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For a little change of pace, Popular Cheeses is today’s topic as I’m sure I’ve worn you all out with all of those raw milk podcasts. The recipe today is a fun, quick and easy method of making your own fresh cheese, or as the Mexican cheese lovers call it, queso fresco. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Popular Cheeses • Queso Fresco Homestead Life Updates Just a few quick notes here. The most important news first. Animals Updates We have a new calf. Cloud gave birth to Luna on the 23rd of November. She was a healthy and vigorous 70-pound heifer. Mom and calf are doing really well. The other cows are drying up for their winter respite from producing milk. Scott finished all of the blocks of the interior walls in the creamery. He is off to other tasks for the past few days. Fixing fences and preparing the pastures for winter grazing and hay-feeding as we move into the winter season on the homestead. The sheep and goats are doing well, though we are missing two goat girls. All of the goats were escaping, as goats do on a regular basis. Scott fixed the place in the fence where they were escaping but we are still missing two. Scott also moved the goats from one pasture to another so perhaps the stragglers simply haven’t figured out where everyone is at the moment. There are gates open at various places so they can get inside a pasture and closer to the main group. No sign of them for a couple of days. We will keep our eyes open and do some serious searching if needed. The Homeless Shelter I had the pleasure of making a meal for the women staying at the homeless shelter sponsored by our church. We always have an abundance of food and this is a great way to help those who are less fortunate. Homelessness is running rampant in the US. I could just complain about how bad it is and look for the government to step in and do something. However, I wanted to make a real difference. Most of these ladies are either mentally ill and incapable of caring for themselves or have issues with drugs and/or alcohol. It’s a difficult situation and one without an easy solution. I do what I can to ease their troubles with a good hot meal on a cold night. I’ll be providing these meals 2 to 4 times per month throughout this winter. Cooking for 30 is a challenge but I’m up to it. Last night, along with the meat loaf, green beans and chocolate cake, they got to try my very excellent mac and cheese. It was as big hit. The popular cheeses in that recipe are gruyere and cheddar which I will be touching on in today’s podcast. Popular Cheeses Let’s talk about some of the popular cheeses; how to recognize them and what to do with them. As I have talked about previously, cheese results from an interaction between milk and bacteria or an enzyme called rennet. For more information on basic cheesemaking please see my previous podcast, “The Basics of Cheesemaking.” In a nutshell, the milk proteins (casein) coagulate, forming the solid curds, which then are separated and drained from the liquid whey. Additional processing, both before and after coagulation and whey separation, include: adding special cultures and bacteria, yeast or mold; salting; pressing; aging; and curing. Various combination of these processes create the variety of cheeses available today. There are several subgroups that I will talk about today. Based on processing techniques, cheeses fall into a few select areas. There are hard cheeses, semi-hard cheeses, semi-soft cheeses, and soft cheeses which come in both fresh and ripened varieties. I’m going to give a very brief overview and description of a few popular cheeses and how each might be used in your home. Brief overviews and a select few is all I will have time for today. If you’d like more information, please comment below the podcast and I will answer your questions to the best of my ability. Hard cheeses Hard cheeses have been aged to reduce moisture content to about 30%. Hard cheeses often are used for grating. Maximum flavor comes from freshly grated cheese. Some of the most popular cheese in the category of “hard” follow. Asiago: asiago is an Italian cow’s milk cheese with a tangy, nutty flavor and a texture that varies depending on the age of the cheese. Asiago is white to pale yellow and melts easily. Wendy’s fast food restaurant makes an asiago chicken sandwich. This asiago is sliced, not grated but certainly melts well. Yum, yum. Parmigiano-Reggiano (Parmesan): True Parmigiano-Reggiano is a cow’s milk cheese from an area in Italy near Parma. The name is protected and can only be used when strict production guidelines are followed. The least of which is it must be produced in a specific area near Parma, Italy. It has a sharp, spicy taste and a very hard, dry texture. Parmigiano-Reggiano is always used grated or shaved. The knock-off produced in the United States and elsewhere is called Parmesan and does not match the flavor of the original. Parmigiano-Reggiano is used in gratins and pastas and as a topping for salads and other dishes. Pecorino-Romano: Made in central and southern Italy from sheep’s milk, Pecorino-Romano has a robust and piquant flavor and is noticeably salty. It can be served as a table cheese or grated for cooking. Again, the name is protected. In the US we know this popular cheese as Romano. Semi-Hard cheeses Semi-hard cheeses have a little more moisture content than hard cheese. They range from 30% to 40% moisture, giving them a firm, solid texture. Their flavors can range from mild to quite sharp, depending on age. Cheddar: With origins in Great Britain, cheddar is now the most popular cheese in the world. This cow’s milk cheese ranges from mild to sharp in flavor and has a dense texture. Orange cheddars owe their color to a vegetable die made from annatto seeds. Uncolored cheddars are pale yellow. Colby is a popular mild American cheddar cheese. Use cheddar in grilling and cooking, as well as on sandwiches and snack trays. Emmental: Emmental is the original cow’s milk Swiss cheese with very large holes caused by gases that form during ripening. It has a mild, nutty taste and comes in 200-pound wheels. Emmental is the classic choice for fondue, but it also is used in sandwiches and snacks and dessert trays. Swiss cheese is the Americanized Emmental cheese. Jarlsburg: Although jarlsburg is a cow’s milk cheese from Norway, it’s taste, fat content, and appearance are similar to the Swiss Emmental. Jarlsburg is used on cheese boards, in sandwiches and cooking. Gruyere: Another Swiss cow’s milk cheese, Gruyere, has a mild, nutty taste, moist texture, and small holes. Because Gruyere melts easily, it is suitable for cooking. It also can be served as an appetizer and as a desert cheese. I use it in fondue. Monterey Jack: Monterey Jack is a rich cow’s milk cheese from California. It ranges from mild and pale to a sharp and pungent yellow cheese. Monterey Jack sometimes contains peppers or herbs for flavor. It melts well, making it an appropriate choice for cooking. Provolone: Provolone is a cow’s milk cheese from southern Italy. It has pale yellow color and flavor that ranges from mild to sharp, depending on age. Provolone also comes smoked and in a variety of shapes, including cones, rounds, and cylinders. Use provolone in cooking, as well is in sandwiches or as an appetizer. Semi-soft cheeses Semi-soft cheeses have a moisture content of 40% to 50%. Their texture is smooth and sliceable but not spreadable. Semi-soft cheeses can be classified into two groups: the smooth, buttery cheeses and the veined cheeses which owe their distinctive appearance and taste to the veins of blue or blue-green mold running through them. Smooth, Buttery Cheese Fontina: Fontina is a nutty, rich cow’s milk cheese from Italy. It has a slightly elastic touch and a few small holes. Use fontina on dessert trays and in cooking. Gouda: Gouda is a Dutch cow’s milk cheese with a pale-yellow color and a mellow, buttery flavor. Mature Gouda has a firmer texture and a more pronounced flavor. Gouda often is packaged in red or yellow wax-covered wheels. Use gouda in cooking and serve it as an appetizer, with fruit, and on dessert trays. Havarti: Havarti is a cow’s milk cheese from Denmark. This pale creamy cheese is filled with many small irregular holes. These are mechanical holes related to light pressing as opposed to the Swiss cheese holes resulting from ripening cultures that produce gasses that form the holes. It has a mild, buttery taste and sometimes is flavored with caraway seeds. Havarti makes a fine addition to a snack tray or sandwich. Veined Cheeses Gorgonzola: Gorgonzola is a blue veined cow’s milk cheese from Italy. It has a distinct aroma and a tangy, pungent flavor that is sharper in mature cheeses. Its texture is smoother than that of other blue-veined cheeses, such as Roquefort or Stilton. Gorgonzola is used in sauces, on cheese trays, with fruit, and in mixed salads. Roquefort: Though similar cheeses are produced elsewhere, EU law dictates that only those cheeses aged in the natural Combalou caves of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon may bear the name Roquefort, as it is a recognized geographical indication. As with Emmental, Camembert de Normandie and many others, it has a protected designation of origin. Made from sheep’s milk, Roquefort is a crumbly blue-veined cheese with a pungent taste and strong aroma. Use Roquefort in mixed salads, Roquefort dressing, cooking, and as an appetizer or dessert cheese. Stilton: Stilton is an English cow’s milk blue-veined cheese. It has a crumbly texture, edible rind, and pungent tang. Traditional compliments to Stilton are fruit, walnuts, and port. Fresh soft cheeses Fresh soft cheeses are unripened cheeses with mild flavors and a moisture content of 40% to 80%. The high moisture content gives these cheeses a soft texture and short shelf life. Cottage Cheese: Cottage cheese gets its name from the fact that it was originally a home or cottage-made cheese. Commercial cottage cheese is made from skim, low fat, reduced fat, or whole cow’s milk and has a bland taste. It comes packed in tubs in small, medium, and large curd forms swimming in cream. Cottage cheese can be used in cooking and as an accompaniment to fruit or raw vegetables and salad. Queso Fresco: queso fresco is literally Spanish for fresh cheese. It is a Mexican cheese, traditionally made from raw cow milk or combination of cow and goat milk. Queso fresco is a soft, moist, curd style fresh cheese that’s bright, creamy, and pleasantly milky. In traditional Mexican cuisine, queso fresco is used as a crumbled or cubed topping to balance out the flavors in rich and spicy dishes. It’s a perfect stuffing cheese because of its soft yet compact consistency. Today’s recipe is how to make this treat quickly and easily. Feta: Feta is a great cheese traditionally made from sheep’s milk or a combination of sheep and goats’ milk. After the curd forms, it is salted, sliced, and packed in salt brine. Feta is a crumbly, white cheese with a salty tang that grows stronger with age. It is used in cooked dishes and salads and as an accompaniment to olives and bread. Chevre: Chevre frais, French version of fresh cheese. It is fresh goat cheese. Chevre is soft and spreadable with a mild but characteristic goat cheese tang. Many times, you will find herb and spice flavored versions. Use chevre in cooking, as a spread with crackers and raw vegetables, or on sandwiches. Marscapone: Marscapone is an Italian cow’s milk cream cheese with a rich, creamy taste and the silky, smooth texture. Use marscapone in desserts such as tiramisu, in sauces, and as a spread. Marscapone can also be served plain, with a sprinkle of cocoa or liqueur. Neufchatel: Neufchatel is a cow’s milk cheese, similar to cream cheese, from the Neufchatel region of Normandy. Neufchatel has a soft, creamy texture, and slightly tart flavor that builds as the cheese ripens. Use it the same way as cream cheese. My recipe, Skillet Chicken with Neufchatel Spinach Artichoke Sauce, can be found here. Mozzarella: Mozzarella is the firmest of the fresh soft cheeses. Traditionally mozzarella is a small oval cheese made with water-buffalo’s milk, although cow’s milk is now a common substitute. Fresh mozzarella is white and quite mild. It melts well in cooked dishes and often is served in salads with fresh tomatoes and olive oil and as a cold appetizer. Commercial mozzarella has a much firmer texture and a blander flavor. That version is often used shredded in cooked dishes and on pizza. Ricotta: All of the other cheeses before this one have been made from the curd part of the “curds and whey”. Ricotta is an Italian cheese made from the whey part of the “curds and whey” left after making use of the curds for other cheeses, such as mozzarella and provolone. Its uses are similar to those of cottage cheese, but its flavor is slightly sweeter. Ricotta has a smooth, slightly grainy texture. Use ricotta in baked goods and in pasta dishes such as lasagna. Italians also serve ricotta as a dessert cheese, sprinkled with sugar or salt, and as a filling for pastry. Ripened soft cheeses Ripened soft cheeses have rich flavors and a buttery smoothness. They are characterized by thin rinds and soft, creamy centers. Brie: brie is a French cow’s milk cheese with a white crusty rind and a buttery texture that oozes at room temperature when the cheese is fully ripe. Brie has little flavor before it is ripe and will stop ripening once cut. Overripe brie develops a strong ammonia odor. Serve brie when its center begins to bulge slightly. Include brie on appetizer and dessert trays, in sauces, and in pastry. Brie should be served at room temperature. Camembert: Similar to brie, Camembert is a cow’s milk cheese that originated in the French village of Camembert. It has a slight tang and the pasteurized version is generally milder than brie. Its shape is round as is brie, but with a smaller diameter. Its uses mirror those of brie. St. Andre: St. Andre is a French triple-cream cheese with a white downy rind and a slightly sweet, buttery taste. It is most often served as a dessert cheese. Queso Fresco Want to make queso fresco at home? Here is an easy recipe to make this homemade cheese that is a popular topping for tacos, nachos, enchiladas and tostadas. Many Latin foods use this ingredient and it is so easy. What You Need • ½-gallon fresh whole, low-fat or skim milk • 1 tablespoon coarse salt • 3 Tbsp white vinegar What To Do 1. Assemble a cheese cloth lined colander. 2. Heat the milk and salt stirring constantly to prevent sticking. 3. Bring it to a boil, turn the heat to low, and add 3 tablespoons of distilled white vinegar. 4. Watch and stir. Almost immediately, the milk will separate into curds and whey. If not, add one more tablespoon of vinegar. Continue to stir gently to encourage whey extraction and curd formation. 5. Drain into the cheesecloth-lined colander in the sink. Let sit for 5-10 minutes, until the cheese is cool enough to handle. Form the curds into a ball or disc while squeezing excess whey through the cheesecloth. At this point the cheese is ready to eat, but if you prefer a drier, firmer cheese, you can set it on a plate or a sheet pan with a plate on top of it. Use some kind of weight — cans, pots and pans, or books — to press it down for 15 more minutes or up to a couple of hours. 6. Crumble over tacos or enchiladas, or sprinkle into a salad. Slice as a side with your morning sausage and eggs. Notes: This cheese is not a melting cheese. It is best enjoyed as is, fried or baked — just as long as you don’t need it to become gooey. Final Thoughts That’s a wrap for today’s podcast. I hope your holiday season is going well and you find it in your heart to help those less fortunate than you in whatever way you can. We are blessed with food that others need and, though time is often short, I’m making it happen and getting it to them. There is a lot more information on types of cheeses available for download in pdf form on our website. Link in the show notes. And give that queso fresco recipe a try. Less that a half hour and you can have your very own homemade cheese. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. Also, please share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. References • The Basics of Cheesemaking • Taste of Cheese Free Downloads • Skillet Chicken with Neufchatel Spinach Artichoke Sauce Recipe Link Queso Fresco To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

Raw Milk to Ultra-Pasteurized Milk and everything in between is the topic of today’s podcast. I’m going to talk all about all sorts of milk and milk products. I’ll give a brief definition of each one along with various commentary about development and uses of these nutrient-dense sources of food. But first, I want to welcome each and every new listener. I hope you enjoy this content and share it with your friends and family. And as always, a heart-felt welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. There is no show without you and your input. Exciting news is happening at the homestead. Are you ready? Let’s get to it. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • From Raw Milk to Ultra-Pasteurized Milk, and everything in between • Recipe – Crème Fraîche Homestead Life Updates It seems as though we skipped from summer to winter with only a few days of fall in between. Oh well, perhaps it will be warmer in December. Sometimes it is. When I first moved to Virginia, we experienced winters that had about 5 days of weather that would get down into the 20’s at night. Occasionally, we would have a night where it slipped into the teens. The past couple of years we have had some really cold winters with many days in the low-teens and even single digits at night with highs in the 20’s. This year, this fall, we have already had nights in the 20’s if you can believe it. Who knows what the winter will hold? Perhaps it will actually be warmer. The Cows Any day now we will have a new calf. Cloud is showing signs of the last stages. She moves very slowly and with difficulty as the calf has dropped down quite a bit. She waddles. Her udder is larger than Violet’s at this late point in her lactation cycle. Violet’s udder was larger at the onset of her lactation. She is at the end of her lactation cycle and producing much less milk at this point. The Quail The quail are doing well with the cold. Unfortunately, we lost 4 of the 6 to a predator. It happens. There were signs of an animal laying underneath the top cage. There are two sets of cages one on top of the other. Under the top cage is a slanted board with plastic so we can scrape off the manure. It looks like that plan will have to be modified in some way if predators are going to reach up from underneath and snag the birds. Anyway, the remaining two were put in with the main flocks on the lower level and all are doing well. Their waste goes straight through the bottom of the cage to the ground. There is extra board below them so no way to get up underneath that bottom set of cages. They are well off of the ground. The Sheep, Goats, and Donkeys All are doing well. I don’t remember if I mentioned that we lost a couple of lambs to predators. The rest are doing fine. The donkeys have been really good at keeping the predators away from the sheep and lambs. I’m not sure what happened there. The Creamery The inner walls are complete. Scott is going to take a break from all that block work and start back on fencing. The work is never done. While fixing fence he will also be creating firewood. We have been using standard heating during the unseasonably cold fall weather. But soon we will have wood to use in the wood stove for heating. It will be so warm and toasty in here. For the past week or so I’ve been closing myself into the office and running the small heater that we have in there to keep warm while the rest of the house is about 68 degrees. That’s really cold for me. It probably wouldn’t be so bad if I just surrendered and put some socks on to keep my feet warm. I don’t know about you, but when my feet and hands get cold the rest of me feels like it is freezing and will never be warm again. Enough about that. Let’s get on to today’s topic. From Raw Milk to Ultra-Pasteurized Milk And everything in between Dairy products have long been favored for their contributions to the human diet. Cave paintings made in the Libyan Sahara in 5000 BC show people milking animals and making cheese. Some research indicates that goats and sheep provided the first dairy products for humans. Later, cows supplied dairy products for much of the world. Before refrigeration was invented milk spoiled rapidly. However, we humans quickly learned to preserve milk by making butter, ghee, cheese and other fermented products. By the first century A.D., the Romans were master cheesemakers, even using cheese presses to aid in separating the whey from the curd. Over the years, people have experimented with many variations in milk—and cheesemaking processes. (See my podcast on The History of Cheese. Link in the show notes.) As a result, a great diversity of fermented milk and cheese products are available today. I gave the basics of cheese styles in a previous podcast. In a future podcast, I’ll go over more details of some common cheeses you might find in your local supermarket and what distinguishes them one from another. I’ll include information on our lovely cheeses as well. Milk Milk is a dairy product that is valued as a nutritious beverage, and ingredient in cooking, and the foundation of other dairy products, including butter, cheese, and yogurt. The composition of milk varies, depending on the type of animal, the breed, the animal’s diet, the season, and even the time of day the animal is milked. Unless I mention it as otherwise, milk in this podcast is about cow’s milk. Cow’s milk from a grocery in the US is composed primarily of water (88%). It contains about 3.5% milk fat and about 8.5% milk solids in the form of proteins (primarily casein), lactose (milk sugar), minerals, and vitamins. Milk provides a rich source of calcium, as well as vitamins A, D, E, K, C, and B. Commercial milk is fortified with additional vitamin D. To replace the vitamin A drawn off with the removal of milk fat, low fat and skim milk products are fortified with vitamin A. Casein is the primary protein in milk. It causes milk to clump and curdle in the presence of acid, too much salt, or too-high heat. When milk is heated, a skin can form on top. The skin is actually coagulated protein and fat. Milk also can coagulate and then burn on the bottom of a pan if you are not careful when heating it. Continuous stirring, heavy cookware, moderate heat, and minimal cook times help limit coagulation. Milk Processing Methods Milk, like all food products, provides a favorable host for the growth of bacteria, some of which can cause serious illness. Because of this, almost all milk is treated with some kind of pasteurization to kill bacteria and increase its shelf life. Pasteurization In the 1860s, French chemist Louis Pasteur discovered a way to use heat to prevent spoilage of beer and wine without destroying their flavor. Pasteurization applies the same theory to the treatment of milk. Personally, I think pasteurization does destroy the flavor of milk. See my previous podcast, Benefits of Raw Milk, for more on that. The law requires all Grade A milk to be pasteurized. In fact, nearly all milk sold commercially in Western countries is pasteurized. The most common pasteurization technique heats milk to 161°F for 15 seconds and then rapidly cools the milk to 45°F. Pasteurization is used to kill bacteria and extends the keeping qualities of milk by killing naturally occurring enzymes that cause milk to sour and ferment. Unlike raw milk, pasteurized milk does not become sour and naturally ferment into other products. Pasteurized milk, properly refrigerated, keeps for about a week before it rots and becomes completely unusable even for cooking. Ultra-pasteurization Ultra-pasteurization is often used to extend the shelf life of cream. Ultra-pasteurization subjects dairy products to much higher temperatures for shorter periods, destroying nearly all bacteria. Unopened, refrigerated ultra-pasteurized milk and cream stays fresh for 2 to 3 months. Once opened, the product will stay fresh about as long as conventionally pasteurized milk products. Ultra High Temperature Processing Ultra high temperature (UHT) processing combines the process of ultra-pasteurization with specialized packaging. Holding the milk for 2 to 6 seconds at 280°F to 300°F sterilizes it. Hermetically sealed sterile containers block out bacteria, gases, and light. Unopened UHT milk can safely be stored without refrigeration for up to three months. After it is opened, you handle UHT milk in the same way as conventionally pasteurized milk products. If you are making your own cheese at home, never use UHT milk. It has been damaged too badly to be useful in making cheese, yogurt and so on. Homogenization In raw milk, the milk fat particles float to the top, creating a layer of cream sometimes called the “cream line.” This happens because the fat globules, which are lighter than the surrounding water, are too large to stay suspended in the emulsion. To prevent the separation of milk fat, most commercially sold milk is homogenized. Homogenization breaks down fat globules by forcing the warm milk through a very fine nozzle. This process reduces the fat particles to 1/10 their original size, thus allowing the milk fat to stay suspended in liquid. Removal of Milk Fat Removing milk fat fills the demand for additional variety in milk and cream products. To remove milk fat, milk is processed in a separator, a type of centrifuge. The milk spins at high speeds, causing the lighter milk to collect at the outer wall of the separator, while the denser cream collects in the center, where it is piped off. Modern separators can produce a range of milk products from whole milk to low-fat or reduced fat to skim. Description of Milk Products Liquid Whole Milk Whole milk contains not less than 3.25% milk fat and 8.25% milk solids. Vitamins A and D are optional additions, as our flavoring ingredients, such as chocolate. Liquid Low-Fat Or Reduced-Fat Milk Milk with some fat removed will contain between 0.5% and 2% milk fat and not less than 8.25% milk solids. Common low-fat milk includes 1% milk; reduced fat milk includes 2% milk. Low-fat and reduced-fat milks must contain added vitamin A and vitamin D is optional. Liquid Skim Milk Skim milk is also called fat-free or nonfat milk. All or most of the fat has been removed. Skim milk is less than 0.5% milk fat and not less than 8.25% milk solids. Vitamin A must be added. Vitamin D is optional. Evaporated Milk Canned concentrated milk, called evaporated milk, is formed by evaporating about 60% of the water from whole or skim milk. It has a cooked flavor and darker color than regular milk. Evaporated or condensed whole milk contains at least twice the milk fat and solids of whole milk – 6.5% milk fat and 16.5% milk solids. Sweetened Condensed Milk Sweetened condensed milk is whole milk with 60% of its water removed and a large quantity of sugar added. It’s pasteurized and usually sold in cans. Sweetened condensed milk is not an acceptable substitute for whole or evaporated milk because of the added sugar. Dry Milk Powder Milk with nearly all moisture removed is called powered milk or dry milk. It is usually made from skim milk, although whole milk powder is also available. Dry milk can be used to enrich baked goods or it can be reconstituted in water. Varieties of Cream Half-And-Half A mixture of milk and cream is labeled half-and-half. It contains at least 10.5% but no more than 18% milk fat. We use it in coffee. Some use it in cereal. It is often used in baking and as an enrichment to other foods. Light Cream The next step up in thickness of cream is light cream. Also called coffee cream or table cream. It contains between 18% and 30% milk fat. It is also used in baking and as an enrichment for other foods. The higher you go in cream content the higher you go in calories. So, keep that in mind when deciding whether to use it in coffee or cereal. Light Whipping Cream Light whipping cream, also just called whipping cream, contains between 30% and 36% milk fat. It can be whipped or used to make sauces, ice cream, and other desserts. Heavy Whipping Cream Heavy whipping cream (HWC for the keto/carnivore crowds) is also called heavy cream. It contains at least 36% milk fat. As you would expect, it whips well and is used as a topping for desserts. It is also used for thickening, and as enrichment for sauces and various desserts. Other Milks All female mammals produce milk to feed their young, so it is not surprising that humans over the years have taken and continue to take milk from a variety of species. People in parts of Africa and the Middle East prize camel milk. Some groups in northern Scandinavia and Russia milk reindeer. It is said that Genghis Khan and the Mongolians conquered vast lands living on meat, blood and mare’s milk. Although cow’s milk is the most common today, people in many parts of the world use milk from sheep, water buffalo, and goats. Sheep’s Milk Sheep’s milk is higher in fat (6.5%) and protein (5.8%) content than cow’s milk. People drink sheep’s milk and make yogurt and cheese from it. True Roquefort cheese is made from sheep’s milk. Feta is traditionally made with sheep’s milk or a mixture of sheep’s and goat’s milk. Water Buffalo’s Milk Water buffalo’s milk has a high percentage of fat (7.2%) and a protein count comparable to that of cow’s milk (3.8%). Provolone cheese was first made with water buffalo’s milk. Today Italy prides itself on making the highest quality mozzarella cheese from water buffalo milk. Goat’s Milk Goat’s milk contains a similar amount of fat and protein as cow’s milk, but the smaller fat globules in goat’s milk stay suspended, making homogenization unnecessary. Cheese made from goat’s milk is referred to as chèvre (the French word for “goat”) and is noted for its sharp, tangy flavor. Cultured Products Fermented dairy products, also called cultured dairy products, are the result of adding a starter bacterial culture to fluid dairy products. Under the right temperature conditions, these lactic acid producing bacteria reproduce rapidly, causing milk or cream to ferment. The fermentation process gives dairy products a tangy flavor and thicker consistency. Buttermilk, yogurt, sour cream, and crème fraîche are the most common cultured dairy products. Buttermilk Traditionally, buttermilk was a byproduct of the butter-making process. Today people make buttermilk by introducing starter cultures from bacterial strains into skim or low-fat milk and then holding the milk at a controlled temperature for 12 to 14 hours. Buttermilk adds a distinctive, tart taste to baked goods and other dishes. Some people enjoy buttermilk as a beverage. Yogurt Yogurt adds a tangy flavor to sauces and other dishes and provides a low-fat substitute for sour cream. Yogurt is made by the same process as that for buttermilk but with different bacterial strains. This causes the milk to ferment and coagulate into a custard like consistency. Some yogurt contains live active bacteria. Medical research shows that yogurt with live active cultures helps the body produce lactase, an enzyme that breaks down lactose. This aids digestion, especially in those who have difficulty digesting milk products because of lactose intolerance. Research also suggests that eating yogurt with live active culture speeds recovery from some forms of intestinal illness. Sour Cream Sour cream is made using the same process and bacteria as those for buttermilk, but it typically uses cream with 18% milk fat as its base. Sour cream is smooth, thick, and tangy. Crème Fraîche Commercial crème fraîche is cultured, heavy cream that resembles a thinner, richer version of sour cream. Widely available in Europe, crème fraîche is expensive in the United States. Better to make it yourself with this easy recipe. Crème Fraîche Recipe Use it anywhere you would use sour cream. Because sour cream has less fat but more protein, simmering or boiling it will result in curdling. Crème fraîche is a better choice for sauces or soups. In France, crème fraîche was traditionally made from unpasteurized cream that naturally contained the right bacteria to thicken it. Since our cream is pasteurized here in the US, this crème fraîche is made by adding a fermenting agent with bacteria to heavy cream. What You Need • 2 cups heavy cream • 3 tablespoons cultured buttermilk What To Do 1. In a glass jar, combine the buttermilk with the heavy cream. 2. Cover the jar tightly with cheesecloth or other breathable material. Let sit at room temperature (70 to 75 degrees) for 24 hours. 3. Remove cloth, stir. It will be thick but will get thicker. Screw on a lid, and refrigerate for another 24 hours before using. Final Thoughts Whew that was a lot of information about milk and milk products packed into one podcast. You might want to listen to that again and take notes. Or hop over to peacefulheartfarm.com and click or tap “Podcast” on the menu to read and bookmark the show notes. The homestead is perking along well. I’m so excited about the impending arrival of a newborn calf. Even though she wasn’t planned, life is precious to us and we will welcome this calf with open arms. We will figure out what to do with her. I’m sure it’s going to be a heifer. Ok, I’m not really sure. We don’t do ultrasounds to determine the sex of our calves, but it’s great to say out loud what I want. I hope you’ll experiment with brewing up some homemade crème fraîche. Remember, don’t use ultra-high temperature pasteurized cream. It simply will not produce the product you are looking to create. If you enjoyed this podcast, please go to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. And the best way to help out this show is to share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. References • The History of Cheese • Benefits of Raw Milk Podcast Recipe Link Crème Fraîche To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

