Another thing that helps in cheese-making is conditioning the milk. Through my research I found that I had to add live cultures?but where to get them? The answer ended up being rather simple, buttermilk and yogurt. In the same pot as the milk, I poured a half-gallon of milk, one quart of buttermilk, and a whole container of yogurt. I put in half a pint of heavy cream for good measure. I let this sit for a good two hours and guess what? It began to curdle. I wanted thicker curds though, so I poured a half-cup of my homemade rennet in and the curds got thicker in just a matter of minutes. To promote the growth of the bacteria in the yogurt, I let it sit a while, warming it slightly over the stove, careful to not even bring it to a simmer.

I could now see the curds and the whey. The whey was a pale yellowish hue and the curds looked a little bit like scrambled egg whites. I then lined a colander with cheesecloth and proceeded to filter the curds from the whey. I put the curds into a bowl and added salt to further help the removal of excess liquid. Next, I returned it to the colander lined with a fresh layer of cheesecloth. I was anxious to taste it, and wow, it actually tasted like cheese!

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