25 April 2015

Making Cheese

April 9, 1935  Strong southeast wind.  There was little work we could do.  In the morning we made cheese. 
By this time in Kansas, most cheese was produced by creameries that bought milk from farmers and sold their cheese in the stores.  But the Siemens made cheese at least this once.  Making cheese at home is not a difficult process, but it requires quite a bit of time, heating the milk and curds, with many steps and waiting in between, and maintaining the exact temperature is important.  In addition to milk, the key ingredients are rennet to coagulate the milk and a bacterial culture to provide the texture and flavor.  Cornelius and daughter Mary liked strong cheddar cheese from Canada, so perhaps he was trying to make the same kind of cheese.  When visitors came, he would ask them to bring cheese along.  In later years, the Siemens either bought cheese locally or asked visitors to bring it from Canada.

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