Hokay, double-posting (sorry) with an update.
I performed the Great Cheesemaking Experiment today. I used a gallon of fat-free milk as the basis for everything.
The instructions I linked to above were terrific. Everything went fine with the mozzarella, until I got to the point where I was supposed to microwave it for the last bit. I think I over-nuked it.
![Sad :(](./images/smilies/icon_sad.gif)
It's kinda brown. Still tastes like mozzarella, tho, so whatever.
![Smile :)](./images/smilies/icon_smile.gif)
Out of the gallon of milk, I got about the same amount of mozzarella as you get in those little packages of fresh mozzarella you can buy at the grocery store. (Which, as my friend observed, explains why there are so many calories in cheese!
![Laughing :lol:](./images/smilies/icon_lol.gif)
)
The ricotta *was* very easy. You reheat the whey that you drained off the mozzarella to 200 degrees F, let it sit out and cool to about 140 degrees, then dump it through a strainer/cheesecloth. I ended up using the cheesecloth bag that came with my yogurt maker. Et voila! About a quarter cup of ricotta. I think I may have over-drained it -- it's very dry; I suspect it would have been more like a half-cup if I'd been more careful.
Apparently there are two kinds of protein in cow's milk. One cheeses up at a lower temperature and turns stretchy -- that's the one that makes mozzarella -- and the other, that makes ricotta, solidifies at the higher temperature. So you get two kinds of cheese from the same gallon of milk. Plus you can use the leftover whey to water the plants.
Anyhow, now that I have all the stuff, I'll likely try it again. Stay tuned...