Twice Baked Turkey

Even though my family enjoys the left-over Thanksgiving turkey sandwich or warmed up turkey and dressing, we're ready for a  cheesy twice baked  turkey twist in a short time.  Turkey Tetrazzini  (also known as Chicken Tetrazzini) is also perfect for an easy supper after a day of Christmas shopping!

Turkey Tetrazzini

9 1/2 oz. spaghetti, uncooked
3 Tablespoons onion,
chopped (optional)
1/2 clove garlic, minced (optional)
4 Tablespoons butter
2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
5 Tablespoons water
1 cup plus 3 Tablespoons sharp cheddar cheese,shredded
1/2 cup Pepper Jack cheese,shredded
2 cups diced, cooked turkey

Preparation:

Cook spaghetti until tender, drain and mix with a little melted butter.   Cook onions and garlic in butter until tender; blend in soup and water. Stir until smooth. Add cup of cheese, stirring until melted. Stir occasionally. Fold turkey into soup mixture.

Place spaghetti in bottom of greased 13x 9 inch baking dish. Cover with turkey mixture. Top with remaining grated cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Although I credit Ryan with having made the right decision to marry me twenty-nine years ago,

my life  on the dairy farm wouldn't have been possible without Ryan's parents!

 

 

 

 

Holidays will never be the same without them, but I'm thankful for the memories we have and the stories we can share as we bring others around our dairy farm family table.

 

                                                          Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving Butter Up

Have you tried to butter up your turkey? I know there are many ways to cook a turkey, but I was intrigued by this Dairy Makes Sense  special blend of butter for turkey basting, vegetable seasoning or serving with hot bread. Not only can you try it for Thanksgiving--you may want to share it as a Christmas gift!

Sage,Rosemary, and Thyme Butter

Ingredients:

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter,softened
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh sage leaves
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary leaves
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

Combine ingredients in a small bowl; stir until well blended. Spoon into an airtight container; store in refrigerator.

Recipe Variations: Use your favorite herbs and/or spices to flavor unsalted butter. Add your own salt to taste. We purchased a combination package of "poultry blend" herbs--sage, rosemary, and thyme--making it super easy to prepare this flavored butter. Sage,Rosemary, and Thyme Butter can be used as a rub to flavor and moisten your holiday turkey. Also, add flavored butter to season any vegetable or serve with hot bread. Give as a gift in an airtight decorative container with lid.

Dairy Love

 

Twenty-nine years ago at high noon, the time that all Ryan's  farmer friends could make the event...

 

                                                                                  
                                        we were drinking milk at our wedding reception!
                                                      

              Twenty-nine years later, we're still celebrating dairy love everyday down on the dairy farm!
                         

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

If you visit our dairy  farm, Chester will be one of  the first to greet you. We're not sure what kind of dog he is but we guess him to be a mixture of terrier and blue heeler. He's obviously not beautiful, nor trained for any particular job on the farm, but he wins the heart of all children and visitors. He does have a bad habit of nipping your heel when you least expect it-- it's always the grown men that  fear him!

 

 Chester has   been my faithful companion every step I take on the farm for at least twelve years.

With cooler weather, he has reclaimed his warm bedtime  spot on the back porch. I'm pretty sure he would like to be a house dog.

 

                                                                            
                                                                           
                                               I'm thankful for Chester--so ugly, he's cute!

Dairy Sustainability

With silage harvest complete, it's off to the next farm task---planting for spring crops! It was a perfect weather day for getting started and with more rain predicted later  this week, there's  no time to waste.

 

 

Part of the preparation for planting today started several weeks ago when cow manure was spread on the fields for fertilization of the soil in the fields that will be planted. Cow manure is a great nutrient for the soil and also increases the water holding capacity.

 

Our dairy is licensed   by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality (often referred to as ADEQ) to store and utilize the cow manure produced on our farm. Manure is spread on designated fields on our farm with limits of how much can be applied. Following these regulations and best management practices protect the health of my family, our cows and the environment.

 

 

Recycling the manure produced by our dairy cows makes economic sense, helps the environment and protects our water quality.

 

That's what I call sustainability down on the dairy farm!

Dairy Goes Bananas

I love this month of gathering with friends and family to celebrate and give thanks for the blessings we enjoy on a daily basis.  As I flipped through a new cookbook, 'What's Cooking at Wye', that I picked up on my visit to see the spring daffodils on Wye Mountain, Banana Pudding seemed to be the perfect choice to carry to our Thanksgiving church dinner today. It meets my criteria for using dairy products and serving a crowd!

The recipe didn't have a lot of detailed instruction so I decided on my own to line the bottom of the 13x 9  serving dish with a layer of vanilla wafers with a layer of banana slices on top,pour the pudding mixture  and top it with the rest of the vanilla wafers. I can tell you from licking the spatula--it's mmm... good!

Banana Pudding

8 oz. pkg. cream cheese,softened
1 can condensed milk

Mix ingredients above together and set aside.

1 large box instant vanilla pudding
1 small box instant vanilla pudding
3 1/2 cups whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix the above ingredients together; then add to the cream cheese and condensed milk mixture.

8 bananas-sliced
1 large tub Cool Whip
1 package of vanilla wafers

Add to the mixture above: 1 large tub of Cool Whip (fold one big blob of this into the mixture above)
use the rest to top the pudding. Pour into large bowl, top with remaining cool whip...place in the refrigerator.

                                                                          Happy Sunday!

Feelin' the Farmer Love

Dairy farms can be found in all 50 states and even though each farm is unique, we are all working for the same outcome--producing nutritious, high-quality milk by caring for our animals and the land we call home. 

This video thank-you from McDonald's  was shared at the National Milk Producer's Annual Meeting in Phoenix this week.

