Recipe: Traditional Lithuanian Homemade Cottage Cheese and Farmer's Cheese

TRADITIONAL LITHUANIAN
COTTAGE CHEESE AND FARMER'S CHEESE
Source: Ema

I've seen this done since my childhood. Traditional Lithuanian cottage cheese (and cheese, for that matter) is like a farmer's cheese or kind of like ricotta. My family has been making both cottage cheese and farmer's cheese in the US for at least two generations (well, I mean, for home consumption - they're not in the cheese business, or anything). Here's how:

The proportion of milk:buttermilk is 1:1. Bring 4 quarts no-salt buttermilk to room temp (we stand them, unopened, in a pot of really hot water while the milk heats). In a very large pot (at least 2 gallon).

Heat 1 gallon whole milk to *just* before it starts boiling, but DO NOT let boil - stir while heating - we use a wooden spoon/spatula.

Pour in buttermilk gently and uniformly, but one quart right after the other, and DO NOT stir at first. Watch the surface - you can gently move the forming curdles around to see how they're forming. When the curdle starts to form separately, turn off the heat. By this I mean that the curdles initially are floating in a milky "background".

You need to turn of the heat when this turns a light, clear yellow color. THEN you GENTLY can stir/scrape the bottom of the pot. You don't really stir - it's more like pushing the curds together, because they all float to the top when they form. Let stand for about 10 minutes.

Carefully strain the cottage cheese in a large colander. You can strain it more or less - depending on how dry you want it. My grandparents used to drink the formed liquid, but you can also discard it or even pour it on plants (outdoor) that are in soil that is lacking acidity.

I use the cottage cheese in blintzes, ravioli, and in recipes that need ricotta, like baked ziti (my Dad, on the other hand, loves it while it's still fresh, warm and a little damp).

IF YOU WANT FARMER'S CHEESE:
We strain the cottage cheese into a cheesecloth and let it drain really, really well (several hours). Then we put it in a cheese press, which is basically two wooden boards with a groove that drains the "juice" into the sink and a weight on top (my Mom fills the empty milk gallon with water and uses it for a weight).

The main thing is for the cheese to be under pressure at least overnight. Then you take it out of the press, CAREFULLY remove the cheesecloth, place the cheese on a plate, lightly salt it on all sides (so it keeps better), and put it on a rack to let it dry just a little, so a thin rind forms.

These two methods are definitely tried and true! And not nearly as complicated or time-consuming as they might appear.