hilarie
Loving the herd life
Thought I'd throw my nickel's worth in, since it's about *cheese* - my favorite subject 
I agree, chevre is da bomb, and it's easy to make, and you can flavor it with ANYthing - herbs, garlic&pepper, chipotle honey, etc. I have full size dairy goats and I'm milking 3 right now, so I'm basically swimming in milk and making cheese every day to keep from doing the backstroke in it. I also don't pasteurize my milk; I think it tastes better and is better for me IF it's handled right to use it raw. I milk into a tank with refreezable ice bricks in it so the milk is instantly chilled and cold enough to drink when it goes into the house. Then it's decanted into sanitized half gallon glass jars and refrigerated at 38 degrees until it's made into cheese - and that's rarely more than a day or two. I figure it isn't pasteurized, and the process of making chevre doesn't heat it up much (86 degrees), so the sooner it's used, the better. I don't like to let it sit for long even in the fridge, even in a sterile jar; it ain't a sterile world, and I treat raw milk with respect. Cheeses where you acidify, like mozzarella, I feel a little easier about; or where the temperature is raised pretty high, like ricotta (to 190 deg.) are also less iffy. I do envy you that Nigerian milk, though - so rich and yummy!
I agree, chevre is da bomb, and it's easy to make, and you can flavor it with ANYthing - herbs, garlic&pepper, chipotle honey, etc. I have full size dairy goats and I'm milking 3 right now, so I'm basically swimming in milk and making cheese every day to keep from doing the backstroke in it. I also don't pasteurize my milk; I think it tastes better and is better for me IF it's handled right to use it raw. I milk into a tank with refreezable ice bricks in it so the milk is instantly chilled and cold enough to drink when it goes into the house. Then it's decanted into sanitized half gallon glass jars and refrigerated at 38 degrees until it's made into cheese - and that's rarely more than a day or two. I figure it isn't pasteurized, and the process of making chevre doesn't heat it up much (86 degrees), so the sooner it's used, the better. I don't like to let it sit for long even in the fridge, even in a sterile jar; it ain't a sterile world, and I treat raw milk with respect. Cheeses where you acidify, like mozzarella, I feel a little easier about; or where the temperature is raised pretty high, like ricotta (to 190 deg.) are also less iffy. I do envy you that Nigerian milk, though - so rich and yummy!
