Back in Business!

I'm so happy! We are finally back to milking our Jersey cow Magnolia, after taking off for a couple of months. Fresh milk means delicious raw milk, fresh yogurt, and butter to our heart's content.

There are so many benefits to raw milk! There are great living cultures in it that cause super digestive health. You can read about the benefits of raw milk here.

Many scientists believe the reason we have such crazy stomach issues in the US as far as frequent viruses is concerned is because everything we eat is so ultra-pasteurized that we never receive any of the good bacteria found present in natural dairy products. These living cultures help the stomach and also help the body to fight off bad bacteria that causes sickness. Ask your grandma if she grew up having stomach viruses and you'll probably find, as I have, that they were rare years back, when dairy products were eaten raw. Pasteurization was originally started to increase the shelf life of milk. Milk could be sold when it was a week old or more.

It's safe to drink raw milk because a family knows their family cow, or the cow their milk came from, and they are aware if the cow is healthy and strong, and free of disease. A healthy cow makes good, healthy milk.

We used to milk a Holstein cow. They have a lower milk fat level, and the milk is leaner. They give a huge supply, though! When Elsie, the holstein's calf unexpectedly died, we were milking around 7- 7 1/2 gallons of milk a day. Oy. That's a lot of milking.

I really wanted a Jersey milk cow a bit later, and we finally found Mrs. Magnolia. She is the sweetest, gentlest cow! I really love this cow, no joke! She has never once tried to kick me, and won't even kick at flies while I'm milking her. She will raise a leg slightly, and then seems to remember I'm there milking and so she sets her foot back down gently. After she's milked, she lets me pet her and seems to love it. She is a darling.

Her calf, who was more bull than calf since he was over a year old, was finally brought to the cow sale yesterday. That means we are back to milking two times a day. It takes about 15-20 minutes each time. We are getting somewhere around 2 1/2 gallons of milk a day, but I expect that to increase some as she gets back into the milking routine with us.

It really is an enjoyable time for me to go milk her. It's a little break from the routine, and I typically find myself singing old hymns to the beat of the milk squirting in the pitcher.



Magnolia enjoying a treat while being milked



This is where she stands while she is being milked.



Fresh milk that's been refrigerated. The cream (milk fat) rises to the top after a bit. That's the yellowish color on top.



I skim off the cream for butter, and then pour up the milk.



Yes, the boys are doing a happy dance in the back ground because they are excited about having what we call a milk-shake. It's just milk, sugar, and a little vanilla. It's a little treat they get every now and then.



YUMMY!






"This is pretty swell, Ma!"



"You really gotta try this!"



The cream goes into ol' trusty for about 10-15 minutes where the butter separates from the milk. Modern butter making at its finest.



When the butter separates it looks beady like this. (Please excuse these dark photos- I'm still working on figuring out the flash on this camera.)



You have to "wash" the butter to get all of the milk out or it will end up not tasting so great. I have found that the easiest way to do that, is by adding some ice cubes to a bowl of water and dipping and squeezing the butter until the water squeezes out clear. I have to keep refilling my bowl with fresh water and cubes. The ice cubes help the butter stick together and keep it from falling to pieces. It really does come out 'Land of Lakes' good!

We have had tons of bell pepper and squash growing lately. I started today chopping up the bell pepper. It's so convenient to have frozen bags of chopped peppers throughout the year to dump in whatever is being cooked.









I had just enough butter made up to use for lunch. We decided to have stuffed bell peppers. I think our kids will be pretty sick of this meal by the end of the summer. :/



(Black beans and rice, onions, garlic, and cheese)

Yummy goodness!