Okay guys, grab a cuppa, ’cause today’s kitchen adventure was… messy. Ever heard of quajada? Me neither until I stumbled on it while doom-scrolling through food pics late last night. Some Spanish dessert thingy made with cheese? Sounded weird but weirdly tempting. Right then, decided I’d try making it myself today. Full send mode.
The “What Even Is This?” Phase
First up, research. Couldn’t find one single simple recipe. Everyone said something different! Got kinda annoyed. Saw mentions like “traditional Spanish”, “simple milk dessert”, “like a baked custard”. Ingredients list seemed short, which sucked me in. Basically:
- A LOT of milk
- Some kind of curdling thing? (Rennet kept popping up, sounded fancy)
- Sugar
- Maybe eggs? Maybe not? Confusion!
Looked in my fridge. Had milk. No rennet. Definitely no special Spanish curdling powders. Read you could use vinegar or lemon juice. Vinegar? In a dessert? Huh. Decided to wing it with what I had.
The “Milk Volcano” Experiment
Grabbed my biggest pot. Poured in nearly a whole gallon of milk – felt wasteful already. Put it on the stove, medium heat. Stood there stirring, smelling that warm milk smell, waiting… and waiting. Got bored. Thought “Okay, probably hot enough now”. Turned off the heat. Scooped some out into a mug to test.
Added a tablespoon of white vinegar. Stirred. Watched. Looked like weird watery cottage cheese instantly. Panicked slightly. Was it supposed to be lumpy? More reading frenzy. Apparently YES. Okay, panic subsided.
Dumped the rest of the vinegar – maybe 3 tablespoons total? – into the main pot. Instant crazy separation! Milk solids like weird white curds floating in greenish-yellow whey. Smelled… tangy and milky. Poured the whole weird gloop into a colander lined with cheesecloth (thankfully I own some, past jam-making disasters). Whey dripped out everywhere, barely caught it in a bowl.
The “Squeeze & Hope” Phase
Wrapped up the cheesecloth bundle of curds. Hung it over the sink faucet to drain more. Went for a walk, forgot about it. Came back an hour later. Bundle felt firmer. Squeezed it hard. More watery stuff came out. Felt like squeezing a weird cheese sponge. Dumped the whey – felt guilty, should probably make ricotta with it another day.
Unwrapped the curd blob. Tasted a tiny pinch. Super bland, slightly sour, kinda gritty texture. Hmm. Nowhere near dessert territory.
Got the blender out. Plopped the curds in. Added maybe 3/4 cup of white sugar (starting cautious, I can add!). Blitzed it. Started smooth, then got clumpy. Added a splash of that saved whey. Blitzed again. Better. Added a tiny bit more. Texture looked kinda like thick ricotta dip now. Still tasted plain.
Saw recipes mentioning cinnamon. Dumped in like a teaspoon. Blitzed. Color changed slightly. Tasted. Better! Added a pinch more sugar. Blitzed once more.
The “Taste Test & Surprise!” Phase
Scooped the mixture into little ramekins. Shoved them in the fridge. Impatience level: High. Checked after an hour. Still soft. Left them until after dinner.
Finally! Took one out. Texture was firmish, but spreadable. Scooped some onto a cracker (fancy, I know). Tasted it.
WEIRD BUT GOOD. Seriously. Sweet. Tangy from the vinegar. Milky. Cinnamon warmth. The texture was smooth but… substantial? Not creamy like pudding, more like a thick, spreadable cheese. Ate the whole ramekin.
Is it cheese? Is it dessert? Who cares! It’s delicious. Quajada mystery solved. Messy, slightly chaotic, but totally worth the milk spill on the stove.
