Hoop Cheese

1. Pour the milk in a large pot and heat to 90⁰ degree F.
2. Add Ezal culture to the milk.
3. Add few drops of rennet in the water separately and then, add it to the milk.
4. Let it sit. Wait for 8 hours, keeping the temperature at 90⁰ Alternatively, let it sit overnight at room temperature.
5. Take another large pot or bowl and line it with colander. Put cheesecloth on top of it.
6. Pour the curds into the cheesecloth so that the liquid (whey) is drained into the pot below. Keep the cheesecloth in place and let the curds drain for 15 minutes.
7. Wait until the cheese is moist but not wet.
8. Lift the cheesecloth with hoop cheese in it and press the cheese into desired shape without removing the cheesecloth.
9. Place the cheese wrapped in cheesecloth in an airtight container. Put it in the refrigerator and let it cool.
10. Take out and use the hoop cheese out of the refrigerator when needed.

Trivia

• Hoop cheese is probably the only true Southern cheese
• It was found in almost all the grocery stores of Southeastern America in the late 19^th and early 20^th However, with time the tradition has been lost because of the short shelf life of the hoop cheese

The texture of hoop cheese varies from soft to hard, based on the period of time it is allowed to age.