I don’t feel like I got much done today, but when I’m here alone, less definitely gets done.
It was cheese day, and I decided to make Manchego cheese again. I made it on Sunday, I think, and though we haven’t tasted it yet, I like how few little fiddly things needed to happen. It’s pretty straightforward, and I can do other things in the kitchen while I make it, which is handy. (Unlike conventional cheddar cheese. Every time I try to do something else at the same time, it just doesn’t turn out well, and I have a lot of stuff to do!) I also like that it can be eaten at various points in the aging cycle, including after only a few days, called manchego fresco. I’m going to try the batch I made earlier this weekend to see what we think of it.
While I was in the kitchen, I also made these chocolate covered cherries that I saw a recipe for yesterday. While I fear maraschino cherries are “food” instead of food, I had them in the icebox and I might as well use them. Frank loves him some chocolate-covered cherries. I made the fondant version using Hennessey and soaked the cherries overnight in it as well. I only used about half the cherries I had, so I’ll leave the rest soaking in brandy until I get around to making them again. Supposedly they get better as they age anyway! I think they came out pretty well for the first time I’ve made them, but I definitely got the hang of covering them with fondant after I was almost finished with the batch.
Other than that, I kept everyone fed, out in the bitter wind and cold today. The basement door is frozen stuck, and I’ve got to figure out how to fix that because the horses will need water tomorrow and that’s where the hose is now. No one got out, no one died, but I did see a bloody four inch gash on the back of one of the big pigs today. It was already scabbing over, but I couldn’t figure out how she did it. I’m wondering if she could cut herself on the trailer that they are using for a shelter somehow. The dogs were going nuts last night with the howling coyotes, but they sounded pretty far away and this one gash looks too straight and isolated for a coyote attack.
Glad you were able to use the recipe! They’re so good. It does take a batch or two to get the hang of getting the fondant right. Hopefully your husband enjoys them.