Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Life definitely changed for me twenty-seven years ago when I began my role as a mother and dairymom!

I'm thankful for the memories of each birthday, the milestones of growth and development and for the fact that our two sons  continue to work  on the family farm.

Cody will never be too old for chocolate sheath cake!

Dairy Frolics

It doesn't matter if the gate was left open by accident or the dairy  calves pushed it open,

 the calves must go back to the pasture they call home to make sure they are fed and cared for  properly each day.

After gathering them all in a working pen,

the frolics began!

My job was to serve as the counter--keeping track of the ones sorted out of the pen for the group going to the west pasture. It was a low stress job--perfect for me!

 After sorting, it was a little like what you would call a cattle drive...

although it was just across one pasture to the next gate.

Going through the gate was a little tricky but we outsmarted the last three on the second time!

As the calves entered the pasture they were running,jumping, and bucking.

It looked a lot like a school playground when the kids begin recess.  

Lucky for us, the pasture was green on both sides of the fence!

Dairy Celebrates Earth Day Everyday

Even though you may not find any dairy farmers at the local Earth Day celebration,  

 Earth Day is celebrated  everyday on the dairy farm as we care for our animals and  work to protect  and conserve  our natural resources for future generations.

In fact, the  dairy industry has reduced the environmental impact of a gallon of milk since 1944, resulting in 90% less cropland,76% less manure, 65% less water and 63% less carbon.

Reducing milk's carbon footprint by 25% by 2020 is part of an industry-wide sustainability initiative.

Feeding our dairy cows a  nutritious diet everyday  produces milk efficiently  and    is just one of the important ways we reduce our carbon footprint. 

I'm pretty sure our cows are celebrating Earth Day Everyday as I watch them eat!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

It wouldn't seem like spring if we didn't have visitors on the dairy farm!

I'm looking forward to the conversations next week with the Moms on the Farm tour group.

I'm thankful for the opportunity to share how we work everyday to make sure we produce safe,high-quality milk for consumers of all ages while caring for our animals and the land we call home.

Dairy Q&A

Question:

How do you use the  cow manure produced on your farm?

Answer:

We recycle the cow manure  and use it as fertilizer for crops.

Manure ( nutrient) is also useful in water conservation because it increases the water-holding capacity of soil by 20 percent, resulting in reduced ground water needed to grow crops.

We are permitted by the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality to  store manure for use on our farm.

We follow a nutrient management plan specially designed  for our farm that  guides the amount,source, placement and timing of manure on fields. 

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

What's not to love about spring?

I'm thankful for the green grass growing in the pastures and hay fields

 that our cows and heifers are enjoying 

and 

the flowering crab apple tree in our yard that just can't help showing off!

Triple-Chocolate Buttermilk Pound Cake

Even though our Easter baskets and candy bowls are overflowing with chocolate, we can never have enough chocolate when a dessert is needed for a family dinner! What really caught my eye about this Triple-Chocolate Buttermilk Pound Cake recipe in my February issue of Southern Living was the buttermilk ingredient. I've never made a recipe with buttermilk that didn't turn out to be a family favorite and this one is no exception!

I followed the directions to the letter, except for the ingredient of instant espresso. Since I didn't have instant espresso on hand, I used an additional teaspoon of vanilla extract ( for a total of 3 teaspoons of vanilla).

Triple-Chocolate Buttermilk Pound Cake

Cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
11/2 cups butter,softened at
    room temperature
3 cups granulated sugar
5 large eggs, at room temperature
11/4 cups buttermilk
2 teaspoons instant espresso
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup 60% cacao bittersweet
  chocolate morsels
   Shortening

Chocolate Glaze:

3/4 cups semisweet chocolate morsels
3 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon light corn syrup

Buttermilk Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar,sifted
1 to 3 Tablespoons buttermilk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Prepare Cake:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Whisk together flour and next 3 ingredients. Beat 11/2 cups butter in a medium bowl at medium-high speed with electric mixer until smooth. Gradually add granulated sugar, beating until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until yolk disappears. Combine 11/4 cups buttermilk and next 2 ingredients. Add flour mixture to egg mixture alternately with buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Beat at low speed after each addition. Fold in bittersweet chocolate morsels. Pour batter into a well-greased (with shortening) and floured 12 cup Bundt pan. Sharply tap pan on counter to remove air bubbles.

Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour and 15 minutes to 1 hour and 25 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.Cool in pan on a wire rack 20 minutes.Remove from pan; cool completely on rack.

Chocolate Glaze:
Combine semisweet chocolate morsels, 3 Tablespoons butter, and 1 Tablespoon corn syrup in microwave bowl. Microwave at Medium (50% power) 1 to 11/2 minutes or until morsels begin to melt, stirring after 1 minute. Stir until smooth. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.

Buttermilk  Glaze:
Whisk together powdered sugar, 1 Tablespoon buttermilk and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla in small bowl until smooth. Add up to 1 Tablespoon buttermilk, if desired. Drizzle glazes over cooled cake.