Buying Cheese In Bulk

Shredded Cheese In Larger Bags

Have you ever gone into a store and found a great deal on cheese? It makes me want to buy a grocery cart full of cheese! Many times the stores limit how many you can purchase at that price. I have a friend who goes back many times during the week to buy more. What a pain that would be for me! I love having cheese almost daily. Especially since it is an important part of my low carb food plan. I have found a way to afford buying cheese in bulk, and preserving it for the future.

A Goldmine! Dairy Products In Larger Sizes!

The store I do most of my shopping at, MaineSource in Binghamton, NY, is a restaurant supply store. It makes sense that buying in a store such as this, that not only do you get excellent quality food, but larger packaging and quantities. And prices! Talk about frugal buying, that is the place I do it. In fact, on your receipt it tells you how much less you would have paid, if you bought more. The dairy coolers in their store is a real treat! They sell all kinds of dairy products, and they are all available in larger sizes, as well as the regular size packages.

Larger Bags of Cheese

How do you store the cheese for the future, so you do not have to eat it all up quickly? Cheese can be frozen. I do not have a freezer, but if you do, it can be frozen quite easily. Some cheese does not freeze well, and the taste may be off a bit. It can be more crumbly then usual, but it is still usable. Using it in cooking shouldn't make much of  a difference.

My Canned Cheese

The way I store the cheese that I buy in bulk is to can it. Yes, I said, "can it." I know there is controversy on the safety issues of canning cheese or butter. But I do both. It is the only way I can keep it, because I don't have a refrigerator at this time. I have used Jackie Clay's method most of the time, because it is easier. Her  cookbook, Growing and Canning Your Own Food, probably has her recipe in it. For now though, this is the method I use, Canning Cheese. When I take it out of the jar to use, I use a grapefruit spoon to take chunks out. It can be used easily in all cooking, grilled cheese sandwiches and on cheeseburgers. Not the same as fresh. To use in a salad or for cheese and crackers, you would have to buy fresh for that. Cooking with the canned cheese was quite easy. Everything came out great for me!

Copyright © 2012 Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2012  Kathleen G. Lupole

Dairy Products Without Owning Livestock

 I would love to be able to produce my own dairy products. That is never going to happen for me, so I have to buy mine from the store for now. Maybe someday I will be able to purchase milk locally from a farmer. Our property is not big enough to support a cow. My husband's grandfather always had one cow and he would lead it to neighbors' yards and stake it there for the day. Then come back later for it. I guess the neighbors weren't so critical of a cow on their lawn back in those days. I can just imagine what would happen now if your cow wandered onto the neighbors' lawn today!

The perfect thing, of course would be to have a milk cow and process your own milk into cheese and butter. Oh that would be the best! People who raise a cow for their own dairy products, in my book, are very lucky. In the past I have made my own Neufchâtel cheese using the instructions written by David B. Fankhauser, Ph.D., at  Beginning Cheese Making. I think his instructions are the best you will find. I used them myself.  Even coached other beginners on a forum through the process, as we worked on our cheese together. 

I have been canning cheese over the last couple of years and will be doing that again pretty soon. I have found a method that works, and for the two of us, it works fine. I can in the smallest canning jars so we use a little bit at a time. Canning makes it possible to have butter and cheese in the summer months with no refrigeration.

When the cheese is canned it will be different than you are used to. I use a grapefruit spoon to take chunks of it out and put it in my recipes or grilled cheese sandwiches, on hamburgers, etc.. It works, just doesn't look the same and is a different texture than fresh or shredded. I used shredded when I did this. I will try to document this the next time I do it so I can post it on here.

I have canned butter a few times. The last time I did it, mine did not turn out right. The first time, it was really good and was a lifesaver for us. Now as I have been thinking about it, maybe it was because the first time I did it in cooler weather. The last time it was hot and even my pantry would not cool it. I put the jars in cold water to try to cool it. It didn't turn out and I had to dump it. Well with the price of butter now, I am planning on doing it again. The weather is cold and our pantry is almost a freezer at the moment. So I will try again. I like to can it because I use less butter that way and I can stock up if I find it on sale.


Butter and cheese are now being sold canned by one or two companies because they heard the cry from people wanting to purchase them for their preparedness stocks. I checked out the butter this morning and it was a very small container for $6.00. A case of 24 cans was $139.40. Now that is exactly what has motivated me to get back to home canning it. The price of the cheese is not much better......at $3.99 a can. Ouch! I am trying to prepare and stay prepared but still remain frugal. There are ways to do this and I am doing them so far.

Copyright © 2011  Kathleen G. Lupole

All Photographs Copyright © 2011  Kathleen G. Lupole

A Rainy Sunday At Peaceful Forest

Today we are getting a little rain. Gentle which is good for me because the last few days I have replanted some of my raised beds for my fall garden. I have been harvesting my potatoes, garlic and some green beans. So I have some open areas and not to mention the beds that had tomatoes that were hit by the blight. I planted collards, winter spinach, kale and several kinds of radishes. These seeds I have for this garden I purchased from The Catholic Homesteading Movement. Their seeds are usually very good and are especially suited for my area as they are not far from our homestead.

Since I am trying to change my house over to a low carb house......not easy with my husband being such a big eater.....hard for him to forego his bread and sweets. Having greens available in the fall and some of the winter would be a big plus for us. I know that I can find a way to access my greens in my raised beds if I cover them up for the eventual cold weather and snowfall. When our house project in the cellar is finished it should be easy to store all of our other produce down there. I plan on using wooden boxes covered with metal screen to protect them from the never ending population of mice we have around here.

I have recently spent much time canning cheese. It came out so good that I think I will always do this. Saves so much space and when we finally have our Sundanzer refrigerator and freezer I won't have to take up the precious space. The cheese I think I can do better than the recipe I used. Next time I plan on melting the blocks of cheese in one big pot instead of doing little bits of cheese in the jars. That was the most difficult part. Next time I do this I will be able to post pictures as I have a new digital camera coming! Can't wait!

Have a great day!

Copyright © 2009  Kathleen G. Lupole