Here's Flip, our sweet milker, who lost her twins back at Christmas time. We've been milking her since then. Isn't she pretty? She's still a little skittish, but is starting to recognize the benefits of coming when it's milking time. A yummy snack and sweet relief! What girl could refuse that? (John Wesley made the milk stand. Kudos to him!)
Here's her fresh milk just brought in the house. We've been reading a lot about the nutritional benefits of drinking raw milk, but we're still so indoctrinated in the USDA standards, taught to us from our earliest years in school, that we have decided to pasteurize the milk for now until we get it settled in our minds that the UDSA isn't GOD. I'm sure Noah and all his sons didn't pasteurize their milk.
So, first, we strain it through a double thickness of floursack cloth (yes, we make sure it's very clean) to get out the nasties like goat hairs and any debris. (Get over it...it's just dirt, and I can guarantee you it's cleaner than the milk that ends up in the coolers at our local groceries--I have been reading some pretty disgusting stuff about where all our food comes from--alas, I'm still eating...)
Then you have to get the milk to a certain temperature and maintain that for a prescribed amount of time. Notice, I'm not being specific, because we've found a bazillion different recommendations, so we're trying them all till we find the one we like best. :) One pot inside another to create a double boiler. You can buy special filters and pasteurizers, but I think this setup has worked just fine for now. If we find over time that there are problems with it, we'll look into those, but our motto this year is SIMPLIFY! What's more simple than using what you've already got? Less clutter and FREE! Two qualities I love in a product!
Brownies, anyone?
Then another quick-cool ice bath
Then into clean jars and into the fridge to be used and enjoyed. Well, we're getting around to that "enjoy" part. It does taste different than cow's milk and some of us are having a hard time transitioning--especially in items like gravy, where milk is the main ingredient. But in other cooking, where milk is used in smaller quantities, it's completely undetectable. Drinking it with ice helps a lot. I think because it waters it down a little. Goat's milk, particularly Nubian milk (I've read), has a very high fat content, and the cream doesn't automatically separate from the milk as in cow's milk. So, it's a very rich milk.
This summer, maybe I'll learn to make goat's milk soap. How fun!
5 comments:
I've always heard that drinking goat's milk straight is not only rich but also sweet - like drinking the last of your milk at the bottom of you bowl of sugary cereal??
What about goat's milk ice cream this summer?? I'd be willing to experiment.
Laura
Absolutely Laura, raw goats milk IS very sweet. It is one of the things that makes getting used to goats milk so difficult. Sometimes you just want that cool, clean taste of milk. The milk from goats offers a flavor. Cows milk may have a "flavor" but we are so used to it, that we tend to not think of it in flavor terms.
I spent several months of my life on raw milk from goats. It is an interesting experiment in life. It really shows how "grass roots" you can be...Lori you are right...I think we have had a lot of preverbial wash over our brains, it is hard to know what to do..
I Love the tutorial style pics. very neat...Umm, what exactly does the ice do for the milk? I found that particularly interesting.
John wesleys milk stand is a wonder! Four stars John! I will never stop being amazed by him.
How cute to see all the jars in the fridge! Is that not the most gratifying site! I know it must make you feel like you are hitting a "home-run" homesteading wise..
How much are you finding Flip produces in a day considering she was to feed twins?
Chat later. love ya..
Jennifer, I had to lauagh at your comment. Actually, I feel more like we've finally at least learned to hit the ball. A home run will be a long time off. We have certainly learned a lot this past year about what does and doesn't work. Expensive lessons, they were.
Flip has been giving us close to 1/2 gallon per day. Yes, she was SUPPOSED to have fed twins, but I thought nursing mothers worked on the supply/demand system. So, I'm demanding milk for 10 of us, she should be giving closer to a gallon a day, right? :)
Have you tried making cheese?
The chesse comment wasn't actually anonymous. It's me Carolyn.
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