Thursday, August 14, 2014

Collecting Thistle for Rennet

The other day, my friend Martha was talking about making rennet from thistle. As it sounded interesting, we decided to begin harvesting the purple flowers (before they dry and explode with seed, at which time it is too late, I guess). This is the first bunch that I harvested here at the 1840's farm.

According to directions, they need to dry for about 3 weeks before we can go to the next step. In the mean time, more flower heads should be blossoming soon. The thistle plant is so pretty, that I hate to cut the heads off.

Stay tuned for the progression of rennet making with thistle. (It should be noted that it is said that this rennet should be used with goat or sheep milk only as it can make cow's milk cheese bitter. )

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