Homemade Cottage Cheese

There are many names for cottage cheese and lots of different uses. I am sure each country has their own version, but one thing they all have in common is the method of preparation.

Basically it is the souring of milk which then separates into solids and liquid, forming the famous curds and whey mentioned in a certain nursery rhyme!

The finished product is called paneer in India, queso fresco in Spain/Portugal and much of Latin America; some parts of the US call it farmers cheese and others ricotta (but that is a misnomer). And not to forget, it is called wara by the Yoruba people in Nigeria!

Curds and whey

Cottage cheese is really the most basic of all cheeses and does not require any intricate knowledge of cheese-making! To the contrary, it is so easy to make that you will ask yourself why you have never done it before.

Regular cheeses like Parmesan, Cheddar or Emmentaler, to name a few, are produced using rennet, an enzyme produced in the stomachs of young calves to help them digest their mothers' milk. But our cottage cheese only requires a little acid to get the desired result.

I have tried various recipes successfully using different types of milk and different types of acid as well as the quick method and the slow one. Today I want to share the method which I prefer over all others!

Ingredients:                                     Equipment:

3 l milk, full cream                                                         a large pot, stainless steel preferably

1 Tbsp citric acid                                                            a colander and bowl of same size

1 tsp salt                                                                          a cheesecloth or a piece of muslin

                                                                                        a whisk

Method:

Start in the morning. Pour milk into pot and bring almost to the boil but not quite. Turn off the heat, add the acid and the salt and whisk briskly. The milk will separate right away, but this is where I prefer to go the slow way. Cover the pot with a clean dishtowel and keep it out of the way, so it can cool gradually and undisturbed.

 Cooling time depends on your weather or climate. Where I live the average day temperature is about 33℃, so it takes rather a long time to cool. Which in this case is an advantage because the longer it stays the more intense the flavour.

 In the evening you place the cheesecloth into the colander and put the colander on top of the bowl. Carefully empty the contents of the pot into the colander, tie up the corners of the cloth and hang up to drain.

 You can save the whey for cooking pasta or baking bread and preparing many other things, so consider well before discarding it. Let your freshly made cottage cheese drain overnight and in the morning it will be ready for use.

The cottage cheese after draining overnight

Now you can decide what to use your cottage cheese for. Sweet or savoury? I used this particular batch to make very yummy little mango cheese cakes for which I shall post the recipe next time.

This recipe using 3 litres of milk yielded a total of 475 g of cottage cheese, but it could be a little less or a little more depending on how much liquid has drained off.

Ready to be used

Mixed with some yoghurt and fresh fruit it is great for breakfast. Adding a little cream, salt, pepper, garlic and some fresh herbs the cottage cheese will make a very tasty spread for bread. So I urge you to experiment with adding flavours to make dips and spreads and even use it in sauces.

In my next post I will publish my recipe for mango cheese cakes as promised. Here is just a little preview:

THE BEST MANGO JAM

The mango season is finally here and it is time to preserve as much of the fruit as possible, so we can enjoy the taste not only now but during the rest of the year when mangoes are not available. Juices, jellies, preserves and jams can all be made and when prepared and stored correctly will not spoil for at least a year. To start I made a batch of mango jam which my family enjoy.

First batch of homemade mango jam

Maybe you think that jam-making is too difficult but it is not, I promise. The equipment needed can usually be found in any kitchen:

weighing scales

food processor or blender

a fairly large cooking pot, preferably stainless steel

a sharp knife and cutting board

cooking spoon (I prefer the wooden type)

a few saucers (for jam testing)

a funnel

a jug or ladle

a sugar thermometer is a bonus but it is NOT essential

jam jars

dishcloths, potholders or oven mitts

a deep roasting tray or similar for sterilizing the jars

a pair of tongs with a good grip

Jam jars can be bought or collected. I prefer to collect them, thereby saving quite a bit and since I only make jam for family and friends nobody minds what jar the jam comes in. Any jar from purchased items is safe to use as long as both jar and lid are free of any damage. And the lids should all have the pop-button which is very important for my way of bottling the jam.

If you have not made any jam or preserves before you might not be familiar with sterilizing the jars and other items like funnel, jug or ladle. So let me tell you the easiest method I know of. Wash jars and lids in hot soapy water until thoroughly clean. Then rinse in hot water to remove any trace of soap. Line a roasting tray with a clean dishcloth and place jars and lids as shown in the picture.

Ready to be sterilized, except the lid on the left which is damaged.

Heat your oven to 180℃, add water into the pan for about 1 cm and a few drops into each lid but not the jars. Allow 1/2 hour in the oven at the given temperature, then switch off. Keep the jars in the oven until the jam is done. It is best to sterilize the jars while the jam is cooking, so they will still be hot when the jam is ready to be bottled.

To sterilize jug, funnel and ladle wash as you did the jars, then place into a large pot, cover with cold water, bring to boil and continue boiling for three minutes. Cover pot and turn off the heat. This should be done before you start the jam, else you'll find that you don't have enough hands to do everything at the same time!

Now we can proceed to the jam making. Choose firm, slightly underripe mangoes without bruises or other signs of damage.

No damage, the specks are the dried tree juices from plucking the fruit
which will be washed off before processing.

It is impossible to say how many mangoes to buy for a given weight because the size of the stone varies as does the amount of juice. For this session I used 12 fairly large mangoes which yielded 900 g of prepared fruit. The ratio of sugar to fruit should be 2/3 i.e. 600 g. Water should be 900 ml. Process to a puree in  your food processor. If not available use a blender with  the addition of some of the measured water. Then place in your pot and proceed with the recipe below.

