February Sweethearts: I Love Pie

February started yesterday when I came home with my bag of candy conversation hearts for the candy dish. Those cute pastel hearts (Sweethearts)with the whimsical phrases remind me of my childhood days with school Valentine parties, trading valentine cards with classmates and of course, eating those candy hearts!

I do enjoy the month of February for the opportunities to share a little love with family and friends with sweet treats from the kitchen.  One of our family favorites is chocolate cream pie from my old well used Better Homes and Garden Cook Book.

Chocolate Cream Pie
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons cocoa plus 1 tablespoon butter
2 cups milk
3 slightly beaten egg yolks
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon butter
1 teapoon vanilla
1 9-inch baked pastry shell
    Meringue(3egg whites) or Whipped Cream

In saucepan, combine sugar,cornstarch,cocoa and butter;gradually stir in milk.   Cook and stir over medium heat till bubbly. Cook and stir 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
Stir small amount hot mixture into yolks; immediately return to hot mixture; cook 2 minutes,stirring constantly.Remove from heat. Add butter and vanilla. Pour into cooled baked pastry shell. Spread meringue atop pie and bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes. Cool.
 Or, omit meringue and serve with whipped cream.

Meringue
3 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
6 tablespoons sugar
Beat egg whites,vanilla, and cream of tartar till soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, beating until glossy peaks form and all sugar is dissolved. Spread meringue over hot filling,sealing to edge of pastry. Bake as directed above.

                                                                Happy February!!

Healthy Resolution Review

I'm almost sad to see January end since we've had such nice weather!  Today was a beautiful  light jacket day on the dairy farm.  On my short,brisk walk to the dairy barn after we fed baby calves this afternoon, I was enjoying the late afternoon sunshine as much as this group of calves that were watching me as I passed by.  While walking home, I was thinking about two of the resolutions I made for the New Year to improve my diet and exercise more.

One of my healthy choices for improving my diet is to drink low fat milk, also known as 1% milk.  When comparing low fat and whole milk, low fat milk has:

• same calcium
• same protein
• same minerals and vitamins
• less fat
• fewer calories

If you're considering changing to low fat milk, here are steps suggested by the National Dairy Council:

1. Switch between whole and 2%
2. Stick with 2% if you like it, or switch between 2% and 1%.
3. Stick with 1% if you like it, or switch between 1% and fat free.

You can find ways to use milk and low fat milk and great recipes at http://www.nationaldairycouncil.org/ or http://www.midwestdairy.com/.  By the end of January many people have given up on their resolutions.  I'm not a complete failure but I have plenty of work to do for the next eleven months!  How about you?

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

                   I'm not sure who has the most fun  learning about dairy--me,the students or their teacher! 
Agriculture in the Classroom activities teach children where their food comes from in a factual fun  way.  I'm thankful for teachers who have a heart for children, share enthusiasm for learning  and value teaching students about agriculture.

Rain Ready

Just in case the weather man is right and it starts to rain tonight as predicted, we've been getting rain ready by loading, hauling and applying cow manure from the liquid and dry manure storage areas  to  cropland and pastures today.  Since 1985 our farm has been permitted by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality allowing us to build holding areas for both liquid and dry manure and to follow a nutrient management plan that determines how to utilize the manure on our farm. 

Land applying liquid or dry manure on rainy days is a no-no due to the possibility of runoff pollution.  Because we live and work on our farm, we take our responsibility to protect the land and water seriously by carefully using best management practices that are outlined in our farm plan and by following the rules and regulations of the permit.  Caring for the environment protects the health of my family, our cows and the environment.

Manure is a natural nutrient that builds the soil, increases the water holding capacity of the soil and also fertilizes.  Utilizing  every bit of natural manure nutrient will help save money by decreasing the need to purchase more commercial fertilizer.  Now that's a dairy deal-- an all in one economic product naturally from the cow and rain ready!

Art with a Purpose

What can you make with a gazillion small pieces of colored tissue paper cut into little one inch squares? Flowers,of course!  That's exactly what the students at Decatur Northside Elementary were making in art class today after a lesson about the famous artist  Georgia  O'Keefe. Early this month, the Benton County Farm Bureau Women's Committee purchased art supplies for this school.   I was invited  today by Mrs. Raymond, the art teacher, to see the supplies we donated and receive thank-you notes from the students.

Mrs. Raymond teaches all the art classes for students in the rural Decatur school system. With a limited budget for art supplies, she was very appreciative of the donation for her elementary students. Students will have plenty of markers,paper,modeling clay and even a crayon melting machine to recycle bits and pieces of crayons. It is our hope that by furnishing more art supplies that the students will benefit academically by enhancing their opportunity for more creativity.

Seventy plus years ago the first Farm Bureau Women's Committee in Arkansas was formed to make a difference in the rural communities. I'm proud to be working for that same purpose today as a member of the Benton County Farm Bureau Women's Committee!

Happy Birthday Baby!

Happy Birthday Baby! We woke up Saturday morning to find the arrival of a new baby calf in the pasture.  We try to avoid having  dairy calves in the coldest months but we always manage to have a few new babies scattered through out the year.  As mild as our January weather has been this year, it's too bad we weren't  having alot more birthdays!

This baby calf stayed with his mother for about twelve hours in the pasture before being moved to the calf raising area.  Calves are separated from their mothers to ensure the best individual care and monitoring. Each of our calves is placed in an individual hutch and fed twice daily. Our babies are bottle fed for three days with the colostrum milk from their mother and then taught to drink from a bucket.  Grain is added to their diet when they start drinking from the bucket. I'm their momma for the next eight to ten weeks before they will be moved to a small pasture.

Experiencing new life on the  dairy farm is always a blessing and a reminder to me of the commitment we have to provide high-quality milk by taking good care of our calves and cows.  I think we may name this baby--January! 

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Early last fall Ryan found two little orphan kittens in the feed barn hiding between hay bales. The enclosed front porch of our house became home to Blackie and Fuzzy  until this past Sunday when I took them to their new home in the haybarn at Cody's house. Even though I moved them from the house, I'm thankful  for the fun I've had watching these cute curious  kittens grow into being  part of the farm family.