Chèvre ~ French Goat Cheese

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This is my first autumn with a goat in milk. Her name is Rapunzel and she is a Nigerian Dwarf goat. The ND are known for their rich and creamy milk. I had to share with her little buckling in the beginning. Little Kinky Boots, her buckling, was able to nurse 24 hours a day for the first two weeks. After that, he would sleep in his own comfy stall at night so I could milk her in the morning before putting Boots back with his momma for the day.

Milking is not as easy as it looks and it does take some skill, finesse and patience on both the part of the goat and the milker. We finally got it together and milking is going well for both of us.

With a refrigerator full of fresh, raw goat’s milk, it was time to start using it. First I tried it with my cereal and it’s quite delicious, sweet, creamy and rich which was quite a change from the plain almond milk that I’m used to.

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My friend, Joy, who has many goats among other farm animals recommended starting with chèvre, a simple and delicious goat cheese. I ordered this chèvre starter kit from New England Cheese Making Co and followed their recipe which is below.

I have to admit, I was a bit nervous about making cheese, especially when it was 90 degrees outside and I was to leave the milk through the cheese making process on my counter and hanging up for up to 24 hours. You can tell that I’m a newbie! Below is the recipe that I followed with great success.

Here’s a complete list of things you’ll need to make fresh chèvre:

Ingredients

  • 1 Gallon of Goats Milk (Not UltraPasteurized)

  • 1 Packet C20G Chevre Culture

  • 2 tsp Salt

  • Calcium Chloride (for pasteurized milk)

Equipment

  • Good Thermometer

  • Knife to Cut Curds

  • Spoon or ladle to Stir Curds

  • Butter Muslin

  • Large Colander

  • 4 M172 Chevre Mold (optional)

A Simple Recipe for Making 1 Gallon of Goats Milk into Chevre from cheesemaking.com

  • Acidify & Heat Milk

    Begin by warming the milk to 68-72°F (20-22°C). You do this by placing the milk in a pot or sink of warm water or, if fresh from the herd, allow the milk to cool naturally to this temp for an hour or so. Ricki suggests heating to 86F but I find that in the summertime 72°F works well for me here and slows the acid production and curd formation down for a more even textured curd. In the winter time I have used the 86F as a starting point but rarely find good goats milk then.

    Once the milk is at the correct temperature the Chevre culture can be added. To prevent the powder from caking and sinking in clumps, sprinkle the powder over the surface of the milk and then allow about two minutes for the powder to re-hydrate before stirring it in.

  • Coagulation

    The milk now needs to sit quiet for 6-12 hours while the culture works and the rennet coagulates the curd. The thermal mass of this milk should keep it warm during this period. It is OK if the temp drops a few degrees during this time. The longer the curd sets the more acid will be produced.

  • Drain Curds & Release Whey

    When a good curd has formed, you will see a thin layer of whey over the curd mass and the curd may show cracks and separation from the sides. It will also show a clean break when tested with a knife or finger.

    This curd can now be transferred to a butter muslin lined colander with a ladle or slotted spoon to allow the whey to drain. The amount of time needed for draining will be about 6 hours at 68-72°F but this is dependent on what you want as Chevre-less time for a sweeter and moister cheese and more time for a drier and tangier cheese. Remember that the bacteria is still working and as long as the whey is present they are able to convert the lactose (in the whey) to lactic acid.

    The time of draining and the temperature of the room determine how much whey drains from the curd. The draining period regulates the body characteristics and determines the final quality of the cheese. This period can be as much as 12-36 hours at a temperature of 68-72°F. Higher temperatures promote gas formation and excessive moisture loss; lower temperatures inhibit whey drainage and produce a very moist cheese with very short shelf life.

  • Salting & Finishing

    Once the cheese has drained to your preference, it is time to salt the cheese and refrigerate your finished Chevre. About 1.5-2 tsp. of the cheese salt will be good. The salting will help the flavor but more importantly it will slow/stop the bacteria from producing excessive acid.

    This is also the time that fresh herbs or spices (use your imagination) can be added and mixed in well with the salt.

    Now your fresh Chevre needs only to be chilled ASAP to further slow the bacteria from working.

    Just store this in a bowl with a cover and it is ready for eating or cooking. As with any fresh cheese it will be best consumed in a week to ten days.

Be sure to check out what to do with all of that whey! You’ll be amazed and my favorite recipe will have your taste buds dancing for joy!