Fruit pulp with sugar added

Fruit pulp

Fresh lemon juice

Citric acid

RECIPE

Mango Jam

Tip

One does not have to purchase new jars for jam making. I firmly believe in recycling, so I collect
jars from commercial preserves as long as jars and lids are free from any damage. The lids should
all have a pop-up button and a kind of rubbery coating on the inside to ensure a firm seal.

Ingredients

1 kg fresh mangoes, chopped

700 g sugar

1 l water

2 Tbsp citric acid

Juice of one lemon

How To

Place all ingredients in a large stainless steel pot and bring to boil on high heat.

When boiling reduce heat to medium for about 20 minutes.

In the meantime place your chosen jam jars in the oven to sterilize.

After 20 minutes remove any scum which has formed on top of the jam. Increase heat to bring jam
to a rolling boil. If you have a sugar thermometer it should read 120℃. If no thermometer is
available, place a little jam on a cold plate and allow to cool.
Pushing it with your finger should make it wrinkly. That shows the jam is ready and needs to be
taken off the heat.

Remove jars from the oven , then fill with jam using a sterilized funnel and jug. Make sure the rims
of the jars are clean, then put on the lids tightly. When cool the jars should be sealed with the pop-
buttons down.

This way the jam can be stored in a cool, dark place for at least one year.

Coconut Candy

A very common treat in Nigeria, but not so well known in other countries, is coconut candy. It is made from fresh coconuts, not the desiccated type. Now that Christmas is only a few weeks away you might want to try this out to serve along with your regular Christmas cookies.

Fresh coconut

First, obtain a good sized coconut which should be fairly heavy for its size. Shake it to hear if any water sloshes around inside which is very important. If you do not hear any liquid moving around, the coconut is bad and should not be bought. The coconut water is used in the preparation of the candy, so drain it into a container after piercing the "eyes" of the coconut.

The coconut water has been drained

Now you need a hammer to crack the coconut all around and with a final sharp blow it will break open. Using a sharp knife remove the flesh and also the brown skin adhering.

The fresh flesh from a very juicy coconut





                                                                                                                                                                                   

Now it is time to grate the coconut on a grater like the one shown in the picture. If you use a coarser grater the finished product will not stick together very well. And now for the recipe.

You need a baking tray for tiny cupcakes or a mini ice cream scoop. One can also use two teaspoons for shaping the candy and a lightly greased plate.

Ingredients:

2 cups freshly grated coconut (about 240 -250 grams)

1 cup sugar (280 grams)

the reserved coconut water plus enough plain water to make 250 ml

1 tsp butter

Method:

Place coconut and sugar in a heavy bottomed stainless steel pan and mix well, add the liquid and place on high heat. When the mixture starts to boil give it an occasional stir. When the liquid has almost evaporated add the bit of butter and keep stirring. When dry it will start to caramelize very quickly. So keep stirring until golden brown. Immediately take the pot off the heat and start shaping the candy, using a teaspoon or scoop to press into the cupcake tray. Or use one teaspoon to take a little heap from the pan and a second teaspoon to compress it into a quenelle or ball shape and place on greased plate. If not well compressed the balls will fall apart, so care should be taken to give each a good squeeze!

Cooling off in the mini cupcake tray

Total time spent including the prep work on the coconut is about two hours. I hope you enjoy making it and sharing with friends and family! 

The finished coconut candy

Pssst! For some extra indulgence you could dip the cooled candy in melted dark chocolate!

If you enjoyed this post, please share and let me know what you think!

Make Your Own Yoghurt!

Many years ago a friend of mine in Kano told me how to make my own yoghurt which I have done off and on with good results. After a while flavoured yoghurt in little pots became fashionable and of course, the children preferred that. Later still real fruit was added, fruit which was not easily available in Nigeria and does not even grow here. Naturally one wants the best for the kids and I bought those as weekly treats.

Looking back I now know that this was foolish, expensive and quite unnecessary! So I want to encourage the younger generation to always provide the very best they can which in my opinion is always made at home.

Homemade, because one is totally in control of what goes into the product. In this case it is yoghurt, full fat, rich and creamy!

Just buy a pot of natural yoghurt without any added sugar and you are ready to start. You will need milk, a saucepan, a whisk, a jug for mixing, a container for maturing the yoghurt and a measuring gadget. A thermometer is not needed, your little finger will do nicely!

I have researched various recipes and I am sure they all work perfectly well but are not ideal for a hot climate. Therefore my method will give excellent results in sweltering conditions!

Measure 500 ml milk and put in your saucepan. Measure 120 ml (1/4 cup) of the purchased yoghurt and place in mixing jug. Put the saucepan on the fire for a few minutes. Dip your little finger into the milk to test. It should not be hotter than a baby's bath water! If it is too hot you have to allow the milk to cool down, otherwise you will get cheese instead of yoghurt! Another way to test is to dip a spoon into the milk and touch it to your lips. You will know it is too hot if you get a burning sensation. A little warmer than lukewarm is alright. Remember we are in the tropics and a little heat goes a long way!                                        

Yoghurt and milk mixture

                                                                                         

When you are satisfied with the temperature take 120 ml of the milk and add to the yoghurt, whisking to remove any lumps. When smooth, slowly add the remaining milk, whisking gently to distribute the yoghurt mix. Now pour into the container you have chosen and put the lid on. In a warm kitchen the yoghurt will have set in four hours. Average temperature in my kitchen is between 30C-35C(86F-95F).

       

The setting stage

                                                                                                                                                   

Yoghurt is set and ready to be placed in the fridge

                                

When chilled, serve with chopped fruit of your choice. Good options are sliced bananas, cubed mangoes or pawpaw. Instead of milk, this yoghurt could be used for muesli or cornflakes with some fruit added, so no extra sugar is needed!  

                                                        

Don't forget to keep some for the next batch!