Homemade Spreadable Cheese

I can provide you with a simple recipe for making homemade spreadable cheese. This will be a basic version, which you can customize at will by adding herbs, spices, or other ingredients to enhance the flavor.

Ingredients

• 1 liter of good quality whole milk
• 2 lemons (for the juice)
• Salt, to taste
• Aromatic herbs or spices to taste (optional)

Preparation

1. Start by heating the milk in a pot over medium heat. Bring it close to boiling (about 85-90 °C), but be careful not to let it boil. If you don’t have a thermometer, use your judgment and turn off the heat when you start to see small bubbles forming around the edges of the pot.
2. Add the juice of the two lemons to the milk and stir gently. You will see the milk starting to curdle almost immediately.
3. Let the milk rest for about ten minutes. During this time, the solid part (the curd) will separate from the whey.
4. Place a strainer lined with a clean kitchen towel or cheesecloth over a container to collect the whey (which you can use for other preparations, like bread or cookies).
5. Pour the curdled milk into the strainer gently. If you want a creamier cheese, let it drain less time; for a firmer and more compact cheese, let it drain longer, even a couple of hours.
6. After draining, transfer the curd into a bowl, and if you wish, add salt and your preferred aromatic herbs or spices to flavor it.
7. Mix well until you achieve the desired spreadable consistency.
8. Store the spreadable cheese in the refrigerator in a closed container, and consume it within a few days.

Curiosity

Homemade spreadable cheese is a versatile preparation; you can spread it on bread, use it in canapés, sweet preparations, or even as a base for sauces and dressings. Its delicate flavor makes it particularly suitable to be enriched and personalized according to personal tastes.