Cheese!

Somewhere I once heard, 'man used to think that the moon was made of cheese, then we actually went there and found out it wasn't - we haven't been back since'. That is quite a dramatic statement, bit it's used to illustrate the power that some people believe that cheese has. Who knew that when you add microscopic organisms to cream or milk, that you would get this wonderfully delicious and amazingly diverse group of food called cheese? I have grown to love discovering cheese. Before I cared, I had no idea that there was such a vast variety of different cheeses out there. Ask most acquaintances of mine what their favorite kind of cheese is, they may be choosing from a list that consists of: Swiss, American, Cheddar, Mozzarella, Colby Jack, Provolone, and perhaps Velveeta. (By my definition Velveeta is NOT cheese, it is an impostor. I'm including it on the list to demonstrate that many people believe that it is cheese.) If someone were to ask me what my favorite cheese is, I would probably ask them if they want to know my favorite hard cheese or soft cheese. I think this happened once, and I got a strange look that said to me they didn't leave room in their minds for soft cheeses. At that point I am happy to familiarize them with the small amount of cheese knowledge that I have. According to cheese.com, there are 670 cheeses that they know of. Most American's eat a very un-diverse diet. This is a trend that is also demonstrated worldwide. Eighty percent of plant based foods that humans now eat come from about 20 species. There was a time in human history when it was estimated that the human diet consisted of over 1,000 different kinds of plants. (These are figures that we teach in Hort 100 & that I have heard through various classes I've taken. Encyclopedia Brittanica lists that there are currently 829 plant species which are important worldwide to the nutritive needs of humans, and that 30 species account for at least 50% of the human diet.) I would venture to say that the same kind of bottleneck effect has happened for non-plant based human foods as well, including cheese.

Needless to say, somewhere along the way I decided that I wanted to try to broaden my personal cheese horizon. I think it began sometime in 2006 when I bought a couple of great books about nutrition and fermented foods. I also happened to have access to raw milk at that time, which I feel is important in making a nutritious cheese. Some of the first cheese I made still remains my favorite - creme fraiche. It is a sour cream that has a very distinct, yet delicate flavor. I have had very different tasting creme friaches as well, some brands are not so good. The first one I tried was excellent, and I decided that it was going to be the one that I would attempt to duplicate myself. It is a fairly simple cheese to make in comparison to many others. The hardest step is making sure that you do a thorough job of sanitizing the jars that you use, typically with a hot water bath. After you've removed the jar and lid from the hot water bath, place them to dry and cool slightly on a sanitized surface. You want the jar to cool just to the point where it doesn't burn you to touch it. If it's hot enough to burn your skin, then it's hot enough to kill enzymes. It's not as big a deal in this process as it is in other cheeses, but it's a good rule of thumb if you're going for nutritive value in raw foods. Once the jar is cool, add the cream to within an inch of the top of the jar. Then quickly add a spoonful of your favorite sour cream (this is the amount for a pint jar, if it's a bigger jar - add more) and put on the lid. The next step is to shake the jar until the sour cream is distributed evenly. Then let it sit out on your counter until it reaches the consistency that you like. This can vary with the temperature, but it usually takes around 24 hours.

The only hard/semi-hard cheese that I have ventured to make so far is 30 Minute Mozzarella from the book Animal, Vegetable, Mineral. It's a great cheese, and it is pretty quick to make. It tasted good, even though I forgot to put in the salt. Besides the salt, there are a lot of directions that you can take with this simple recipe, such as the addition of your favorite herbs or sundried tomatoes. Yum! It is really amazing to be stirring a pot of milk and suddenly realize that cheese is forming, and through experience you gain more than just the knowledge of how cheese is actually made. You don't just know any longer, but you realize because you did it yourself.

I have been reminded that I haven't posted something in a while, and since I feel like writing and avoiding thesis work, here are some recent thoughts from my head:

* I have discovered the wonder of shopping at Whole Foods. If there were one in Las Cruces I would be short on time (more so) and cash because it would be spent there. I got a screaming deal on my quinoa purchase.

* I wonder about miraculous things. I wonder if they get brushed aside by the general population as something that doesn't happen anymore. What a logical society we have become, and it even seems that many faithful and devoutly religious people think that grand miraculous things can't happen. In our hubris we tend to think that nothing can hide from man's intelligence anymore. It doesn't become us.

* There are times when I ponder my choice in career path. Today is one of those days.

* I am wondering if I am allergic to peanuts. That makes me a little sad. I like peanuts.

* I have a fascination with cheese. I have made my own soft and semi-hard cheese, and I love it! If I had access to a root cellar and large amounts of raw milk, I would try my hand at making a large wheel of hard cheese.

* Even though I have doubts that it will happen in the first third of my life, I would still like to raise at least one bison. When playing two truths and a lie, people consistently accept that I could have a ham radio licence and the lie that I am related to Mel Gibson, but they just can't seem to believe that I have taken a bison management course. If given a choice to eat, I will take bison over beef. I was put out when I thought that Albertson's wasn't carrying it anymore, even though it is a rare treat for me anyways.

* Even though it cuts out large amounts of time that I could be spending giving attention to my thesis work, I love teaching horticulture and trying to make the lab a better learning experience.

* I continue to find the random white hair from my head of salt-and-pepper that is turning back to brown. It makes me smile and hope that beyond the stress there is a healthy me.

* I'm on the older side of my current social group, and I like it.

* I find it ironic that I often don't feel very good physically in spite of following what most people would call an extremely healthy eating pattern. For most of the time I am able to get everything done and to function normally, but I can't help but moan about it sometimes even though the majority of it is all within my own power to change.

* I can't seem to get over the parenting that leads to a pageants and shows like Toddlers and Tiaras.

* Still remembers how to count to twelve thanks to Sesame Street. Nothing sticks in your head like that pinball machine song.