how long can i hold goat separated cream before making butter? and are there any cheese making sites specifically for goat milk? thanks for your help. laura

-- laura (ladygoat13@aol.com), July 02, 2000

Answers

This is out of my area, but I don't see why you couldn't just separate off the cream and freeze it in zip-lock bags until you have enough to justify making butter. Defrost in the frige. Goat milk is closer to sheep milk than cow milk, and sheep milk is frozen to be sent to a processor.

-- Ken Scharabok (scharabo@aol.com), July 02, 2000.

Here's several cheese making forums:

http://www.egroups.com/dir/Home/Recipes/Cheese

~Rogo South Central Texas

-- Rogo (rogo2020@yahoo.com), July 02, 2000.

egroups.com also has a cheesemakers site, they get a little political now and then since they are always fighting to sell there cheese legally, without lots of legislation, but thier archives are smack full of great receipes! Place your cooled goat milk into shallow pans, I use glass pie plates. Scoop off the cream in the morning and freeze. When you have enough, and that could be along time! :) Make your butter. I have made butter a couple of times, but it isn't really worth the effort. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), July 02, 2000.

Here is what I have been told : to make a kilo of cheese you need: 6 liters of sheep milk 10 liters of cows milk 15 liters of goats milk So I am wondering if with goats milk if it is so low in fat would it not be better to just use the whole milk immediately - my experience has been that fresh goat milk is great but gets old and stinky fast!!!

-- kelly (kellytree@hotmail.com), July 04, 2000.

The solids in goat's milk vary according to breed, like cow's milk. The Swiss breeds have a butterfat content like Holsteins, the Nubians like Jerseys. It all depends on breed.

But I make cheese with my Nubian goat's milk all the time, and get a pound to a pound and a half per gallon routinely.

-- Julia (farmer@westco.net), July 04, 2000.

Kelly, my Nubains milk makes alot more feta than that comparison. Keeping quality in milk is probably 99% management and 1% some does just don't have good tasting or keeping milk. My milk will last in the fridge a good week, and we have made cheese with 2 week old milk. Actually my son says that grocery store milk, that is the least bit old smells to him, where our goats milk doesn't. Vicki

-- Vicki McGaugh (vickilonesomedoe@hotmail.com), July 04, 2000.