cheese

[Six Mile]

When did cheese come around? Did the cosies have it on the chuckwagon?

[Delmonico]

Well the story one it, is that someone in the middle east put some mild in a goat stomach to store it and it turned to cheese.  Possible, but like the goats eatin' berrieis and stayin' up all night, un documented.

Many farmers along trails made cheese to sell to travelers, on road ranch in Nebraska was named the Cheese Ranch, because they made so much of it.  Also by the 1820's coopertive cheese plants had sprung up in New York SState and Wissconsion had a lot by the 1850's.

Did cosies carry it on chuckwagons, most likey at least once in a while, but it was not considered a staple.

As for types on can find in a store today that are good to use would be Ceddars, Colby, Farmer Cheese and that US made so called Swiss which was developed in Wissconsion in the 1850's.  Also many fancy cheeses were imported from Europe.   Of course these are beyond the realm of the chuckwagon, but were there.

[Arcey]

Old man's memory ain't sa good.

When I was a kid 'n we'd go ta the country markets, seem to remember they'd have hunks of cheese kindah like coated in paraffin.  Weren't nothin' air conditioned.  It was just layin' out with the rest of the stuff.  Don't remember when I saw somethin' like that last.

[Delmonico]

Yep, that's the period way, one can still find cheese lile this or one can dip it yourself.  Often it was wrapped with cheese cloth first.  Make sure it's 100% cotton.

[Delmonico]

"Nuther Note, Most cheese of the time was cured in cellars in cheese cloth, this formed a rind on the cheese that protected it.  Also the cheese uually had less water in it than most cheese today does.

Cheese was just a way to preserve milk and not have it go bad.