# Cheddar done, now what do I do?



## DownHome (Jan 20, 2006)

Well, I tried my hand at cheddar cheese. It has aged 3 months. It actually looks like real cheese. But now I have no idea what I should do to best preserve and keep it while we eat it. And quite frankly I'm still scared to try it.

It has one small quarter size dark spot on it. I'm guessing mold under the wax coating.

Anyone have suggestions or courage to lend.


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## bluefish (Jan 27, 2006)

It'll be fine.  I just peel the wax off of mine and cut off any mold, which can go way down in it, and eat. I keep it in the frig in plastic wrap.

If the mold thing bothers you, look up about bandaging cheddar instead of waxing it. There's all sorts of mold there. Mold is an integral part of cheese and lends tons of flavor, not always good, but........

I think we get too used to store cheese which is a totally different beast than homemade stuff.

Try it, you'll like it.


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## Goats Galore (Aug 28, 2012)

Because I make lots of hard cheese, I grate and freeze it in small bags. One bag makes a large pizza.


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## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

You may send a two pound wedge to the Indiana Fudge and Cheese Tasting Laboritory. "Where nothing gets under our skin." 

I read that cheese can be made from even sick animals if the cheese is aged to a certain acidity level to kill pathogens. Clearly over my head here again.

The old concrete floor of the millhouse, now the line shack, had a deep crevasse carved from the lactic acid in the milk where the milk dripped from the drain pipe to a floor drain, over the years.

If it smells or tastes bad, that means someone will like it very much.


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## DownHome (Jan 20, 2006)

braved it and gave it a taste. The edges were not enjoyable, but the middle tasted similar to a cheese that you would spread on a cracker. It wasn't spreadable, just tasted like that kind of a cheese. Not too shabby for my first time at cheddar or any hard cheese for that matter. Thank you helping me take the plunge.


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## Goats Galore (Aug 28, 2012)

In addition to soft cheese, I make lots of hard goat milk cheeses...cheddar, colby, gouda, swiss, and experiment with others when the recipes sound interesting. At the end of the season, the cheese is shredded using a food processor then frozen on cookie sheets. Frozen cheese shreds are packed in small bags and kept frozen for cooking. When the kids come for a visit, they leave with cheese!


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