Ricotta and Mozzarella...we made cheese!!

On day 4 of our detox we realized that we were going to pick up 2 gallons of milk form the farm...and we could not drink it! So what do yo do with 2 gallons of fresh creamy raw milk in your fridge? You make cheese!! (that can be kept till the end of our diet)
We went to town and bought rennet, citric acid and some cheese cloth, and we were ready!

Now the process was really not so hard...it would have helped to have a little more room in my small kitchen. We got step by step instructions from the website of the people that make all the cheese accessories: http://www.cheesemaking.com

In the end we got a pretty decent mozzarealla, a bit tough, but as I sneaked a small bite the taste was great! The ricotta came out even better, although we only got a small amount. I can not wait to try to make hard cheeses!!
Buon appetito!

Here are the instructions from cheesemaking.com


Add 1 & 1/2 tsp. Citric Acid diluted in 1cup cool water to 1 gallon of cold milk. Heat slowly to 90F
Remove pot from burner slowly stir 1/4 tab or 1/4tsp of rennet diluted in 1/4cup. cool water for 30sec. Cover and leave for 5 minutes. Check the curd, it will look like custard and the whey will be clear. If too soft let set a few more minutes.

Now cut the curd into
1 inch squares with a knife that reaches the bottom of the pot.
Place pot back on stove and heat to 105F while stirring slowly. (If you will be stretching in water heat to 110F)
Take off the burner and continue sirring slowly for 2-5 minutes. Transfer the curd to a colander or bowl using a slotted spoon.

Notice how the curd is beginning to get firmer as the whey drains.

Continue separating the curd and notice the color of the whey.
Drain the whey from the curd while gently pressing to aid whey runoff.
Using a heat proof bowl microwave on High for 1 min. pour off the whey.

Knead and reheat for 30sec, repeat if needed until the curd is 135F, almost too hot to handle.

Now the fun begins,
knead the curd as you would bread dough
Remove curd from bowl and continue kneading, return it to the microwave if needed.
At this point, if hot enough, it will begin to stretch,

and stretch, and stretch some more this is what makes it Mozzarella.
I hope we're having fun now.
Now knead it back into a big ball until it is smooth and shiny.