How to Make Organic Raw Cream Cheese

There is a growing minority of people around the country that are beginning to discover the health benefits of using raw milk. For several months my family has been consuming fresh milk from a local organic farm. We love that we are supporting farmers, shopping locally, and receiving a product that is organic, inexpensive, and hormone free. The benefits of using raw milk are well-documented and consistently demonstrated. For more on this, visit www.realmilk.com.

One of the most exciting aspects of purchasing organic raw milk has been discovering all of the wonderful dairy products I can make myself by using it. When I first began using raw milk I primarily used it for drinking, skimming the cream for my coffee and making butter and buttermilk. However, as I have become more comfortable with making my own dairy products, I have also experimented with making cottage cheese, mozzarella cheese, whey , ice cream and cream cheese.

Making cream cheese is a very simple process. All you need to begin making cream cheese is a piece of cheese cloth and a container of yogurt. I prefer to use my own homemade yogurt for this, but you can also purchase store yogurt and it will work just as well.

To make your cream cheese, set a strainer over a bowl. Place a layer of very thick cheese cloth, or two to three layers of thin cheese cloth in the strainer. Poor the entire container of yogurt into the cheese cloth lined strainer. Tie the ends of the cheese cloth together and suspend it over the strainer and bowl. Let the contents hang for 24 hours. The liquid that strains out of the yogurt is whey, and what is left in the cloth after 24 hours is cream cheese. It has been my experience that one quart of yogurt yields eight ounces of cream cheese and 24 ounces of whey.

This recipe is so incredibly simple and beneficial. Not only do you get a wonderfully flavored, rich cream cheese, but you also are able to enjoy the many uses of whey, including using it as a preservative in homemade mayonnaise, adding it to smoothies as a great source of protein and for soaking grains. Also, whey keeps in the refrigerator for several months. Cream cheese is of course great for making homemade cheesecakes, as a toping on crackers or tortillas and many other uses.