Last time it was all about whether raw milk is safe and this week it’s about the benefits of raw milk. There are quite a few, though I only need one. Taste is the one for me. But as I said, there are lots of benefits of raw milk. Before I get into our homestead updates, I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every episode. I appreciate you all so much. And if you love this content, the best thing you can do to help us in getting the word out is to share, share, share it on all of your social media. There is so much talk today of whose voice might be throttled. But I’m here to tell you that when you share content that you like, there is no way for anyone to silence it. Onward. I’m so excited to share with YOU what’s going on at the farm this week, the benefits of raw milk and a recipe for vanilla cream cheesecake fat bombs. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Benefits of Raw Milk • Vanilla Cream Cheesecake Fat Bombs Homestead Life Updates It’s fall here in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The leaves reached their peak last week. Today the ground is covered with the nourishing foliage that has fallen to return nutrients to the land, providing the next year’s food for each and every plant and tree. It is the absolute best time of year. Tourists come from all over the world to visit our little place of heaven on Earth at this time each year. Cows We are still waiting on our new calf. It is still obvious she is pregnant, but the signs of imminent birth are still lacking. It’s an adventure every day waiting on her udder to fill up to bursting. Even then it can be a week or more before that calf appears. I’m praying for a heifer. That’s a girl for you city-folk. We always want girls. They are either added to our herd of beauties or sold to another farm to increase their herd. Bulls are sold to others as well, but we still prefer the option of adding to the herd. On a homestead, one bull may be one too many. In the future we will be breeding all of our girls via artificial insemination with sexed semen. It gives us much greater control of our genetics. We want heifers and we want cows that have A2A2 genetics. If you are not familiar with that I refer you to my podcast on “What is A2A2 Milk?”. Link in the show notes. Other Livestock The sheep, goats, and donkeys have wonderful winter coats. They look ready for the winter. The goat girls in particular look fat and sassy. We still have grass for them, but hay is standing by when they finish eating all of the summer grass. It’s kind of like hay still standing in the field that was never baled and there is some green grass. They have variety in their diet right now with the tall dried stuff and the fresh green stuff lower down as their dessert. Quail The quail are still not laying any eggs to speak of, but that may change in the next week or so. Scott changed the setup of the lights. Still it takes a week, 10 days or even longer to produce an egg. We shall see. The new babies – who are no longer babies – will be going outside in the next few days. They are fully feathered and we have turned off their warming lamp. So far all is good. They are hardy and will adapt to the cooler temps just fine. Creamery Please follow us on Facebook to see the pictorial view of the creamery. In less than 2 weeks, weather permitting, the rest of the inside walls should be complete. Isn’t that amazing. It seems like only last month that I was walking around our there with no walls at all. Now I can clearly experience each and every room. On with today’s topic, the Benefits of Raw Milk. Benefits of Raw Milk Last time I talked about the dangers and time I want to talk about the benefits of raw milk. There are dangers in consuming any food. However, as small as the risk of drinking raw milk is, we still need to answer the question: why take the risk? What benefits does raw milk have over pasteurized milk that have convinced so many people in the US and around the world to actively seek it out? Why drink raw milk in the first place? Today I will cover a variety of reasons. Different people will resonate with different reasons, depending on their value system, worldview and priorities. Here are the highlights: • Raw Milk Nutrition • Lactose Tolerance • Overall Health • Flavor • Community • Environment • Ethics That’s quite the list so let’s get started. Raw Milk Nutrition Many consumers believe that raw milk is higher in nutritional content than conventional milk, which may have some merit. This is especially true when applied to operations such as ours which are very small and pasture-based. Our cows graze every day, all day on grass or stored and preserved grass called hay. There is evidence that milk from grass-fed cows is likely to have higher levels of fat-soluble vitamins and other nutrients. Grass-fed cow products have been shown to have higher levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and essential fatty acids in their milk. CLA is important because it helps your body build muscle rather than store fat and has anti-inflammatory properties. The best natural sources of CLA are grass-fed beef, butter and full-fat dairy products such as cheese and yogurt. Here is a quote from a study published in 2006 titled “Modifying milk composition through forage” (Link in the show notes.) “The fatty acid (FA) composition of cows milk has become less favorable to human health in the last four decades due to changed feeding and management practices, notably higher proportions of concentrates and silages in diets with less grazing.” Another quote from this abstract is quite interesting to small farmers like myself. There are financial benefits when you produce a superior product. “Farmers from some dairy cooperatives in The Netherlands that produce milk from grazed grass now receive a premium payment in addition to the base milk price, so that primary producers can benefit from the higher market value at the end of the production chain.” On that note, I’ll include another link from a paper published by the National Institutes of Health, “Conjugated linoleic acid content of milk from cows fed different diets.” The pasteurization process also reduces the nutritional quality of milk products. Research has shown a decrease in manganese, copper, and iron after heat treatment. The FDA acknowledges that pasteurization destroys a substantial portion of the vitamin C in milk, and sterilization via pasteurization is also known to significantly impair the bioactivity of the vitamin B6 contained in fresh, raw milk. Beta-lactoglobulin is a heat-sensitive protein found in milk. It is destroyed by pasteurization. Why is it important? It increases absorption of vitamin A. The bottom line is that the supplemental vitamin A added to conventional milk may be harder to absorb. Lactose Tolerance Many people experience digestive and other problems when they consume pasteurized milk, but have no trouble with raw milk. There is no one answer as to why this is the case. The FDA insists that unpasteurized milk has no probiotic effect or any other characteristic that could explain this phenomenon. But the collective experience of raw milk consumers suggests otherwise. The Weston A. Price Foundation conducted an informal survey of over 700 families, and determined that over eighty percent of those diagnosed with lactose intolerance no longer suffer from symptoms after switching to raw milk. The “Lactose Intolerance Survey” was published in March 2008 (Link in show notes.) It's hard to make decisions these days. The Weston A Price Survey included over 700 families and I don’t know how many total people. They say “Yay”. Stanford University performed a clinical study to help determine whether raw milk reduces the incidence of lactose intolerance. They had a whopping 16 people in their “study” which said no difference in symptom severity between pasteurized and unpasteurized milk. I found it hilarious that they included soy “milk” in their study and found no lactose intolerance symptoms in that part of the study. UMMMM Let me see. Perhaps that’s because soy is a bean and not milk, therefore no lactose involved and no lactose intolerance. Anyway, I laugh at these “studies” that are produced these days. But you will be told that you must believe the science. Health There is substantial epidemiological evidence from studies in Europe that consumption of raw milk during childhood may protect against asthma, allergies and other immune-mediated diseases. A large cross-sectional study demonstrated a significant inverse association between “farm milk” consumption and childhood asthma, rhinoconjunctivitis, sensitization to pollen and other allergens. That study “Inverse association of farm milk consumption with asthma and allergy in rural and suburban populations across Europe” is also found on the National Institutes of Health website, link in the show notes. While we must always remember that correlation does not prove causation, the findings were consistent across children from farming and non-farming environments, indicating that farm milk consumption may have had an independent effect on allergy development. Flavor Many people think that raw milk has a better flavor and texture in comparison to pasteurized, homogenized milk. The words “fresh”, “real”, “alive” and “rich” are often used to describe it. There also exists a subtle shift in flavor of the milk through the seasons as the grasses change. Consumer research demonstrates that flavor is one of the top reasons that consumers choose raw milk whenever possible. I’m sure those of you who drink raw milk can attest to the significant flavor differences between raw, fresh from the cow and the store-bought stuff. While flavor alone is not reason enough for choosing raw milk, it is clearly a driving force in my decisions and perhaps yours as well. Community Raw milk is almost exclusively produced by local farmers. A growing segment of the population is choosing to support local, family farms and businesses over multi-national conglomerates. In Virginia, we support it by actually buying stock in the farm. Literally, buying part of the herd. Our herd share owners are reconnected with their food supply. They are stimulating the local economy and promoting sustainable farming practices. Environment Similar to above, consuming milk that is produced by local farmers using sustainable methods has far less of an environmental impact than drinking milk produced in large confinement feeding operations thousands of miles away. Conventional dairy operations are highly destructive to the environment. Air and water pollution from dust and feedlot manure, plus fertilizers and pesticides used in grain production, are damaging to the environment and to the health of farmers, farm workers, and nearby residents. Manure runoff into water can cause the death of aquatic life, as well as contamination of drinking water by nitrate, harmful microorganisms, and antibiotics and hormones. Raising dairy cows on well-managed pastures decreases soil erosion, increases soil fertility, and improves water quality due to decreased pollution. Cows grazing on pasture reduce the energy needed to grow large acreages of grains. Large-scale, confinement dairy operations are energy intensive. Ethics Cows that live on small farms and spend their days on green pasture live a happier and healthier life than those that live in overcrowded and inhumane “factory farm” conditions. This is important to those of us that care how animals are treated. When confined in small spaces under stressful conditions, cows often become ill and are treated with large quantities of antibiotics. Pasture-raised cows have longer lifespans than conventionally raised cows, as corn-based diets contribute to health problems, and breeding practices designed to maximize milk production have caused reproductive problems. Our Normande cows and bulls are often sought out by dairy farmers looking to improve the depleted genetics of their herds. As far as I know we have never sold any of our livestock to a conventional dairy. There are plenty of horror stories and disturbing videos that portray the inhumane treatment of cows in conventional dairy operations. Working with our small farm or one in your area assures you, the compassionate consumer, that the animals are properly treated. Putting It All Together Any one of these reasons might be enough justification for choosing raw milk for a given individual or family. But when viewed together, it’s easy to understand why raw milk consumption has increased so significantly over the last two decades. Consuming unpasteurized milk and dairy products has several positive benefits that, for many people, far outweigh the possible risks. As I have said often, you must consider both the positive and negative qualities of raw milk consumption when making the decision for you and your family. Please let me know if you have questions. On to our recipe of the day. Vanilla Cream Cheesecake Fat Bombs Those living the Keto lifestyle will understand what I just said. For those of you unfamiliar, living the keto lifestyle involves getting your body into ketosis and keeping it there. When you body is in a state of ketosis, you burn fat for fuel instead of carbohydrates. It completely alters your reality around food. Carb burners are constantly looking for and planning their next food fix. Keto fat burners may only eat once or twice a day and never think about food between meals. It can be quite freeing mentally. So much of my time used to be wrapped up in thinking about food. Now it is more of a bother. Having said that, we do want to plan ahead so that when that urge to eat finally does hit, we can get something quick and then get back to doing other things with our lives. This recipe will help with that. These delicious vanilla cheesecake fat bombs are high on taste and will give you a long-lasting boost of energy. They are deliciously creamy and taste just like cheesecake. A word of caution to anyone not living the keto lifestyle. If you are primarily burning carbohydrates and just add a lot fat such as in these luscious fat bombs, you will not induce ketosis and you will likely put on weight. There is a science to it. Ketosis first, then fat bombs for fun. What You Need • 8 oz cream cheese, softened • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract • 2 oz erythritol (or other no carb sweetener of choice) • 1 cup heavy whipping cream What To Do 1. Add cream cheese, vanilla and sweetener together in a mixing bowl. Mix on low speed for 2 minutes or until you reach a smooth consistent texture. 2. Add half the heavy whipping cream and mix for another 2 minutes. Let the mixture sit for 3-5 minutes to allow the erythritol time to dissolve. 3. Add the other half of the heavy whipping cream and mix on medium speed for 3 minutes or until the mixture is thick with firm peaks. 4. Gently spoon mixture into molds of your choice. Set in the fridge for at least 1 hour. Notes Suggested molds: mini cupcake pan with liners or 2 oz acrylic soap molds. The cupcake method with liners is much less messy. Final Thoughts That’s it for today’s podcast on the benefits of raw milk. I hope you enjoyed learning more about our homestead and our wonderful animals. I can’t tell you what a joy it is for us every single day as we go about living the sustainable life in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. We love sharing it all with you. Let me know why you do or do not drink raw milk. And feel free to ask questions if you haven’t decided and would like more information. I’m always happy to help in any way that I can. If you are like me then you don’t trust much coming out of today’s industrial food systems. As much as possible I raise my own and buy what I don’t produce from those that I trust. Visit us at the farmer’s market in Wytheville, Virginia. Get to know us and the other producers in the area. Find out why and how we do what we do. Ask questions and get to know all of us personally. We’d love to meet you. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. Also, please share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. References • Science Direct: Modifying milk composition through forage • National Institutes of Health: Conjugated linoleic acid content of milk from cows fed different diets. • Weston A Price: Lactose Intolerance Survey • National Institutes of Health: Inverse association of farm milk consumption with asthma and allergy in rural and suburban populations across Europe Recipe Link Vanilla Cream Cheesecake Fat Bombs To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and all of your social media To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

