I’ll be the first to admit I’ve never been the Mrs. Ingalls type (reference to Little House on the Prairie), making my own clothes or meals from scratch…ask my kids and they’ll tell you I’m more take out/dine out then make it type of mom…sorry kids if you feel you missed out!
However, living in Kenya has somewhat forced me to be just a little bit more homemakery than I’m used to and I’m actually finding out that I like to cook! Not necessarily make things up as I go along, but following a recipe for something new. Normally I have to read a recipe to find out what I can actually get here in Kenya and if it’s something available I put it on a list and then wait until we head into the nearest grocery story (12 miles away and we go once every 2 weeks or so) or if I can’t get it there then it goes on my Nairobi list (which is a trip made every 3-4 months). Or maybe I’ll check if I can substitute something else I have readily available…like yogurt (drained of its liquid) to be used in cheesecake instead of cream cheese.
Well thanks to my wonderful dad-in-law who recently sent me rennet and cheesecloth I’ve discovered homemade cottage cheese is quite delicious! But it is kind of a long process. First I have to heat the milk then add the rennet and buttermilk (but here I have to substitute a milk/vinegar mixture because I can’t find buttermilk at my local grocery). Then it is taken off the heat and left to sit overnight until curds begin to form. The curds are then cut, heated and stirred for about 20 minutes:
Then I strain the curds from the whey (we’ve been having fun with this….no whey!? whey!) in the cheesecloth and let it drain for a couple hours:
After all the whey has been drained I put the cottage cheese in a container with some milk and salt and presto….
