What We Do When Our Cows are Dry

We mentioned a few posts ago that all of our cows are dry.  We've no fresh milk.  A veterinarian came and palpated our cows to find that LuLu is two-month's pregnant and should be calving somewhere around July 2026.  With no cows currently in milk and the fact that we have dried up our goats from which we were getting fresh goat milk each day, a big question arises.  What do we do about milk for personal use?

In today's post, I'll show you.  Fortunately for us, we have good friends with cows in milk.  It is from these friends that we borrowed a bull to breed our cows.  Our little bull, Nicky, came from these friend's bull, Nick, that we brought to our farm to breed the cows.  Back to the story - these friends are 8.8 miles due north from us.  They have a PMA (Private Membership Association) that affords members to access directly farm products produced on site.  

These folks are wonderful Christian people and do things the right way.  Come along with us as we pick up a gallon of milk this week.  We put an ice chest in the back of the vehicle and in less than 10 minutes, we arrive at Grace Ranch.  They have a very nice building for members to pick up the many products they produce off their farm.

As we walk inside, everything is clean and orderly.  There are three coolers and freezers on the east wall loaded with fresh offerings: Eggs, kombucha, raw milk, raw cream, yogurt, broth, chocolate milk, and beef products.  No one is in the store.  It's honor system.  There's a notebook where you log the jars you return, the products you're picking up, and the amount of cash you're leaving.

A receipt taped to the jars details what's being held for you.  This week we have two half gallon jars of 100% Jersey milk waiting for us:

A professional label lists the product, the size, and (I like this!) the name of the cow providing this week's milk (Molly, in this case) and when it was produced.  It doesn't get much fresher than this!  Except, of course, when our Jersey cows are in milk.

As we leave, there's a posting of what Harvest of Grace stands for and their commitment to the families they serve:

Top-notch people producing quality products for local families interested in real food.  We support them and will continue to do so until sometime in July when LuLu calves and we are back in milk here at Our Maker's Acres Family Farm.  So what do we do when our cows are dry?  Well, we feel blessed to have friends that we can source raw milk from while our cows are not in milk production.  

Fresh Milk from LuLu

LuLu gave birth to a little bull calf back in the hottest point of this summer in the middle of a drought with not much forage to eat.  Poor LuLu was so run down with the heat and rigors of labor and delivery that her condition deteriorated.  She got real skinny.  We babied her.  At several points, we didn't know if she was going to survive.  We drenched her with molasses, gave her minerals and supplements and what do you know?  'Ol LuLu pulled through.

She's not in terrific shape as the pasture went from full drought to dormancy for the fall/winter.  She's eating hay and a little sweet feed.  We have decided not to push her with daily milkings and have, instead, allowed her little bull calf to nurse on her at will.  Normally, we'd let them stay together and then separate the cow and calf overnight so we'd get the morning milk.  Instead, the calf has been getting all the milk and we haven't been milking.  This morning that changed.  We decided to slowly start milking.

Here is the bull calf.  We named him Nicky.  His daddy's name was Nick.  As we walked out this morning Nick was posing in his winter coat in front of the hay.  I nicknamed him "Nicky Hay-ley." 

We brought LuLu into the barn and quickly milked her while she ate her breakfast.  Since this is her first time in milk, she's a little nervous, but she doesn't kick while we milk her.  Tricia gets the two teats on the left and I sit on a stool on the right and get the two teats on that side.  In no time, we're done.

We milk into a stainless steel pail and use a muslin cloth as a filter to keep out the dust, hair, flies, hay, etc.  

Fresh, delicious, raw milk.  Tricia used some of this to make a big broccoli cheese soup using some of the broccoli florets we picked later in the afternoon.

The milk is still warm at this time as it just came out of the udder.  We pour it into half gallon sized mason jars and quickly chill it in the fridge.  LuLu isn't making a lot.  This morning we got just shy of a gallon of milk.

Once it has chilled for a bit, the cream rises to the top.  That is skimmed off and used for making butter, whipped cream to top homemade pies, or for coffee.

For years we milked every. single. morning.  It's been nice to have a break for a while.  But it's also nice to now have milk!  Funny thing is, fresh raw milk is, to us, a completely different product than the stuff from the store.  Good to have the real stuff back in our ice box!

Bill to allow Sale of Raw Milk in Louisiana Dies in Senate Committee

As you might recall from a blog post back on April 26th that you can re-read by clicking here, proponents of Raw Milk Sales have been testifying before the House and Senate committees of the Louisiana legislature. Louisiana is one of 10 states where it is illegal to sell raw milk.  Tricia and Benjamin were able to attend the House committee hearings and take part in a real-life home school civics lesson up-close and personal.  It passed and now was to go before the Senate Health & Welfare Committee for deliberation.

Well, the vote was taken and it failed.  You can read more about it from this article from the Advocate, a Baton Rouge newspaper: Senate Committee rejects raw milk sale.  The vote was 1 to 4 against passage and therefore the bill died in Senate committee.  From the article:

State Agriculture and Forestry Commissioner Mike Strain predicted people would get sick from drinking raw milk. He said the health risk is 150 times greater than drinking pasteurized milk.  “We are charged, you and I, with public health, protection of public health,” Strain said.

