Friday, June 21, 2013

Goat's Milk Clam Chowder-- summer or winter treat

As I meandered down the crowded aisles of the grocery store yesterday evening, gathering supplies for the meals for the rest of the week, I found myself forced to go down one aisle that I always dread--the soup aisle. Why? I, like many people, have a horrible allergy to anything with MSG, yeast extract, hydrolyzed soy or animal proteins, and many of the hazardous 'spices' and 'spice extracts' now found in so many of the soups and pre-packaged soup starters. I have to avoid most of the broths available, either making my own from scratch or paying more for one that is organic and 'extract free.' So, as I walked down the soup aisle, remembering the taste of many of the soups I enjoyed in my childhood that I can no longer have, my eyes settled on a can of New England Clam Chowder. My mouth watered, and I could almost taste cream and potatoes. My son noticed my frown, and asked, "Mom, what's wrong?"

There was nothing else I could do at this point beyond saying, "Mom is going to have to be creative and see if she can create her own version of clam chowder." 

"What's that?"

"You'll see."

Of course, with so much goat's milk sitting in the fridge, it was the perfect opportunity to use some of it! My walk down the soup aisle turned into a good thing after all.

Goat's Milk Clam Chowder

You will need:

2 tsp fresh goat's butter
1-2 tsp additional butter (to taste)
3 green onions, chop, or 1 small onion, chop
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
1 celery stick, diced
5-6 potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 8oz bottle All Natural clam juice
1 can (6.5 oz) clams (BumbleBee is what I used)
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp fresh, chopped parsley (or dry flakes)
1 tbsp corn starch
6 cups fresh whole goat's milk


In a heavy pot, add 2 tsp fresh goat's butter. Heat over medium heat until melted and bubbling. Next, Add the green onions or onion. Cook 1 minute, and then add celery and garlic. Stir fry until onions are translucent. Don't burn the garlic! 

Next, add chicken broth and clam juice to pot, in addition to the potatoes, pepper, and parsley. Cook until potatoes and celery are soft and tender--about 10-15 minutes over medium heat. 

After potatoes are soft, add the corn starch and bring to a boil. Boil for two minutes. 

When two minutes have passed, add the clams and slowly stir in your goat's milk.  

Cook an additional 25-30 minutes over low heat, being careful not to boil and curdle the milk.
You only want it to reduce and thicken, not boil. Have a taste and add butter and salt (if necessary) to your own taste. 

Garnish with parsley, fresh if you have it, and serve!


The end result is delicious creaminess with lots of potatoes and chunky clams! And no MSG!

I intend to freeze some for later. It should freeze well.

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Mmmmmmilk! What to do with it...

So now that Firestone Creek has several girls in milk, it's time to come up with extra things to do with it all. On the website, anyone can find several recipes for using the milk in addition to those found in books and online. Of course, it's good to try the recipes yourself and make adjustments, sometimes combining various parts of recipes when it suits needs. The following recipe can be used to make cajetas--both syrup and candy--and sweetened condensed milk.


Mexican Cajeta
One treat that's always wonderful is Mexican cajeta. It can be made at any stage of goat lactation and can be cooked to various consistencies. It is extremely versatile and yummy!  

The following recipe was taken from Rikki Carroll's book Home Cheese Making. I have made a few modifications, including the addition of real vanilla and the option of cinnamon or chocolate. 


You will need:



2 tbsp cornstarch 
   1/4 tsp baking soda
3 quarts whole goat's milk
3 cups sugar      
    1 tsp vanilla   
 1 tsp cinnamon (if desired)
chocolate chips (if desired)

Utensils:
a tall pot (preferable with copper bottom)
a wooden spoon (for stirring)
a brush for washing the sides of the pot
wax paper / jars



To begin, dissolve the first two ingredients in a cup of the goat's milk and stir to remove any lumps. Any you find can be flattened with a spoon and whisked a bit to make sure the three have blended properly. Next,add the remaining milk to the pot along with the dissolved ingredients above and the sugar.


CONTINUE TO STIR as you bring mixture to a boil. 

NOTE: When you reach boiling, the mixture will foam quickly and may breach the top of the pot, making a huge mess and possibly burning someone. BE CAREFUL! It is boiling! Remove from heat temporarily if necessary to avoid boiling over.

Lower the heat just enough to keep a steady boil going, but continue to stir. The mixture will continue to reduce as it boils. This does take some time, but it is worth the wait! After an hour, the mixture should look something like this photo. For a darker cajeta, use brown sugar (light or dark) instead of white sugar. Dark would be more traditional Mexican since it is much more like piloncillo. The brown sugars lend a richer, deeper taste, while the white sugar tastes more like what one would find in commercial cajeta candy. 

When the mixture has reduced enough to thicken  to a dense liquid (as seen in video below), slowly add the additional vanilla.
At this point, it can be saved in jars for several weeks in the refrigerator and used in place of sweetened condensed milk in many recipes for pasteles like dulce de leche. 

