A Maltese way of preserving cheese

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Hi everyone

I Maltese by birth (now Canadian) and there is a kind of cheese they have that lasts and lasts. I am told it would last even without refrigeration. I have always refrigerated mine, but here is the recipe. I think it would not need refrigeration.

You can use whole milk natural brick cheese - cut into two inch squares. Put into a large large jar with the cheese filling it up. Add a lot of black pepper - say two inches worth in the jar and then fill it up with vinegar. Put lid on and shake well. Shake every other day to keep the pepper distributed. The cheese takes a month or more to mellow - the longer the better. The taste is of course spicy and it is delicious with bread or crackers. It is a delicacy in Malta and if I'm not mistaken the best is made with goat's cheese. I have always used natural brick and while not authentic, it is delicious.

Had forgotten all about it till I visited a Maltese restaurant yesterday and saw the big jar on the counter (not refrigerated). The owner who makes it said it would last several months, even a year at room temperature due to the vinegar. Just thought I'd pass it along. I used to make it all the time and got out of the habit as my husband doesn't like it. But I'm going to make a big jar now!

-- citygirl (citygirl@idirect.com), November 25, 1999

Answers

I'm wondering if I could use this process with any kind of cheese and omit the pepper. Pickled cheese anyone?

Any ideas out there?

-- FOX (ardrinc@aol.com), November 25, 1999.


sounds absolutely delicious. thanks... am going to try it. recommend a cheese commonly available in foodstores. brick cheese is a term not common here other than as applies to limburger.

-- clayton (ratchetass@hotmail.com), November 25, 1999.

Citygirl:

We [in the US] have always trusted Canadians as a reasoned, stable people. In the last few weeks, we have seen an incident of flight rage by a Canadian. Another was arrested as part of a plot to blow-up an oil pipeline. Should we change our view? Are Canadians falling apart. You are one by choice. Give us an answer.

Best wishes,,,,

-- Z1X4Y7 (Z1X4Y7@aol.com), November 25, 1999.


Hi Z1X4Y7

The fact that these two crimes invoke your question is indeed a compliment to us! In response to your question, Canada, like most countries, especially in the big cities, has its share of modern day problems: drugs, violence, poverty, family breakdown etc. In particular a swing to the right politically has caused hardship for many poorer Canadians. This results in more crime.

I think that the vast majority of citizens in Canadian society are, overall, gentle, courteous and law abiding. We are quietly, but fiercely patriotic. I personally feel it is the best country in the world to live in, and whenever I am abroad the sight of our flag is enough to choke me up. Coming home is always a moving experience for me.

There's a rather sweet joke about Canadians that goes like this:

How do you get 100 Canadians out of a swimming pool? Answer: Say "Get out of the pool now please".

I love Canada - it is for the most part a wonderful place to live. Thanks for the opportunity to say so!

-- citygirl (citygirl@idirect.com), November 25, 1999.


Vinegar is a superb preservative. This will work.

-- BigDog (BigDog@duffer.com), November 26, 1999.


Citygirl:

I agree, but we begin to worry when the last bastion of sanity begins to act like New Yorkers; even on a small scale.

Best wishes,,,,,

-- Z1X4Y7 (Z1X4Y7@aol.com), November 26, 1999.


Z1X4Y7 says "We [in the US] have always trusted Canadians as a reasoned, stable people. In the last few weeks, we have seen an incident of flight rage by a Canadian. Another was arrested as part of a plot to blow-up an oil pipeline. Should we change our view? Are Canadians falling apart. You are one by choice. Give us an answer."

Gee Z1X4Y7, are you really and truly concerned about this kind of behavior???? I thought you were some kind of a chemical technician. Perhaps I'm wrong.

Then, of course, a specific knowledge in, say, your field, may not bleed over into knowledge of psychotropic pharmacology. Well, let me enlighten you. Psychotropic drugs such as prozac and all of it's derivatives, and ridalin or ritalin, are wreaking havoc on our populace, both young and old.

Psychotropic Drugs Understanding Adverse Reactions F. Gary Mears and Steven Kingsbury introduces clinical psychopharmacology, emphasizing how psychotropic drugs adversely affect thinking and behavior.

Because psychotropic drugs act on the brain, they influence cognitive functions and other behaviors, sometimes degrading memory, impairing movement, temporarily altering belief systems, and inducing psychotoxic effects that resemble primary mental disorders. While providing a solid grounding in clinical psychopharmacology, this book details these nontherapeutic reactions, alerting physicians and psychologists to the broad repercussions of psychotropic drugs on their patients. Dr. Mears lives in Tyler, Texas; Dr. Kingsbury lives in Dallas.

February / ISBN 0-393-70284-7 / 352 pages http://www.wwnorton.com/npbp/new/psychotropic.htm

http://add.about.com/health/add/library/weekly/bljohnsonresolution.htm ?iam=mt

http://www.psych.org/pnews/98-03-17/rx.html

http://www.justicefreedom.org/page46.htm

Audio:

http://broadcast.com/shows/endoftheline/9806/end0611.ram

-- OR (orwelliator@biosys.net), December 14, 1999.


On omitting the pepper? Pepper is a powerful antioxident that is particularily effective on preventing rot in fats. That's why it was so valuable in the middle ages, for preserving meat.

-- Ken Seger (kenseger@earthlink.net), December 16, 1999.

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