Is raw milk dangerous is a question that many are asking. There is a surge in desire for this luscious and nutritious food – but what about all of the horrible stories of tragedies and loss connected with consuming raw milk? That’s our topic of the day. But first, I want to welcome everyone who is a new listener. I hope you enjoy this content. And as always, a heart-felt welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. There is no show without you and your input. There is a lot of exciting news to share with you about what is going on at the farm this week. So, let’s get to it. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Is Raw Milk Dangerous? • Lamb Chops with Balsamic Reduction Homestead Life Updates We had quite the scare last night. All of a sudden, we had no water. Scott went to the tap, turned it on, and only a dribble came out. Less than two hours earlier I remembered filling my water glass with no issues. He immediately went out to check on the water hoses. We have quite of few of them attached at the pump that bring water to various areas of the homestead. Some go to the animals and one goes to the garden. I think there may be one in the orchard. At least one other is attached to the house. These are the usual culprits. One of them will burst or a coupling disintegrates and falls apart spewing gallons and gallons of water everywhere. If we don’t notice right away, the well can temporarily go dry. In this case, Scott checked all of the hoses and didn’t find any issues. He turned them off anyway. The next plan was to replace the breaker for the well pump. It is on its own 220 circuit. However, some time during the night the water returned. We are grateful. It was an interesting experience. Usually when we don’t have water it is because the power if off. Habitually I would want to turn on the water and had to remind myself that we had none. When we have no power, it’s easy to remember we also have no water. It was a really strange brain thing. Let me give you an update on the animals. The Quail We have 6 baby quail in the brooder at the moment. There were originally 8 but we lost two. This particular batch of eggs was not very fertile. As the amount of light diminishes each day due to the changing of the seasons, the number of eggs laid and their fertility drops dramatically. I knew it would drop. However, the amount that it dropped was astounding to me. I expected the loss of egg production, not so much the lack of fertility. So often, even though we’ve read up on a topic and have the proper information, it is not until we go outside those boundaries ourselves do we realize the truth of the information. Back in the summer, we had 8 or 9 laying hens that were producing about 7 eggs per day. Not bad. That’s nearly one per day for each hen. That’s typical. A little over a month ago we added a new batch of young hens to the mix. They were about 8 weeks old and at the age to start laying eggs. Our daily haul should have increased. Unfortunately, this was also about the time that the light started really diminishing. At the present time having increased the laying hens to 15 laying hens, we are getting 1 egg every day or so. That’s what I call a dramatic drop in egg production. It will continue all winter unless we add some light for them. We have a plan there. I’ll let you know how it goes. The Cows Cloud is still pregnant. Her belly is very big in circumference, but there is no way of knowing how far along she is unless we get a vet out here. A woman can start to “show” in the 4th or 5th month, it begins to be impossible to miss that she is pregnant at 6 months and the 7th through 9th month is where stretch marks are developed because of the rapid growth in the size of your baby. With cows, the late development of size and weight of the fetus is even more prominent. While a calf fetus is continually growing in size throughout the pregnancy, it is slow in the beginning. Over 75% of the calf’s total weight gain and growth takes place in the last trimester. And like human women, that is in month 7 through 9. A cow’s gestation cycle averages 283 days. I’m guessing that Cloud is in her last month at this point. I could be wrong but that is my best guess. In any case, we are ready in the milking parlor. She is now trained to come in and stand quietly while we wash and clean her udder like we would any other cow. The only thing she is not experiencing at the point is the actual inflations on her teats. She has heard the sound of the machine over and over many times. We do not anticipate big problems when the event does eventually take place. The Sheep, Goats, and Donkeys The sheep, goats and donkeys are doing well. The goats go into any grazing paddock that they choose – no matter the fencing structure. They are goats. Respecting fences is not part of their nature. Thank goodness at this point, while they move between divided paddocks, they at least stay within the perimeter fencing. I should probably knock on wood with that statement. The sheep are plugging along. Let us know if you are interested in grass-fed and finished lamb. We are just about ready to take a few for processing. Holiday season is upon us and lamb is a religious tradition for lots of folks. Again, let us know. You can visit the website at peacefulheartfarm.com/store or send us an email (melanie@peacefulheartfarm.com). The donkeys are growing their winter coat and putting on some winter fat. They are the friendliest animals on the farm. I hope you get to come out and see them some time. The Creamery The inner walls are rising out of the dust. It won’t be long now. Scott has laid the bottom row of the remaining walls. Two or three more weeks and they will be complete. It will be a building with walls and no roof. Is winter the best time to build a roof? I don’t know I’ll have to ask Scott. I’m just so excited to see these walls. The rooms are now defined. In the spring perhaps we will be able to milk the cows in the new barn and milking parlor. That will be a treat. Milking is such a peaceful time and the milk produced is so nutritious and delicious. And the cheese… yum, yum. Is Raw Milk Dangerous? This is a question I think everyone who consumes raw milk has asked themselves or others. We know the reality is that we have been drinking milk straight from the cow for thousands of years. But in September 1987 it became federal law that any milk transported across state lines must be pasteurized. Intrastate sales then and now are still regulated by the individual states. I’ve talked a bit about this in a couple of previous podcasts. Depending on the particular State, there are various legal ways to obtain raw for your family. There has been – and indeed continues to be – quite the scare campaign surrounding the consumption of milk straight from the cow. Each person will have to decide for themselves what is best for them. I make no judgements and everyone knows I love it. In fact, I love it so much that it can become a problem for my waistline. But let’s get to the studies and the data and see what we can see. The Studies and the Headlines In February 2012, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) published a study targeting raw milk as dangerous and unsafe for human consumption. The media hype surrounding it was typical. Fearful headlines that get clicks and sell papers were seen. Here are some examples: “Raw Milk Causes Most Illnesses from Dairy, Study Finds.” – USA Today “CDC: Raw Milk Much More Likely to Cause Illness.” – Food Safety News “Raw Milk is a Raw Deal, CDC Says.” – LiveScience Two of these headlines are technically accurate – raw milk is responsible for more illnesses than pasteurized milk when the number of people who consume each is taken into account. The problem begins with the dramatic overstatements and sensationalism of the findings. Every food we consume comes with risks. But for most, we never even think about it until we see the news article about the recall of spinach, beef or some other product we have in our refrigerator. If you only saw the headlines from the CDC and FDA reports, you’d be left with the impression that raw milk is a dangerous food and anyone that consumes it or gives it to their children is reckless and irresponsible. In this podcast, I’ll present the other side of the argument, and give you the bare facts as I see them. I can’t say I am without bias but I will endeavor to convey the information without dramatic hyperbole so you can make an informed decision about whether unpasteurized milk is a good choice for you and your family. I’m not here to convince you to drink raw milk. Again, that’s a decision each individual has to make on their own by weighing the potential risks against the potential benefits. This podcast will cover the risks and another will focus on the benefits. Gaining Perspective Let’s start with putting the current discussion of unpasteurized milk safety into a wider context. Foodborne illness is a concern for many types of food. In 2008 the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) performed a review of foodborne disease outbreaks in the U.S. Seafood, produce and poultry were associated with the most outbreaks. Produce is responsible for the greatest number of illnesses each year (2,062), with nearly twice as many illnesses as poultry (1,112). Dairy products are at the bottom of the list. They cause the fewest outbreaks and illnesses of all the major food categories – beef, eggs, poultry, produce and seafood. According to the CDC, during the period from 1990 − 2006, there were 24,000 foodborne illnesses reported each year on average. Of those, 315 per year are from dairy products. This means dairy products account for about 1.3% of foodborne illnesses each year. That’s not exactly an alarming number, considering that more than 75% of the population consumes dairy products regularly. It’s also important to note that the outbreaks and illnesses associated with dairy products are generally mild compared to other foods. According to the CSPI report above, approximately 5,000 people are killed every year by foodborne illness. From 2009 − 2011, three high profile outbreaks involving peanuts, eggs and cantaloupe alone accounted for 2,729 illnesses and 39 deaths. (1) Yet there have only been a handful of deaths from pasteurized dairy products in the last decade, and there hasn’t been a single death attributed to raw fluid milk since the mid-1980s, in spite of the fact that almost 10 million people are now consuming it regularly. The takeaway is that thousands of people are killed each year by foodborne illness, but they’re dying from eating fruits, nuts, eggs, meat, poultry, fish and shellfish – not from drinking unpasteurized milk. The CDC report Sensationalized The data in these studies will always be suspect in my mind. An “illness” in these data can mean everything from an upset stomach to mild diarrhea to hospitalization for serious disease. Most food borne illnesses go unreported and one of the reasons is that they are only a passing nuisance. Have you ever had a bout of diarrhea that you suspect was caused by something you ate? I have. Did you report it to your doctor or the county public health department? Probably not. I didn’t. It was over in less than 24 hours and I simply vowed not to purchase spinach from Walmart ever again. The statistic I am most concerned with is hospitalizations for serious illnesses. Kidney failure and hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS) caused by unpasteurized milk does happen, and children and the elderly are particularly vulnerable and more likely to suffer. That said, hospitalizations from raw milk are extremely rare. During the 2000 − 2007 period of the referenced study, there were 12 hospitalizations for illnesses associated with raw fluid milk. That’s an average of 1.5 per year. If approximately 9.4 million people are drinking raw milk, that would mean you have about a 1 in 6 million chance of being hospitalized from drinking raw milk. To add to the perspective, your chances of dying in a motor vehicle accident are 750 times higher than your chances of becoming hospitalized from drinking raw milk. Raw Milk Risk Compared to Other foods According to the CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly (MMWR), from 2006 − 2008 there were an average of 13 outbreaks and 291 illnesses per year associated with shellfish and mollusks. According to the CDC FoodNet Survey, about 5.7% of the population (17,869,500) consumes shellfish. This means you had a roughly 1 in 61,000 chance of becoming ill from eating shellfish What about other more commonly eaten foods? I’ll use a chart from the CSPI report I referenced earlier. The chart will be in the show notes. This document charts the relative incidence of various foodborne illnesses from 1999 – 2006, adjusted for consumption. Results: • Seafood caused 29 times more illnesses than dairy • Poultry caused 15 times more illnesses than dairy • Eggs caused 13 times more illnesses than dairy • Beef caused 11 times more illnesses than dairy • Pork caused 8 times more illnesses than dairy • Produce caused 4 times more illnesses than dairy What this chart clearly shows is that dairy just might be at the bottom of your list of your concerns regarding foodborne illness. I hope this helps you better understand the risk of drinking unpasteurized milk within the context of other risks that most of us take on a daily basis without a second thought. Lamb Chops with Balsamic Reduction This recipe for lamb chops is a favorite on our homestead. The title sound fancy but it is an easy and quick recipe for two people (we eat two chops each). Rosemary, basil and thyme give it great flavor. What You Need Chops: • 4 lamb chops (3/4” thick) • 3/4 tsp dried rosemary • 1/4 tsp dried basil • 1/2 tsp dried thyme • Salt and pepper to taste • 1 tablespoon cooking oil Sauce: • 1/4 cup minced shallots (or onions) • 1/3 cup balsamic vinegar • 3/4 cup lamb (or chicken) broth • 1 tablespoon butter What To Do 1. In a small bowl or cup mix the rosemary, basil, thyme, salt and pepper. Rub onto both sides of the chops. Cover on a plate for 15 minutes. 2. Heat cooking oil on medium high. Place chops in skillet, and cook for about 3 ½ minutes per side for medium rare. Remove from skillet and keep warm. 3. Add shallot (or onions) to skillet and cook until browned. Stir in balsamic vinegar, scraping pan drippings from the bottom of skillet. 4. Stir in broth. Continue to cook and stir over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until sauce has reduced by half. 5. Remove from heat and stir in the butter. 6. Pour sauce over chops and serve. Notes • Try substituting red wine or red wine vinegar for the balsamic vinegar. • Doubling the recipe more than doubles the amount of time to reduce the sauce. Final Thoughts Again, we have lambs coming available soon. Get on the waiting list now. Shameless plug there. We love our animals and they receive the best life possible. Stay tuned for updates on Cloud and her impending delivery and the progress of the creamery. Is raw milk dangerous? Remember, it’s your choice whether you consume raw milk and/or raw milk products. It’s hard with all of the negative press out there on just about every food available and raw milk more so than others. I hope I’ve provided a balance to some of the sensationalized information regularly regurgitated. Consuming any food is a risk. But how much? How much risk do we already tolerate on a daily basis that is not related to raw milk dairy? If you enjoyed this podcast, please go to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. And the best way to help out this show is to share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. References • 2012 CDC Raw Milk Study • Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) review of foodborne disease Recipe Link Lambs Chops with Balsamic Reduction To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

Today I’m talking all about homemade whey protein. What it is, how it might benefit your health, and how you might use it. Whey protein is a traditional food that has sustained humanity since the milking of domesticated animals began about 9,000 bc. Before I get to far into today’s topic, as always, I want to take a minute to say welcome to all my new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars. Thank you so much for stopping by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. I can’t wait to get to today’s topic. It has been whey too long in making it to the top of the list of topics. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Homemade Whey Protein • Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Shake Homestead Life Updates There is never a dull moment. Cows Can you believe it? We are going to have another calf. I don’t really know when, I just know a very pregnant cow when I see one. We were sure Cloud was not going to have a calf. After all, the other calves were all born in April and May. Egwene, the jersey calf, was the last born and that was May 11th. Here we are five months later, possibly six months before the calf is born, getting ready for another calf to be born. We haven’t had a fall calf in some time. It will be yet another learning experience on the homestead. I think it is time for the bull to go back to play with the other two bulls in the front field. This is the normal way to control when calves are born. The cow can’t get pregnant five or six months after everyone else if there is no bull there to impregnate her. It is a common practice to control calving season to remove the bull after two months or so. We have let it go on for three. Just when you think you have the thing of managing your livestock down pat and there can be no more to learn, you realize there is always more to learn. Quail The quail aren’t laying very many eggs at this point. They are eating and not producing. The most likely issue is the reduction of the amount of light. They need about 14 hours of light to consistently produce nearly an egg every day. Without that, we are lucky to get an egg once a week. There are artificial lights that we can install so they will be able to make their eggs regularly. However, that would require taking time away from other tasks to make it happen. Creamery Amidst all the animal husbandry, Scott is moving forward with the creamery. He is racing the season to get all of the blocks in place while it is still warm enough for the cement and/or mortar to set up properly. Along the way, the wood for winter heat is not be cut. He feels these tasks weighing on him. There is always more to do than hours to accomplish it. However, it will all get done in the end. Sometimes I think we make ourselves worry just for the exhilaration of having stress and pressure. Sounds crazy, right? Why would anyone intentionally create stress in their lives. Well, I’m not saying we intentionally create stress in our lives. Life is very stressful all on its own. But I am saying that sometimes we create additional stress that is unnecessary. And I am speaking for myself here. There is a compulsive way of thinking that permeates my brain sometimes that is unhealthy in regards to stress. I find myself thinking, “I have to do this” and “I have to do that” and “it has to be done by this time or that time” or else . . . or else what? What disaster is it that will happen if I get the laundry done a day later than I had on my schedule. How will my world come crumbling down around me if I plan to cook a great dinner and end up too tired to pull it off. We will still eat – and we will eat well. It’s crazy. Do you ever have thoughts like that? When I catch myself thinking that way, I stop and take a deep breath and remind myself that all is well in this moment. I get out of my head and come back to my body and look around me. I see the sunshine. I smell the fresh air. I feel the cool breeze on my face. I hear the animals all doing their thing. The donkeys are braying. The geese are honking. The cows are mooing. The sheep and goats are baaing. I have to slow down and smell the roses every once in a while. Being in the present moment brings peace in a chaotic world. In fact, the chaos disappears in the present moment. Now that you have some great ideas about bringing peace into your lives, let me move on to adding some sound nutrition information. It has to do with adding protein to your diet via whey. Homemade Whey Protein As I said, today I’m talking all about whey protein. But not that powdered stuff you buy at Walmart. No, I’m talking about traditional homemade whey protein. What it is, how it might benefit your health, and how you might use it in your healthy diet. What is whey? Remember the nursery rhyme describing Little Miss Muffet eating her curds and whey? Have you seen the body-building enthusiasts with their plastic containers of whey protein shakes? What about the diet gurus and their protein shakes? Whey is the health food at the center of each. Some people talk about liquid whey. Some are talking about whey in the form of powders, hydrolysates, isolates or concentrates; there is sweet whey, acid whey, chocolate whey, strawberry whey, goat whey, mineral whey...it is all very exciting! So, in the midst of all this whey hype, how about looking at what real whey is? That wonderful, nutritious, whole food that has been consumed by traditional cultures for thousands of years. Traditional Dairy Culture Most people today think of dairy as plain, white, unfermented milk. Remember the commercial, “Got Milk?” with someone sporting a white mustache after drinking a tall glass of the cold creamy stuff. This has not always been the case. Before the industrialized practices of refrigeration and pasteurization became commonplace, many people enjoyed their milk products soured or fermented in the forms of yogurt, cheese, kefir, clabber, creme fraiche, or curds and whey. I’ve discussed most of these products in previous episodes. When left out to sour or when cultured with friendly lactic-acid-producing bacteria, raw milk undergoes a process of fermentation wherein the bacteria start to digest or break down the milk sugars (lactose) and milk proteins (casein).Through this process, there is a natural separation of firm white globs of curds from the liquid whey portion of the milk. These white curds are the casein-containing portion of the milk, which are further fermented and processed into cheeses. The remaining tart liquid is whey. Commercial Whey Protein Whey has been used in traditional cuisine for centuries, and was known by Greek doctors as “healing water” for its strength-building properties. Today however, whey is considered a waste product of the cheese and yogurt industries. Many small cheese makers struggle with what to do with it. The wildly popular Greek yogurt industry makes a lot of whey. Plain yogurt contains all of the whey from the milk, but the thickness of Greek yogurt is achieved by straining out some of the whey. The larger Greek yogurt producers have been under scrutiny from environmental agencies for the gallons upon gallons of “whey waste” that they must get rid of after processing their strained yogurt products. For every four pounds of milk, only one pound of Greek yogurt is made, and the rest is a mixture of whey, chemicals and other acidic byproducts. The cheese and yogurt industries drowning in whey scrambled to figure out just what to do with all of this tangy liquid. They found an outlet in the sports nutrition industry where leftover whey is being powdered, flavored and marketed as a muscle-building, energy-boosting supplement. Sounds like a very solid plan, except for the fact that the whey from big industry is truly waste. The milk is exposed to high heat pasteurization and subject to several acid baths. Any potentially beneficial nutrients are obliterated and mingled with nasty toxins during production. Supplement companies have tried to “purify” their products by isolating different parts of the protein portion of the whey. So you get many different formulations on the market such as isolates, hydrosylates, concentrates, etc. This additional fractioning subjects the already destroyed whey to even more sketchy chemical processes and eliminates co-factors, rendering any possible remaining nutrients completely un-bioavailable. So despite the luring claims on those big black tubs of peanut-butter chocolate whey protein, these commercial powders are questionable as to their ability to help your body get stronger. Traditional Whey Protein Nutrition When made properly in small batches from cultured dairy, whey has incredibly unique healing properties. Rich with biologically active proteins and protein fractions, it has a high concentration of essential amino acids that are readily used to support vital biological functions in the body. Among these beneficial factors is: • Lactoferrin, a multifunctional protein with iron-binding properties that acts as a powerful antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory • Bovine serum albumin (BSA), a substance high in amino acids that has been shown to support infection-fighting white blood cells, increase antioxidant activity and maintain healthy cholesterol levels in the body • Immunoglobulins to support disease control by bolstering immunity • Probiotic organisms to promote optimal digestion and full nutrient absorption by balancing the gut flora • Essential amino acids in a highly bioavailable form to act as building blocks for proteins • Glutathione precursors, to boost production of the body's most powerful antioxidant • Minerals such as potassium, iron and zinc are available in balanced amounts • Vitamins notably vitamin B2 or riboflavin which helps the body to convert carbohydrates into fuel How much protein is there in homemade whey protein? 1/2 cup = 15 grams. 1 cup = 30 grams. If you are interested in obtaining homemade whey, let me know. As cheesemakers, we have lots of it. Most of it will go to our animals, supplementing their protein needs, but there will still be plenty for your needs should you request it. Homemade whey has many uses including making lacto-fermented vegetables, condiments or beverages; soaking and sprouting nuts or grains; or as an additive to smoothies, sauces and stocks. It’s no surprise that today’s recipe uses homemade whey protein. Let’s get to it. Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Shake There are tons of protein shake recipes out there, but if you love that chocolate and peanut butter combo, a chocolate peanut butter protein shake is a great way to curb the craving without reaching for the cookies or peanut butter cups. This chocolate peanut butter protein shake can be whipped up in your blender or smoothie maker in no time. It is packed with protein to keep you full, satisfied, and healthy. What You Need • 2 tablespoons peanut butter • 1 banana • 1 cup homemade whey protein • 1 cup whole milk • 1 tablespoon honey (optional) What To Do 1. Blend all ingredients for 30 seconds 2. Serve Nutritional Facts • Calories, 465 • Protein, 43 g • Carbohydrates, 39 g • Fats, 17 g Final Thoughts I trust your life is filled with activities and that you remember to stop and smell the roses occasionally. This is an absolutely beautiful time of year. Take the time to let it seep into your bones and your being. Your health is your greatest asset. Homemade whey can be a part of your healthy diet. It’s a traditional food that strengthened our ancestors and ensured our survival – then and now. Let me know how that whey protein shake works for you. What variations did you try? Drop me an email, or better yet, comment below the show notes. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. Tell everyone how wonderful homemade whey protein is. And the best thing you can do for my podcast is to share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. Recipe Link Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Shake To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

People are looking for raw milk but why is raw milk so hard to find? That’s the topic of today’s podcast. It’s a complicated topic and I’ll break it down into three categories as well as make suggestions regarding what you can do about it. I’m very excited about today’s topic. Raw milk is a passion of mine. I hope all of you who are new listeners will enjoy this podcast. I appreciate your stopping by and welcome your feedback. And a warm welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. This podcast is for you. Let me know what you’d like to hear and I will make it happen. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Why is Raw Milk so Hard to Find? • Hot Buttered Rum Mix Homestead Life Updates Will the heat never end? I think I’ve said this before, but I really don’t like the extremes of summer and winter. The cold seems to hang on forever in winter and the heat seems to hang on forever in summer. I’m so ready for fall. I’m ready for the leaves to turn. Fall in the Blue Ridge Mountains is glorious. The Weather Channel usually has a map that shows the progress of the leaves starting in upstate New Hampshire and Vermont and progressing all the way down the Appalachian Mountain chain to Alabama. It’s a big tourist time for us. Lots of fall festivals and activities are planned. We were able to attend a dairy livestock show in Stuart, Virginia (our county seat) that is heralded as one of the best in the state. I have only a couple of updates on the Homestead. Today, Egwene, our 4 ½ month old Jersey heifer calf left our farm bound for a new home. I’m on pins and needles waiting to hear that she arrived safely. She is traveling all the way to New York. Her new owner seems very conscientious and I believe she will be in good hands. All four outside concrete block walls of the creamery are now complete. Next the inside concrete block walls, then the roof, plumbing, electrical, and gas. There will be inside walls and tile flooring. The windows and doors. So much to do. We take one step at a time and gradually the destination comes closer. On to today’s topic. Why Is Raw Milk So Hard to Find? The reasons are varied but seem to revolve around three things. 1. It’s illegal in many places 2. The risk of being on the radar of the USDA and/or FDA 3. Legal ramifications if you are targeted I’ll also go over what you can do to help. But first, the reasons. It’s illegal in many places I’ve spoken of this before. I’ll do a recap of that information. Why it is illegal is another great question and a subject for another podcast. Today I want to talk about what’s legal and what’s not. And I also want to discuss how that affects your access, the consumer. The laws affect your ability to make your own informed choices about what you will feed your family. My grand nephew has problems with psoriasis that is relieved by drinking raw milk. I’ve had people tell me their body aches were lessened by drinking raw milk. Some children unable to drink pasteurized milk are perfectly fine with raw milk. I was contacted recently by someone interested in our herd share program. I was shocked to hear her say that her doctor told her that her daughter could drink raw milk. Most doctors tow the establishment line and don’t make any waves. Most often they tell you that your child will die from drinking raw milk. And sure, that’s great that the doctor said it’s okay, but where is she supposed to get that milk? Is everyone reduced to buying their own cow? That’s simply not practical. In only 12 out of 51 states and Washington DC can she just walk into the grocery store and buy raw milk for her child. If you don’t live in one of those 12 states, your options are already limited. The next easiest option is buying it directly from the farm. That is legal in 15 states. Can’t sell it in the grocery store but it can be purchased from your local farmer – if you can find one. They don’t do a lot of advertising. More on that later. The next level of navigating this intrusion into your right to choose the food you want for your family is the herd share agreement. That’s what we have here in Virginia and also in 10 other states. In four states, if the milk is labeled as “pet milk”, you might be able to get your hands on it. And the final blow to those who live in the last 9 states is they are barred from purchasing any raw milk. No pet exemption. No herd shares. Those folks have to travel to another state. Those are the last numbers I have. It may or may not be completely accurate. Political activity to change the laws is always going on – both for and against your right to choose the food for your family. And it goes beyond milk. So many of you also want yogurt, butter, cream, cream cheese and so on. The bottom line is that many of us want to make lifestyle choices that include traditional ways of eating. Unfortunately, when it comes to getting your milk straight from the cow the way Mother Nature made it, the government gets between you and your right to choose. The Risk of Being on the Radar of the USDA and/or FDA For small farms like ours, it’s best to remain low key. Aggressive advertising campaigns can bring unwanted attention from government officials as well as the original intent to serve more customers. Instead, we rely on small, personal interactions and word-of-mouth. Many times, people get into positions of power over others and, for whatever reason, they abuse it. Not all, of course. And not even a majority. But our contacts with other small farmers and farm organizations have kept us informed of the atmosphere that sometimes surrounds official inspection personnel. Even if you are following every regulation to the letter, they can find ways to make your life unbearable. For small farmers like us, the risk of showing up negatively on the radar of USDA officials or the FDA can be catastrophic. We are blessed to have a great relationship with our local VDACS/USDA dairy inspector. At least as far as I know we do. From the beginning we have done everything he has asked without complaint. We have shown him respect and he seems to have the same respect for us and what we are about in building this creamery. There is no need for additional interactions with USDA and/or FDA officials. Those tend to be the worst when it comes to wielding power over others. At least from what I’ve read that is the case. Relationships with more local people are always preferable. And if you happen to get on their radar for a legitimate problem (quickly corrected), you are forever in their sites. It is statistically plausible that during the life of every business mistakes that require quick action and procedural correction are going to occur. To illustrate I’ll tell a short story without names. A small dairy, operating for 15 or 20 years, had a problem with one of their cheeses. The problem was that one of their cheeses tested high for a particular bacterium. Being conscientious business owners, they had all of the procedures in place to track down where their cheese went and got it all recalled. They do a lot of wholesale, so there was a lot of it out there. Even small batch cheese can end up being hundreds of pounds of cheese distributed all over the country. In the end, no one was made ill. The recall was not initiated because of illness. Again, it was a cheese that failed a test conducted at regular intervals to ensure the safety of the cheese. The recall was a preventative measure. I can’t stress this enough. Even if a cheese fails a test, that does not mean that anyone will ever get sick from consuming it. This number or that number was high – the statistical possibility that the “bad” bacteria would grow was higher. Contrast that with all of the folks who are made ill – or worse die – from consuming contaminated spinach, lettuce, cantaloupe and factory farmed beef. Those recalls generally happen after many have become ill and/or someone has died. That is not the case with cheese. We catch it long before it becomes a problem. Regulations for testing are strict. Perhaps that’s why dairy products, raw and pasteurized, only make up 4% of reported food borne illnesses. Anyway, the FDA got involved because of the recall. Now that this small dairy is on the FDA radar, regularly scheduled visits are common. Worse are the surprise visits. The agents hover with their virtual clipboards in hand, watching every move. Their eyes are begging you to make a mistake. As you can imagine, many times there are no moves until they leave. When someone is examining your every action with a fine-toothed comb, sure that you are violating some statute, it is best to give them as little ammo as possible. And once you are on the radar, it continues. Where once you never saw anyone from the FDA, now it is a continuing possibility that will appear and make demands. Excessive amounts of cheese are tested. The agents truly spend an inordinate amount of time trying to find another problem. And perhaps this all sounds okay to you. Perhaps it sounds necessary. But for us, it is life or death for our business. We don’t want to take chances on someone with power having a bad day and looking to us as an outlet for their frustration or anger. Our number one goal is to make sure our cheese and other raw milk products are perfect in every way and to never wind up in the sites of a federal agency. The Financial and Legal Ramifications If You Are Targeted As a small farmer I can tell you, our operation may not have survived this kind of intrusion and scrutiny. Testing every single batch of cheese made and multiple wheels from that batch? That would be disaster for us. Some of our batches are single wheels. Usually no batch produces more than 3 wheels. If we had to send in one from every batch – well you begin to see the problem. The cost would be prohibitive. Testing that many cheeses would cost us 1/3 or more of our product intended for revenue. Due to information we have received from other farmers, we send our required to tests to VDACS and another to a third party. There are stories of small farmers having one bad test after another from their official USDA testing while the same milk tests fine via third party. Another result of getting on their radar. Additional tests cost money, but that is the cost of doing business in the dairy industry. What You Can Do I don’t want to sound all negative about this. Yes, today it is hard to find raw milk and raw milk products. There are reasons that these laws were put in place. Some are legitimate, though the knee-jerk response was harsh, and some are not legitimate. Some of the reasons are political and driven by the dairy lobby. As I said, I will cover that in another podcast. For now, this is what we have to work with and we are happy with our current situation. The laws in the state of Virginia allow us to help you by offering part of our herd to consumers. Access to raw milk and raw milk products is there for you. It is a bit inconvenient, but the health benefits of raw milk products are worth it. The demand for raw milk and raw milk products is growing by leaps and bounds. We are working to expand the availability of raw milk products and you can help too. But the laws are always under attack and pressure to be made stricter. While North Carolina just expanded their availability by allowing herd shares, other states and moving to restrict access and outlaw herd shares. One organization that helps farmers and consumers with many problems – access to raw milk being only one of them, though a large part of their focus, is the Farm to Consumer Organization. You can support them financially by becoming a member. Additionally, you can be on their mailing list and be informed about legislation that affects raw milk as well as other legal challenges that small farmers face. Be Active in Your Quest for Raw Milk Products There is one raw milk product that is available in the state of Virginia. No Yogurt, butter, or fresh cheese such as cream cheese. No not those. Only raw milk cheese can be legally sold to the public. The cheese must be aged greater than 60 days. For us, and most others, this is not a problem. None of our cheeses are worth a darn before 90 days, well beyond their 60-day minimum. Most of our cheeses are aged at least 6 months before they reach maturity. And they just get better from there. There are no other raw milk products that can be sold in the state of Virginia. Again, it’s the herd share program that gives you access to products such as yogurt, butter, cream and fresh cheeses like mozzarella or cream cheese. Last year there was a bill on the floor in Virginia that would have allowed an exemption for private homes to make yogurt to sell at farmer’s markets. This would have been similar to the current law that exempts baked goods that don’t require time or temperature control after preparation. There are a lot of do’s and don’ts and a limit to the dollar amount of gross sales. There were similar provisions in the bill to open the market to yogurt. Anyway, not enough people showed up in support of the bill and it failed to pass. Another organization in Virginia is VICFA – that is Virginia Independent Consumer and Farmers Association. They have an “action alert” registration form on their website. I’ll put links to both of these organizations in the show notes. Or you can look them up online. That’s Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Organization and VICFA, Virginia Independent Consumer and Farmer’s Association. Both are fighting for your right to choose raw milk products for your family. Hot Buttered Rum Mix This is a rich and delicious beverage. It can be made with or without alcohol so everyone can enjoy it! This is as large recipe that makes 52 servings. No problem though. It is a mix that stores well in the freezer. What You Need to Make the Mix • 2 cups butter, softened • 3 ¾ cups 10x powdered sugar • 2 ¼ cups dark brown sugar, packed • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract • 2 quarts vanilla ice cream, softened What You Need to Make a Serving • ¾ cup boiling water • 1 to 2 tablespoons rum or brandy (optional) • Ground cinnamon and nutmeg to taste • ¼ cup butter mixture What to Do to Make the Mix 1. Cream butter and sugars until smooth. Beat in vanilla and ice cream. 2. Fill freezer containers. Store in freezer until needed. What to Do to Make a Serving 1. Place ¼ cup butter mixture in a 10 or 12-ounce mug. 2. Stir in boiling water and rum. 3. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg to taste. Final Thoughts That’s it for today’s FarmCast. I hope your plans for the fall season are coming to fruition. It’s a lovely time of year to enjoy life. I know that for most people it’s hard to find raw milk today. But remember, that you can help by becoming informed, involved and invested in the laws in your state. You can make a difference. We have a right to choose the food and nutritional program we think best for ourselves and our families. Stand up and let your voice be heard. And let others know about our herd share program. Also, we’d love to hear from you. What raw milk product piques your interest? Maybe if there is a demand, we can add it to our list of services provided for our herd share owners. Let me know how you and your family like that Buttered Rum drink. Try it with our raw milk butter. You’ll be glad you did. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. Also, please share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. References • Farm to Consumer Org • VICFA – Virginia Independent Consumer and Farmers Association Recipe Link Hot Buttered Rum To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

