Our new calf.....

Barn Hop

What do you think....boy or girl?  LOL


This spunky little heifer was born Nov 16th 2012. She's an Avery Action granddaughter out of a grade mini jersey.  Her dam is on the smaller side too. The first time I saw her nursing, she was swirling around her mom's legs like a kitty cat trying to trip you on the way to the barn.

I think I'll call her Kit Kat.

Drought Recovery

Before and after...2 strands of 12.5 gauge electric make all the difference.

Close up of already grazed paddock

This past summer was the worst drought I have ever experienced.  Everything was crisp come August with no end in sight.  The yet to be grazed grass was simply taller and brown vs. short and crunchy.  Learning from my experiences from a previous (yet mild in comparison) drought, we secured an extra load of hay and pulled the animals off pasture.

We also felled small diameter trees for supplementation, winter's heat and to open up too crowded canopies.  Crooked trees aren't pretty, are useless for lumber, and are more likely to land on my fence in a wind storm. They burn just fine and are just as tasty as straight ones to the goats and cows.

Thank you Lord for the rain!  We've been able to slowly bring sections back into the grazing plan.

The pictures above are from today...2 weeks after the animals were pulled off from this particular section.  You can see the difference in length in the 2 sections....and the density.  I was shocked actually.  I have been checking this paddock's progress almost daily...but from the side.  I have never seen such a weak stand....on my land.  The grass has grown back to 6-7 inches, but it's so thin.  I was reminded that a pasture walk is essential for good grass management and that means actually walking IN the pasture, not just looking at it.

Bottom land soil

This is a picture of a different section.  This is the difference in upland soil vs bottom land soil and previous grass management. This is todays food on the left and yesterday's food on the right.  The already grazed section is still significantly denser than the other paddock.  We have been subdividing and RESTING this paddock for a few years now.  Each year we are able to graze  more "cow days" off of it than previous seasons.  The other paddock is newly created in comparison and used to more of a continuous grazing pattern.  This paddock is a little over 2 acres and used to do about 3 days at a time, 2 to 3 times per year.  We just got 2 weeks off of it after 2 previous rotations this season, drought included.  If the weather cooperates, I might get one more...or early grazing come next year.

By the way, the bottom land paddock USED to look like the upland paddock close up years ago, but not as much grass and a lot more weeds. I didn't plant anything, just changed it's management.

Barn Hop 
Simple Lives Thursday

Feeding Hay

This NOT how a bale ring is supposed to work.....

But he doesn't mind.....

Barn Hop

When 6-10 inches.... isn't

In any discussion of feeding a ruminant animal with grass (or hay), it is important to clarify the nature of the grass when grazed or cut for hay.  Grazing at 6-10 inches is a common recommendation for cool season grasses. Hay recommendations can vary significantly, but a lot of times the actual cutting is influenced more by the weather than the ideal cutting time. Beware of so called hay (straw) cut after the grass has matured and the seed combined for sale separately. My "ideal" is to graze and feed hay cut as close to the vegetative state as possible....without it being immature. (Immature is preferred for chickens.)

An article of the different stages of grass growth:  Developmental Phases of Grass

By the way, these pictures were taken of the LAWN, not the pasture.  The grazing goal was to trim, not maximize production.

This grass technically falls in the 6-10 inches category,  but the most nutritious part has already been grazed.

This grass is 10-12 inches and has already been grazed as well.  The remaining grass is "stemmy" and over mature.  Percentage of  stems is something to watch for when buying hay as well.

Barn Hop
Simple Lives Thursday

Neufchatel - Attempt #2

1. Again, I started with 1/2 gallon of freshly strained milk, but I let it cool down for an hour before I started.
2. I added approximately 1/4 tablet rennet (approximate because it had gotten a little crumbly in it's container.) and stirred for a few minutes.  No gelling took place this time.
3. I did not add clabber this time....because I forgot.  What can I say....it happens.
4. I set the measuring bowl outside to clabber/gel on the back porch in a sunny spot (no rain today and hot and humid) with a clean dishtowel to keep out direct sun, bugs and too curious critters.
5. I set the timer for one hour to check it.  It looks just right and there is a small pattern on a section of the top where the dish towel sunk down and made contact.  Oops.
6. I brought it inside to drain off excess whey and cut the curds into 1 inch squares.  This releases more whey and allows for easier transfer into the butter muslin lined  colander.  I used a wide, slotted spoon for transferring.

