As if it wasn’t enough that my local stores are enforcing a one carton of eggs limit per purchase, now the dairy products are climbing in prices at an astronomic pace! My eyes bulged out the other day when I saw cream cheese for $7.99!
Not that I am gorging on cream cheese every day, but cream cheese is so versatile in both sweet and savory dishes. I do use labneh cheese for a lot of my recipes, but cream cheese is great for soups, sauces, and even omelets. My kids love cream cheese and smoked salmon sandwiches for school as well. Just in time, I learned on NBC how to make cream cheese from cheese experts at the Cheese School of San Francisco, along with the friendly folks making fresh bagels at the Daily Driver.
I learned that you only need 3 ingredients and a bit of patience to make the most buttery cream cheese imaginable. The recipe below makes plenty of fluffy cream cheese that can last a whole month!
Here is a tip I learned from Marti in the pic above- try to use organic milk from Jersey cows if you can get your hands on it for this recipe. Jersey cows are the second largest breed of dairy cattle in the world today. Jersey cows are preferred among dairy farmers and some homesteaders for good reason, their milk is higher in butterfat and nutrients, and is easier to digest. To find it, look for brands that feature A2 milk, which is basically Jersey cow milk.
To see how scrumptious cream cheese is made, check out my new video below!
HOMEMADE CREAM CHEESE
Ingredients
- 8 cups full-fat milk (whole milk) – best raw or pasteurized
- 5 tablespoons lemon juice or 1 large lemon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt or more to taste
Instructions
- Pour the milk in a saucepan. Heat the milk and bring it to boil over medium-high heat.As soon as it boils, add the lemon juice and then turn off the heat. Set aside for a few minutes while the milk curdles. You’ll notice curds forming and a yellow-ish liquid being left behind. Within a few minutes, all of your curds should have formed.
- Pour the curdled milk through a cheesecloth and a sieve to strain all the liquid whey. You can use a slotted spoon to scoop out all the curdles, while leaving the liquid whey in the pot.Rinse the curds with cold water. This will help to get rid of any extra whey, clinging to the curds. Squeeze the curdled milk as much as possible to drain any last drop of the liquid whey.
- Put the strained milk into a food processor/blender and add the salt. Within 1-2 minutes ( this may vary depending on how powerful your machine is) you’ll have a light and fluffy cream cheese. If you want to add any additional herbs/flavorings then do that now too. Be warned though as certain additional ingredients will affect the shelf-life of the cheese. Store the cream cheese in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to a month
