Having already gotten a cheese cave together I felt a certain amount of pressure to build a cheese press so that I can get some product in the cave and ageing. I built the first version of the cheese press in early December. Check out the how-to on Instructables for construction and use details. The picture above is of the Cheese Press-o-lator Mark II. I gave the Mark I away (but not before I tried it out) to inspire me to continue working out the design more. I want to continue to refine this press design until I am satisfied and then sell them. New for the Mark II, I changed the gauge which is now a rod sticking out of the middle of the top. There are grooves inscribed on the rod that denote every ten pounds of pressure. It’s a much more elegant design than the cardboard strip I had before. I have to admit that I haven’t made time to make any more cheese that needs pressing. I will though, the cave was being used most recently to cure pepperoni. I did make a great fresh cheese that got given away to friends at Christmas.
Try it yourself:
Strain yogurt overnight in a cheesecloth (or any other cloth, t-shirts work well) until it has the consistency of spreadable cheese. I did it by tying the cloth around a wooden spoon and hanging it in a stock pot. You can also line a sieve with cloth and put it in a bowl. Mix in your favorite herbs. I used tarragon, thyme and cilantro. Garlic and rosemary wouldn’t be bad either.
Fast, Easy, Delicious!
Let me know how your cheese comes out…
I used to do that with yogurt all the time and used it instead of cream cheese in cheesecake. Delicious! It’s called quark and you can buy it in stores but it’s so easy to make
I would like to build one of the cheese presses. I have not found anyone that sells compression springs. Where did you buy the springs and did it have a part number.
I was wondering where you find the springs. I went to several home improvement and tractor stores and have not found any springs?
I got my springs from a local hardware store. The big box stores have an abysmal selection but often the smaller stores will have a bunch of drawers with different sizes of springs. Try an Ace franchise. They seem pretty good. My springs are about 3.25″ long and 1″ dia. You could try an online source like McMaster Carr too. Let me know if you need anything else. Post a picture in the comments when you get your press built. I’d love to see it!