CREAM RIPENING 4! 



it is used. There is always some risk that any 

 faults will be more apparent in the succeeding 

 churning. 



Commercial starter. Directions for preparing a 

 starter from commercial cultures usually accom- 

 pany each package of culture, the several manu- 

 facturers recommending slight differences of pro- 

 cedure. Some cultures develop more rapidly than 

 others. The following, however, is the general 

 practice. To a pint and a half of skim milk which 

 has been thoroughly pasteurized for 20 minutes at 

 a temperature of 180, or better at 200 this may 

 be done by placing the vessel of milk in a larger one 

 of water and heating on the stove, and then 

 cool to 90 add a small bottle of pure culture, 

 care being exercised to avoid exposure to other con- 

 taminations. This should be kept warm from 12 

 to 24 hours, depending on the culture used. This 

 is best accomplished by placing the jar in a wooden 

 vessel of water at the desired temperature. At the 

 end of this time it should be just coagulating, and 

 should have a pleasant acid flavor free from un- 

 desirable taints and odors. This is commonly 

 called the mother starter. From two to five per 

 cent, of this mother starter should be introduced 

 into another lot of pasteurized skim milk and 

 ripened in the same way at a temperature of 65. 

 The starter may be propagated from day to day as 

 long as it remains good, usually one to three weeks, 

 depending chiefly on the skill of the maker in prop- 

 erly sterilizing the utensils and avoiding contamina- 

 tion. The starter is usually better after the second 