Commissioner Strain is a veterinarian and certainly understands the risks from bad bacteria much more than I do.  However, there are 0 deaths from drinking raw milk in the last decade.  On the other hand, according to this link, there are about 32 cases of people becoming sick each year from eating raw oysters, with half of those cases resulting in death.  Yet the sale of raw oysters is legal.  Hmmm...

Here is a gallon of our delicious raw milk in our refrigerator.  It has a big head of thick cream on top that can be skimmed off to make butter or used in coffee, or whipped and put on top of fresh fruit.  Note the thermometer at the bottom left to ensure the refrigerator stays at the correct temperature.

The Cream always rises to the top!

One only needs to look at the news right now regarding the Ground Beef e coli recall in which they are recalling 2 million pounds (wow!) of ground beef, to see that problems can and do occur in even the 'safest' and most heavily regulated food industries.  If improper food handling techniques are employed and/or the process has sanitation problems, harmful bacteria can be present in raw milk, including Listeria, salmonella, e. coli, brucella, and campylobacter.  These can give you food borne illnesses.

Since we drink the milk, we always want to be at the very top of our game and are constantly looking at our process.  One thing we had never done was have our milk tested.  We went to our local veterinarian whose office is about a mile from our farm. He knows our animals and makes farm calls to our place when needed. He assured us that the "fermentation vat" of the cows will ward off the bad bacteria and a cow that is eating good grass versus grain in a feedlot is going to have healthy rumen activity and good bacteria.  It is the good bacteria that keeps the bad from growing.  It's also important as an extra safeguard to give the cows pro-biotics to ensure the growth of healthy bacteria in the cows' gut.

Delicious Milk from pastured Jersey cows

Being curious, we asked him if we could have the milk of each of our cows tested.  He said it would cost $60.  Unfortunately, Daisy and Rosie aren't covered on our Blue Cross Blue Shield Plan.  He wrote out an order and we took two separate samples of sealed cups containing Daisy's milk in one and Rosie's milk in the other.  We took those samples to our local hospital that has a lab where they grow cultures to see what types of bacteria grow.  We called after 24 hours to get the results and nothing had grown at that time.

A week later the reports came back - one for each cow.  Each test result was identical:

Coagulate negative Staph isolated

Gram Positive Rods isolated

No Pathenogenic organisms noted

Now I probably slept through some of my biology classes so I contacted a good friend whose wife works in the very lab that tested the milk.  I asked him to get a translation from his wife on the test results.

Test results are in

Interpretation of lab results is as follows:  Two kinds of microorganisms were detected.  These are both normal flora found on the skin and neither one would be a cause for concern.  The test did not indicate any type of infection at all.  He also said that she said, "Bottom line is you have nothing to worry about.  I do know that if you leave a agar plate laying around long enough exposed to nothing but the air, eventually something is going to grow on it; bacteria are everywhere.  You know the two most bacteria infested spots in your house?  The counter next to the kitchen sink and the sponge you use to wash dishes; not the toilet seat like most people think."

Very interesting!

Back to the Raw Milk Bill, I think proponents will try again during the next legislative session.  From the Advocate article:
“Good legislation sometimes takes time,” state Sen. Fred Mills, R-St. Martinville, told disappointed raw milk supporters as they gathered their belongings and left the committee room.

It is a little perplexing to me that something that used to be so commonplace is now a health risk.  The reason it is more dangerous now is that after the Industrial Revolution animals began to be raised in 'factories' (feedlots), standing in their feces instead of out on green grass.  These animals, due to confinement, tended to get sick and had to be treated with antibiotics and other medicine.  The milk from all the cows was commingled and the safest thing to do was boil it to kill any pathogens.

But animals raised in green pastures and milked/bottled in a clean environment provide a safe, delicious, and healthy product - one I'm proud to serve to my family. Cheers! 

Attending Hearings on Making Raw Milk Legal in Louisiana

Tricia and Benjamin took another home school field trip this week - this time to Baton Rouge, Louisiana to the State Capitol.  There was an Agriculture committee hearing in the House of Representatives to hear discussion on whether or not it should be legal for farmers to sell raw milk in Louisiana.  If this passed out of committee it would go before the House for a vote.  Louisiana is one of nine states in which it is illegal to sell raw milk and proponents were trying to change that.

We thought it would be a great learning experience for Benjamin to get to see how government works and how people can make their voices heard.  They arrived at the Capitol Building at 8:30.  Benjamin took a few pictures of the capitol.

State Capitol Building

They met with groups of other people who were interested in the outcome and some were prepared to speak before the committee. They had signs made up and many brought cookies and raw milk for the committee members to snack on.

Raw Milk Lovers on the steps of the capitol building

In deliberations proponents spoke about the benefits of drinking raw milk.  Raw milk has not been pasteurized so the beneficial bacteria, enzymes, nutrients, and vitamins are all still available.  It is also about freedom as producers and consumers should be able to come together without the government coming in between them.

