.  It's ok if they're still a little chunky.  Pour them onto ungreased foil to cool and don't try one right away, even though you'll want to really bad.  Hot oil + hot sugar = super burned tongue.  Be careful!

Depending on use, you can add in different spices- for snacking holiday nuts (the ones I bring to Thanksgiving) I usually add cinnamon and nutmeg.  For salad ones, I like to add a little pepper.  These are also yummy with some of the white sugar substituted for brown sugar, but I'd suggest making them a few times with white sugar first, as the brown makes it harder to see when the sugar starts to caramelize and you might want to get the hang of the recipe first.

Tortellini, Spinach, Mushrooms, and Sausage

  Please excuse the picture quality- this one was taken on a cell phone!  Cook up some tortellini.  While it's cooking, saute up one package of mushrooms- preferable baby bellas- in a pan with a lid and lots of room.  Slice some apple chicken sausage and throw it in there with the mushrooms.  Once those are cooked, drain and add your tortellini.  Throw a HUGE package of fresh spinach in with the mushrooms and put a lid on it (smush it if you have to) till it wilts to your liking.  Finish it with balsamic vinegar if you feel so inclined.  This made 3 super delicious dinners.

Couscous Bar

Clean out your fridge and serve it over couscous!  Here we've got:

Roasted spiced garbanzo beans (I'd share the recipe but I don't remember what I put in them!)
Caramelized onions
Crumbled feta
Capers
Roasted Bell Peppers

Peas

Also tasty:
Pine Nuts
Kalamata Olives
Pretty much anything

This is tasty served with that beet salad from the previous post!

Beet Salad

 

This is one of my favorite food.  Throw some roasted beets, romaine, goat cheese (feta's good too if you're serving folks who don't like goat), and candied pecans in a pretty bowl.  Drizzle some good balsamic vinegar on there and you're my new best friend.  Yum!  

To roast beets:

Scrub them clean.  If they're big, cut them in quarters.  Make them a little foil house (packet) and drizzle them with olive oil.   Roll up the foil tightly and roast them at 375° for 25 minutes, give or take, till they're tender.  Let them cool a little and then peel off the skins with your fingers.

Italian Wedding Soup

I don't know why I never realized how easy this is to make, but it really is a super easy meal.  Throw together some meatballs first- either look up a recipe online or do what I do and mix a package of ground turkey, an egg, a small handful of breadcrumbs, and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese and maybe some dried basil.  Roll them into balls and bake them.

While those are in the oven (350 till cooked through?) boil some chicken broth and chop up a few carrots and throw them in there, along with a handful or two of israeli couscous or other small pasta.

When everything is cooked through, put a handful of fresh spinach in each bowl and ladle the broth on top to wilt it.  Add as many meatballs as you want. If you're going to freeze the soup, freeze the broth and meatballs separately so they're easier to defrost.

Start to finish, the whole recipe takes a half hour or less and it super tasty.  Enjoy!

homemade GAK

Homemade GAK is soooooooooooo fun to make.  There's a great recipe here.  We found neon food coloring in the store and it worked great.  Highly recommended!  It keeps for a few days in a ziplock.

I haven't yet found a recipe that doesn't use a whole lot of glue, so this one tends to be better for small groups.  Don't let it dry on your clothes!

Regrettable Oreo Truffles

Ugh.

Pretty, right?  Ugh.  These little monsters are made from one package of oreo crumbs mixed with one package of cream cheese rolled into balls and dipped into melted chocolate. I zigzagged over the with melted white chocolate in a ziplock bag with the tip cut off.

I made them for my roommates for Valentines Day and while they look charming, eating just one walnut-sized truffle will make you feel like you are staring into the icy cold face of death. Tasty, but too intense.  Uncomfortably rick.  We've got pretty low standards around these parts, and these puppies actually went unfinished.

I always mix my leftover melted chocolate with whatever I can find laying around to make a tasty bark- granola and/or dried fruit and/or nuts.  I piped little hearts out of the leftover white chocolate, which one of my roommates used to spruce up his homemade V-Day dinner for his squeeze!

On a related note, some white chocolate melts and some doesn't.  I don't know what the difference is (I think I always buy tollhouse?) but if you know, please enlighten me! I can never tell till I'm mid-project.

Edible Rainbows

This was our special St. Patricks Day snack.  We had fun making them, and scouting the grocery store for all the colors we needed!  I also made him enchanted milk!  I covertly put a few drops of green food coloring in the bottom of a glass.  It wasn't really visible from the side, and I kept moving as I told him a story about how sometimes leprechauns play tricks on people on St. Patrick's Day.  As I poured in the milk from the jug in front of him, it became green in the glass!  Blew his mind and delighted us both, though I admit he figured it out within 2 or 3 minutes.

Frobscottle

Back in my nannying days, my delightful 5 year old co-conspirator was a big Roald Dahl fan.  We made this frobscottle together, which contained a mix of raspberry kefir, kiwis, and cream soda, all to taste.  It was strange, but delightful in color.  It did turn him on to kefir, though, which was a nice side effect!

It did not give us whizpoppers.

Iced Tea Popsicles

I tried making iced tea popsicles.  They were not great.  The fresh mint I added all floated to the bottom and turned all dark and bruisy-looking from the freezing, and the flavor of the tea got weirdly distributed in the popsicles when they froze.  They were neither pretty nor tasty.  Do not recommend.

I have been considering trying to make Thai iced tea popsicles, but haven't attempted it yet.

Baked Brie

I made this baked brie for a winter party for work.  It was easy to transport and was super easy and delish.

Take one round of brie and slice it down the middle like a hamburger bun.  Spoon half a jar of fig preserves (or any old fruit- it doesn't matter) into the middle, and a handful or so of toasted sliced almonds.  Pop the top half of the brie down on it like a sandwich.

On a sheet of waxed paper, unroll a tube of crescent roll dough (low-fat works fine) and separate it into 2 square halves.  Pinch the precut seams together with your fingers on each separate half.  Place your brie on top of one half of the dough and gently lay the other half down on top of it.  Smooth the edges of the top piece down and use a knife to cut around the brie, leaving about an inch of overlapped dough around the perimeter.  Do some pretty pinch and turn thing around the edges to seal it up.

Use a paring knife to cut something pretty out of the dough scraps and place them on top.  Gently lift your brie onto a greased baking pan and brush with a beaten egg.  Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or so, or until it looks and smells awesome.

Serve with baguette slices, apple slices, or just forks.  Yum!  Enjoy!