Drip, drip, drip.....

Now I am waiting as the whey slowly drips from the curds.  I have high hopes this time!

Update: We're definitely getting there.  No squeak this time, color is whiter throughout, the texture is much softer but still firmer than cream cheese/neufchatel.  If you ever want to make imitation Silken brand tofu, this is it.  I can't believe I just said that.  LOL!

I didn't mix in salt, but added it to the bottom of the container and placed the cheese on top.  The next day, all the salt is absorbed into the cheese quite evenly, as far as I can tell.

P.S. The first attempt made a great breakfast with a side of fresh cherries.  I added a little more salt across the bottom of the storage container and the cheese seemed to absorb it well overnight.

Yummy Failure - Neufchatel

Neufchatel isn't supposed to squeak, is it?

This is my first attempt at a non Mozzarella cheese.  Well.............it STILL wants to be Mozzarella!
It tastes like a raw, non stretched version of my Mozz.  Yummy, but not at all what I had in mind.  I used this recipe as a guideline, kinda sorta:
http://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/foodnut/09337.html

We have been hot and dry for a long time and the pasture is crispy.  This morning's milking wasn't enough for a full batch, so I halved it.  I strained 8 cups of the "still warm from the cow" milk into a large glass measuring cup with pour spout.  The dog got the rest of the morning's milking.  Why? She's pretty adorable and it saves cleaning a jar later.  I stirred in 4 TBS of 2 day clabber that had already formed a soft curd.  If you look closely, you can see the white specks in the cheese...it didn't quite blend all the way.

The next step was to add the rennet, which is where I got into trouble, I think.  It was supposed to take about 30 minutes to gel and it gelled almost immediately, in a few stirs of the spoon.  I followed the rest of the steps as closely as I could.  It became obvious I was not going to get the intended results when I tried to stir the salt in.  I don't think you are supposed to have to chop it up to mix.

I used my plastic colander on top of a 2 cup measuring cup and butter muslin to strain and the measuring cup on top as the weight and waited 2 hours.  The drippings were very milky colored and came to about 1 cup, so I estimate my yield at about 1.5 cups of cheese.

I came across this recipe that calls for 1/2 the amount of rennet:
http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/cheese/neufchatel/neufchatel.htm

I suspect the freshness of the milk has a lot to do with the discrepancy of rennet needed.  Or maybe it's my cow?

This cheese is begging for a fresh tomato....hmmmm....like a thick slice off a Cherokee Purple.....a little salt and freshly ground pepper.......

I wonder if it would melt?

Monday Mania
Barn Hop

Cream Cheese and Jam

A delightful snack or light summer supper...

Choose a holding vehicle (I chose a rice cake, but a piece of  bread or toast would do), slather cream cheese as thick or thin as desired, add a glop or two of fruit jam (black raspberry was my favorite, but marmalade, peach or lemon curd would be good too) and sprinkle salt lightly on top layer.  The salt really brings out and blends the flavors...don't leave it out.

Eat right away....rice cakes become amazingly CHEWY when they sit a while with cream cheese on them....edible, but really disappointing texture wise.


Monday Mania

'Tis the season......

Cocoa had a bull calf yesterday. We found him dry and well fed.

Cocoa came to us from a pasture based commercial dairy.  This was her second winter with us but the first calf.  She got FAT on just pasture and hay this past year.  She has freshened with far more milk than I've seen in her udder before.  It will be interesting to see how she holds her condition this year.

We are going to have some seriously HAPPY pigs!

Oh yeah...US TOO!

Heart and Soul Hop 
Simple Lives Thursday