Friday, July 26, 2013

Dairy Farmers of America Party

One of my favorite meetings to attend as a member of Dairy Farmers of America cooperative is the Summer Information Meeting held in Springfield, Missouri. As we left the farm this morning headed to the meeting,  it was drizzling rain  and overcast--perfect conditions for a farmer to leave the farm and not feel guilty about what we could be doing if it were hot and sunny!

This meeting is a mixture of fun and business with lots of children attending with their families, information booths filled with dairy farm specific information and the availability of all the milk and ice cream bars you can eat before, during and after the meeting. It's always a place of reunion with old dairy farmer friends that may or may not still be in the business.

We're proud to be one of more than 8,000 farm family members of Dairy Farmers of America Cooperative. Here are some facts about our cooperative:
  • We represent 1/3 of the total United States milk production.
  • 61 billion pounds of milk are produced annually by cooperative members.
  • We own 31 diversified  manufacturing facilities that include dairy products, food components, and ingredients.
  • High-quality milk  is produced on all sizes of farms across America.
  • We are a leader in formulating and packaging shelf stable products.
After being filled with information and  a delicious lunch , we   topped off the party  with  M&M ice cream cookies and in a glorious rainy day in July,   headed to  the Ozark Empire Fair with our complimentary tickets to continue our party.


That's my kind of farmer  party!

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

 
 
After spending two days in Hot Springs at the Arkansas Farm Bureau Officers and Leaders meeting this week, we made a quick stop in Little Rock before returning home to the farm. I'm thankful for the beauty all around us--whether it's the bright coneflowers around the Confederate Women's Statue at the Arkansas Capitol 
 
or
 
                                                                         
                                                                   home on the dairy farm!

Friday, July 19, 2013

Peachy Ice Cream

I haven't found any Arkansas peaches at the local market but thanks to farmers in other states--I've had some really sweet, juicy peaches this week! Flavor rich peaches like these will be perfect in homemade ice cream--a perfect treat for celebrating National Ice Cream Month! 


Fresh Peach Ice Cream

1 quart milk
1 10-ounce package of marshmallows
2 cups sugar
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups Half & Half dairy creamer
3 cups mashed fresh peaches

Combine milk and marshmallows in Dutch oven. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until marshmallows melt; remove from heat. Add sugar and remaining ingredients; mix well. Chill. Pour mixture into freezer container of gallon hand-turned or electric ice cream freezer. Freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. Pack freezer with additional ice and salt, and let stand for 1 to 2 hours to ripen before serving.

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

                                                                    
         Calves grow up to become  the cows that produce milk, so farmers make it a priority to get them off to a healthy start. I'm thankful  for all the "date nights"  I have riding around on the farm  with the dairy farmer checking calves and cows!

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Pineapple-Mint Smoothie

After touring the Mountain View herb garden at  Arkansas Women's Blogger Conference last year, I was  inspired  to try a few herbs in my own garden. Even though I knew mint to be a very prolific and invasive plant, I wanted to have my own bit of mint. I now have a growing patch of mint in a small flowerbed--make that a mint bed with few flowers!

  I've got plenty of mint  for this tasty smoothie recipe that I found in the recipe collection at Dairy Makes Sense.


Pineapple-Mint Smoothie

Ingredients:

6 cubes of frozen crushed pineapple in juice*
2 cups fat-free milk
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint or basil

*Note: Use frozen crushed pineapple to chill and thicken your smoothie.
Spoon contents of a 20 ounce can of crushed pineapple in juice into two ice cube trays and freeze at least 24 hours in advance of making smoothie.

Preparation:

Combine all ingredients in a blender; blend until smooth. Serve in tall glasses or on-the-go drink container.
                                                                     Happy Wednesday!

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Dairy Farmer's Wish List

 I'm making my list and checking it twice tonight in preparation for our monthly milk testing day tomorrow. It's a kind of  dairy farmer's wish list-- its a list of cow's to test for pregnancy and wishing each one will be!  Finding a cow to be pregnant is always  a  big deal because managing the reproductive cycle is a central component on today's dairy farm.   Thanks to new dairy technology, we can now check a cow's milk to determine pregnancy.

Milk pregnancy test is a great tool for the dairy farmer's tool box to assess and maintain herd health, consider reasons for the inability of a cow to get pregnant and to identify open cows early. The test is 98% accurate and can be done as early as 35 days after a breeding date. Most importantly, it is a noninvasive test that requires no additional labor and doesn't create any stress on the cow.

Our monthly milk testing provides information about each cow's milk quality and quantity and provides information about the health of each cow. All of this information is used in making management decisions to help us care for our dairy cows and provide high-quality milk.   Adding the   milk pregnancy test that can be done when we do our monthly milk testing  is a great tool to add to our  dairy farmer tool box!


                  In just 24 hours after we send the sample, I can't wait to see if I get my wish---


                                                                      She's Pregnant!





Thursday, July 11, 2013

Homemade Memories

 The highlight of any summer family gathering during my childhood  was the experience of making homemade ice cream.  The adults would fight over who would get to lick the paddle once the ice cream was made but we children fought for the right to sit on top of the bucket while the adults turned the crank!

I wouldn't trade the memories I have of hand cranked homemade ice cream but I do enjoy the ease of making ice cream with the  electric freezer Ryan and I received as a joint birthday gift! Since  July is  National Ice Cream Month, I've decided to experiment with a few new recipes for homemade ice cream.  Butter Pecan Ice Cream recipe  is from one of my favorite recipe books-Jim Graham's Farm Family Cookbook for City Folks.

Butter Pecan Ice Cream

1/4 cup butter
2 cups chopped pecans
7 cups milk,divided
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups sugar
6 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 5.1-ounce package of vanilla instant pudding mix
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Melt butter in large, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Add pecans. Cook, stirring constantly for 3 minutes, or until lightly browned. Drain and set aside. Combine 1 cup milk, sweetened condensed milk, sugar, and eggs in saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly for 5 minutes, or until mixture coats back of a spoon. Cool. Stir in remaining 6 cups milk, pudding mix, and vanilla. Add pecans; stir well. Pour mixture into freezer container of a 5-quart ice-cream freezer. Freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. Pack freezer with additional ice and rock salt. Let stand 1 hour before serving. Makes 1 gallon


 
Happy memory making!