This cheese is actually the first step in making Nabulsi cheese (a traditional Palestinian cheese made from sheep or goat milk). This cheese was usually served to kids as a special treat with a sprinkling of sugar. It is somewhat similar to cottage cheese or farmer cheese but without the use of the starter (there is no buttermilk or yogurt or any form of starter here) it is a cheese that allows you to enjoy the pure flavor of fresh cheese, that hint of sweetness, creamy texture ,it almost melts in your mouth. I make this cheese for the kids, it is the perfect breakfast with some granola, fruit or honey. You can also strain it and it becomes the perfect sandwich spread topped with some sliced cucumbers or a dash of basil, dried mint or Italian seasoning

Before you try the recipe, please check out my cheese making 101 page for tips and information on cheese making

Recipe source: family recipe

Yield: if you strain the cheese you will get 300 grams of cheese

Ingredients:

4 cups (1 litre) pasteurized milk (Sheep or goat milk )

1/8 tablet of rennet or 3 drops of liquid rennet

pinch of salt

1/4 cup (60 ml) water

Directions

1.Place the milk in a none reactive pot

2.Heat it up to 40°C/104°F over medium low heat stirring occasionally to prevent the milk from sticking to the bottom of the pot and burning

3.Take the pot off the heat and place it in a place where it can remain undisturbed for 3-4 hours (or pour the milk into a non-reactive container)

4.Crush the rennet in a small dish using the back of a spoon (if using tablet rennet) and dissolve it in 1/4 cup of water (if using liquid rennet, just add it to the water and mix well) Add the rennet water mix to the milk, whisk gently to make sure that the rennet is evenly distributed throughout the milk.

5.Cover the pot and leave it undisturbed

6.Check on it after 1 hour, the milk should have transformed into a jiggly mass surrounded by whey. Check for a good break by inserting your clean finger at an angle into the cheese then slowly pulling it out. A good break is when your finger comes out relatively clean.

7.If the cheese is still somewhat in a liquid state and has not fully curdled yet then your finger will come out covered in partially set milk(kind of like when you stick your finger in buttermilk). This is called a bad break. If you get that cover the container again and leave it for 2 more hours. Check again, if it still has not curdled, cover it and leave it for 2 more hours. If it has not curdled by then you have to discard the milk.

8.If the milk has indeed curdled and you got a good break with whey separated on the sides, you have two options: a.Place the pot with the cheese into the fridge and serve the cheese with granola, fruits or a simple sprinkling of sugar. b. If you like the cheese to be of firmer consistency your other option is to strain the cheese for an hour or two depending on how firm you would like it to be, salt it and it becomes something very similar to cream cheese that you can use as a spread or to dip crackers into