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Having A Ball, Making
Mozzarella
Six women gathered to enjoy
Mothers' Day on the Chesapeake
Bay in Pasadena, Md. Some of them
had brought along their male
companions, who preferred to
spend the afternoon outside of the
kitchen. This was probably best, as
the ladies would not have learned to
make mozzarella balls quite the
same way they did that Sunday.
The hostess of the event arranged a
personal Cooking Class for her
mom and was already uncorking the
third bottle of wine – another red.
The women had already worked
their way through a red and a white,
but truly the wine was secondary to
the food and the experience.
Mozzarella
Six women gathered to enjoy
Mothers' Day on the Chesapeake
Bay in Pasadena, Md. Some of them
had brought along their male
companions, who preferred to
spend the afternoon outside of the
kitchen. This was probably best, as
the ladies would not have learned to
make mozzarella balls quite the
same way they did that Sunday.
The hostess of the event arranged a
personal Cooking Class for her
mom and was already uncorking the
third bottle of wine – another red.
The women had already worked
their way through a red and a white,
but truly the wine was secondary to
the food and the experience.
| Forming a mozzarella ball. |
Crazy About Cheese?
Here are some quality cheeses
that you can find at Amazon.com.
Here are some quality cheeses
that you can find at Amazon.com.
Chef Luna prepares the
curd to make mozzarella.
curd to make mozzarella.
"Now, it’s your turn to participate,” said chef Paul Luna, who
prepared this menu specifically for women’s palates.
They had already learned how to add a sprig of rosemary to
a plate of roasted peppers and olives for nibbling. They
already toasted walnuts in a pan on the stove, blended
extra virgin lemon vinaigrette, and fluffed spaghetti squash
to give it height in the final presentation. And they had
already peppered chef Luna with every cooking quiz
question imaginable (“I have heard that you should tear
basil, and not cut it, is this true?”).
“I want you ladies on this side of the counter,” chef Luna
said with a mischievous grin, “And I’m going to show you
how to manipulate a perfect mozzarella.”
“He’s cute,” one of the ladies whispered to another.
Chef Luna wiped his hands on his towel strapped to his
sides by his apron strings. “In fact, I’m not going to do a
thing. It’s your turn to do the work.”
The ladies giggled and acquiesced. Chef Luna poured
boiling water into a bowl of rennet, which would eventually
become one of America’s favorite stringy cheeses.
“I really want to learn to do this,” said another one of the
women. “My father used to make this, but I never had the
chance to learn.”
“Put your hand in the bowl and feel the curd breaking
down,” chef Luna commanded.
“Me? In there? But it’s hot,” the celebrated mother protested.
“Do you want to make the mozzarella or not?” Chef Luna
plunged his hands into the bowl of hot water and took out a
soft lumpy mass, explained how one needs to treat the
cheese as delicately as a woman’s breast, rolled the mass
into a small ball, and dropped it into another bowl of ice
water. The women were mesmerized by the gentle calm
and swift process. Maybe one of them swooned.
Another bottle of wine was uncorked, who knew if it was red
or white.
He stood by the woman who claimed to no longer cook at
home, as she tried to fold the lump into itself.
“Don’t pull too tight,” he coached. “You have to relax –
smooth your hand over the ball. Be gentle, and then you
can just pull it off.” His hand slipped delicately over hers as
they both worked to smooth the mozzarella into a perfect
ball. He poured a little bit of hot water over her fingers as
she manipulated the white mass.
And like a magician, he twisted a perfect little ball out of her
fist, held up the testicle with this forefinger and thumb. The
women exploded in laughter, and chef Luna didn’t skip a
beat: “Your boyfriends and husbands will thank me for
teaching you this trick.” He dropped the little ball into a bowl
of ice water.
- by Cynthia Thomet, freelance
prepared this menu specifically for women’s palates.
They had already learned how to add a sprig of rosemary to
a plate of roasted peppers and olives for nibbling. They
already toasted walnuts in a pan on the stove, blended
extra virgin lemon vinaigrette, and fluffed spaghetti squash
to give it height in the final presentation. And they had
already peppered chef Luna with every cooking quiz
question imaginable (“I have heard that you should tear
basil, and not cut it, is this true?”).
“I want you ladies on this side of the counter,” chef Luna
said with a mischievous grin, “And I’m going to show you
how to manipulate a perfect mozzarella.”
“He’s cute,” one of the ladies whispered to another.
Chef Luna wiped his hands on his towel strapped to his
sides by his apron strings. “In fact, I’m not going to do a
thing. It’s your turn to do the work.”
The ladies giggled and acquiesced. Chef Luna poured
boiling water into a bowl of rennet, which would eventually
become one of America’s favorite stringy cheeses.
“I really want to learn to do this,” said another one of the
women. “My father used to make this, but I never had the
chance to learn.”
“Put your hand in the bowl and feel the curd breaking
down,” chef Luna commanded.
“Me? In there? But it’s hot,” the celebrated mother protested.
“Do you want to make the mozzarella or not?” Chef Luna
plunged his hands into the bowl of hot water and took out a
soft lumpy mass, explained how one needs to treat the
cheese as delicately as a woman’s breast, rolled the mass
into a small ball, and dropped it into another bowl of ice
water. The women were mesmerized by the gentle calm
and swift process. Maybe one of them swooned.
Another bottle of wine was uncorked, who knew if it was red
or white.
He stood by the woman who claimed to no longer cook at
home, as she tried to fold the lump into itself.
“Don’t pull too tight,” he coached. “You have to relax –
smooth your hand over the ball. Be gentle, and then you
can just pull it off.” His hand slipped delicately over hers as
they both worked to smooth the mozzarella into a perfect
ball. He poured a little bit of hot water over her fingers as
she manipulated the white mass.
And like a magician, he twisted a perfect little ball out of her
fist, held up the testicle with this forefinger and thumb. The
women exploded in laughter, and chef Luna didn’t skip a
beat: “Your boyfriends and husbands will thank me for
teaching you this trick.” He dropped the little ball into a bowl
of ice water.
- by Cynthia Thomet, freelance
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