SC - Re: sca-cooks V1 #156

[L Herr-Gelatt and J R Gelatt]

>------------------------------
>
>From: "Mark Harris" <mark_harris at quickmail.sps.mot.com>
>Date: 13 Jun 1997 14:40:15 -0500
>Subject: SC - Almond butter and cheese
>
>On Thursday, June 12, Aoife said:
>
>>Almonds also add a richness you can't get with wine/water/broth. In
>>addition, almonds, as you stated, thicken to an amazing degree, and not just
>>when the almonds are sieved out of the almond milk. The milk itself can be
>>heated and made into Almond Butter or Almond Cheese. So we have several
>>purposes for those almonds besides protein on non-meat days. 
>
>Has anyone here made either this almond butter or almond cheese? How about
>a redaction or two? I'm not at all sure about this almond cheese, but it
>might be worth a try, after I try making some milk cheese.
>
>Stefan li Rous
>markh at risc.sps.mot.com
>
>(For some reason, my list of things to do seems to grow faster than I
>can get them done especially since joining the Society. sigh)
>

I think my recipes came from Huswife's Jewel (Dawson? I'm going on sleepy
memory, aided by 2 two-year olds). They are self-explanatory, so I'll leave
you to look them up, at least until my nephew goes home and I can type in peace.
At any rate, Almond Cheese is merely thicker almond butter. The recipe I am
thinking of is Almond butter "After the Latest Fashion" or some such wording
(newest and best fahsion??), which won me an Ice Dragon Category when
combined with the preserved oranges and some flaky pastry from the same
book. Somebody correct me if I'm wrong about the title of the recipe.

Anyhooo, it's a process whereby you pound the almonds, seive them through
the water, grind/pound 'em again, etc, until you get quite a concentration
of "Almond Milk. This is heated till the bits swell and make a thickened
mixture, which is then strained through cheesecloth to make a more solid
mass. Viola, smooth creamy almond butter. Drain more water, and it would be
cheese. It keeps well, but weeps.

Aoife 
"Many things we need can wait. The child cannot."
				---Gabriela Mistral, Chilean Poet 1889-1957