We have made some really startling discoveries lately regarding the cost of milking cows and I want to share that with you today. Normande vs Jersey – the cost is the main topic for today. Both are traditional breeds. What’s the difference and how does that affect the cost of raising them. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Normande vs Jersey – The Cost • Skillet Chicken with Neufchatel Spinach Artichoke Sauce Homestead Life Updates Life is getting back to normal on the homestead. I’m mending nicely and my energy level is back to where I can work all day and not be too tired. I still have to watch myself in the heat and doing too much in one day. While I’m active all day, I want to be cognizant of the strength and energy required to perform those activities. For instance, I might go to the garden for a little while, but not for the hours and hours I would put in before. I do more inside tasks. The Garden Speaking of the garden, putting in less hours is working out well as the garden is winding down. We have finished with the tomatoes. Not because they weren’t producing but because I simply have had enough of tomatoes. I planted way too many. If it weren’t for the drought we have been experiencing, I would have been even more overwhelmed. Most of the season the tomatoes were small due to lack of water and fertilizer. They were very good tomatoes, just not very big. Instead of a nice 3 ½ inch diameter, they were more like 2 ½ inches in diameter. Pretty small I know. But they were really, really good. The Many Ways of Preserving Tomatoes I’ve canned and canned and canned. Mostly tomato sauce, though I made a few jars of salsa and really like it. I have all of the remaining tomatoes on a shelf inside the house near a window. Those tomatoes will all go into salsa. Barbecue sauce is on the list as well. That concoction is just about ready to be canned. Even though I am using a traditional recipe it calls for more sugar than I want. I can leave out some of the sugar and start my own traditional barbeque sauce line as a much healthier product. IMO Animal Husbandry The animals are doing really well. We had a long discussion about where we are going to go with our animals. We currently have sheep, goats, cows, and donkeys. Which do we want to keep and which will go? We haven’t talked much about the donkeys, though we have discussed selling two of them as we don’t need that many. And after I talk about the sheep, we may not need any at all. That is another discussion. The Sheep Currently we have one breeding ram and 6 ewes. This year that combination produced 10 lambs that will go to market next year. We also have three lambs that are ready for market right now. Get your orders in now if you want a half or whole lamb. Again, there are only three. We had a good long discussion about the sheep a few days ago. They are wonderful animals and very easy to keep and manage. The flock has been genetically improved so they have little to no problems with parasites. That was a big problem for us in the beginning. We lost many animals – especially small lambs – in the first year or two. The discussion revolved around time management. While they are easy to keep and raise, they also are one more marketing task that we have to take on to sell the lambs and meat each year. In our neck of the woods, lamb is actually quite popular. However, every minute I spend marketing lamb is a minute I don’t spend marketing cheese. These are business decisions that have to be considered. In the end, we decided to phase out our flock of sheep. We will not breed this year and will begin culling the older ewes a little at a time. Likely we will sell the breeding ram, but in the end, all sheep will be gone from our homestead. At least for the time being. We can revisit this after the creamery is completed and we have a good handle on making and marketing our cheese. For right now, the creamery, cheesemaking and marketing are our primary focus. The Purpose of Goats Unlike the sheep, the goats have a greater role to play in the maintenance of good pasture for our grass-fed operation. Sheep do eat different things than cows initially, but in the end, they both eat all of the grasses. The goats, on the other hand, like to eat woody stems such as small trees, briars, brambles, wild blackberries and so on. But still there will be changes. Again, relating to efficient time management on the homestead. We chose cashmere goats because I love to knit. It was a great idea to raise them, comb out the cashmere, then send it off to be processed and spun into roving and yarn. Then I was going to knit cute little baby stuff to sell at the market. In the end, I simply don’t have that kind of time. There is only so much I can do. This is a great life lesson. You can divide your focus between two things, but neither will ever get your full attention. The goats require constant hoof maintenance. The cashmere must be combed out at exactly the right time in late winter. There is a pre-cleaning that happens before sending it off to be cleaned, carded and made into roving and/or yarn. I once thought that I would have lots of time in the winter to sit and knit to my heart’s content. Didn’t happen. I spend a great deal of time in the winter laying out the marketing plans for the spring, summer and fall. Because once spring has sprung, everything else goes on hold. Cows are being milked, cheese is being made, and trips to the farmer’s market are happening a couple of times a week. I better have all of my marketing ducks in a row before the dam bursts. What To Do With Our Goats Back to the goats. We will still have a herd of goats. However, we are going to cull out all of the cashmere goats and eventually bring in some Kiko goats. Kikos were developed in New Zealand based on the needs of the local markets. They needed goats that did not require a lot of parasite control and certainly did not need hoof maintenance. Taking a feral breed and crossing it with domestic breeds, they were able to develop a great meat goat that requires little to no maintenance. That’s our kind of animal. We still have to sell the goat meat, but we will keep the herd small. We haven’t managed our goats nearly as well as the sheep. Unauthorized breeding is an ongoing problem with them. There seem to be goat kids popping out at the most inconvenient times. And of course, it makes the herd bigger when we don’t take the time to get them to market. Unlike the Kiko goat which was developed for efficient meat production, the cashmere goats take a long time to get to a good size for market. They are bred for their winter undercoat of cashmere with no regard for any other trait. The Donkeys As I mentioned, we haven’t discussed the donkeys and whether we will continue to keep them after the sheep are gone. They were purchased as livestock guardian animals for the sheep. They are also the only thing on the homestead that could properly be called a pet. They are very friendly animals and they crave human interaction. Likely we will keep them around. We want you guys to come visit us and I wouldn’t want you to miss them. AAANNNDDD I would miss them too. The Cows Finally, I get to the cows and this will lead into today’s topic. In fact, I’m going to skip right to the topic. Normande vs Jersey Cows – the Cost Analysis First, a short review of our choice for the Normande breed of cow. Second, how did we end up with a Jersey cow and heifer calf? Lastly, how has this experience changed the way we think about our herd? Why We Chose Normande Cows? I know you’ve heard me say this before, but I’ll say it again. I love our Normande cows. For more particulars about the breed, listen to my podcast “Why Normande Cows”. We bought our first girls in the fall of 2011. There was never any doubt in my mind that I would have a milk cow on our homestead. Making cheese, butter and yogurt along with that luscious fresh milk straight from the cow was on the top of my list of things I wanted in my life. We had plenty of time to research what kind of cow we wanted to have for our traditional family cow. As mentioned above, there are always offspring to deal with when raising animals. In order for a cow to produce milk, she needs to have a calf every year. She will produce milk for about a year before naturally drying up, but proper management requires us to stop milking her and “dry her off” a good three months before she gives birth again. That gives her the resources she needs to remain healthy and grow a healthy calf. So what kind of cow was going to give us a good calf for beef as well as produce a lot of milk for my enjoyment, cheesemaking and so on? Dual Breed Cows There are quite a few breeds that are listed as “dual breed”, meaning they produce lots of milk but also produce calves that grow out with well-marbled meat in a timely manner. Another requirement we had was a good healthy steer that could thrive on pasture and did not need to be grain finished to reach that well-marbled meat in a timely manner goal. Same for the milk. She needs to be able to maintain her weight and condition without being fed the customary 6 pounds of grain a day allowed for organic grass-fed dairies. Commercial dairies will feed their cows up to 30 pounds of grain per day. The trade off with not feeding grain is less milk. Grain definitely increases milk production. And while I am not opposed to feeding the 6 pounds of non-gmo, non-soy feed, if we need more production, our current model does not require this. Let me explain a little more. My first concern is the health of the cow. I’ve seen some pretty skinny milk cows. They were being pasture raised with absolutely no grain. It’s a fine goal, but if your cow is starving because so much of her energy is going into milk production that there is little left for her own needs, the goal is flawed. I prefer a system approach. My system is designed to keep healthy herd, produce enough milk for us to make our traditional, hand-made artisan cheese in sufficient quantity to support the homestead, and produce excellent beef, breeding and replacement stock with the annual calving. There are several breeds that advertise themselves as fitting those requirements. But the Normande stood out in my mind. Their milk production is on par with the Jersey. The fat and protein components are on par with the Jersey. The largest deciding factor was the composition of the milk as it relates to cheesemaking. Normande Cow Characteristics The Normande cow produces a milk with a protein structure that is the most conducive to cheesemaking. In France, Normande milk is prized and even required for some cheeses to carry a specific name. Camembert di Normande comes to mind. Neufchâtel is also made with milk from Normande cows. Neufchatel is a traditional, soft-white, table cheese, originating from the village of Neufchatel-en-Bray in northern Normandy. It is one of France’s oldest cheese, dating back as far as 1035. Often, it is heart-shaped. That shape came about during the Hundred Years’ War between England and France from 1337 to 1453. Tales are told about the French farm girls falling in love with English soldiers and making these heart-shaped cheese to show their love. One other characteristic we considered was docility. Cows are very large animals. I wanted a breed that was gentle and easy to work with and the Normande has exceeded my expectations in that area. Far exceeded my expectations. We love our Normandes so how did we come to own a couple of Jerseys? Why Did We Buy a Jersey Cow? I often referred to Jersey cows when talking about the Normande and other dairy breeds. It is the most popular choice for a family milk cow. Typically, they produce lots and lots of milk with higher butterfat and protein levels than other breeds. They are not, however, a dual breed. They are actually quite skinny in their natural state. Boney in fact. While our Normandes are flat across their rump with meat and fat, the Jersey cow’s hip bones are really prominent. It is how they are genetically built. Their energy primarily goes into making milk, not meat and fat. Jersey milk is highly prized for the highest butter fat content. That means you can make lots of butter. Cheese made from Jersey milk will also be higher in fat, and that means more flavor. They are a great milk cow. But again, not a dual breed. Though I do see a lot of marketing going on right now for Jersey beef. And I assure you, that it is only marketing. It is marketing with information put together by the American Jersey Cattle Association researchers. The studies they are conducting include the standard grain diet fed to beef cattle to grow out the Jersey steers. They are simply not going to get the proper level of fat on grass only. I think it might work for the commercial market, but would not be viable for the family homestead. I’m willing to change my mind if I’m wrong. Right now, my mind says that Jerseys are NOT a dual breed. So how did we end up with a bred Jersey cow? We needed some cash flow and herd shares were one way to provide it. A combination of the A2A2 certification of this cow and her calf along with the possibility of an existing customer base tipped the scale. When I was first approached, I simply wasn’t interested in another cow – and a Jersey to boot. But the idea of offering herd shares was intriguing. After a few days and lots of discussion, Scott and I decided to give it a try. It was a big financial risk but we decided to take the plunge. The current owner was offering herd shares and some of her customers would likely come to us after she stopped offering the service. That would help offset the initial cost of the cow. Additionally, I felt I could work it into my already busy marketing schedule as the herd shares contributed to our cheese centerpiece. Yes, we offer the fresh raw milk, but we also provide cheese, yogurt and butter to our herd share owners. Fast forward, Butter has her calf. A very beautiful deer-like heifer. Very boney and much smaller than our Normande calves. That’s just how they come. We started milking Butter and offering fresh A2A2 milk via our herd shares. The legal contracts are worded to include cheese, butter, yogurt and cream as part of the herd production. Here’s What We Found Out – the Good News The A2A2 milk is the real draw for both the milk and the cheese. We are in the process of getting our Normande cows tested for the A2A2 beta casein genetic trait. For more info on that, listen to my podcast, “What is A2A2 Milk?” Link in the show description. We are moving our herd genetics to 100% A2A2 beta casein and BB kappa casein. I haven’t talked about kappa casein yet. BB kappa casein is the genetic quality that makes the best cheese. That need its own podcast. Here’s What We Found Out – the Bad News First, the docility factor. Jerseys, and indeed most dairy cows, are fairly placid. What I see is that they are placid with humans. The Jersey cows are very aggressive with the other cows. Even Egwene, Butter’s calf, is aggressive with her bottle. She pushes and jerks on that bottle with ferocity. It’s not a problem for us at all. Just noted. As I said, the Jersey cows are very placid with humans. Second, that Jersey does produce some really good milk and cream. She also requires feed – expensive feed. While our Normande cows stay fat and healthy on pure grass, even when they are in milk, a Jersey requires feed to maintain body condition when in milk. We feed a little bit of a supplement to our Normandes purely to keep them interested in coming into the milking parlor. Violet in particular is quite fat and she never received any grain supplement until this year when we trained her to put her head into the milking stanchion. The Normande breed has been developed over centuries to thrive on a grass-based diet. Because we keep Butter’s milk separate so our herd share owners can have 100% A2A2 milk, we are able to keep track of which cow is giving how much milk. The results are in. Butter is getting about four pounds or so of non-gmo, non-soy dairy feed supplement. Her milking parlor mate, Violet, gets about two handfuls of sweet feed. Violet produces as much or more milk than Butter. That’s right. As much and sometimes more milk from Violet without the expense of lots of special feed. I believe that Butter is quite capable of producing quite a bit more milk than Violet. However, we would have to feed her more grain to accomplish it. We don’t need a lot of milk at this time. The herd shares are still building and I’m only making cheese intermittently due to limitations of aging space. We simply don’t need the extra milk. If you run a Jersey dairy, it’s probably worth the cost to have more milk. But for us, why spend the money if you don’t have to? If we wanted more milk production from our Normandes, we could feed them a dairy supplement. Who knows how much milk they would produce? I do know that the little bit of feed they do get increases their milk production significantly. And perhaps at some time in the future that will be the way to go. As our cheese business takes off, we may want to make more cheese than the original plan outlined. We may have many more herd shares available in the future. In that case, we may feed some grain to produce more milk. But for right now, the grass requires no cash flow. It’s free. Where Do We Go From Here? The bottom line is we are going to phase out the Jerseys. As soon as I can get at least one of my Normande cows certified as having A2A2 genetics, Butter goes up for sale. We are already talking about selling her calf, Egwene. Perhaps we will wait until we can sell her as a bred heifer. We shall see. In the end, the Normande ladies rule. Skillet Chicken with Neufchatel Spinach Artichoke Sauce You just can’t go wrong with skillet chicken and a good cheese sauce! Perfectly golden brown, tender pan seared chicken breasts are topped with an easy to make, rich and flavorful spinach artichoke sauce. It might remind you of my crab and artichoke dip recipe but much lighter. Recipe link in the show notes. What You Need • 24 oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts • Salt and black pepper • 4 Tbsp butter, divided • 3 cloves garlic, minced • 1 Tbsp flour • 3 ½ cups fresh baby spinach, chopped • 1 (14 oz) can artichoke quarters, drained and chopped • 1 ¼ cups milk • 4 oz Neufchatel cheese, diced into small cubes • 1/3 cup finely shredded parmesan cheese • ¼ cup sour cream What To Do 1. Pound chicken to an even thickness using the flat side of a meat mallet. Season both sides with salt and pepper. 2. Heat 2 Tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook until golden brown on bottom, about 5 - 6 minutes. 3. Turn chicken to opposite side. Continue cooking until chicken is golden brown on bottom or center registers 165 on an instant read thermometer, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer chicken to a plate, cover and keep warm. 4. Melt remaining 2 Tbsp butter in skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and flour and cook 30 seconds then add in spinach and artichokes and sauté about 1 minute or until spinach has wilted. 5. Pour in milk and scrape up browned bits from bottom. 6. Add in Neufchatel cheese and parmesan, season with salt and pepper to taste, and cook and stir until mixture has thickened slightly and cheeses have melted. 7. Stir in sour cream then return chicken to skillet. Quick and easy, this recipe serves 4. Give yourself 15 minutes to prep the ingredients and about 18 minutes for cooking. In just about 33 minutes you’ve created a masterpiece. Final Thoughts We gave the Jersey breed a chance and ended up back in the same place we started. Normande is the breed for us. I hope you get a chance to visit the farm sometime in the near future. See these beautiful creatures close up and personal. And you’ll want to pet the donkeys as well. We love the homestead life. There is always something new coming along. The variety and number of animals may change according to our needs, but they will always be a central part of our life. Especially the milk cows. They are such peaceful creatures. And our traditional breed Normandes exemplify peace. Neufchatel cheese originated in Normandy, France. It’s a fantastic cheese. And even though the US version of it is a bit watered-down and rectangular rather than heart-shaped, give that skillet chicken with spinach artichoke sauce a try. You’ll be glad you did. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. Also, please share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. Recipe Link Skillet Chicken with Neufchatel Spinach Artichoke Sauce To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

