# Dang, I had it! Now I lost it.



## NWgoats (Jul 17, 2008)

Well, I was actually trying to make cottage cheese. Somehow ended up with
cheese curds. But, they were delicious! Now, I am trying to remember what
I did wrong with the cottage cheese recipe to get the curds! 
Rats. These weren't the squeaky kind. Anyone make cheese curds on purpose?
I know that when making cheese, you are supposed to get curds, but what
do you do to keep them curds rather than going on to cheese?


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## Sondra (Oct 25, 2007)

do the old clabbered milk thing it is curds and whey.


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## Martathegoat (Sep 20, 2009)

ok have I got it right.
Babushka buys a gallon of milk every now and again, she will not let us drink it. instead she places the whole milk straight from the cow into a glass jar and leaves it...
it separates into solids and light green liquid (sorry I do not know the names for what they are ) this is then strained and the solids are kept for either cooking cakes eating with honey or just straight as it comes out of the jar, I have never tried it but the name I put to it is Cottage cheese is this correct????
I have no Idea what happens to the liquid.
Now my thought is could the liquid be used as a starter for hard goat cheese..(how long would it keep if yes).I am going to experiment with cows milk till I get it right then steal some of Martas milk to do the same thing when she kids and try to sell it at the local ???farmers market???? if you buy hard goat cheese in the supermarket it sells for 200 to 400 hvs thats about 30 pounds


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## Sondra (Oct 25, 2007)

Hiya go read this abt clabbered milk.
http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/1976-01-01/How-To-Cook-With-Goats-Milk-Clabber.aspx

and no you can't make hard cheese out of the liquid green stuff (whey) but you can make ricotta cheese out of it and you can also cook pasta with it or potatoes etc. even water your garden with it or just drink it if you like. It is very good for you.


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## Holly Govero (Mar 26, 2009)

If i leave the milk in the glass of jar on the counter and will the milk GO SOUR?? U know. That what it scares me to try this! LOL.


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## linuxboy (Oct 26, 2009)

Hi Holly,

If it's raw milk from your goats and not from the store, yes it will make clabber (soured milk, like buttermilk). It's a good idea to cover it up with something so no bugs get in. You could leave the milk on the counter in a closed mason jar, for example.


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## Holly Govero (Mar 26, 2009)

Thank you. Just wondering. I will have to try that. What should I use that clabber cheese ? to eat it or what? I read the website what Sondra posted but still those article dont make sense to me. Sorry.


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## linuxboy (Oct 26, 2009)

Hi Holly. Clabbered milk is similar to buttermilk. You can drink or eat it... it will be like a thin yogurt (might be thick, depends on bacteria and milk). If you take a pillow case and put the clabber in there and hang it overnight in the fridge, the whey will drain off and you will have a spreadable cheese, sort of like a cream cheese but lighter in taste. 

If you heat the clabber, the curds will separate from the whey and you can take the curds and press them and make a cheese. You can also use it in place of mesophilic starter culture and add some rennet and clabber to milk to make cheese.


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## jillig (Jul 21, 2009)

Michele,
I go through the process of making a cheddar, I cook the curds a skillet until they are squeaky, then I salt and season them and...cheese curds!
The clabber sounds neat...have to try that!


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## nightskyfarm (Sep 7, 2009)

Check out Rona Sullivan's website http://www.sullivanspond.com/weblog/2007/06/29/bonnyclabber-country-cheese-process-photos/ I don't know how to make this a link, so you will have to copy and paste. There are photos of her process and the out comes! She makes very nice cheeses with the clabber method. Jennifer


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## Holly Govero (Mar 26, 2009)

Tell me if i am wrong.. Can I take fresh milk straight from the goat and strain it then put in the jar and leave it alone on counter with NOTHING putting in there. Is that right? Or Do I have to warm it up? Let me know. I would like to try this..


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## linuxboy (Oct 26, 2009)

Hi Holly. If you warm the milk up to 90 degrees, the process will be faster. But then again when you milk, the milk temp is somewhere around 100 degrees to start with, so with fresh milk, you shouldn't even need to warm it up. You don't need to add anything to the milk, it will thicken by itself.

Please keep in mind that there is a risk with this method. If your goats are sick, or you don't keep the udder trimmed of hair, or if the milk is contaminated through airborne bugs, or if your milking container wasn't clean, or if you don't throw away the first few squirts (bacteria like to live at the end of the teat), the milk may become infected and in some cases even dangerous. If your goats are healthy and you sanitize well, you should be fine. 

You can tell if the milk is contaminated if there are gas bubbles in it, or if it smells bad. Clabber should smell slightly sour, like buttermilk, but at the same time a little sweet and milky.


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