Founder and "Cheese Queen"
A true pioneer of home cheesemaking, Ricki is a multifaceted leader who spreads joy throughout her life. Artist, activist, teacher, writer, songstress, and mother of two beautiful daughters, she is devoted to living sustainably within a loving community.
Through decades of perfecting the art of home cheesemaking, she has fittingly earned the moniker, "The Cheese Queen," a title which she wears with honor.
Filled with a love of art from childhood, Ricki graduated from Tufts University in Art Education and went on to teach elementary school art in her hometown, Englewood, New Jersey. While at Tufts, Ricki met her future husband, Bob Carroll, from Concord, Massachusetts, and the pair eventually landed in the small town of Ashfield, Massachusetts with a fixer upper and four acres.
With a desire to become more self-sufficient, hearty gardens and delightful animals filled Rickis life. Soon, an excess of goats milk sparked interest in home cheese making. This spark quickly ignited a passion, and the couple opened the New England Cheesemaking Supply Company in 1978. The first of its kind, the company provided people across America - and eventually the world - with products to make delicious cheese at home. Wanting to spread her love and knowledge of home cheesemaking Ricki also began hosting workshops right in her own kitchen.
Taking sole responsibility for the company in 1990, Ricki made it what it is today by freely offering knowledge and making cheesemaking fun. Her popular book, Home Cheese Making, often referred to as the "bible of home cheesemaking" has taught hundreds of thousands across the world, some of whom have become artisanal cheesemakers with award winning cheese. Ricki is always filled with such joy when she attends cheese events and is approached time and time again with gleeful smiles and a hearty "thank you for getting me started "whey" back in the day."
In addition to functioning as a welcoming venue for workshops, Ricki's home serves as her artistic palette. Lush lupine and sprawling wisteria dance among other flowers and colorful heart-embellished shingles grace the exterior; the interior displays eclectic furnishings, bright handmade patchwork quilts, vibrant dolls from around the world, and hand-painted messages on walls and furniture. It is a domicile that makes all who enter smile.
Equal to her passion for cheese making and art is Ricki's love of song and singing. She hosts many concerts in her home and regularly participates in national and international singing events. Whether for cheese making instruction or singing, her travels to Canada, England, France, the Netherlands, Africa, and the Republic of Georgia have built many long-lasting friendships in this joyful ride we call life.