Traditional vs Modern Medicine; where do I begin? Some of you are new and I want to welcome you to the show. I hope you enjoy the content and will share with others. For my regulars, you’re probably wondering where I have been. I’ve missed doing the podcast but it became impossible for me to continue because my health took a very bad turn. I just had a bout with a perforated appendix and associated abdominal infection. I’ll get to all of that. Today I’m going to contrast traditional medicine with modern medicine. Stay tuned. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Modern Medicine vs the Traditions in Pre-Modern Medicine • Home Made Yogurt Recipe Homestead Life Updates Life on the homestead has been chaotic at best. It is starting to settle down now that I am out of the danger zone and on a path back to health. But Scott has had to take up the slack. And then, there are some things that just didn’t get done. Scott has been doing all of the milking without my assistance since about the first of August. That is nearly a month now. His morning chores have lengthened from a couple of hours to 3 plus. That takes a big bite out of his day but he is taking it in stride. You do what you gotta do as they say. The Baby Quail He built the “grow out” cage for the baby quail. I don’t think I’ve even mentioned them. I’m pretty sure that the last you heard was the eggs were still in the incubator, right? I became ill the very day they hatched out. It was also the day that I would normally record the podcast. The quail and I share that anniversary. Their birth date and the start of my appendicitis. Anyway, they were in the brooder for about two weeks. We kept them inside under a light the first week. The light keeps them warm as they have down but no feathers when they are born. Their growth is phenomenal. Within a week they more than double in size and become nearly fully feathered. By the end of the second week, they are tripled in size or more. The brooder space gets really small for them. And the shear amount of waste they create in that small space will stink up the place. At two weeks they are ready to be outside. The Quail Condo Scott built a second story onto the quail cage and put the new ones on top. There are two large sections up there and lots of space for them to roam around in. The laying hens and their roosters are below. There are three sections there with three sets of hens with a rooster. Some of the new babies will become laying hens and the rest will go to freezer camp. We don’t have chickens yet, so my plan is to raise up a batch of quail every couple of months. That will provide us with poultry. My freezer has been bare of poultry for a very long time. Occasionally I will buy one of those rotisserie chickens at the grocery store for a treat, but mostly we have been doing without. We have lots of lamb, beef, and goat for our protein source. What about fish you say? Well, we have fish in the pond but no time to fish. That will come even later. At the moment, we rarely have fish. It’s a treat that I just might fix tomorrow night. Cows, Sheep, Goats I don’t have much to say about the animals because we haven’t talk much about them. As Scott has not reported any issues, I assume they are all in fine shape and doing their duty. Eating grass and making milk. Soon it will be time to breed the sheep for their spring lambing. Oh, we did separate the ram lambs. I say “we”. How funny. Scott did it. Ten lambs were born on the homestead this year. Five of them were boys. They are now happily grazing with the older boys from last year and the herd ram. They have lost most of their cuteness but are still a joy to watch as they live their lives out there in the pasture. Currently I can see them out my living room window. The Garden The garden is a giant weed bed. The tomatoes, celery, sweet potatoes, and eggplant were dying of thirst for the most part. They have survived the ordeal and Scott was able to give them more attention after I was released from the hospital. Even with the drought, we have lots of tomatoes. I think I might have been overwhelmed had I been able to keep them watered. We would have had lots of tomatoes and they would have been big tomatoes. The ones we have now are definitely stunted, maybe 2 ½ to 3” in diameter at best. Many are even smaller but tuning red anyway. What am I doing with all of those tomatoes you ask? I’m making tomato sauce. It’s actually a fairly simple process if you have the right tools – which I just happen to have. I’ll give a very brief outline of the process. Perhaps I will make a whole podcast on making tomato sauce at a later time. Making Tomato Sauce The first two steps involve getting the skins and seeds out. I simply cut the tomatoes into quarters or sixths or eighths depending on their size. I throw them into a pot on low heat. The water comes out quickly so there is no need to add water. Once they come to a boil, I let them simmer for 20 minutes or so. Then I let that cool for at least a couple of hours. It makes it easier to work with for the second step. Now I’m ready to do the separation. This is where the proper tools are required to make it easy. There are lots of ways to do it, but I prefer the least effort and smallest mess. I have a Kitchen Aid mixer and the food mill attachment. I put the pieces together, feed the tomatoes through the mill and voila, tomato juice and pulp are separated. I did some yesterday and it took about 20 minutes to mill nearly 4 gallons. The next step will begin tomorrow. I need to cook out the liquid until it becomes the consistency that I want for my sauce. Again, an easy process. Put it on the stove on low heat and stir it occasionally. Once it reaches the proper consistency, I ladle it into the jars I have prepared for canning. The jars get sealed and placed in a hot water bath for 15 to 20 minutes depending on the size of the jar. That’s it! Homemade tomato sauce. I’ll do a whole podcast on the details for those that want to try this for themselves. I want to keep this podcast as short as possible as my energy level has a strong tendency to drop through the floor without a moment’s notice. I still have lots of healing to do. So what happened? And how did I deal with it? Modern Medicine vs the Traditions in Pre-Modern Medicine The dilemma between tradition vs modern medicine is a question I come across often. When I first became ill, I worked with what I had available to me at home that I could do without becoming involved in modern medicine. There were two reasons for this. Number one, I’ve always been able to do this without issue and number two, we have no insurance and modern medicine can be really expensive. It started on a Saturday and I was in really bad shape on Sunday morning. My self-diagnosis said that I was trying to pass a kidney stone. After all, I had had the experience a few months earlier and I got through it without much trouble. Now I wonder if the earlier episode was really a kidney stone. I’ll never know now. The symptoms were so similar. Kidney Stones? Initially Scott thought it was a problem with my colon but I was adamant that it had to be another kidney stone and I just needed to get through it. When the fever started, we got out the antibiotics that we keep on hand for just such an emergency. That brought things somewhat under control quite quickly. However, I was still in a great deal of pain and quite weak and unable to do anything. This went on for a week. Then my fever spiked again. Of course, it was Sunday and I didn’t want the expense of the weekend emergency room. I did, however, decide that this was now outside of my realm of expertise. The infection and fever were overriding the antibiotics and I knew it was likely I was going to have to have stronger antibiotics at the very least and likely IV antibiotics. Nope. Appendicitis. Monday after Scott finished morning chores we went to a clinic in Mount Airy. I got blood tests and a chest x-ray. After getting the results it was off to the ER for further evaluation and treatment. My white blood cell count was extremely high. That led to lots of expensive tests and a very expensive CT along with a move to Winston-Salem and 3 days in the hospital. It was bad. I had a perforated appendix with an associated abscess. Lots of infection. Before modern medicine I likely would have died. It’s the old “burst appendix” scenario that has always scared people. There is good reason for that. Recovery I am still very weak and have been told that it may last for 2 months. That is a long time for a farm girl and homesteader. Thankfully, we have wonderful friends and family who have prayed for us and offered real assistance as well. We will get through this difficult time. I’m sure most of you have had similar times. While it is going on I feel like it will never end. But it will end, I will recover and life will go on with many new lessons learned. For a very long time I have been aware of the wonders of modern medicine. I have studied ancient healing techniques. During the early 2000s I even studied formally and received higher education degrees in Natural Health and Naturopathy. Herbs were my passion for much of that time. I developed my own herbal recipes for general hearth health, immune system support and a sleep aid that was a lifesaver for me for many years. I still use these products as well as others. They have their place in my health and wellbeing. But the awareness of my limitations has always been part of my knowledge base. Modern Medicine Many would say that I waited too long and should have sought medical attention earlier, and that may be true. But I can’t see that I would have done anything differently. It seemed harmless at the time. Who would have thought of appendicitis at my age? Well, it is true that it can happen at any age, but it’s usually something that happens before age 30. But you know statistical numbers group things into averages. With any “average” there is a high end and a low end, thus we know that, while it is more unusual, it is not unheard of to draw that appendicitis card at any age. Some of you may frequent Facebook groups that are about one aspect of health or another. Perhaps a specific diet group like Keto. I belong to lots of those groups. I also belong to lots of farm animal groups and some farm business groups. With all of these, there will be a smattering of traditional medicine techniques that are put forth for consideration during appropriate questions and health discussions. And then there are the times when the group responds with “go see your doctor”. Or “contact the vet” in the case of animals. Sometimes we simply don’t have the skills, tools and experience necessary and must call on professional help. When to Use Traditional Medicine When and if to use traditional vs modern medicine can be a touchy subject in the homesteading community as most are trying to be as self-sufficient as possible. But I just can’t state it enough times, sometimes you need modern medicine to continue living. Your animals need it. All of the traditional home remedies in the world fail to meet the need at some point and embracing the best available technology is the only answer. Inevitably the result is mostly painful. Whether financially or physically. Here’s an example. The fact that the treatment causes some injury is the price we sometimes have to pay to return to health. I thank God every day that I did not have to have emergency surgery. Talk about damage to the body in order to keep it alive. That’s the extreme. You are literally cutting flesh to get to the problem. That flesh now has to heal and is added to the original problem. Re-Growing Gut Bacteria After Antibiotics I got away with a small tube in my side for a couple of weeks and an enormous amount of antibiotics. Did I like the amount of antibiotics I just received and ingested? Heck no. My guts will need lots more healing that my traditional methods will be able to provide. I know about probiotic foods. Homemade yogurt is in my diet for the next few weeks to help my gut bacteria return to normal. We shall see. It may be a couple of months. Who knows? I didn’t like it. I was nauseated day after day because of the two strong antibiotics I was on for a full two weeks after the IV antibiotics were stopped. Thankfully, that is finally over. I’m going to go have some yogurt right after I finish this. I like yogurt, but I don’t “love” yogurt. I’m pretty sure it is going to get old quickly. But I will persevere and give my body the traditional support that is needed after modern medicine has kept me alive. How about this week’s recipe on how to make your own yogurt? You don’t have to have our wonderful raw milk for this. You can make it with any milk from the store that is not ultra-pasteurized. Unfortunately, most organic milk is ultra-pasteurized and will not work. It’s still worth it to use conventional milk to have your own yogurt without artificial sweeteners and thickeners. Home Made Yogurt I make mine in my Corsori multi-function pressure cooker. It has a yogurt setting. I believe it would be similar with the Instant Pot or any other multi-function pressure cooker with a yogurt setting. You don’t have to have one. I also have a rather inexpensive yogurt maker. The reason I no longer use it has to do with how much yogurt I make in one batch. The small, inexpensive yogurt maker works for a quart or two. But I make a gallon and a half at a time now. Yogurt will last a very long time in the refrigerator. So what do you need? Ultimately, what you need is a way to keep the temperature constant between 110 and 115 degrees for anywhere from 4 to 8 hours. That’s why all the fancy equipment is sold. It makes it easy. You don’t have to baby sit it while it ferments. Just set it and walk away. Your Oven You can use the pilot light in your oven. Better still would be to preheat your oven to 120 or so, then turn it off. Wrap your milk with its yogurt culture in towels and use the oven’s retained heat to keep the temperature up. Placing a baking stone in there will also help hold the heat. Using a Thermos Another method is to use a thermos. Some of the best cost as much or more than a cheap yogurt maker but, of course, the thermos would have more uses. And you may already have one on hand. No need to purchase anything extra. Come to think of it, I have a thermal cup that I bought to keep my tea hot over long periods of time. It’s one of those that you can buy at your local gas/convenience store or truck stop. That cup holds nearly a quart of liquid and will keep it hot, and I mean hot, for hours. That’s modern technology for you. You might have one or two of those on hand and, again, no need to purchase anything extra. A Warm Corner The last method I will mention is trying to use a warm part of your kitchen or other place in your house during the summer. This would require experimentation and keeping a consistent temperature would be dicey at best. Crock pots get too hot. Don’t try that. Even the lowest setting is over 150 degrees. That will kill the yogurt bacteria. I’ve seen people give recipes using a crock pot and maybe they have a special one, but all of mine even on warm are heating way too hot for yogurt culture to survive. Let’s get on to the basics of making yogurt. What You Need • Full fat milk • A small amount of yogurt with active cultures What to Do • Heat the milk to 180 degrees. This destabilizes the proteins in the milk which makes the yogurt thicken nicely. • Quickly cool the milk to about 118 degrees. • Stir in the yogurt with active cultures with a small amount of the milk to make sure it is incorporated well. • Add the active culture yogurt and milk to the rest of the milk, stir well. • Set it in your chosen place to keep it warm for 6 to 8 hours. Notes • If using the multi-function pressure cooker, use the slow cook setting to heat the milk. On my Corsori, I set it to 193 degrees for 1 hour. As soon as the hour is up, I check the temperature which is usually 180 something by then. I immediately take it to the kitchen sink and fill the sink with cold water. It only takes 5 minutes or less to cool it back down. Then once the cultures are stirred in it is a matter of putting the pot back in the device, closing and securing the lid and pressing the “yogurt” button. Mine is automatically set for 8 hours, though I could take it out sooner if desired. It’s so easy. • Using a saucepan on the stove is also an option for heating the milk. In this case, stay nearby to stir often so the milk does not scorch on the bottom of the pan. This requires a little more attention, but it still quick and easy. Once 180 or more degrees is reached, put in the pot in the kitchen sink with cold water to quickly cool it down. Add the yogurt with active cultures and mix well. Now use your desired device or method. • The longer your yogurt sits, the sharper it will be. It will also be thicker if it cultures longer. • For thicker, Greek-style, yogurt strain it through butter muslin. Line a colander with the butter muslin and pour in the yogurt. Tie the ends together and hang your makeshift bag somewhere to drain. This will allow some of the whey to be filtered out and will make a much thicker yogurt. The longer it drains, the thicker it will be. Final Thoughts That’s it for today’s podcast on traditional vs modern medicine. I’m so glad to be back. And I’m so glad you are traveling along with me. We all have great adventures in our lives. Please share your thoughts, your ideas, and your adventures in the comments. What are you doing on your homestead if you have one? What are your plans if you don’t have a homestead but want one? What are your plans for making friends with your local homestead community if you don’t want one but love that others do because they provide great food and recreation for you and your family? I’d love to hear your thoughts. And if you’re up to it, how about giving some homemade yogurt a try? Or if you’d prefer coming here to learn how, let me know that as well. I’d love to offer some classes in some of the homestead arts. Lastly, if you’d like to help us out in our time of need, you can donate to this podcast via our website at www.peacefulheartfarm.com/donate. The very best thing you can do is share this podcast with others that you think might enjoy it. That helps us with getting higher rankings in the podcast search algorithms. I appreciate you all so much. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for listening and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. Recipe Link Home Made Yogurt To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

We are raising quail for eggs – or are we? Maybe we are raising quail for meat. Or perhaps it is a combination of the two. That’s the topic of today’s podcast. Settle in and let’s get cracking on figuring this out. But first, it is important for me to take some time to say welcome to each and every new listener and a heartfelt thank you and welcome back to veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I would not have a show without you. And I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Am I Allergic to Quail Eggs? • Instant Pot Quail Homestead Life Updates As many of you know, that “To Do” list for the homestead always seems to grow and never shrink. Every day stuff is checked off the list and every day something is likely added to the list. One is never bored here at Peaceful Heart Farm. And there are those wonderful moments of appreciation for this creation. Just this morning I walked outside on my way to drive and hour to the Farmer’s Market. I looked around and listened and smelled and felt the peace of our beautiful piece of God’s creation. Scott was standing beside me and we shared a moment of bliss as the day was dawning. Ummmm. Peace. Wytheville Farmer’s Market I had a great day at the Wytheville Farmer’s Market this morning. The crowd was small but the people were engaging. I had several lovely conversations with neighbors and visitors from across this great country. We had a small band playing and singing. It was fantastic. There is nothing like a small-town farmer’s market with lots of good people. Scott on the Homestead Back here on the homestead, Scott was handling the milking on his own. It takes him much longer to accomplish that morning chore without my help but he gets it done and he does it well. His cleaning skills are exemplary. I know it is trying sometimes with only one person bringing up the cows. Claire likes to plod along while Butter zooms ahead as if going to the races. Changes to Our Milking Routine I have talked a lot about how busy, busy, and busier we are here on the homestead and, in an effort to streamline the time spent with milking and gain time for other things, we have made a couple of changes. First, we changed the schedule to once-a-day milking. We have filled our capacity for aging cheese and the only reason for milking twice a day is making cheese. Once-a-day milking changes the quality of the milk in a small way but it is enough to change the cheese. So, milking twice a day is required when we are making cheese. The next change was combining two milking sessions. Up to this point we were doing three. Butter by herself, then Claire and Buttercup together and finally Violet and Cloud together. However, Cloud never had a calf. So in essence, we ended up with Butter milked by herself and Violet milked by herself. Cloud will either not have a calf this year or it will be much later. We don’t really know yet. Anyway . . . Re-Training Violet We are re-training Violet so she can be milked at the same time with Butter and that is a major undertaking. There are two milking stanchions and that is what allows us to milk two cows at once. Since her indoctrination to the stanchion, Violet has occupied the one on the left. And Cloud has been to her right in the other stanchion. Now we are trying to train Violet to the stanchion on the right. She, like all cows, is quite distressed when anything changes in her routine. Eventually she will get the hang of it, but currently she still goes straight to the left-hand stanchion. The problem is Butter is always already in place there. She always wins the race to the shed. That means Scott has to urges Violet off to the right. At this point she complies with varying degrees of cooperation. When we first made the change, she tried to exit the milking barn completely. Something was not right, someone was in her spot, and she was getting out of there until everything was back to normal. We chased her around in circles for a few days before she finally gave in and put her head in the stanchion on the right. But over time she has gotten better and better at the new routine. One day she will just start doing it and anything else asked of her will become the oddity. Once the routine is ingrained, cows do it nearly the same day after day after day. They are predictable in that way. The Calves So, the cows are being milked more quickly, only two sessions with the portable milker instead of three. The calves are getting more milk because we have more available for them since we are not saving it for cheese. They are growing quickly. Being bottle-fed calves, they are easy to touch and pet and hug. They constantly push and poke trying to find a bottle, but still, we can handle them and they don’t run away. That’s important. Even though the Normande breed is a very docile breed, they still need to be handled when young. They need to be taught to lead and so on. Goats and Sheep There is not much to say about the goats and sheep. They are out there eating grass and weeds and such. The lambs and kids are growing. Scott handles the pastures very well and there is plenty for all of the animals to graze on. There is a great deal of work that Scott will have to do to get the back fields prepared for them. That microburst storm from two or three weeks ago took down at least 3 dozen trees back there. Many of them are on fences. I think Scott’s plan is to clear and repair each fence line as they are needed. Eventually it will all get done as the animals rotate through all of the paddocks one by one. Garden and Orchard Is it hot where you are? It’s certainly hot here. Day after day after day of intense summer heat. July and August are the hottest months of summer and we are really getting hammered this year. Fortunately, there are also summer thunderstorms and occasionally we are the benefactor of that 50% chance of rain. We hit the jackpot one day where the chance of rain for us was about 10% and we got all 10% of that bit of storm cloud. That heat and lack of consistent rain is hard on the garden and the orchard. Time is our biggest asset here on the homestead and to water the entire orchard takes quite a few hours. The garden usually takes at least two. We have drip irrigation systems that are non-functioning at this time. That would save time if taking the time to fix it were higher on the priority list. Tomatoes I’m getting lots of tomatoes. In a couple of days I’m going to start my first batch of tomato sauce. I’m so excited. A lot of my veggies got overrun with weeds and bugs this year but my tomatoes are looking really good. I am picking them before they are completely ripe or I would lose most of them to the raccoons. They are eating them before they are ripe. My solution is to pick them every couple of days and I get anything that has the slightest bit of color change toward ripening. It’s not ideal but it works. I have shelves of tomatoes ripening in my beautiful wall of windows in the living room. Crowder Peas My favorite vegetable to grow is crowder peas or cow peas as they are sometimes called. The plants grow prolifically. The Mexican bean beetles don’t bother them. They require minimal amounts of fertilization and even the hot, dry weather hasn’t taken much of a toll. The only pests I have ever seen on them are the ants farming the aphids. The ants keep the aphid population under control – at least I’ve never had a problem with the little buggers. The problem is when picking the peas, ants are always crawling all over me and I’m slinging them around to get them off of my arms. Sometimes I look like a scarecrow flapping in the wind, waving my arms around and slinging ants. They are those big black ants and they only bite if they get trapped. I’m getting so many peas and they are really good. I always pick a few of the small sprouts and snap them like green beans. Just a few. I pick the cow peas when the pod is full but before it dries out. In the end I will dry some to be planted next year, but during the summer, I pick them while still moist and a little green. Usually they get canned in pint jars, though sometimes I will have enough in one batch for quarts. Open a jar, add just a small amount of bacon grease, make sure to have some hot cornbread on the side and you have a little piece of heaven. The last homestead topic is actually the topic of the day. What to do with the quail? Here is the story. Am I Allergic to Quail Eggs? The answer is likely “yes”. Or at the very least I was made very aware that they don’t sit well with me. Raising Quail As you know if you are a regular listener, we started raising quail so we could have the eggs. Coffee and eggs are just about the only thing we buy from the grocery store these days. I do buy other items like flour, sugar and salt but I get those in bulk. Those items last a long time in storage and I buy large quantities for a really good price. I store some coffee but that is only for a real emergency. Fresh ground is what Scott prefers that’s why it comes from the local grocery. And of course eggs need to be fairly fresh. Raising laying chickens was the original plan but the time needed to get that set up and maintained was more than we were willing to invest at the present time. That is not to say that it won’t happen in the future. I’m sure it will. In the meantime, raising quail seemed the next best option. The plan was to have six breeding sets. Each breeding set would have 5 hens and a rooster. The required housing was reasonably small. Six small cages and one large cage for growing out new birds. We would also grow out regular batches of quail for the meat. It is a fantastic meat. And quail are just so easy to raise. Well, that was according to all of the information we looked at via YouTube. And in truth, we have found that to be the case. They are really easy to care for, they grow quickly and produce eggs and meat within 8 weeks. It is the ideal situation for us at this time. The First Batch We ordered eggs in the spring and received them a couple of months later. There is always a waiting list for quail eggs, so get on the list early. Anyway, we ordered three dozen and received 40 eggs. Twenty-four of those eggs hatched and we still have 23 birds. We lost one to a black snake a few weeks back. It was a small snake and got through the ½” hardware cloth cage sides. I have no idea how this snake killed the bird. It had to have gotten the head in its mouth and smothered it. I can see no other way. But the snake was less than ½” in diameter and the birds head had to be at least ¾” or more by that time. I don’t know how it happened, I just know I found the snake in the cage and the bird dead. The other birds are just running around and not defending themselves. It would have been comical if not so tragic. Bottom line, we lost zero birds from the time they hatched. That is part of what I mean about how “easy” they are to raise. Some baby chicks seem to die within days no matter what you do but these quail are hardy. Make sure they have food and water. Get the snake out of the cage. That’s it. The Second Batch is in the Incubator We are getting 6 to 8 eggs a day at this point and we had two wonderful meals of quail from the extra roosters we raised. It took 6 days to save up the 47 eggs that are currently in the incubator. The incubator is currently at day 10 of 18 with those 47 eggs nestled in there, rocking back and forth in the automatic egg turner every 2 hours. At day 15 I will open the incubator, take out the egg turner and close it back up. Then it does not get touched until 3 days after we hear the first bird chirping. They have enough energy to last 3 days after hatching. Some eggs will continue hatching during that three days. It is important not to disturb the hatching eggs. A sudden change in the humidity and temperature can seal in a baby quail that is trying to get free of the egg. The inner membrane collapses and suffocates it. So no opening the incubator until we are sure all the eggs have hatched that are going to. Last time I did close it back up and left it for three more days. We got one more to hatch but that was it. All in all it was a good hatch and I’m excited to see how our own eggs turn out. I Love Quail Eggs Now that the incubator is up and running, the quail eggs are collected each day and set aside for eating. It takes 4 quail eggs to equal one large chicken egg. Basically, 8 to 12 quail eggs for breakfast along with sausage or bacon and perhaps some grits. Well, I don’t eat grits, but Scott does. He needs a stick-to-your-ribs breakfast for all that hot sweaty work he is doing building the creamery. I loved the eggs but it seems they didn’t love me. Or maybe I love them in my mind but my body said “no way”. When I first started eating them, I did feel a little queasy later in the day. I chalked it up to them being too rich and decided to eat less of them at one sitting. No problem, right? I can always get by on fewer calories. They Don’t Love Me Between the time that I first became queasy after eating quail eggs and the time I decided to eat fewer in a given meal was about a week. About half way through those days I was sick for about 12 hours. I mean really sick. It seemed obvious to me that it was something I ate. If it was a virus or something, I think it would have lasted at least 24 hours. At this time, I assumed it was something that I had eaten the day before, not suspecting the quail eggs I had eaten a few hours earlier. I threw out a whole salami because that was the only thing new that I had consumed the previous day. I used Scott as a guinea pig to test out some other foods. He didn’t get sick. In the end, I missed my farmer’s market debut in Independence, VA as I was still recovering from the effects of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea from the day before. All of those issues stopped within 4 hours or so from their beginning, but it does leave you pretty weak for a period of time. I didn’t want my first day at the market to be a disaster so I postponed that market appearance for another week. I had quail eggs again on Tuesday. Only six this time but the same thing happened again that had happened just five days earlier. I was sick as a dog. My experience was slightly milder but no less debilitating. Bummer, at this point I was sure it was the quail eggs. So now what? Plan B Well, if my body doesn’t like them, I’m giving them up. And not just quail eggs. All eggs. We will still raise quail for eggs but we won’t need so many because I’m not eating them. My mind right now is thinking that we will raise a lot more for meat. Chicken is a rarity in our household because we don’t raise any and I don’t shop much at the grocery. We have beef, lamb, and goat. The poultry is nice and I will sometimes pick up a rotisserie chicken while picking up eggs and coffee. But the future holds more quail for us. And that leads me to today’s recipe. Instant Pot Quail The reason that I go for the Instant Pot rather than oven roasted is the heat. It is really hot outside and to roast quail requires a 500-degree oven. That’s right 500 degrees. It’s a short time but just the thought of preheating an oven to 500 degrees makes me sweat. As with all Instant Pot recipes, this one is quite simple. (By the way, I actually have a Cosori but it works the same. Instant Pot is to multi-function pressure cookers as Xerox is to copy machines.) The prep time for this recipe is 12 minutes, cook time is 23 minutes. Another advantage to Instant Pot cooking. Quick and easy. What You Need • 2 whole quails, 4 to 5 oz each • Salt to taste • Pepper to taste • 1 bunch fresh thyme • 2 Tablespoon cooking oil of your choice • ½ cup chicken broth • 3 ½ oz bacon, chopped • ½ small onion, finely chopped • 1/8 teaspoon dried rosemary • 1/8 teaspoon dried thyme • 1 bay leaf What To Do 1. Season quail with salt and pepper 2. Stuff cavity of quail with fresh thyme 3. Place oil in Instant Pot and select “Sauté”. Add the bacon, onion, dried herbs, bay leaf, and cook for about 3 minutes. 4. Place quail in the pot, breast-side down and cook for about 4-5 minutes or until browned, then flip breast-side up. 5. Select “Cancel” and add the broth to the pot. 6. Secure the lid and cook using “Manual” and “High Pressure” for about 7-9 minutes. 7. Select “Cancel” if needed and carefully do a “Quick Release”. 8. Remove the lid, transfer quail onto a plate. Remove the herb sprigs from cavity. 9. Strain liquid into a bowl. 10. Return broth to Instant Pot and select “Sauté”. Cook for about 3 – 4 minutes. 11. Add the quail back to the broth for about 2 minutes, basting with the broth/sauce. 12. Remove from Instant Pot and serve with the sauce. Final Thoughts That’s it for today’s podcast. I hope you enjoyed catching up with us on the homestead. Sometimes we plan and plan and then God steps in and alters our path. Oh well, I trust him and will roll with the punches. I’ll be having quail meat rather than quail eggs. Scott will continue to enjoy both. I hope you are having fun with friends and family this summer as we continue on with the dog days. Kids will be back in school soon and the cycle will move on to fall. I’m already ahead of myself. Summer is not my favorite season. It has its beauty and advantages, but I really like moderation. But isn’t it the contrast that gives us appreciation of moderation? Something to think about. And remember, don’t heat up that kitchen with the oven. Use your Instant Pot. You’ll be glad you did. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. And even more importantly, please share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. Recipe Link Instant Pot Quail To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

