My Cheese Quest - Quark Cheese

Ever since I have come across Deeba's incredible post about cheeses, I have been itching to try them out. I decided to start with Quark Cheese, as I always have buttermilk in my refrigerator, and also it sounded least intimidating of them all. Of course been an Indian we are used to making paneer and also chakka (for Shrikhand) at home. Quark is lot like that.
Quark literally means "curd" in German and is a fresh unripe cheese prepared similarly to paneer or cottage cheese. It is a low-fat curd cheese made from whole, semi-skimmed, skimmed milk or buttermilk and soured with a starter culture to generate lactic acid from lactose.

According to Wikipedia-
Quark is a type of fresh cheese, also known as tvorog (from the Russian творог), topfen (from the Austrian name), biezpiens (from Latvian), and varškė (from Lithuanian). It is made by warming soured milk until the desired degree of denaturation of milk proteins is met, and then strained. Dictionaries usually translate it as curd cheese or cottage cheese, although most commercial varieties of cottage cheese are made with rennet, whereas traditional quark is not. It is soft, white and unaged, similar to some types of fromage frais. It is distinct from ricotta because ricotta (Italian: recooked) is made from scalded whey. Quark usually has much lower fat content (about the same as yoghurt) than cream cheeses and has no salt added. 

Quark Cheese is creamy and smooth and can be eaten plain or with nuts, herbs and garlic. It is tangy in flavor and thick in texture. Europeans, mostly Germans, use it in variety of desserts. It is also a common ingredient used in filled pastries, savory and sweet sauces, spreads, souffles and cheesecakes. Quark Cheese can be blended with seasoning and used as a dip. Quark can be used as the filling in variety of pasta dishes. It can be mixed with fruit, its mild flavour compliments the sweetness of the fruit. Quark Cheese can be baked into products, such as cakes and brownies. The high moisture content of the quark helps to keep the product moist. Phew...I can go on and on (you get my point?).

Quark Cheese Recipe:
(adapted from Deeba's recipe)
3 1/2 cup whole milk or full cream milk
1/2 cup cultured buttermilk

Method:

If your milk is not pasteurized you should bring it to the boil, then allow it to cool to room temperature (covered with a lid). Stir the buttermilk into the milk in a container you can cover. Keep the container in a warm place.  Allow the culture to proceed for 24 hours, or until the curds and whey separate. At first the milk will look grainy, and eventually the curds will float on the whey. The grainy stage is probably sufficient, but might give a lower yield. Dampen a clean tea towel and use it to line a sieve. Place the sieve over a basin. Pour the curds and whey into the strainer. Bring the tea towel together so that it covers your quark and do it up with a rubber band. Place the entire draining apparatus in the fridge. Allow to drain in the fridge overnight, or for 24 hours. The drained quark should have a consistency similar to sour cream, but it has a more sour taste.

My cheese quest has just begun. Watch out this space for more cheese recipes.