Cheese
Y'all will no doubt recall my asking "whatinthefuck are enzymes anyhow?" in reference to all the packaged cheese a while back.
I had just about gotten over myself and decided they were nothing. Especially when reminded daily just how damned hard it is to avoid additives in the average American grocery retail experience. So fine, one evening I was picking up milk and teas and thought "hmm, what non-additive thing can I eat tonight?"
Nachos!
Yup, our family's favorite corn chip might be made from Thorne Industries corn (I haven't looked yet; not sure I want to know though I realize I ought), but it happens to be additive free.
A grate of cheddar, a bit of salsa and comfort would be had within ten minutes or less which was key on that particular night. So much so that as I was in the dairy aisle I thought "fuck, you and your time are worth it--grab a package of pre-grated."
Damned if there's not modified food starch in it.
I was just floored. "In the cheese?!?" I asked myself. Well, yes. I just spent a half hour trying to get you fine people a link to an ingredient list and still have an empty clipboard (I think that's rather intriguing in its own right) but I did find this.
I grated my own but the whole thing grated at me...
So I made some mozzerella:
Actually I made something which was supposed to be queso blanco first but it resulted in (tasty) cream cheese. So I bought a kit**:
It turned out well; this was the only bit left after 48 hours:
It's not a bit hard--if you can make a cooked pudding (even from a mix) you're halfway there already. I'm sure I'll be doing it again as soon as the big heavy pot isn't full of deep-frying oil.
Oh and I got yet more congratulatory flowers on Saturday too.
That little arm in the upper right of the background is Youngest Duckling waving to the camera.
** The one recommended by Barbara Kingsolver in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle which I finished last Wednesday. Powerful and wonderful holy book there...like any other prophet it's a lifestyle we likely won't personally attain but to which we can strive in greater or lesser parts. I'm sure you'll be reading more from me about it.
I had just about gotten over myself and decided they were nothing. Especially when reminded daily just how damned hard it is to avoid additives in the average American grocery retail experience. So fine, one evening I was picking up milk and teas and thought "hmm, what non-additive thing can I eat tonight?"
Nachos!
Yup, our family's favorite corn chip might be made from Thorne Industries corn (I haven't looked yet; not sure I want to know though I realize I ought), but it happens to be additive free.
A grate of cheddar, a bit of salsa and comfort would be had within ten minutes or less which was key on that particular night. So much so that as I was in the dairy aisle I thought "fuck, you and your time are worth it--grab a package of pre-grated."
Damned if there's not modified food starch in it.
I was just floored. "In the cheese?!?" I asked myself. Well, yes. I just spent a half hour trying to get you fine people a link to an ingredient list and still have an empty clipboard (I think that's rather intriguing in its own right) but I did find this.
I grated my own but the whole thing grated at me...
So I made some mozzerella:
Actually I made something which was supposed to be queso blanco first but it resulted in (tasty) cream cheese. So I bought a kit**:
It turned out well; this was the only bit left after 48 hours:
It's not a bit hard--if you can make a cooked pudding (even from a mix) you're halfway there already. I'm sure I'll be doing it again as soon as the big heavy pot isn't full of deep-frying oil.
Oh and I got yet more congratulatory flowers on Saturday too.
That little arm in the upper right of the background is Youngest Duckling waving to the camera.
** The one recommended by Barbara Kingsolver in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle which I finished last Wednesday. Powerful and wonderful holy book there...like any other prophet it's a lifestyle we likely won't personally attain but to which we can strive in greater or lesser parts. I'm sure you'll be reading more from me about it.
posted by SamD | 9:26 AM
2 Comments:
I suspect that modified corn starch is dusted on the grated cheese to keep the pieces nice and separate. Yack.
And that making cheese thing is cool, isn't it. Kingsolver is so inspiring. My partner has been trying his hand at cheese, and I've been making my own yogurt. That's even easier. There is a good recipe on Pocket Farm (google within her site as it is quite a while ago; though I may have linked to it recently). If you can find ONE yogurt without crap added, even if it is expensive, you can use it as a started to make your own.
From reading the patent I think you're exactly right about where the stupid starch is going and I'm sure it does actually help the cheese from glopping together...I just don't particularly care to eat tinkertoys.
My family doesn't like yogurt well enough to keep up with a culture but I used to do it as an undergrad and it is indeed awfully easy. Of course I made my own beer back then too.
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