Homemade Cream Cheese Recipe
On your journey toward becoming a cheesemaker, homemade cream cheese is definitely one to try. The good news is this homemade cream cheese recipe is easy, takes very little active time, has a high yield, and is amazingly delicious!
Servings 40 ounces
Equipment
- 2 gallon pot with lid
- Thermometer
- Butter Muslin
- Colander
Ingredients
- 1 gallon whole milk
- 1 pint heavy cream
- 1/8 teaspoon Aroma B culture, or Flora Danica
- 4-8 drops liquid animal rennet, optional
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Warm your milk and cream to 86F.
- Sprinkle the culture over the surface of the milk and allow a minute for it to rehydrate.
- Thoroughly stir the culture in for two minutes.
- Add the rennet, if you’ll be using it, and gently stir with an up and down motion for 30 seconds.
- Cover the pot and set it aside where it can sit completely undisturbed for the next 12-24 hours if using rennet, 24-48 hours if no rennet was used.
- The curds are ready when you see droplets of whey begin to form on the surface and the curd mass starts to pull away from the side of the pot. Check for a clean break by slipping a knife just into the top of the curd mass and lifting it up.
- Using a slotted spoon, carefully transfer large slices of the curd to a cheesecloth-lined colander that is sitting in a large bowl.
- Allow the whey to drain out for 1-2 hours.
- Tie up the corners of the cheesecloth and hang it in a warm area for 12-24 hours.
- Scrape the sides of the cheesecloth every 4 hours until you get the desired texture.
- At the last scraping of the sides, mix in 1 teaspoon of salt for flavor and to release any extra whey.
Notes
If the cheese has drier chunks in it simply mix them back in. You can hand beat it, use a stand mixer, or immersion blender.
Store cream cheese in the refrigerator for up to a week.