I  felt the farmer love all the way to Arkansas---thank-you from all of us dairy farmers!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

 

Arkansas Farm Bureau leaders from all 75 counties met in Little Rock last week for the State Resolution Committee meeting  to discuss resolutions for policy changes in preparation for the annual meeting in December. This process is why Farm Bureau is called a "grassroots" organization. Changes or additions  made to Farm Bureau policy start at the county level, are  reviewed by the State Resolution Committee and  then presented at the annual meeting for adoption.

 

 

At this two day meeting, we discussed both state and national policies that are important to our members across the state. I just love talking about chickens and dairy!

 

After review and suggestions for adoption of changes, resolutions are approved for presentation at the annual meeting in December.

 

 

 

I'm thankful for this policy process that serves to fulfill the mission of Arkansas Farm Bureau in advocating the interests of agriculture, disseminating information concerning the value and importance of agriculture, and provide products and services which improve the quality of life for our members.

Dairy Cow Approved Weather

It was a Dairy Cow Approved Weather Day  and I'm going to recommend a bonus for the  weatherman's perfect prediction of today's cold weather in Northwest Arkansas.  As I waddled out the back door this morning  all bundled in my warm coveralls, hoodie, coat and gloves--I wasn't too stylish looking but I was    prepared for that cold north wind!

 

Our dairy cows actually seem to thrive on colder  temperatures.  They embrace and enjoy  the cold weather  by eating more hay.

 

 

 
 From now till spring, one of our daily tasks will be  making sure hay is in the manger to provide good nutrition during cold weather   for these pregnant cows.

 

As I watched the cows enjoying their bale of hay, I couldn't help but think

 we're a lot like cows--eating is the natural thing to do when the weather gets chilly!

 

 

Nutritious dairy products--- always in style and perfect for any weather!

                                                           

                                                       ---Dairymom Approved Statement

 

 

Veteran's Day

 

Ryan's parents ,Bill and Bonnah Lyn, were married in 1944 at Tyler, Texas,  just a few days before Bill was sent to Japan during World War II. Just a day or two after being married, Bonnah Lyn returned home to work on the farm with her father  while Bill was overseas.  

 

 

 

 

While we can never thank our Veteran's enough for their service to our country, 

I also give thanks to the families of these men and women for keeping the home fires burning  during times of war and peace.

 

                                                                                    
                                                                                  

Harvest Wrap-Up

 

We've been enjoying great weather as fall harvest wraps up.   Even though it has frosted and  the days are cooler and shorter, hay can still be cut, baled and wrapped to make silage bales.  

 

 

Today's hay wrapping is  a great example of teamwork that happens on the dairy farm everyday.

Cody baled the hay, Casey moved it from the field onto the wrapper, and

 

 

 

Ryan and his dog supervised!

Harvest wrap-up activities are a part of our  commitment to providing high-quality milk by making sure our cows have nutritious feed. 

 

 

 

 

 

Movember Dairy

 

November is Men's Health Awareness Month and it's the perfect opportunity to share information about the  health challenge of prostate cancer.  

 

Here's the facts:

 



•  Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men.

 

• One in six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime.

 

• There are no early signs of prostate cancer.

 

• Prostate cancer is slow growing but by the time symptoms occur, it is usually in advanced stage and more difficult to treat.

 

That old adage " an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" rings true when thinking about prostate cancer.  It's important for men to have that yearly prostate exam--85% of prostate cancer is diagnosed in the early stage when it  is more likely to be treated successfully.

 

 

You can follow the Movember Dairy or donate to the Movember USA campaign which funds prostate cancer research. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

I was pleasantly surprised to find this iris blooming last week  in my badly neglected  grass covered flower bed.  I've never had iris bloom in the fall but it was a sweet reminder of how God continually blesses us when least expected.

 

                                                    
                                                  
                                                              I'm thankful for unexplained

                                                                                  and

                                                                      expected surprises

 

down on the dairy farm!

"The Gift of Dairy"

 

It's not too early to be thinking about giving gifts--so why not a dairy gift? 

 

 During this holiday season, Midwest Dairy is sponsoring "The Gift of Dairy" Holiday Pinterest Contest to help dairy fans share ideas and recipes about gifting dairy during the holidays. The gift of dairy can be a variety of things, like a holiday recipe, entertaining idea or a tangible gift.

 

You can pin to win   a $250  grocery gift card to provide the gift of dairy to your family and friends! 

  

 

Dairymom's Monday Night Play

Everyday on the dairy farm is busy but Mondays are always hectic so  I'm planning a simple supper--simple but nutritious--that will be the perfect addition to Monday night's football kick-off. Touchdown Taco Salad  from the Dairy Makes Sense recipe collection    will definitely be a winning play!

Touchdown Taco Salad

Ingredients:
1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1 1/2 cups (6 oz.) shredded Cheddar cheese,divided
1/2 cup salsa,divided
8 cups salad greens
1 cup chopped tomato
1 1/2 cup black beans

Preparation:
Brown beef in large non-stick skillet; remove from heat. Stir in 1 cup shredded cheese and 1/4 cup salsa; mix until blended. Spoon onto serving platter. In a large bowl, toss together salad greens, tomatoes, black beans and remaining cheese and salsa. Spoon salad over meat mixture and serve.

Servings: 8

Happy November from Down on the Dairy Farm

Just before the evening milking, I noticed these cows lingering around the water tank, enjoying a cool drink before their walk to the milk barn. Looking at the sky behind and above them, it was a perfect view of God's artistic abilities.

 

 

I'm thankful for these everyday moments down on the dairy farm.

 Today's sunset seemed the perfect beginning for a month of thankfulness.

 

Happy November!