Cheese the Third: Uncooked-curd Cream Cheese

The Cheese: Uncooked-curd Cream Cheese (Carroll p. 84)
The Milk: 2 quarts Colver Organic Farms Half and Half (expressly not ultrapasteurized)
The Starter: 1 packet direct set mesophilic

"Even your kids can make and enjoy" according to the recipe.

At this point my kid is doing well if he can find his fingers when his hand is in front of his face. Then again, so am I. So this cheese was right up our alley.

I sterilized a pot, the thermometer, and a square of muslin for 5 minutes. But not a spoon. Oops.
I left the cream in the pot for a couple of hours to come to room temperature, then stirred in the starter around midnight. I left it untouched for 12 hours while it set, then drained it into the muslin. I tied the muslin off and hung it from a skewer over a pot (and resolved to hang a hook from the bottom of one of the kitchen cabinets to simplify the process) for 12 more hours.

The yield was 33.3 oz, which was actually more than the 32 oz I was supposed to get.
I split the cheese into two bowls, one with 24 oz that I was considering using with a cheesecake, and one with the remaining 9 oz for bagels and such.

The recipe called for salting to taste. I tried mixing in 1/2 tsp cheese salt with the 9 oz portion. This was probably just right, as my taste testers ranged from thinking it was 'not at all salty' to 'a little'. I mixed it well, I swear!

Tasting was done on a plain bagel. Consistency was a little softer than storebought cream cheese, and the taste was pretty similar. I think I'm the happiest with this cheese so far.