The Traditional Family Cow is the topic of today’s podcast. She has just about been pushed out of existence. Lots of us are trying to revive this wonderful, quality food source. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to you veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • The Traditional Family Cow • Crab & Artichoke Dip Recipe Homestead Life Updates The cows are doing great. Every day, twice a day, I walk out there and find them grazing peacefully on the grass. I circle around behind them and start calling out, “let’s go, let’s go” and they all start toward the milking shed. They walk pretty slow. Sometimes inside I’m all raring to go and I want to push them a little faster—as if the milking machine would go any faster—and they never really cooperate. They move pretty much at their own pace no matter now anxious I might be. Scott has Butter already up in the shed hooked up to the portable milker. So these guys are just mozying along at a slow pace on their way to the lounging area. That’s where they will hang out until Scott gets done milking Butter. No need to hurry. I’ll take a lesson from them and endeavor to maintain my inner peace. It’s a nice daily ritual. Lambert does not come running anymore. We weaned him off the bottle about a week ago. I still feel like I’m missing something when I go out to the field. Shouldn’t I be doing something else before bringing in the cows? Oh well, it will pass. And every once in a while, he still comes running up looking for a bottle and I can give him a little petting. The donkeys sure love their petting. All four of them got their hooves trimmed a few days ago. Daisy and Sweet Pea just stand their placidly—for the most part. They do shimmy a little bit every now and then. But Johnny and Cocoa still dance around a lot. They try to lay over all of their weight on Scott while he is holding up one of their hooves. Or they jerk that hoof around while he is trying to hold it. Cocoa had a little mishap when she did that. The grinding tool that Scott uses to file their hooves nicked her. We put some pine tar on it to keep the flies out and it looked to be a small enough scrape to heal in a few days. We weaned the one boy kid from his mom a couple of days ago. He’s merged in with the other boy goats. We have six in there now and four sheep. One ram and 3 lambs that will go to the processor soon. Let us know if you are interested. I know I always talk about Wytheville, but if you are in the Winston-Salem or Greensboro, NC area we can help you there too. Pass this along to anyone you know who might be interested. I still haven’t got the onions out of the garden. Perhaps this week I can get to that. The tomatoes are looking really good as are the black, red, and white beans and the Mississippi Silver crowder peas. Yum, yum. I wonder how the blueberries are doing. The birds are probably having a field day out there. It has been more than 4 or 5 days I think since I picked them last. I canned eight 24-oz jars of blueberry pie filling and froze two quarts of fresh blueberries that will go in pancakes and yogurt. More yum, yum. Let’s get on to the topic of the day. The Traditional Family Cow In a previous podcast I talked about The Tradition of Dairying. I gave a brief history and finished up with the growth of the large dairies in the 20th century. Today I want to follow up on that and talk more specifically about small dairy farms and the family cow. What was happening to the family cow while commercial dairying was being conformed to the 20th century model of food as commodity? Along with small farms of every sort, she was being priced out of existence. If you talk to old-timers you will hear the statement, “it doesn’t pay to keep a cow.” American food is cheap, or at least appears to be. Starting early in the 20th century, an elaborate system of subsidies has kept food prices artificially low, part of a cheap food policy that brands food as a commodity and the cheaper, the better. Quality is an afterthought if it comes up at all. This policy has been continued by every administration. Perhaps you are familiar with farm subsidies, payments to farmers designed to assist them in producing their products at predictable levels. Among the less frequently recognize effects of subsidies is that by covering part of a farmer’s costs, he or she is then able to accept a lower price for the crops or milk, so you pay less for food. Pointed out even less frequently is the government assistance that goes to processors. Everything from special university research projects to tax-deferred production plants may be paid for wholly or in part by tax dollars. Highway costs are shared by all taxpayers but benefit truckers—and the food industry—disproportionately. This is sometimes referred to as corporate welfare. These are some of the hidden costs of cheap food. In reality, you are paying more for your food from the grocery store than you may have realized. It’s just harder to see it because it is in the form of taxes. It is you and I, the taxpayers, that are paying the money in the form of taxes that then goes to the farmer, the processor and the transportation industry all via subsidies. With food costs comparatively low, even the formidable efficiency of the cow is hard put to offer an obvious fiscal advantage. Milk prices are low because dairy farmers, even taking rapidly diminishing subsidies into account, are paid at a rate that barely covers costs and they cannot market their milk freely. They must sell to consortiums under fixed contracts that are government regulated. And processors have certainly made milk conveniently available to markets. If a plot had been hatched to eliminate small farmers, place milk production and distribution in the hands of a few, and permit almost everybody to forget what milk was meant to taste like, a better plan could not have been devised. Consider also that in terms of buying power, American wages were high during the first 60 years of the 20th century and our dollars still buy more food than in any other westernized country. So keeping a cow does indeed cost more than buying milk at the store. Most people considering getting a family cow are no longer motivated by the old-timer view that the object of a cow is to “pay”, reasonable as this may be. Quality dairy products and the desire for a more centered way of life are what people now want. Cost is secondary. Treatment of commercial milk Pasteurization has its detractors and I am among them, but there is no doubt that milk distribution as we know it today would otherwise be impossible. The creation of the current distribution network ensured the destruction of the small, local dairy farm. Pasteurization destroys all bacteria including benign strains and it destroys enzymes, besides physically altering milk protein. In addition, by the 1950s virtually all milk was also homogenized. ‘Pasteurized and homogenized’, which appear on every container of milk, are not really related at all. They came about for different reasons. “Homogenized” means the milk is subjected to pressure and agitation which knocks apart the butterfat globule and stops it from doing what cream would naturally do: rise to the surface. This, too, was presented to you, the consumer, as a great advance but first and foremost it served the distributor. Back in those days everybody wanted cream, but after its pasteurization treatment with heat the cream was lumpy and unimpressive. Homogenization offer the advantage of distributing the cream evenly throughout the milk. The advantage for distributors was less charming. Once pasteurization made it possible to sell milk two or even three weeks after it left the farm there emerged a problem with a sort of sludge settling to the bottom of the bottle. This sludge largely consisted of dead bacteria and the macrophages that consumed them, and the longer the bottled milk sat, the more evident the sludge. With homogenization it becomes invisible along with the cream. Don’t let me put you off store-bought milk all together. Worst things are in ketchup and peanut butter. This might seem reason enough to get a cow herd share with us, but wait. There is more. Now we have BGH, bovine growth hormone, to consider. Consumers have expressed virtually unanimous objection to the fact that milk may now legally contain BGH which is passed into the milk as a result of the cow’s daily injection. The history of milk distribution does not offer much reassurance that your concerns will end the practice. Antibiotics, contrary to widespread belief, are never fed to dairy cattle; nonetheless, they sometimes do find their way into milk following teat treatment. The cow as security Does the future seem uncertain to you? One of the best ways to take charge of your own future that of your family is to raise and grow your own food. This is a life-affirming choice of action and one that may well offer better odds than going about armed to the teeth. Inasmuch as this is hardly a new idea, many schemes for self-sustaining food systems have been devised and revived from traditional methods. One method involves growing algae in vats on the roof. Another promotes earthworms and other insects as ideal basic food. There are systems for backyard fish ponds capable of growing many pounds of fish called tilapia by adding manure and other waste to their water. Some people advocate growing family size patches of soybeans along with other vegetables to provide food security. All of these approaches offer food security of a sort, along with major problems. Algae tastes awful, insects don’t appeal to the Western palette, tilapia are nourishing but boring. An all-vegetable diet is seriously boring and is extremely labor-intensive. I recommend the cow. If the biggest animal you’ve ever known personally was a golden retriever, the cow may seem like a giant step into the unknown. We can help with that. With a herd share we will do all the work and you still get the benefit of raising your own food. Amazing cow magic that most people don’t know about An overarching truth about the traditional family cow is that she drives your small farm economy. By living on a constantly renewing resource, grass, she is able to support herself and her calf and still provide milk for you. And a cow does this on a free resource made of water and sunshine. Through her sovereign ability to convert grass, which otherwise has no value, to milk and meat, which does have value, the cow produces a wealth of nutrition. Crab & Artichoke Dip Recipe Dip into this rich and creamy snack and a favorite bottle of wine. Use your slow cooker to make this recipe—it’s a perfect fit for a relaxed “friends” night. This recipe is keto-friendly if you leave off the crackers and dip your bacon in it. TOTAL TIME: Prep: 20 min. Cook: 2 hours YIELD: 3-1/2 cups. What You Need • 3 cups fresh baby spinach • 1 can (14 ounces) water-packed artichoke hearts, rinsed, drained and chopped • 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened • 2 cups shredded Peaceful Heart Gold cheese (or substitute Harvarti) • 1 can (6 ounces) lump crabmeat, drained • 1/2 cup sour cream • 1/8 teaspoon salt • 1/8 teaspoon pepper • Assorted crackers (or bacon if you go keto) What to Do 1. In a large saucepan, bring 1/2 in. of water to a boil. Add spinach; cover and boil for 3-5 minutes or until wilted. Drain. 2. In a 1-1/2-qt. slow cooker, combine the artichokes, cheeses, crabmeat, sour cream, salt, pepper and spinach. Cover and cook on low for 2-3 hours or until cheeses are melted. Serve with crackers—or BACON. Nutrition Facts 1/4 cup (calculated without crackers): 158 calories, 12g fat (8g saturated fat), 50mg cholesterol, 279mg sodium, 3g carbohydrate (1g sugars, 0 fiber), 9g protein. Notes Peaceful Heart Gold matches well with sugary fruits like figs, raisins, walnuts, hearty, rustic bread, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and light-bodied Pinot Noir wine. Just as it accommodates spices and other flavors, Peaceful Heart Gold’s creamy-smooth, tangy flavor complements a wide variety of foods. You can shred it on a pizza instead of—or in addition to—mozzarella. It melts beautifully over burgers and in casseroles, and is fabulous in a grilled cheese. Final Thoughts That’s it for today’s farm updates and thoughts on the family cow. If you’re interested in that herd share, get in touch with me via email (give email address). You can also contact me through the website. www.peacefulheartfarm.com and go to the contact page. Call us at the farm at 276-694-4369. We’d love to talk with you in person. And give that recipe a try then go to the recipe page and provide your feedback in the comments. Let others know how you did with it and any modifications you made. If you enjoyed this podcast, please go to Apple Podcasts and write a review. And don’t forget to subscribe. Also, please share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. Recipe Link Crab and Artichoke Dip To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

Have you asked yourself the question, “How long should raw milk last?” It’s a good question and I’ll address it today, and provide a great ice cream base recipe. You won’t have to worry about the cream lasting a long time. Your cream won’t last long because the ice cream recipe uses it up. Homemade ice cream is the perfect complement to an early autumn day that feels like summer is still hanging on. Welcome new listeners and welcome back veteran homestead-loving regulars. I appreciate you stopping by the FarmCast every week. There wouldn’t be a show without you. Are you ready to get to it? Let’s go. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • How Long Should Raw Milk Last? • Ice Cream Base Recipe Homestead Life Updates Garden The garden is done. Well, there are a few sweet potatoes to be dug up, but other than that, it’s all gone. Whew. Now we can rest until the spring. Well, not quite. There are clean up tasks and winter preparation of the beds, adding compost to improve the soil over the winter and covering the beds to keep the moisture in and the weeds out. Quail We are ready for another batch of quail eggs in the incubator. Not so many as last time. Due to the reduction of daylight, they are laying much fewer eggs. Last time it was 47. This time less than 30. Whatever comes in today will be the last of this period of collection. Eggs can be collected for 7 to 10 days and kept in a cool environment but not in the refrigerator. Most of our quail are brown coturnix. They are tan and brown with spotted plumage. We have one white one from the original batch of eggs that we purchased and one white one from that first batch that we hatched out about 2 months ago. They are already mature. The males are fertile and the females are old enough to begin laying eggs. We will take out enough females to fill out our breeding stock and the rest will go to freezer camp. Cows We are down to one bull from this year’s calves and we have just offered up Egwene for sale as well. She is our purebred Jersey heifer calf. Her mom is certified A2A2 and her sire is also certified A2A2. If you are interested please let us know. She is a lovely calf and quite affectionate if she thinks you have a bottle. We are weaning her and she has only a day or so left where she will get milk. At 5 ½ months old, she is developed enough to live on grass. Homesteading requires tough choices and letting go of favored animals is one of them. I will miss her but we have to be true to our plan. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) The cooler weather we have had recently has been such a blessing. I hope it has been for you as well. I’m not a fan of summer. I like it okay in the beginning but it just seems to drag on and on. I’m the same way about winter. My favorite season is a toss up between spring and fall. Right now, fall is my favorite season, but I can guarantee you that in March my favorite season will be spring. I tend to get seasonal affective disorder. Anyone familiar with that? As the winter drags on and there is less sun, vitamin D can be in short supply and depression may not be far behind. Usually by the end of January I’m feeling it and by the end of February I can be almost immobile. My level of motivation has fallen through the floor. These days I just accept what is and don’t try to fight it. I revel in my – shall I say – laziness and enjoy it while it lasts. Come spring the world will spin out of control with so much to do and no time to do it all. It’s a familiar cycle for me. I’ve learned to ride it like a roller coaster. Let’s get to today’s topic. How Long Does Raw Milk Last? The short answer is nearly forever. The only thing that will stop you from consuming it is an aversion to the taste. First it becomes sour. Next it will thicken into yogurt. However, it will be a very strong yogurt. That yogurt will last a month or more. Along that time line you can drink the milk, use it in cooking, make cultured butter and buttermilk, and so on. Contrast that with pasteurized milk. Pasteurized milk does not sour, it rots. It truly goes bad and is not safe for consumption. You do not want to put it in your mouth under any circumstances. On the other hand, when raw milk ages and starts to sour, this is good! Great, in fact. What Makes Milk Sour and What Do I Do with It? The reason raw milk starts to sour is because beneficial, probiotic bacteria amounts are increasing and using up the lactose sugar, making it taste sour, again, like a nice unsweetened yogurt. So, how long should your raw milk last when you get it home? Sandra Clark whose website is www.healthfoodnaturally.com, has this to say: “If you get the milk the day it is milked, it will stay fresh up to 2 weeks. If it sours, no worries, it will become yogurt with no help at all (with a little sour cream on top).” Without a starter, the sour cream on top usually bitters, so you can just scrape it off and compost it if you don’t like the taste.” As for the yogurt, when we have left over milk at the end of the week, we just throw it in a ball jar and leave it in the fridge for if we get low on milk (because it has an amazingly long shelf life after turning into yogurt.)” When we do run out of milk, we just throw some honey and fruit (usually berries) in and blend the yogurt into a tasty yogurt drink.” I have some jars in there as old as two months and the yogurt tastes fine (well not like store-bought yogurt – to get that particular flavor you need to manipulate it with a bacteria starter like for cheese making – but with honey and fruit added it tastes wonderful!).” So according to Sandra it should last up to 2 weeks in your fridge. In my experience, I have kept milk for nearly a month before it soured. Because in the spring we have tons of milk, this happens often. We just keep drinking it until the flavor goes off, then use it for other purposes. What’s our Secret? What is our secret to milk lasting so long? It’s two-fold. First, cooling it quickly. The faster it gets below 40 degrees, the longer it is going to last. The second key is keeping it very cold. The colder you keep the milk, the longer it will last. Our milk refrigerator is set to 34 degrees. The problem that people have these days is having access to this great raw milk. I will do another podcast on how we got to this point. Today, I’ll just talk about where we are. There are lots of scary stories out there about how dangerous it is to drink raw milk. I say it’s hogwash and propaganda put out by some people in power with lobbyists to placate. The human species would have died out long before the pasteurization process was invented in the previous century if it was so dangerous. There are dangers in every food we consume. There are risks in every aspect of life. Assess your comfort level with the risk and make your choice. Raw Milk Choice The problem today is that in many states, there is no available choice for raw milk products unless you own your own cow. That’s why we started our herd share program. You can own part of a cow herd and receive the benefits of what your cows produce. More on that later. It’s so amazing to me that you can buy unpasteurized milk in the grocery store in 12 states, but the rest restrict it in various ways. It has to be labeled as pet milk in 4 states. 15 states allow it to be sold directly from the farm but not in the store. And of course, the herd share program is available in Virginia and 10 other states. In 9 states all sales are illegal and so are herd shares. So, 12 states think it is okay to for us buy raw milk and to consume it freely and the others are so certain we are all going to die of horrible illnesses that it has to be restricted or illegal altogether. I just cannot fathom the logic in this. If people were dying right and left, it would have been outlawed in all of those states wouldn’t it? Who is telling the truth? Recent Studies Show Raw Milk Related Illnesses are Decreasing While Access is Increasing You have to make up your own mind of course. And I will say again, there is risk in consuming any food. To help you with that decision as it pertains to raw milk, here is an article from the US National Library of Medicine Department of the National Institutes of Health (link in the show notes). It is titled Recent Trends in Unpasteurized Fluid Milk Outbreaks, Legalization, and Consumption in the United States. There is a ton of really great information in this study. Lots of data, as you might expect, and lots of charts and graphs. It’s really good stuff. I’ll quote from the Abstract. “Introduction: Determining the potential risk of foodborne illness has become critical for informing policy decisions, due to the increasing availability and popularity of unpasteurized (raw) milk. Methods: Trends in foodborne illnesses reported to the Centers for Disease Control in the United States from 2005 to 2016 were analyzed, with comparison to state legal status and to consumption, as estimated by licensing records. Results: The rate of unpasteurized milk-associated outbreaks has been declining since 2010, despite increasing legal distribution. Controlling for growth in population and consumption, the outbreak rate has effectively decreased by 74% since 2005. Discussion: Studies of the role of on-farm food safety programs to promote the further reduction of unpasteurized milk outbreaks should be initiated, to investigate the efficacy of such risk management tools.” So, there you have it. This study was initiated because they were pretty sure that the incidence of raw milk illnesses would increase as access was increased. They were wrong. There is now a push toward finding out if on-farm food safety programs are helping. I don’t need a study to tell me that they most certainly are. I’ve learned a lot of what I know because we have been studying cheesemaking for years. Others are just starting out and need to know about how to keep the environment sanitary and the milk clean. They need to know that it is really important to cool the milk quickly. Many still don’t use bulk milk tanks and have other ingenious methods of cooling the milk. A favored method is putting it in a freezer for 2 hours and then transferring to the refrigerator. I’m glad we have a bulk tank else frozen milk in broken jars would be a regular disaster. I get busy and forget stuff. Heck, I can walk into another room and forget why I went in there. Ever done that? Raw Milk in Virginia In Virginia, the way to have access to raw milk is via the herd share. You support the business by buying a share of the herd and get a designated rate of return on your investment. It is a commitment to be sure. It’s kind of like that wine buying club. You are committing to a certain amount of product per month for as long as you are a member. If you’re looking for an affordable cow herd share program in southern Virginia or the Piedmont Triad area of North Carolina that has quality, healthy, and long-lasting raw milk, cheese, butter and yogurt, this is it. We are situated in Patrick County, Virginia just northeast of Mount Airy, NC. Here are four reasons our cow herd share program is so good. 1. We offer 100% heritage breed Normande and Jersey milk, cheese, yogurt, cream and butter from cows with certified A2A2 genetics. I have a podcast on what A2A2 genetics means and I’ll include the link in the show notes. Briefly, there was as genetic mutation that happened a while back that changed the structure of the milk. Most milk today is NOT A2A2 in nature. One of the reasons we chose our heritage breed Normande cows was the purity of the ancient genetics. 2. We use antibiotics only at great need and absolutely NO growth hormones. Because we care for our pastures, our cows get only the best nutrition. Occasionally, there is a need for antibiotics. It’s no different than a human woman getting mastitis while breast feeding. Sometimes it happens and you take care of it. If it is necessary, that cow’s milk is harvested separately until the treatment and subsequent waiting period is long past. And the idea of forcing our cows to produce more milk with hormones is abhorrent to me. There is no regard for the health of the animal at all with hormones. There is only the focus on production. I don’t think those that use these artificial means of increasing milk even see that the cows are living beings. They treat them like machines. When they inevitably burn out due to over-taxing their bodies, they are shunted off to the sale barn and replaced with a younger model. It’s disgusting. 3. Our cows are out on grass all the time, and only come in for milking. They receive a small amount of non-soy, non-GMO grain supplement. This has two purposes. First, to entice the cow into the milking parlor and second to make sure she maintains her body condition. Our Normande cows can get by with absolutely no supplemental feed and maintain their body condition until late in the season. We choose to make sure they maintain body condition from beginning to end. The Jersey cow requires a great deal more supplemental nutrition. It is very easy for her to lose condition. I recently did a podcast on this as well (Normande vs Jersey – the Cost). The Jersey cow breed is a wonderful choice for many. But they do come with problems that we have not experienced with our Normandes. I won’t go into other details but, the days of Jersey cows on our homestead are numbered. 4. To join their herd share program, it only costs $60 AND one share is only $44 monthly! You can also purchase a half share for $30 and $22 per month or multiple shares if you have a larger family. The herd produces milk from the first week of May through the last week of October. Yogurt and sometimes cream is also available in that time frame. In the spring, there is always a glut of milk and we makes lots and lots of cheese with that. Our cheese are all raw milk cheeses. The legal requirement is that they be aged at least 60 days. However, none of our cheeses would be worth a darn at that young age. We age all of our cheeses well past that minimum. Some only come into their flavor after many, many months. And they get better and better with age. Our Herd Share Program Check out the Herd Share page on our website – www.peacefulheartfarm.com. Click or tap “herd share” on the menu to get more information. Or drop us a line via email or give us a call. We’d love to have a conversation with you. Fun fact about raw milk. Remember the old wives’ tale about drinking warm milk to get to sleep? That is likely due to the tryptophan in the milk. However, it doesn’t really work anymore unless you have a raw milk resource. Pasteurization destroys the tryptophan. And that’s it for today’s topic. Let’s finish up with a late summer recipe for home made ice cream. Ice Cream Base When it’s warm outside, a cold refreshing dish of ice cream can really hit the spot. This is a basic ice cream recipe that can be used as a base for many different flavors. I’ve included a download link to the flavorings. This silky, luscious and very classic custard can be used as the base for any ice cream flavor you can dream up. These particular proportions of milk and cream to egg yolk will give you a thick but not sticky ice cream that feels decadent but not heavy. For something a little lighter, use more milk and less cream, as long as the dairy adds up to 3 cups. You can also cut down on egg yolks for a thinner base, but don’t go below three. What You Need • 2 cups heavy cream • 1 cup whole milk • ⅔ cup sugar • ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt • 6 large egg yolks • Your choice of flavoring What To Do 1. In a small pot, simmer cream, milk, sugar and salt until sugar completely dissolves, about 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat. In a separate bowl, whisk yolks. Whisking constantly, slowly whisk about a third of the hot cream into the yolks, then whisk the yolk mixture back into the pot with the cream. Return pot to medium-low heat and gently cook until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 170 degrees on an instant-read thermometer). 2. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Cool mixture to room temperature. Cover and chill at least 4 hours or overnight. 3. Churn in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer’s instructions. Serve directly from the machine for soft serve, or store in freezer until needed. Notes Download the recipes for flavorings Final Thoughts I’m so glad that summer is winding down. It was a long, rough summer. And I missed about half of it because of the appendicitis. Again, not a huge fan of heat of summer. Remember to contact us if you are interested in a Normande bull to strengthen your herd genetics or if you are looking for that A2A2 Jersey heifer for yourself or to add to your herd. If you’re not into raising your own cow but still want the benefits of raw milk products, we are here to help you out with that. For us the benefits of raw milk and raw milk products far outweigh the small risk factor. I’ll do another podcast on the statistics for the number and percentage of illnesses attributed to raw milk consumption shown in the larger scope of food in general. Where does raw milk fall in the list of food born illnesses from food in general? I hope you try out some really great ice cream recipes in these last days of summer and the early autumn. Share your experiences in the comments on the recipe page. Link in the Show Notes. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. Also, please share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. References • US National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health: Recent Trends in Unpasteurized Fluid Milk Outbreak, Legalization, and Consumption in the United States • Peaceful Heart FarmCast: What is A2A2 Milk? • Normande vs Jersey – the Cost Recipe Link Ice Cream Base with bonus flavoring recipes download To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show with your friends and family on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

