, and keep it in
a cotton cloth, which will make it mellow and sweet, not rank, and will
preserve the coat smooth. It may be ready to eat in about twelve days. Some
lay it to ripen in dock-leaves, and it is not amiss; but that in rain they
will be wet, which moulds the Cheese. Others in flat fit boxes of wood,
turning them, as is said, three or four times a day. But a cotton cloth is
best. This quantity is for a round large Cheese, of about the bigness of a
sale ten peny Cheese, a good fingers-breadth thick. Long broad grass
ripeneth them well, and sucketh out the moisture. Rushes are good also.
They are hot, but dry not the moisture so well.

My Lady of Middlesex makes excellent slipp-coat Cheese of good morning
milk, putting Cream to it. A quart of Cream is the proportion she useth to
as much milk, as both together make a large round Cheese of the bigness of
an ordinary Tart-plate, or Cheese-plate; as big as an ordinary soft cheese,
that the Market-women sell for ten pence. Thus for want of stroakings at
London, you may take one part of Cream to five or six of morning milk, and
for the rest proceed as with stroakings; and these will prove as good.

SLIPP-COAT CHEESE

Take three quarts of the last of the stroakings of as many Cows as you
have; keep it covered, that it may continue warm; put to it a skimming
dishful of Spring-water; then put in two spoonfuls of Runnet, so let it
stand until it be hard come: when it is hard come, set your fat on the
bottome of a hair-sieve, take it up by degrees, but break it not; when you
have laid it all in the fat, take a fine cloth, and lay it over the Cheese,
and work it in about the sides, with the back of a Knife; then lay a board
on it, for half an hour: after half an hour, set on the board an half pound
stone, so let it stand two hours; then turn it on that board, and let the
cloth be both under and over it, then pour it into the fat again; Then lay
a pound and half weight on it; Two hours after turn it again on a dry
cloth, and salt it, then set on it two pound weight, and let it stand until
the next morning. Then turn it out of the Cheese-fat, on a dry board, and
so keep it with turning on dry boards three days. In case it run abroad,
you must set it up with wedges; when it begins to stiffen, lay green grass
or rushes upon it: when it is stiff enough, let rushes be laid both under
and over it. If this Cheese be rightly made, and the weather good to dry
it, it will be ready