Re(2): SC - cheese goo

[Philip W. Troy]

Sue Wensel wrote:

after a whole lotta blah blah by Adamantius
> > Adamantius

> Do we know when brie was developed?  I know cheddaring is only about 200 years
> old; I still use it because people like it.

Digby specifically mentions Chesire or Brie in the original recipe. Brie
cheese clearly existed from, if I remember correctly, about 800 A.D.
However, we don't know how closely it resembled Brie as made today. And
yes, cheddaring is only about 200 years old, meaning that a process
which probably already existed began to be called after a village where
it began to be practiced industrially. Almost identical cheeses are and
were apparently made on a smaller scale, generally known as "farmhouse
cheeses", which are very different from what we know as farmer cheese. I
believe the reason behind specifying "fat" or cream cheese is that it
serves the same purpose as shortening in baked goods: it softens
proteins, which in the case of bread makes it more tender, and in the
case of cheese makes the curds more tender, eventually to the point
where they are indistinguishable from each other, producing a smooth
cheese.

Bottom line here is that I think Brie or white cheddar or cream cheese,
or some combination thereof, are probably closer to the original, but
farmer cheese still might taste better to some.

Adamantius
> 
> I just wanted to know if anyone else came across the farmer's cheese
> redaction.  The rationale of the cook went like this:  the process is simple,
> what it is like now is very like what they described then, it is *probably* a
> pretty good substitute.
> 
> Derdriu