what sort of unusual foods will you make this year during Pesach?

[Michigan Mishuganer]

I plan on making paneer cheese- just heat milk add lemon juice & strain. better than the KP cheeses full of chemicals!

[serenarobin]

Sounds great- do you have a recipe you can share?

[Michigan Mishuganer]

It's easy to make-
boil whole milk, add acid to curdle (kp vinegar or fresh lemon juice, some people use lime juice), strain it through cheesecloth, then press it.

Paneer
1/2 gallon whole milk
2 TBSP lemon juice or vinegar

bring milk to a boil. Watch it so it doesn't boil over, it will rise in the pot rapidly- as soon as it boils, turn off fire.
Add lemon juice or vinegar and stir in one direction gently w/ a big spoon until you see curds (solids) & whey (clear yellowish liquid)
Leave alone around 10 minutes so curds can develop & so it cools a bit, then drain into a colander lined with cheesecloth. When cool enough to handle, twist in cheesecloth so liquid comes out.
Put the lump of paneer in the cheesecloth - make sure it is twisted closed- back in the colander (put a tray or something under the colander to catch the whey) and put a plate & something heavy on top(I use a jar filled with water) to weigh it down- refrigerate- it won't last long.
You can make it soft as you want -if you don't press it much & add half and half -it will be cottage cheese.
Press it firmer it's paneer or farmer cheese.

There are lots of recipes on the web w/ photos showing how to make paneer.

You can use the whey for cooking -it would be a good base for a pesach cream of potato soup. I made ricotta from the leftover whey a few years ago but I don't remember how, i think you just boil it down lots.

[serenarobin]

Thanks for the instructions MM- it sounds pretty simple.

[Michigan Mishuganer]

i don't think it will work with ultra pasturized milk.
normal KP milk has regular pasturization
-use whole milk not skim
I am not going to make any until a chol hamoed day but i'll keep notes- last time I made it using a gallon , i thought the yield was acceptable.
here's a blog w/ nice photos of the process:
http://coconutlime.blogspot.com/2008/...
you can use yogurt to curdle the milk.
There are some chowhound posts on making paneer too.

[Michigan Mishuganer]

I made this cheese, the milk didn't curdle enough with lemon juice so I added a little more acid- KP cider vinegar (maybe 2 tbs).
I marinated the cheese with fresh herbs, olive oil, garlic & KP balsamic vinegar.
it was delicious.

[joebenjamin]

I took MEAL MART Bologna slices,cut them into strips and dipped them in all-whites and in whole wheai matzo meal mixed with potato starch and fried them in olive oil--I called them REDNECK FRITTERS---I am a country music fan and got my inspiration from a Tim Mcgraw song. I used to the same to chunks of EMPIRE cooked turkey breast when it cost $2.99-3.99 a pound when I bought it at the old pathmark unsliced.