Today I’m going over the Weston A Price Diet Basics. They champion raw milk and have a lot of great information on their website. I’ll put a link in the show notes to their website. Before I launch in to today’s info, I want to take a minute to say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to you veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Weston A Price Diet Basics • Bone Broth Recipe Homestead Life Updates I feel almost normal again. There was one small incident earlier this week. We are missing one small buck and I thought he might be in with the girls so I walked much farther out into the pasture than normal to round up the goats. It’s pretty easy to do but required a bit more energy that I anticipated. I walked slowly and carefully. Keeping good balance is still an issue. I’m very careful when walking around out there. So many things can trip you up if you are not paying close attention. Then, oops, trip and down you go. Fortunately, I did not have that experience. No, I just walked slowly and carefully. Unfortunately, I walked a lot farther than I had in quite a while. It seemed like it would be easy. After all, I often easily walked two or three times as far as I did on this morning prior to my bout of appendicitis. Well, turns out it wasn’t that easy. I continue to be surprised by how weak my body became with this illness. Oh well, I just went inside, cooled off, rested . . . and then made some cheese. The Garden and Orchard Both are showing the effects of a lack of rain this summer. Oh, and the steers ate the tops of my celery, sweet potatoes and the Swiss chard. Bummer, I was going to take the celery to the farmer’s market per the request of my customers. The sweet potatoes will likely be fine. In fact, the tubers may grow even larger as they are the propagation mechanism for the plant. Whenever a plant’s life is threatened, it begins to put a lot of energy into reproduction. For instance, when it gets to hot for lettuce and spinach in late spring, the plants will send up stalks of seeds. This is referred to as “bolting”. We say the lettuce or spinach “bolted”. Sometimes even the smallest amount of stress can cause lettuce and spinach to bolt. It starts putting out as many seeds as possible to preserve itself. Scott did take a day out of this creamery-building schedule to water the few remaining veggies in the garden and the entire orchard. He also did a bit of summer pruning of the trees. And then it was back to laying blocks in the creamery. The Creamery It is so exciting to see those walls growing out of the ground. The building is really taking shape. Scott is so dedicated to using every possible minute to get the project completed. His attention to detail is also inspiring. The seams between the blocks are perfectly aligned. Visit our Facebook page to see images of all his hard work. The Animals We started the culling process with the goats. I talked about our plan in the podcast just prior to this one. In the end, we will have no sheep and the cashmere goats will be replaced with Kiko goats. We took the three breeding bucks to the meat processor. They will make lots of ground chev. Look for a good deal on soup bones. We will have lots of them. All three of them had impressive racks of horns. Roanoke’s were more than 4’ feet from tip to tip. We asked and were granted permission to keep the heads with the horns attached. They are currently curing and will eventually decorate our walls – probably in the small store area of the creamery. The Quail We have begun collecting eggs for the next batch of quail. It started slow. Only two so far. The quail cages got moved. Their manure smell is quite pungent and their cages were far too close to the carport and back door. The odor seemed to accumulate under the carport and came wafting to the back door. Each time the quail are disturbed, they stop laying eggs for a few days. When Scott was building the cages, he had to remove the layers from their cages while he assembled the additional cage above their space. They stopped for a day or so and then slowly returned to their original laying pattern. So when Scott moved their cage to a new and quite lovely shady spot, their laying dropped to almost nothing. He brought in two eggs this morning. Normally, we get six to eight. Also, the days are getting shorter and the birds will naturally lay fewer eggs. They need light to lay every day. We can supply artificial light and we may do that. Who knows? That’s another project though. Best keep on with the creamery. Weston Price Diet Basics Today I want to talk about a traditional diet as presented by the Weston A Price Foundation. (WAPF). There are lots and lots of ideas and opinions about nutrition out there. The science cannot seem to agree. And it makes sense. No two people are alike. Some people live on the equator with ancestral and genetic ties to an abundance of fruits. Some people live in areas where meat and fat are their only choices. I recommend doing your own research and making your choices based on the needs belonging uniquely to you and your family. Today, specifically, I’ll be outlining the recommendations detailed by the Weston A Price Foundation. First, some basics on the man and the organization. Who is Weston Price? Weston Andrew Valleau Price (September 6, 1870 – January 23, 1948) was a Canadian dentist known primarily for his theories on the relationship between nutrition, dental health, and physical health. He founded the research institute National Dental Association, which became the research section of the American Dental Association, and was the NDA's chairman from 1914 to 1928. Price initially did dental research on the relationship between endodontic therapy and pulpless teeth and broader systemic disease, known as focal infection theory, a theory which resulted in many extractions of tonsils and teeth. Focal infection theory fell out of favor in the 1930s and was pushed to the margins of dentistry by the 1950s. By 1930, Price had shifted his interest to nutrition. In 1939, he published Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, detailing his global travels studying the diets and nutrition of various cultures. The book concludes that aspects of a modern Western diet (particularly flour, sugar, and modern processed vegetable fats) cause nutritional deficiencies that are a cause of many dental issues and health problems. The dental issues he observed include the proper development of the facial structure (to avoid overcrowding of the teeth) in addition to dental caries. This work received mixed reviews, and continues to be cited today by proponents of many different theories, including controversial dental and nutritional theories. The Weston A Price Foundation The Weston A. Price Foundation (WAPF) was co-founded in 1999 by Sally Fallon Morell and nutritionist Mary G. Enig. It is a non-profit organization dedicated to "restoring nutrient-dense foods to the American diet through education, research and activism." The foundation has been criticized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its advocacy of drinking raw milk and by various nutritionists for its advocacy of the health benefits of animal-based fats. The President of the foundation is Sally Fallon Morell. The foundation has seven board members and numerous honorary board members, most of whom have medical or nutritional qualifications. Its main sources of support are the dues and contributions of its members. It does not receive funding from the government or the food processing and agribusiness industries. It does accept sponsorships, exhibitors and advertising from small companies by invitation, whose products are in line with its principles. The sponsors include grass-fed meat and wild fish producers, as well as health product companies. A 2004 report published by the foundation stated that it is dedicated to "restoring nutrient-dense foods to the American diet through education, research and activism", and "supports a number of movements that contribute to this objective including accurate nutrition instruction, organic and biodynamic farming, pasture feeding of livestock, community-supported farms, honest and informative labeling, prepared parenting and nurturing therapies." Specific goals include establishment of universal access to certified raw milk and a ban on the use of soy in infant formulas. The organization actively lobbies in Washington DC on issues such as government dietary guidelines definition and composition of school lunch programs. The WAPF publishes a quarterly journal called Wise Traditions in Food, Farming, and the Healing Arts, and an annual shopping guide which lists products made from organic, non-GMO ingredients and prepared using traditional and artisan methods. WAPF Diet Basics The diets of healthy primitive and non-industrialized peoples contain no refined or denatured foods such as refined sugar or corn syrup; white flour; canned foods; pasteurized, homogenized, skim or low-fat milk; refined or hydrogenated vegetable oils; protein powders; artificial vitamins or toxic additives and colorings. I do want to point out that primitive cultures have health difficulties that our modern systems have overcome. Access to food and health care in the first world is amazing. Death in childbirth and early childhood death from things like pneumonia are still issues for the primitive tribes. Diet won’t fix that. Appendicitis like I had would have been a death sentence for these people without modern medicine. We truck food from one side of the country to the other. Importing and exporting food from and to all parts of the world is now commonplace. We do not have problems with access to food. Our problems might be characterized more as excess of food. All traditional cultures consume some sort of animal protein and fat from fish and other seafood; water and land fowl; land animals; eggs; milk and milk products; reptiles; and insects. In every traditional culture, some of the animal products are eaten raw. Their location on the planet determines their diet. And as I mentioned earlier, some have access to an abundance of fresh fruit. For some fruit would be a year-round staple and for other it would be seasonal. Because of the focus on the foods I just mentioned, primitive diets contain at least four times the calcium and other minerals and TEN times the fat soluble vitamins from animal fats (vitamin A, vitamin D and vitamin K2) as the average American diet. There is an interesting connection between raw foods and the enzymes needed to digest them. Primitive and traditional diets have a high food-enzyme content from raw dairy products, raw meat and fish; raw honey; tropical fruits; cold-pressed oils; wine and unpasteurized beer; and naturally preserved, lacto-fermented vegetables, fruits, beverages, meats and condiments. Lacto-fermenting is an art form I’ll address for you in a later podcast. Seeds, grains and nuts are soaked, sprouted, fermented or naturally leavened in order to neutralize their naturally occurring antinutrients. Phytic acid, enzyme inhibitors, tannins and complex carbohydrates are examples of antinutrients. Most of today’s nutritionists insist that low fat is the way to go. But that’s not how we were able to survive to experience this modern era. The total fat content of traditional diets varies from 30% to 80%. Of total calories consumed, only about 4% come from polyunsaturated oils. That 4% comes from the naturally occurring oils in grains, pulses, nuts, fish, animal fats and vegetables. The balance of fat calories is in the form of saturated and monounsaturated fatty acids. Traditional diets contain nearly equal amounts of omega-6 and omega-3 essential fatty acids. There is a lot of heady information out there about what food has what fat and in what ratio? Is there a balance of equal parts omega-6 and omega-3? Again, in traditional diets where animals are raised in harmony with nature and gardens are made fertile with naturally occurring compost, the balance of this fat and that fat is irrelevant. When using traditional methods of farming, the animals are healthy and the nutrition in food is naturally in balance. If it is not, something needs to change in the farming method. This is the essence of being sustainable. All primitive diets contain some salt. Another vilified nutrient by today’s standards. Traditional cultures consume animal bones, usually in the form of gelatin-rich bone broths. Bone broth is quite popular today in the keto and carnivore diet worlds. That sums up the basics of the WAPF diet basics. Go to their website and signup for their 7-part Wise Traditions Diet to get all the information on eating a traditional diet. What to eat as well as proper preparation passed down through centuries of experience. Bone Broth Bone broth is made with bones that have bits of meat still clinging unlike “stock”. It is also generally thinner than “stock”. Most people use the terms interchangeably. It has been made for centuries. Roasted bones will add flavor to the broth and will darken the color. This recipe that fresh herbs for an added bit of flavor. What You Need • 1 pound lamb bones or other bone of our choice • 1 tablespoon cooking oil • 1 large onion, diced • 3 medium carrots, chunked • 3 stalks celery, chopped • 3 sprigs fresh rosemary • 5 sprigs fresh thyme • 3 gallons water, more as needed • Salt, optional What To Do 1. Preheat oven to 400 F. 2. Place bones in roasting pan. Cook for 30-40 minutes or until browned. 3. In a large stock pot placed over medium heat, add cooking oil. 4. Add onion, carrot, celery, garlic, and herbs. Saute for 5 minutes. 5. Add bones including fat and juices from the roasting pan. 6. Add enough water to cover the bones and bring it to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low. 7. Simmer for 8 hours (or up to 24 hours) uncovered. Add more water as needed to keep the bones covered. 8. Strain the broth through a fine mesh strainer lined with a tea towel. 9. Enjoy hot or store in the refrigerator for up to a week. Notes If you made a larger amount, freeze the remaining broth in container sizes that fit your everyday needs or pressure can for longer term storage. Hop over to the website to find and print this recipe. There is a link in the show notes. Go to the home page, click or tap podcasts, click or tap this episode titled “Weston A Price Diet Basics,” scroll to the bottom of the post and you will find the link to the bone broth recipe. Final Thoughts That’s it for this episode of the Peaceful Heart FarmCast. We are winding down toward fall, the harvests are coming in and preserving food for the winter is in full swing here on the homestead. The work on the creamery continues. And as the days get cooler, that bone broth is the perfect food for bringing you warmth and peace at the end of the day. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give it a 5-star rating and review. And the best way to help out the show is to share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. References Weston A Price Foundation Recipe Link Bone Broth To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

Today at the farmer’s market speaking from one herbalist to another, I was reminded that activated charcoal is a simple treatment to use. That will be my topic for today. It has been years and years since I’ve been sick with anything and even longer since I’ve had any kind of stomach or gastrointestinal illness. Activated charcoal can help. But first, welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back veteran homestead-loving regulars. That you so much for stopping by the FarmCast. I appreciate you all so much. First up on the agenda, I’m so excited to share with you all the great activity going on at the farm this week. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Stomach Virus – Traditional Remedy • Ginger Tea with Honey and Lemon Homestead Life Updates The Quail We have 47 quail eggs in the incubator. These little guys are a joy to raise. They are so hardy. We started with 24 hatchlings and still have 23. The only one we lost was due to a snake. With baby chicks, almost always you lose one or two – or more – due to failure to thrive or some early disease. Not so with quail. We had them outside before they were 2 weeks old. Almost fully feathered, they were fine with the temps in the 70s during the day and high 50s and low 60s at night. They are hardy birds. In less than three weeks we will have new babies. The Creamery The concrete block walls to the milking parlor are complete. There is a video on Facebook with a short tour of that part of the building. Scott has spent quite a bit of time today moving the milking parlor equipment into the area. For the longest time it has been stored just waiting for this moment. Who knows when the actual installation will happen, but it is exciting to see the first portion of the creamery coming into being? In addition to the milking parlor equipment installation, it still needs a roof. There is still so much to do. The Cows The cows are moooving along nicely and munching down on all that grass. If you’ve never been around cows you are missing the perfect example of peace in action. One of the reasons that I wanted a milk cow in the first place is the sense of peace that comes from working with them and there is no closer relationship that when you are milking them. They are truly beautiful creatures. Smelly but beautiful. We still have one more bull calf available. You can call us at 276-694-4369 to get more information on these guys. There are two to choose from, but we are only selling one. The last one we will keep for beef. He will take a couple of years to grow out, but these Normande cows make some great steaks and roasts. Speaking of beef, we have a limited quantity of beef available. This will be the last for a while so get in touch with us now if you are interested in a quarter or a half. The Lambs The lambs and goat kids are frolicking in the grass and growing like weeds. It is amazing how fast they grow. The lambs and kids are nearly the height of their mothers already. Watching them get down on their knees to nurse is comical. Well, it doesn’t look like so much fun for mom, but they seem to patiently endure. They are all old enough to be weaned and we will separate them in the next couple of weeks. It is important to get the boys out for sure. Otherwise, we end up with unauthorized breeding and we can’t have that. No we can’t have that. The Garden Let’s talk about the garden. The tomatoes are coming on strong. I have lots of them sitting on shelves ripening. I would prefer to pick them when they are already ripe but the raccoons make that impossible. Every night they go out into the garden and pick a few and take a bite or two out of them. Then they get another one and take a bite or two out of that one and so on. These guys are grabbing them before they even get all the way red. I wonder if they would like fried green tomatoes. No matter. I’ve taken things into hand and am just circumventing their intrusiveness and picking the tomatoes as soon as they show any sign of ripening. The plan is to make lots and lots of tomato sauce. I made some last year for the first time. It was much easier than I thought and I look forward to making more this year. I use tomatoes in stews. I use a lot of tomatoes in stews. Up to four quarts in a 4-gallon batch. If I use tomato sauce instead, I think I can use 2 pints instead. Much less storage space for the tomatoes. Last night we shelled Mississippi Silver Crowder peas. There is a large bowl ready to be cooked and eaten. There will also be some left over to be canned. I love growing these. The plants are resistant to everything and they put on lots and lots of pea pods. The pods are 7-8 inches long with about 20 peas per pod. They shell easily and they taste of good. They can be dried and cooked similar to black-eyed peas, but I prefer these to be green and I like to add a few snapped green pods. Again, these are very easy to grow and produce very well. The Orchard We had a neighbor come over and pick some blackberries a few days ago. I simply do not have time to pick them and process them. Blackberries are a lot of work. I don’t like the seeds and always take the extra steps necessary to get the seeds out. It’s not really hard, but it is time consuming. Besides the issue of time, I still have tons of blackberry jam and blackberry syrup from last year. Our blackberries are always prolific. We grow several varieties of thorn-less and the berries are large and juicy. I’m probably leaving out a bunch of other stuff that is happening here, but I’m going to close off the farm updates for this time. The Farmer’s Markets Oops I almost forgot to mention the Farmer’s Market. Come see us at the Wytheville Farmer’s market on Saturday mornings 8 am to noon. Starting this Friday you will also find us at the Independence Farmer’s market from 9 am to 1 pm. I’ll have lamb, beef and goat as well as lots of information on herd shares. Who knows, maybe even some cheese samples. I was going to start at the Independence Farmer’s market this past Friday, but I had an incident that has not happened in many, many, many moons. I had a stomach virus or perhaps it was that salami. I don’t know. It was one or the other. In any case, I was sick as a dog for a good 12 hours. Let me tell that story and provide some info on the perfect remedy. Activated Charcoal – Traditional Remedy for Nausea and Vomiting And as I mentioned earlier, while at the Wytheville Farmer’s market I spoke with another herbalist and she reminded me of activated charcoal when having issues with stomach upset. In the heat of the sickness I was trying to think of what to do and I was so sick I couldn’t remember what I had on hand to deal with it. When she promptly said “activated charcoal”, it was one of those face-palm moments. Of course, I have tons of it on hand for exactly that purpose. Number one, I’m almost never sick and number two, my head hurt so bad I couldn’t think straight. I did act on the headache. My sinuses were inflamed and I don’t know why. I was sure that a massive head cold was about to take me out for days. Well, I took out my trusty echinacea and goldenseal formula and dripped some directly into my nasal passage. It burns. Only a couple of drops but POOF, gone. No more sinus issues. If I could only have thought so quickly about the activated charcoal. It’s a matter of what I use more often and what I have never had the occasion to use. Now I’ve had the occasion to use it but didn’t but it’s unlikely I will forget next time. Let me give you the goods on activated charcoal. Activated charcoal Charcoal isn’t just for your backyard grill. Even though charcoal makes most of us think of glowing embers and yummy barbecued kabobs or steak, it has stomach soothing medicinal properties too. The CDC reports that 19 to 21 million Americans will get the stomach flu, and charcoal might just help you get back on your feet faster. What is the Stomach Flu? What’s often referred to as stomach flu, stomach bugs, or even food poisoning can be caused by bacterial infections or viruses. This inflammation of your gastrointestinal tract might be referred to as gastroenteritis or norovirus, but in either case the symptoms include nausea, vomiting, and/or diarrhea. The illness comes on quickly and can have you off your feet from one to three days. Common treatment recommendations include drinking fluids, getting rest, and following the BRAT (bananas, rice, applesauce, toast) diet. None of those are on my eating list so an old Native American remedy would have been a much better option. What is activated charcoal? Activated charcoal is made with a variety of burned materials including bamboo, wood, coal, or coconut shells. This treatment was used by Native Americans hundreds of years ago, and there’s even some record of it being used by Egyptians. Activated charcoal is processed at high temperatures and results in a black powder that is incredibly effective at absorbing a variety of substances. Charcoal is “activated” when a high temperature is used in combination with an activating agent that expand its surface area. This is what gives activated charcoal its incredible absorbing powers. Why do people take activated charcoal? Most commonly used to treat poisoning and drug overdoses, activated charcoal is now gaining attention as a remedy for stomach bugs that cause nausea and vomiting. The theory is that activated charcoal can absorb the bacteria responsible for causing stomach flu (the same way it is used to absorb poisons). You can also have a virus that can cause the same sort of tummy troubles, and activated charcoal may help with the symptoms. How should I take charcoal? You can buy activated charcoal online in capsules or powder. If you feel the nauseating symptoms of a stomach bug coming on, or if you are actively vomiting, you can put the powder in some applesauce, if you have capsules you can open them up. A common recommendation is 500 to 1,000 mg, two to three times per day. It is recommended that you take other supplements at different time as the charcoal can absorb good nutrients as well as the bad stuff. If you notice any worsening symptoms after taking the supplement stop taking and call your doctor. It’s important to note that activated charcoal should be bought from pharmacies and health food stores, it is not the same as regular charcoal. Activated charcoal, unlike regular charcoal, is food grade and safe to take internally. You can give it to children, but check with your pediatrician beforehand. If you get the okay, start with ¼ of a capsule (about 200 mg) in some applesauce and repeat no more than 2 times a day. If you or your child continue to have abdominal pain or persistent fever, you must see your doctor. Home remedies are great but they are not the be-all, end-all for medical treatment. Side Effects & Safety Activated charcoal is safe for most adults when used short-term. Side effects of activated charcoal include constipation and black stools. More serious, but rare, side effects are a slowing or blockage of the intestinal tract, regurgitation into the lungs, and dehydration. Special Precautions & Warnings: Pregnancy and breast-feeding: Activated charcoal might be safe when used short-term if you are pregnant or breast-feeding, but consult with your healthcare professional before using if you are pregnant. Don’t use activated charcoal if you have any kind of intestinal obstruction. Also, if you have a condition that slows the passage of food through your intestine (reduced peristalsis), don’t use activated charcoal, unless you are being monitored by your healthcare provider. Medications taken by mouth (Oral drugs) interact with Activated Charcoal Activated charcoal absorbs substances in the stomach and intestines. Taking activated charcoal along with medications taken by mouth can decrease how much medicine your body absorbs, and decrease the effectiveness of your medication. To prevent this interaction, take activated charcoal at least one hour after medications you take by mouth. Alcohol Interacts with Activated Charcoal Activated charcoal is sometimes used to prevent poisons from being absorbed into the body. Taking alcohol with activated charcoal might decrease how well activated charcoal works to prevent poison absorption. Syrup of Ipecac Interacts with Activated Charcoal Ipecac is taken by mouth to cause vomiting after suspected poisoning. It is also used to treat bronchitis associated with croup in children, Amoebic dysentery (a severe diarrhea), and cancer. Ipecac is also used as an expectorant to thin mucous and make coughing easier. Small doses are used to improve appetite. Activated charcoal can bind up syrup of ipecac in the stomach. This decreases the effectiveness of syrup of ipecac. For lesser stomach issues there are lots of teas that can help. Ginger Tea with Honey and Lemon Ginger tea has been used for thousands of years as a cure for nausea and digestive problems. It offers a variety of health benefits and healing compounds to alleviate upset stomach. Many people reach for the ginger ale when feeling symptoms of stomach pain or nausea, but ginger tea contains higher concentrations of the compounds that alleviate these digestive issues; making it the better choice for feeling better faster. This tea is made using fresh ginger root and packs a punch when it comes to healing symptoms of upset stomach. Ginger is a natural remedy for nausea and is often used to treat morning sickness in pregnant women and motion sickness caused by planes and boats. In fact, a Thai study examined pregnant women with symptoms of morning sickness and found that 28 out of the 32 individuals saw an improvement in nausea when given a daily dose of 1 milligram of ginger root. As a rule of thumb, one cup of ginger tea contains about 250 milligrams of ginger so aim to drink two to four cups of this tea to alleviate feelings of nausea. What You Need • 1” Fresh ginger root, grated • ½ Lemon • Honey, to taste • 2 cups water Equipment • Grater • Glass container or teapot • Strainer What To Do 1. Peel one-inch piece of fresh ginger root and grate into a glass container with a filter. 2. Thinly slice lemon and add it to the container with the ginger. 3. Add honey. 4. Pour boiling hot water into the container and steep for five minutes. 5. Strain and serve hot. Final Thoughts Are you keeping up with all the stuff going on at the homestead? It’s a lot to handle but we love it. The cows, sheep, goats, donkeys and quail are a barnyard variety that keeps us in a constant state of wonder and amusement. These guys are a hoot. We love sharing it all with you. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram and come see us at the Farmer’s markets in Wytheville and Independence. Or heck, come see us on the farm. Tuesday mornings and Saturday afternoons. We’d love to share some of this more directly. Get some activated charcoal and keep it on hand for that occasional stomach upset. It doesn’t to bad. There is no expiration date. It is the porous form that absorbs the toxins and that doesn’t change once created. And remember that mild upsets can be alleviated with a little ginger tea. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. Also, please share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. Recipe Link Ginger Tea with Lemon and Honey To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