To make traditional cajeta, continue to stir and thicken the mixture until it is the consistency of caramel. If cinnamon is desired, it may be added at this point. One could also melt chocolate chips into the mixture, giving it a chocolate-caramel taste.  Allow it to cool slightly and pour carefully into warmed jars (place them in a hot water bath to avoid cracking when pouring the cajeta into them). 

One can continue cooking the cajeta past this point to make candy. 
 Cooked to the firm ball stage, 245-250 degrees (use a candy thermometer), one will have lovely cajeta caramels. Simply spread the mixture out onto greased foil to cool, and then they can be easily cut into sections, shaped, and rolled up in wax paper for easy servings.

One can also make taffy by cooking a little longer or even lollipops by taking the mixture to hard crack stage. To avoid crystalization, add some butter, cream of tartar, or corn syrup when you add the initial ingredients. Wash down the sides of the pot frequently with a brush, too. Both of these will help keep the 'graininess' out of the candy.

Hint, hint!

After one has so much cajeta, what does one do with it? One muy delicioso way to eat cajeta is over vanilla ice cream. Make fresh ice cream or ice milk from your own goat's milk (of course) or buy some. Warm the cajeta syrup in the microwave until smooth and flowing, and then pour this over the ice cream. Top that off with a few sprinkles of flaked sea salt and oooohhh... delicioso!






Wednesday, June 5, 2013

Una sorpresa bonita (a pretty surprise) and sales

Ever receive a huge box in the mail? Automatically, you think there's something enormous inside--maybe even more than one thing! It's a little disappointing to open the box and only find something small, isn't it? However, I guess it depends on the value of what's hiding behind the four cardboard walls and all in the way that you look at it.

Bella side udder 4 days fresh
NC Promisedland Z Bella, huge as she was, only kidded with one single doeling. I was certain, as were quite a few other people, that she was going to have a minimum of triplets as huge as she was, but no! To our surprise, she only had one girl and then actually regained her girlish figure immediately afterwards. She could still fit in her bikini if she wanted! Yes, I checked; there were no more hiding in there somewhere, and no, she could not have had them anywhere else with one or two evading my sight. She was penned, so it's one baby girl--no more.
Bella and Bonita
Her name is On Firestone Creek SB Bonita (On Firestone Creek UP Sonic Boom *S X NC Promisedland Z Bella); that means "pretty" to anyone who does not have a background in Spanish. I'm sorry to everyone who was on the waiting list, but Bonita is retained. If you want, I can put in a request for more kids next time, but I am not sure she will comply. All I can say is that Bonita is adorable with a great personality, and Bella's udder is very nice for a first freshener, giving me almost 2.5 cups of milk a day while also nursing Bonita, so I am satisfied. Oddly, I actually wanted a buck out of this breeding, but I will take what I got and smile about it. How Bella went from all baby belly to nada, I will never figure out, but it's all good--regardless. I like what I found in the package when it was opened even if it was quite a surprise! Bella's udder has good attachments and seems strong in all of the other areas, too. She is easy to milk, and I may just put her back in the show ring this fall. 



On Firestone Creek R Hazel Nut

Milked out in this photo
I have decided to sell Chapilene's mom, Hazel Nut, due to her small size. She has a decent size udder for a first freshener, but I have decided not to milk her because Chap is so small. I know some people like 'tiny' goats, and she is a small goat that produces small kids. On Monday, I took Chap, Butternut, and Pistachio to Third Street Veterinary Clinic  in Siler City, NC, to be disbudded. Chap only weighed 2.5 lbs at 9 days of age while Butternut weighed almost 9 lbs at 2 weeks old. Big difference there! So On Firestone Creek R Hazel Nut is available for $350 in milk. She is small with nice length of body, dairy neck, sharp withers, good legs, wide escutcheon, and a nice udder (shown above) with good attachments and plumb teats. She would be a great addition as a pet (to a home with other goats) or to a zoo or park. She is super friendly and loves attention, and she is a good mom. *BONUS: Mention that you saw her on my blog, and I will give you a reduction in price. :)

In closing, I want to say congrats to Firestone Creek PAL Palisade who is doing quite well at Proctor Hill Farm. Her newest udder pics are taken--third freshening and three years old--and they are completely AWESOME!
Palisade
 Photo courtesy Addie Pepoli
I have to say I am definitely one proud mama of my Pali girl and waiting to see what future generations out of her will produce. I'm hoping she gets in the show ring soon and that she earns her star on test this year. From the looks of this udder, I don't think she'll have any problems! Both of her daughters ( here and at Run Joey Run farm) have similar looking udders on their first freshenings. 
Palindrome


Next up to kid are Sunnee (Rosasharn cross) and Palindrome, who looks like she is going to pop soon with twins, maybe? Both are developing nice FF udders with plumb teats and good attachments. I have to say that I am very happy with the kids this year so far, including all of the does! Please see our for sale page because we do still have some does and doelings (bucks, too) for sale and possibly more in the future.