This month for the Cheesepalooza challenge, we are making chevre! Chevre is a soft cheese made with goat’s milk. I ordered the cheese starter from my favorite place for cheesemaking supplies. They make a special cheese starter specifically for making chevre.
The next step was the goats milk! I have no access to goat’s milk, so I had to use what I could find in my store. And there was only one option. The only problem (for me), is that it cost $4 per quart of goat’s milk, and I needed a gallon. Hmmmm. I just figured this would turn out awesome and be totally worth it!
This recipe for chevre comes from Mary Karlin’s book “Artisan Cheesemaking at Home”.
First, you heat the milk to temperature. I use a double boiler method – water in the bottom pot to keep the milk from burning and sticking to the bottom of the pan.
When the milk comes to the right temperature, you add the starter. The directions on the packet said to use one packet per 1 gallon of milk. However, the directions in the book said to use 1/2 tsp of starter. When I measured out how much starter was in 1 packet, it was just a little over 1/4 tsp. So I ended up using 2 packets. I’m not sure if this affected my end product, but that’s what I did!
After mixing the starter in the milk, it needs to sit out at room temperature for 12 hours. The book suggests 72-78 degrees F as the optimal temperature. However, my house was more like 65. Hey, its getting cold here at night!
I kept it in the warmest spot (on the stove), but I know it wasn’t in the 70 degree range.
In the morning, it was a thicker consistency – more like a really soft yogurt, and I could see some whey on top. This is how the book described it should be, so I figured I was doing good!
I placed a strainer lined with cheesecloth (I used this butter muslin) over a bowl to catch the whey.
In goes the cheese!
After just a few minutes, there was so much “whey” that drained out, I had to move it to a different bowl!
Drain, drain, drain. You really can let it drain as long as you want. I drained mine for about 10 hours.
Definitely not firm enough to mold into a log, but it was thick and creamy. Almost like a very thick yogurt.
This is all the whey I had left over – wow! It tasted a little tangy, but very delicious, and I am keeping it! It is still the color of milk, so I am using it just like I would use milk.
There was also a little more whey that I fed that to my plants! I hope they like goats milk!
I decided to make my grain-free cornbread muffins. Instead of using milk in this recipe, I used the leftover goat’s milk! I also topped it with the chevre.
Tasting notes:
- Appearance: so incredibly creamy!!!
- Nose (aroma): It did smell a little tangy, but smelled like a creamy cheese!
- Overall Taste: Very smooth, with a little tang.
- Sweet to Salty: It wasn’t salty, but wasn’t sweet either.
- Mild (mellow) to Robust to Pungent (stinky): Very mild, not robust or pungent at all
- Mouth Feel: (gritty, sandy, chewy, greasy, gummy, etc.):Very smooth! It went down very easy
Lessons learned:
- I am going to try this with cows milk, and see what the difference is! I know I used used ultra pasteurized milk, and the recipe called for pasteurized milk only. I’m sure my yield of cheese would have been greater if I would have used pasteurized or raw milk. Also, I am not sure if I used too much of the starter, or the correct amount. Even if the cheese wasn’t firm enough to mold into a log or other shape, it was so good! We also had some chili with the cornbread, and I mixed in some of the goat’s cheese – so good!
Mmmm chevre. I probably should not have popped by on my lunch break. It looks great!
Interesting! That looks really delicious.
Also, I didn’t know that you could use whey on plants! Thanks for the tip
Alex @ Brain, Body, Because recently posted..Dance: Success!
Sure! It just nutrients, nothing harmful in it. Plus I feel better that I am not just throwing it out!
I admire the fact that you can make cheese! (Insert I’m not worthy bow here). I think it’s so frustrating when there’s conflicting instructions and you don’t know what to do.
Lea Ann recently posted..Macaroni and Cheese ala Mexicana, Muy Bueno Cookbook
Ah thanks
It really is just like following a recipe, and the outcome is pretty cool! 
wow that looks awesome, I love goat cheese!! This is like the opposite of me trying to make ice cream and it is so stinking hot in my house it never firms up!
Rhonda recently posted..I am alive!
hahaha so true!
Mmmmmm….Sounds awesome! I’m crazy for goat cheese lately… and at the farmer’s market here, I can even get raw goat milk!
That is awesome!
There you go again making cheese! As always, it looks delicious! It does look quite creamy compared to the goat’s milk cheese that I have seen but there is nothing wrong with creamy cheese. Thanks for sharing the process and the review! Enjoy your cheese and whey!
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I know, it did turn out different than the goat cheese I’ve seen in the store, but man it is good! Even the leftover whey tastes kind of like a yogurt drink. I’m loving it!
Jane, this is such a great cheese, I love it! I started to make cheeses after I “met” you here and cherve was one of the first cheeses I made here: http://www.picnicatmarina.com/2012/02/homemade-chevre-and-goat-trip.html
I use the same culture, thanks for the advise!
Marina@Picnic at Marina recently posted..What Man Wants: BBQ Ribs
I remember when you posted about chevre! I’m really enjoying this Cheesepalooza challenge, because I am making cheeses I never would have made before!
Yum! And extra tangy sounds wonderful to me. Being an old Swiss the sharper the better when it comes to cheese!
The Cheesepalooza Challenge looks fun! The only cheeses I’ve ever made at home are paneer and yogurt cheese, but I’m tempted! It’s cool that you are finding other uses for the whey. I just learned that Italian ricotta and Norwegian brunost are both made from the whey, not the curds.
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Good job! Glad you enjoyed it, even as a looser softer cheese. It seems similar to my first attempt. My second was more traditional. Looking forward to more of your Cheesepalooza posts!
christine @ wannafoodie recently posted..Cheesepalooza: Basic Chevre
My maternal grandparents had a goat farm for a long time and Grandma milked her goats every morning and sold it. I remember every day she’d put her buckets of goats’ milk in a bathtub full of water. I had no idea what she was doing, but now I think it must have been hot water and this was her way of pasteurizing the milk. I’ve always detested goat’s milk but one time Grandpa tricked me by putting it in the cow’s milk bottle and I ate it on my cereal. At first I thought it was rotten, and then realized he tricked me. I wish I liked goat cheese as the people that do seem to reaaaaally love it but alas, it’s just not for me.
Your experiment does look tasty though! I like how it turned out creamy and also suspect it would have been more like cheese if you’d had less pasteurized milk (wonder how many people still sell goats milk from their farms?) and the temp was higher. I love that you don’t waste the whey!
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Wow, that is so cool that your grandparents had a goat farm! I sure haven’t been able to find any goat milk around where I live. I actually love how it turned out! When I was in high school, I was highly allergic to dairy, and I remember my parents tried to get my some goats milk, and it just didn’t taste the same. I guess we just get used the the taste/texture of something! I’m so glad I can have dairy now!
You purchased the same brand goat’s milk that I found.
I’d intended to do the chevre as well, but then realized it was ultra-pasteurized. Instead, I added it to a half gallon of raw cow’s milk and it made a lovely paneer.
Denise @WholemadeGoodness recently posted..Queso – Not So Fresco?
haha nice! It is all I had access to, but honestly, the way it turned out was so good, I have no regrets!
Our first attempt turned out similar but we hung ours for a few days to get it a bit thicker. Delicious mistakes are the best!
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