Homemade Dairy Products

Quick and Easy Homemade Cottage Cheese

Although cottage cheese is easily available in the shops, it always seems to taste better when it is prepared at home. The big “plus” with this recipe is that it is outrageously simple. And outrageously delicious. And there is no printing mistake – you only need one ingredient!

Note that I tested this recipe in Australia with a 600ml 'tetra-pak' of buttermilk - the cardboard packs with heavy wax coatings. I can't vouch that all other types of containers will tolerate being boiled gently for 30 minutes. Let me know if you have success or failures with other types of containers. The secret with this recipe is that the container must stay sealed for the whole boiling and incubation/resting period.

Preparation time: a few minutes
Cheese incubation/resting time: 12–18 hours
Makes: 200g cottage cheese

one unopened 600ml carton of buttermilk

Place the whole, unopened carton of buttermilk in a large, deep saucepan and fill the saucepan with water.

Bring the water to the boil, and boil gently for 30 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and move it to a quiet, undisturbed corner of the kitchen. Put a lid on it and leave it for 12–18 hours.

Carefully remove the carton from the water, open it and pour the contents through a colander. Clear whey will drain off leaving the cottage cheese.

Drain for a few minutes, then transfer the cottage cheese to a refrigerator. Consume within a few days.

Homemade Sour Cream

This ambrosial-tasting cultured dairy product can be easily made at home, and is significantly cheaper than shop-bought sour cream. Success depends on the freshness of your ingredients, as well as controlled incubation. Use homemade sour cream in any recipe calling for sour cream.

Preparation time: a few minutes
Culturing time: 24 hours
Makes: 2 cups

2 cups light cream (no more than 30 per cent butterfat), at room temperature
2 tablespoons cultured buttermilk at room temperature

Place the cream in a glass or ceramic bowl, or better still in a glass-lined thermos flask, or an electric yogurt maker.

Stir the buttermilk into the cream, and tightly cover it.

Leave it in a warm place for twenty-four hours. Stir to blend, and refrigerate.

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