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to insure even ripening or fermentation through the entire mass. Three to five days are required for the fermentation. It can be materially hastened by mixing baking-soda with the curd. people object to the soda being used as it materially changes the flavor of the cheese. However, in cold weather it is more frequently used than in warm weather. When soda is used, about one-half tablespoonful to three gallons of curd is mixed with the curd at the beginning of the fermentation process and another tablespoonful added when the curd begins to heat which is on the second or third day. At about the end of the second day of the ripening period the curd should be salted at the rate of one ounce of salt to three pounds of curd, more or less to suit taste. In ripening, the curd changes from a white to a dull straw color. When about threefourths of each curd grain has fermented or changed in color, it is ready to be boiled.

To boil, it should be put into a shallow frying or baking pan about four inches deep, and water added in the proportion of one part water to six parts curd; less water in summer than in winter. It is then brought to the boiling point, being constantly stirred to prevent burning and allowed to boil for about five minutes or until the lumps are all dissolved and a smooth, somewhat mucilagenous mass is formed. While warm, it is poured into the marketing vessels -granite dishes, cups, bowls, etc.

An ordinary teacupful sells for three cents or two for five cents. A soup-bowlful or seven-eighths pint for five cents. Per pound it would equal five and one-half to seven cents. 100 pounds of skimmilk produces 12 to 14 pounds "Boiled Cheese" which sells for 65 cents to $1.00. The amount of heat applied to the curdled milk and amount of water added in boiling make the amount of cheese obtained variable.

DUTCH CHEESE, BALL CHEESE, (Deutcherkase.)

Natural Fermentation Method.

The skim-milk is allowed to clabber as for cottage or boiled cheese. If sweet separator skim-milk is used it will usually clabber sufficiently in two days. The second day it can be set in the sun's rays or in a warm room. When sufficiently clabbered the whey will come to the top at side of can. It is then poured into a bag made of crash toweling and placed in box, having slats on bottom to allow the whey to run off easily, and weighted. The cover to the box can be made so as to slide into the box and fastened to a fulcrum to which a weight can be applied; but a large stone on the loose top will do to press the whey out. After draining for twelve hours the bag should be turned and the curd well shaken up and again pressed

for six to ten hours. Some of the dairymen heat the clabbered milk to 85° or 90° F. and then press. The boiling decreases the amount of cheese obtainable from a given amount of milk.

The drained curd is next salted at the rate of one-half to threefourths ounces per pound of curd, to suit taste, and thoroughly mixed until the particles of curd hang well together. The curd is then made into balls about the size and shape of a tomato. They vary in weight from six to eight ounces as made by the different dairymen. The balls are then placed on drying boards as per Figure No. 3.

The Drying Board.

The boards can be made any convenient size. In Fig. 3, the boards are partly drawn out. For a small dairy the above drying rack is very satisfactory. It is made of light lumber, lath placed 5 to 6 inches apart serving as cleates for the boards or shelves. The sides of the rack are covered with fine wire netting. One end is provided with a door. The advantage of a closed shelf rack is, that it can be moved to different places to suit the conditions of the weather. In clear, dry weather it is best to dry the balls in a cellar or slightly ventilated room; but in humid and cloudy weather the rack can be placed on the porch or any convenient place to allow free access of air. The fresh balls should be placed on the bottom shelf and elevated as the drying period continues. Where the cheese is to be made on a large scale, it would pay to have a building built for the purpose in which the temperature and humidity could be controlled. Figure 82, page 379 in The Dairyman's Manual, by Henry Stewart, gives a good illustration of how a drying room should be constructed. In the winter season the drying must be done in a warm room. When no better place is available it may be done in the furnace cellar, cupboard near stove, etc. It requires about six days in summer and ten to twelve days in winter to dry the balls sufficiently to be put into the curing room or box. During the drying period the balls should be turned as soon as they can be handled without breaking, which is about from 6 to 10 days in winter and 3 to 4 days in summer, Care needs to be exercised in turning the balls so as not to break them. In Figure 3 a few balls will be noticed that are broken. Figure 4 (a) and 4 (b) show a ball in good condition and one that is broken after being dried four days.

Figure 4 (c) shows the mold formed on the outside of the ball after drying 8 days and the reduction in size. The balls lose 45 to 50 per cent. in weight while on the drying boards. When the ball becomes broken, as in Figure 4 (b), it is practically worthless as the mold would penetrate the entire mass of the ball and cause an excess of waste when cleaned for the table or market. There are several

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