I have now turned the blue cheese for the second time and am 8 days into the process.  This is what all 3 look like.  Click to enlarge.

The two smaller cheeses have blue mould all over and the humidity is just right.  They are developing well and will mature much quicker than the larger one below.

The large blue has a blue hat!  The bottom was very moist before I turned it, so I elevated the mats off the floor of the icecream container so it would drain better.  I think because of this, the mould is struggling to form on the sides.  Now that it is draining better, it should have no trouble.  I think the humidity is okay, as there is lots of condensation on the inside of the container.  Time will tell.

Next update for this cheese in a week or so.

Here is the first of a few blue cheese updates.

The blue cheese that I made on Friday was dry enough today after 3 days turning, that I made the decision tonight to pierce the holes in each cheese so that they can develop the blue mould, and to put them in their maturation boxes then into the cheese cave.

Here are the two smaller wheels before piercing.  Notice the slight blue blush or the mould already.  They are dry to touch, but still very moist.

As a piercing tool, I simply use one of my milk thermometers and stab from top to bottom.

Here they are tucked safely in their box waiting to be put into the cheese cave.  Under the stand is a little bowl of water to keep the humidity high.

Here is the large wheel, which weighs about 1.5 kg.  It was also starting to bulge but in a bad way, so I had to slip the hoop back on it.

It has a large crack through the middle, probably from when I shoved it back into the hoop.  To patch it up, I smoothed the outside around the crack and it sealed like glue.

I pierced from top to bottom with the thermometer.  About 40 holes in all.  That should give the cheese a lovely even blue flavour and nice lines throughout.

Finally, here it is in its maturation box.  As this is the biggest blue I have ever made, I had to improvise a little.  I used a 4 litre ice cream container, and the cheese is resting on two 2 litre ice cream container lids and on top of that is some sushi mat cut to size.  I put a little water in the floor of the container to raise the humidity.  The cheese is well above this little bit of water.  With the lid on, I put both containers into the bottom of the cheese cave.

Next steps are to turn every 4 days for 30 days, then scrape any blue and red mould off with a knife.  This cheese matures for at least 90 days, where I will wrap in cheese wrap and refrigerate in the normal fridge for another month.  It should then be ready to eat!

Looking forward to writing the next blue update.

As you may know already, Friday night at my place is cheese making night.  It has become a regular institution, whereby Kim leaves the milk out on the kitchen bench for me and as soon as I get home, I start to set up and sterilise the equipment as she serves up dinner.

Tonight I am making a simple blue cheese using the recipe from Ricki Carroll’s Home Cheese Making book which uses 2 gallons or 8 litres of milk.  It is easy to follow, and I am currently about 5 hours into the process with about an hour to run until it is time for bed.

Here is where I have got to so far.

Sushi mats on top and bottom of the moulds.

I used 14 litres of milk and adjusted the recipe to suit.  I ended up with these two smaller cheeses which are in Camembert hoops.

I also had enough curd for this very large cheese.  Now all I have to do is find a container large enough for it to fit in to keep it humid enough in the cheese fridge.

As they mature, I will show you what happens as the blue mould grows.  This recipe is very quite similar to making Camembert, with the aftercare of Stilton.  A bit of a hybrid cheese.  After about 3 days of drying and salting, I pierce each one with many holes so that the bacteria can breath and make the blue mould.  Then they go into the humid cheese fridge.