January is almost gone
When we reached the end of the year, I took a real big sigh and I thought oh my! this is gonna be a long grey month.
It has been a roller coaster one, for various reasons. Felt more in touch with my inner self and with my family then ever. Picked up the phone to chat with my old school friends, entertained more than once and of course planning ahead after we have been assessing the last year.
Health has became the priority so far and there are quite a few thoughts around that.
Work is slower in sales, however there's mountains of things to do to prepare for the year. One of many things is our annual visit from Environmental Health. It is a routine inspection but each time we are all on our tip toes.
Cheesemaking is nearly back to full swing with a few changes around. One of the exciting things is that we are experimenting with new things, new products. Like whey butter.
After we collect the whey from cheese making we let the cream rise to the surface and make butter. You would be surprised at the yield from 170 litres of whey. Delicious, packed with flavour, does not go rancid even if I keep it at room temperature on the kitchen counter. And it has a gentle sweetness, even when it is salted. Absolutely delicious!
With the whey buttermilk I have made several batches of scones and it is a grand result if I may say so.
Of course there are a few things to work out, like different cheeses yield different level of acidity in whey, that results in a different character in flavor for the butter. It is a slow process of working it all out but we are all quite happy to share the trial products between ourselves.
We are also back to Farmers` markets, our regular ones for the year:
1st, 3rd and 5th Saturdays each month at Twickenham Farmers` Market from 9-1pm.
2nd Saturdays at Stroud Farmers` Market from 9-2pm. And Frome Independent Market the first Sunday of each month will commence in March, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Lypiatt cheese: the ones we have in stock are tasting particularly delicious. It is broken down, creamier than usual with buttery, nicely balanced salting. If you are looking for a cheese for the next week or so, this one is definitely has the Wow! to it.
We are also preparing a wedding cheese cake for a wedding in February - very exciting! Local people, local connections. I love how everything connects at the end.
I have not been in the mood for making Tartiflette recently, but I must say Mini Baronet cheeses in stock would make a perfect Reblochon alternative. And they are incredibly moreish.
It also bakes well, I usually stuff them with red peppercorns and get a baguette to dip in, then clean out the dish with!
I have been baking quite a lot once again and one of the highlights is the Yoghurt Cake I made with our Natural Live Yoghurt. With a wee bit of rose water flavoring. It lasts for a week at larder temperature.
And January is almost gone...
Until next time