When Life Gives You Sour Chocolate Milk, Just Say, "Cheese".
Yesterday, I had occasion to drive into town. For the first time in 16 months, I ventured into the Walmart. While there, I picked up a ½ gallon jug of 1% chocolate milk. At home, I immediately discovered that the chocolate milk had begun to sour, even though the date printed on the bottle is two weeks into the future.
In my freezer, I had packets of Fromage Blanc cheese starter cultures, which I had obtained on sale, because of their short expiration dates--about 10 years ago. I poured all the chocolate milk into a stainless bowl, heated it in a water bath to 86°F, then set it out. Into that I mixed the Fromage Blanc starter packet. But it was mighty old for a packet of living stuff, so I stirred in a second packet, covered the bowl, and allowed it to sit at room temperature (mid 70s) for about 16 hours. It was then ladled into a colander lined with butter muslin, tied into a pouch, and hung above the sink until it stopped dripping (~5 hours).
To this soft cheese, I added some salt and some sugar, and blended it well. It is now hiding in my fridge. It tastes like a mild, interesting cheese, with a subtle chocolate flavor. I plan to spread some on my peanut butter sandwich, in place of jam.
The roughly 1½ quarts of chocolate milk yielded maybe a third of a pint of soft cheese.
Bob
Yesterday, I had occasion to drive into town. For the first time in 16 months, I ventured into the Walmart. While there, I picked up a ½ gallon jug of 1% chocolate milk. At home, I immediately discovered that the chocolate milk had begun to sour, even though the date printed on the bottle is two weeks into the future.
In my freezer, I had packets of Fromage Blanc cheese starter cultures, which I had obtained on sale, because of their short expiration dates--about 10 years ago. I poured all the chocolate milk into a stainless bowl, heated it in a water bath to 86°F, then set it out. Into that I mixed the Fromage Blanc starter packet. But it was mighty old for a packet of living stuff, so I stirred in a second packet, covered the bowl, and allowed it to sit at room temperature (mid 70s) for about 16 hours. It was then ladled into a colander lined with butter muslin, tied into a pouch, and hung above the sink until it stopped dripping (~5 hours).
To this soft cheese, I added some salt and some sugar, and blended it well. It is now hiding in my fridge. It tastes like a mild, interesting cheese, with a subtle chocolate flavor. I plan to spread some on my peanut butter sandwich, in place of jam.
The roughly 1½ quarts of chocolate milk yielded maybe a third of a pint of soft cheese.
Bob
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