Opponents spoke of the fears due to the possibility of food borne illness.  Good points were brought up to try to allay those fears, such as the totally legal sale of Raw Oysters in the State.  Approximately 15 people die each year from illnesses after eating raw oysters, but you can still walk into most any restaurant and eat raw oysters to your heart's content.  There are dangers with most anything, but we don't normally ban everything that has safety concerns - we put in best management practices to minimize the danger.  

Benjamin in Action!

The committee meeting was held in a smaller conference room, but Benjamin did get an opportunity to see proceedings in the House Chamber room with votes taking place.

All in favor, say "Aye!"

In the end after much discussion, a vote was taken and the measure passed, 9 to 6. This bill will now be voted on in the House Chamber in the next week or so.  If it passes there, it goes before the Senate committee.  If it passes there, it goes before the Senate Chambers to be voted on for a law.  We'll be watching this one closely, but regardless, it was a great learning experience for Benjamin to see the process of how bills become law.

As a side note, I pulled up the old Schoolhouse Rock, "I'm just a Bill" video on Youtube and showed it to Benjamin.  It does a good job of showing this whole process, but on the Federal level.  We grew up watching those on Saturday morning and I can still remember most of them.  

Making Mozzarella Cheese

We're back making cheese again.  After having made Neufchatel, ricotta, and basic cheese, we're going to try our hand at making mozzarella.  We're using an excellent on-line course "Cheese Making for Beginners" that you can view here: Dr. Fanhhauser's Cheese Course if you are interested.  The mozzarella that we're going to make is Fresh Mozzarella.  I apologize ahead of time for all the pictures, but there are a lot of steps.

The first thing we do is sterilize our pot that we're going to use by boiling some water in it.

A watched pot never boils

Warm slowly one gallon of raw milk to 95 degrees Fahrenheit.  

Keep an eye on the temperature

Stir in a 1/4 cup of buttermilk and let it sit for 15 minutes to "activate".  

Adding fresh buttermilk

Add 8 drops of rennet into 1/4 cup water and then stir the rennet/water mixture into your inoculated milk.  Remember rennet causes the curds and whey to separate.


Adding animal rennet

Place undisturbed in a warm spot for 2-3 hours until the "break" takes place.  This is when the curds and whey separate.  Once the break has taken place, you'll know it.  The curds will be solidified, sort of the consistency of jello.  Now you'll cut the curds.  Use a knife to cut into 1/2 inch cubes.

Cutting the curds

Now you stir up the curds.  It's best to do this with your hands.  After cutting and stirring, let it sit for 15 minutes.  Pour off the whey.  You can save this for making ricotta.  Ricotta is great in lasagna.  You'll get about a quart of whey off of your gallon of milk.

Pouring off the whey

 You will now want to warm the curds to 97 degrees Fahrenheit with a constant hand stirring.  Then put the cover back on the pot and let sit overnight in a warm place.  We use a warming drawer on the proof setting which is about 80 degrees Fahrenheit. 


Let sit in a warm spot

First thing in the morning, heat some water to 185 degrees Fahrenheit and drop a piece of curd into the water.  You are wanting to see if it 'spins' or stretches like taffy when you pull on it.  If it breaks when you pull it, let the curds continue to sit for a few hours and try again.

A curd in 185 degree water

Hey, check it out.  Stretchy!  This is perfect.  The curd 'spins."

Perfect spin

Once it spins, heat a 1/2 gallon of water to 185 degrees Fahrenheit.


Warming some more water!

While you are waiting, pour the remaining whey off of the curds.  Save a pint of whey for a step we'll go over in a minute.  Also save the rest for making ricotta.


Pouring more whey off

Break the curds up into small pieces with your hands once you've drained the whey off.


Breaking up the curds

Now pour the 185 degree water over the curd mass.


Pouring hot water over the curds

Stir this with a wooden spoon.

You want the curd to come together in a gummy mass.  Fold together with a couple of wooden spoons.


Gummy mass of soon to be mozzarella

Break off lemon sized pieces of the hot, gummy cheese substance and fold over onto itself to form smooth balls.  

Breaking and folding

Place back in the 185 degree F water to soften and then repeat folding to achieve smoothness.


Just about right

Drop the smoothed balls into ice water to firm them up.  It should yield 4 five ounce balls from your gallon of milk.

Dropping the mozzarella balls into ice water

Tricia got all fancy and braided one of the balls.  This really shows the consistency of the homemade mozzarella.

Braided mozzarella.  WOW!!

Now, we're almost done.  The next step is to prepare brine.  In a gallon jar, dissolve 1/4 cup salt,


Adding 1/4 cup salt

 Add 1 pint of whey that you saved from several steps above: 

Adding whey

Finally, add 1 pint of cool water:


Adding water

Drop the cooled mozzarella balls into the brine, cover and put in the refrigerator for 12 - 24 hours.


Adding mozzarella balls to the brine

After 12-24 hours has passed, remove from the brine and store refrigerated in a Ziploc bag or plastic container and use within a week:

Store until eaten (Fresher is better!)

Aside from eating just plain mozzarella, we'll show you tomorrow what we did with it.