Today’s topic is how the keto diet and dairy fit together. The keto diet is catching on more and more it seems to me. That might be because it works. Today I want to share some of my story and how I use dairy and still stay in ketosis. I’m even going to share a keto chocolate ice cream recipe with you. But first, let me say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I want you to know how much I appreciate you. And I’m going to ask a favor. Reviews on iTunes are important for this podcast to trigger their algorithm to feature it prominently in search results. I’d like for you to go to iTunes and enter your thoughts about the benefits you receive from listening to my show. Please share with friends and ask them to review it also. Thank you so much for joining me and thank you for assisting me in getting the word out so others can find the podcast also. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Let’s get started. Today’s Show • Homestead Life Updates • Keto Diet and Dairy • Keto Chocolate Ice Cream Homestead Life Updates Things are getting back to normal at the homestead after our internet outage. It will take a while longer to get caught up again, but we will get there eventually. It was Thursday afternoon before we got out internet back. Scott and I have discussed how to manage this issue. This is not the first time we have had to put business on hold due to lack of internet. This time we came up with a solution. It was simple. Purchase a spare modem and keep it on hand to be used as needed. When the modem blows out as it invariably will, bring out the spare. Easy peasy. No waiting for days to find out if that’s all we needed in the first place. Once we get the replacement modem, the spare goes back into storage until needed again. I’ll let you know how that pans out. Canning Canned today: 13 qts whole milk, 6 pints peas, 16 pints goat broth, 5 quarts goat meat. Still to come is blueberry pie filling. I have 36 quarts of cream canned and 26 quarts of ground beef canned. Those projects took lots and lots of time. I have skim milk to can also in the line up. Storm Damage Trees down all over. Scott estimated 3 dozen trees down. Yeah, 3 dozen. One fell on the orchard fence and still needs to be repaired. Last week I think I forgot to mention that the beehive was blown over. Scott got dressed up in full protection and put the hive back together. Those bees were hopping mad. Even with all that coverage, he got stung four times. It has been many days since then and the bees are doing well after their incident. Garden I have had little chance to set foot in the garden other than a quick walk through to see what might need attention. Here’s what I found. The onions need to be harvested. The tops have fallen over and that means they are ready to be pulled and set out to dry. The green beans are doing well. The dried beans are doing even better. The Mississippi silver cow peas are doing the best. They always do. That’s why like to grow them. I have one tomato that is starting to turn. There are many, many tomatoes that are green. I have those conical cages around my tomato plants for support. Many were blown over during the storm. I set them all back up right and the plants are doing well. I’m so excited. This year I’m going to can lots of tomato sauce. In the past I’ve canned whole tomatoes, or crushed tomatoes, or chopped tomatoes, or diced tomatoes. Last year, late in the season, I watched a YouTube video on how to make tomato sauce. The last batch of tomatoes I harvested from the garden were used to make a few jars of tomato sauce. It was much easier than I ever thought it would be, and again, I’m so excited to do an even better job this year. Grass-Fed Beef We took a steer to the butcher for processing. Almost all of that is sold. Let me know if you are looking for good grass-fed beef. We still have a steer or two that you can snag. A quarter is about 100 pounds of meat and would cost you around $600.00. Speak now or forever hold your peace. Breeding Season It’s on. Breeding season is upon us. We wanted to do artificial insemination. That would allow us to have greater control over our genetics, and we could also get sexed semen which would allow us to dramatically increase the probability that our cows would have heifers, or girls. The timing for getting the semen that we desired did not work out. So, we will continue to pursue this option, getting the semen now for next year. Buttercup Buttercup was the first of our girls to show obvious signs of being in heat. I’ve noted the date in my spreadsheet that automatically calculates her projected delivery date. For cows, the gestation period is between 279 and 385 days. My spreadsheet calculates the 279 days as that would be the earliest time that she would have her calf. Claire Claire is Buttercup’s older sister. She may have been in heat a few days earlier, but I’m not sure. I recorded the date anyway. If she shows signs of heat in a month, I will simply change the date to reflect the new likely delivery date. I’m not sure I’ve introduced all of our cows to you so I’ll take a moment to fill you in on them. Butter I know I’ve introduced butter. She is our Jersey cow recently purchased from a nearby farm. She is a registered jersey and produces A2A2 milk. If you’re not familiar with A2A2 milk, check out my podcast, “What is A2A2 milk?” Link in the show notes. About 50% of Jersey cows in the United States have the A2A2 genetic trait. While we haven’t had our Normande cows tested, about 88% of the breed carries the A2A2 genetic trait. And since we will be using artificial insemination, we can breed for the trait. All of the sires that we have to choose from via our supplier are certified A2A2. Our goal is for our small herd of dairy cows to be 100% A2A2 certified. Violet Next up is Violet. She is a beautiful cow. And she is interesting. She only has one horn and she has a big round belly. Like all of our cows, she’s really friendly. Cloud Lastly is Cloud. Cloud is only 75% Normande cow. She is one quarter black Angus. Her frame is tall—taller than all the rest. The Wheel of Time and the Calves Then there are the four calves. They are all named after fictional characters from a fantasy novel that both Scott and I enjoy listening to over and over. There are 14 books in the series, The Wheel of Time. I saw a Facebook post just this morning that Amazon is rapidly moving forward with a TV series that will be streamed to Prime members. Filming to begin later this year. If you like Game of Thrones, you might like The Wheel of Time as well. It is not nearly as dark and the central theme is more esoteric—a battle between good and evil. Butter’s calf is Egwene, also a purebred Jersey with A2A2 genetics, and she looks like a little deer. Claire’s calf is Matrim. Buttercup’s calf is Perrin. And Dora’s calf is Rand. We lost Dora 3 days after Rand was born. Violet’s calf was named Galad. He now resides at a new home in Eastern Virginia. The Donkeys I want to take a moment to introduce our donkeys as well. They are all miniature donkeys, 36” tall or less. We keep them as livestock guardian animals. Well, they are also pets. Donkeys love human interaction. We have the Daisy, the matriarch. Her daughters, Sweet Pea and Cocoa. And then there is Johnny, sire of Cocoa. He can no longer sire and we keep him paired up with Sweet Pea and the boy sheep and goats. Daisy and Cocoa guard the girls. Sheep and Goats I’ll refrain from naming all of the goats. That would take a long time. The does all have names, but the 2 kids from this year and the 9 from last year do not. And only one of the sheep has a name. Remember Lambert? I suppose we will name them all at some point. We’ve just never gotten around to it. We identify them by number because we had around 70 and the numbers were the best way to keep up with who was who. They are all healthy and happily eating grass is those green pastures. Now moving on to my eating habits. Keto Diet and Dairy There is a picture of me and Scott on our website. It’s on the “About” page. That picture is very out of date. I weigh 45 pounds less than that picture indicates. Ideally, in the next year or two, I will have dropped another 45 pounds. How did I do it? A variation of the keto diet. In order to get to my topic of the keto diet and dairy, I’ll have to fill in the basics of the ketogenic diet. At least the one I use. Dr. Eric Westman’s Duke University Diet Clinic videos is my source. And Go Keto with Casey is my support resource. That’s Casey Durango from Greensboro, NC—right down the road from me about an hour and a half. I’ve met her in person. Basics of Keto I’ve tried many diets in my life. Until October last year, I had given up the idea that I would ever be able to be small again. The keto diet involves reducing carbohydrate intake to a minimal level. When I started in October last year, I reduced my carbohydrate intake to less than 10 g per day. Let me briefly describe my current protocol. I consume fatty sources of meat and take in 20 g or less of carbohydrate daily. Ideally, I eat only when hungry and stop when I’m satiated. Those last two points I’m not really that good at. I still tend to eat at the same time every day because I always eat at that time. Or I eat dinner because I always had eaten dinner. Those are not reasons for eating. That’s it. Eat fatty sources of meat. Keep your carbs under 20 g a day. Only eat when you’re hungry. Stop when you’re satiated. Four simple steps. There are many amazing things that have changed in my life over the past eight months. Keto Results The first thing was the reduction of inflammation. At my age I thought I would always wake up with sore joints in my hands. My back was stiff. That went away within a few days. Where before, I absolutely could not close my hand in the morning because of the inflammation, now, my hands close easily. The best thing I have experienced is that I don’t think about food anymore. Anyone out there who has struggled with their weight will know what I’m talking about when I say that my day used to revolve around food. Before I would do anything, I would first evaluate whether I needed to eat first, or if I was going out, what was I going to eat, or what I wait to eat until I got back home. While eating, I might be evaluating what I was going to be eaten at my next meal. I spent a lot of time planning meals, thinking about what food I was going to cook, when, and for which meals. I have a new problem. Very often, I haven’t planned at all. Dinner comes around, and Scott doesn’t have anything to eat. I can throw a burger in the pan and have a meal in 15 minutes. I literally have to make myself think about food. Planning meals has become a task on my calendar. It is the most radical and bizarre change in thinking I have ever experienced in my life. It’s a great diet plan that fits very well with our traditional homestead. We raise animals and we have dairy. We also have quail now that are providing eggs. They will also provide protein. These are the basics of my diet at this point. Meat, dairy, eggs. Keto Diet and Dairy Dairy is where I have to be the most vigilant. It is not unlimited. Milk has a significant amount of carbohydrates. I actually poured a glass of milk today. About 8 ounces. If it was 3.5% milk from the store that would be 12 g of carbohydrates. Still under my goal of 20, but leaving only eight as wiggle room. That’s the first time in the last eight months that I’ve poured myself a glass of milk. I would have a sip here and there, but not a full glass. Aged cheese on the other hand, has less than 1 g of carb. Still I must be vigilant. Cheese is a calorie dense food. Cream is great. Also, very calorie dense. While I only track carbohydrates, in the end, calories do matter. Dairy products can fit very well into a ketogenic diet. What matters is keeping your body in ketosis. That means your body is burning fat for fuel. Your carbohydrate intake is so low that your body stops looking for carbohydrates and transforms itself into a fat burning machine. Carb Cravings Gone Carbohydrate cravings completely disappear. That part was not quite as easy as I would’ve liked. I went through a time where the carbohydrate cravings were quite cute. The way I made it through was to increase the fat and protein that I was eating. Every time I would want a cake or cookies or some other sweet, I would go and eat another hamburger. I was aware that I was over eating. But it got me through. I got to the point where I couldn’t stuff another mouthful in or I would burst. That overrode the carb craving. And after a few days, they stopped. I could literally sit and watch Scott eat some sweet dessert and not feel compelled to reach over there with my fork and grab a bite of it. Those of you that are listening that have had issues with weight may find it hard to believe. I know I did and I was experiencing it. So, on the keto protocol I have to be careful with dairy. But it is totally the greatest part of my diet. And I’m going to finish up here with the recipe for keto chocolate ice cream. As I said, cream is great and there are some great artificial sweeteners out there that keep this very low-carb. Keto Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe This recipe does not use an ice cream maker. With heavy whipping cream whipped to soft peaks, the result is similar to a fluffy chocolate mousse. What You Need • 5 oz 85% or 90% dark chocolate, broken into pieces • 2 oz cocoa butter • 4 large eggs, separated • ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar • ½ cup powdered erythritol or Swerve • 1 tablespoon sugar-free vanilla extract • 1 ¼ cups heavy whipping cream What to Do 1. Melt the chocolate and cocoa butter in a double boiler over medium heat then cool to room temperature. 2. Separate egg whites from egg yolks. Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar. As the egg whites thicken, slowly add the powdered Erythritol. Beat until they create stiff peaks. 3. In another bowl, beat or whisk the cream until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed. 4. In a third bowl, mix the egg yolks with the vanilla extract. 5. After the chocolate has cooled, using a rubber spatula, add about a third of the fluffy egg whites and mix with the chocolate. Add the remaining egg whites and gently fold in without deflating them. 6. Slowly stir in the egg yolk and vanilla mixture. 7. Finally, fold in the whipped cream using the spatula, creating fluffy chocolate mousse. 8. Transfer chocolate mousse to a 9 X 9-inch baking dish lined with parchment paper. Freeze at least 4 – 6 hours, or until set. Notes: You can use 1-cup, single-serving containers for portion control. If the ice cream is too hard, leave it at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before serving. Nutrition Serving size: ¾ cup Calories: 267 Fat: 25g Carbohydrates: 5.5g Protein: 5 g Final Thoughts I hope you enjoyed getting to know our animals a little better. We love them and hope you do to. The keto diet is working for me and I am so glad that I can still use my dairy products. Wouldn’t that have been a hoot if I had found something that improved my health dramatically and it completed contradicted my life’s work. That didn’t happen. Meat and dairy are the center of our lives and the center of my diet. You’ll have to measure that keto chocolate ice cream, but I think it will be well worth your time. A serving is ¾ of a cup and contributes 5.5 g of carbs. If you enjoyed this podcast, please hop over to Apple Podcasts, SUBSCRIBE and give me a 5-star rating and review. Also, please share it with any friends or family who might be interested in this type of content. As always, I’m here to help you “taste the traditional touch.” Thank you so much for stopping by the homestead and until next time, may God fill your life with grace and peace. References What is A2A2 Milk? – Peaceful Heart FarmCast Dr. Eric Westman – LCHF Treatment for Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome Casey Durango – Go Keto with Casey Recipe Link Keto Chocolate Ice Cream To share your thoughts: • Leave a comment on our Facebook Page • Share this show on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram To help the show: • PLEASE LEAVE A REVIEW for Peaceful Heart FarmCast on Apple Podcasts. • Subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher Radio, Google Play Music, TuneIn or Spotify • Donate on Patreon Website www.peacefulheartfarm.com Patreon www.patreon.com/peacefulheartfarm Facebook www.facebook.com/peacefulheartfarm Instagram www.instagram.com/peacefulheartfarm/

It has been a wild and crazy few days and there are more to come. Today’s podcast will be short. We do not have internet and won’t have it for 5 more days for a total of 8 days. If you are new, welcome. Thank you so much for tuning in and I hope you’ll engage and comment as we go along. And as always, welcome back to the veteran traditional homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. I have so much to share about the farm this week that it is the topic of the day.

How does one get a peaceful heart? That’s a deep subject. I’ve worked on it for years and I continue to work on it. Maintaining peace, both inner and outer, is a full-time job – a lifetime job. There are techniques that help. Different choices can be made that will help. Self-discipline with your thoughts and mind helps. There are lots of things that can be done. Here at Peaceful Heart Farm, we are constantly reminded of the desire for peace because of our name. What you think about becomes your life. We think about peace a lot. Living in the environment we do helps also. But it is not required. Not everyone can live the life we do – or even desires to live as we do. Having peaceful surroundings is not a prerequisite for experiencing peace. I must say, for us, it certainly helps. Whenever you get tired of the rat race and just want to escape to the country, you might have to make plans, drive a certain distance, hope that it is as you remembered, and so on. For Scott and me it is a matter of waking up in the morning and going outside to do morning chores and we are immersed in it – for the most part. We have awakened to disasters – animals we love may be ill and die. We lost Dora earlier this year. That was not pleasant and it disturbed my peace. But we move on.

This was first posted in June of 2019 Last month we looked at the tradition of Mother’s Day. Today we look at the tradition of Father’s Day. And more importantly, why children need fathers (or at the very least father-figures) in their lives. Today retailers and marketers, in an effort to make a quick buck, have completely changed the original meaning of Father’s Day. A holiday that was created to honor dad and enumerate his special qualities is now used as a marketing tool. Such is the way of life in our very affluent country.

In this episode, I want to share our dream with all of you. Perhaps you’ve been dreaming the dream as well and just don’t think you can get there. Sometimes it takes time—a lot of time. But it is so worth it. I encourage you to start today.

First Published in 2019 -- Happy Mother’s Day and welcome to all the new listeners and a shout out to all of the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. There is a ton of stuff going on at the homestead right now and I’m so excited to share it with you. As Mother’s Day is quickly approaching that’s what I’m going to focus on this week. It’s a particularly important topic for me and I’m going to get a little more personal this week and share the mistakes I made regarding motherhood that changed my life forever. I hope that it helps someone else out there make easier life choices.

Traditional Healing Wisdom has been with us since the beginning of time. Exploring where we are with that today is my main topic for this edition of the Peaceful Heart FarmCast.

A few episodes ago I talked about the sensory experience of taste. Next, I talked about the basics of cheesemaking. Today, I’m putting those two together. This episode is going to be all about the taste of cheese. What is it? Where does it come from?

The consumption of dairy products has been a mainstay for as long as mankind has been able to capture and milk animals of all kinds. Sheep, goats, cows, bison, water buffalo, donkeys and horses. All are still milked to this day. There may be others. These are the ones of which I am aware. I want to talk about this tradition that has helped our species thrive and develop over the centuries and millennia.

You have heard me talk about A2A2 milk. Some of you may not know what that means. You may wonder if it really matters to you and your family. I’m going to fill you in on some of that information today. First let me say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to you veteran homestead loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week, a little bit about A2A2 milk and a great and tasty recipe.

This is not an instructional video or "how to" for this topic. It is simply an introduction to what it might have been like for women in the 1700's when cooking. In the Cooking Through the Ages FarmCast I finished up with a recipe for cooking cornbread on the hearth. There have been so many questions about hearthside cooking, I decided to do an episode on the techniques and knowledge that our great-great-great-great grandmothers used to cook meals for their families. When the United States was founded, all cooking was done over a fire. Most often it was done in the fireplace of the home. Knowledge of fire-building was a part of everyday life. There were specific tools and implements that assisted in the cooking process. I’ll talk about those as well.

The tradition of dairying has been around for thousands of years. Today, in the United States, the number of small dairy farms continues to decline.