The Milk Cow

We got a milk cow.  She is fabulous.  She is a beautiful Holstein.  She doesn’t have a name yet but I am working around the clock to come up with the perfect name that fits her just right.  I have never milked a cow before but in the 9 days we have owned her I am getting plenty of lessons.  We got her so we can use her milk to feed the baby calves.  So far it has worked well.  The babies have taken a hard hit.  We brought one in that brought some kind of sickness and it spread to the others.  They seem to be over the sickness but are now dealing with the weather change.  It was 100 degrees last week and the week before and now this week it hasn’t even reached 70 degrees.  The temperature changes are very hard for these babies to handle since they are so fragile.  Hopefully they all pull through this.  We have been getting lots of extra milk and so the dogs have been benefiting greatly.  They each get a bowl of fresh milk every morning and every evening.  Their condition is rapidly improving, even though it wasn’t poor in the first place.  We are also going to be drinking some of it.  Michael has tried it but I have not yet.  Michael grew up with his family owning a milk cow so he is used to this process and also drinking fresh milk.  He says it has a very different taste.  I can’t wait to try it!  I also plan to make a go at cheese making.  I am going to start with mozzarella.  There are so many great adventures ahead!

                Yesterday I did our first lettuce harvest.  I was so nervous I would pick it all (it’s leaf lettuce) but when I got done I couldn’t even tell I had picked any!  I made a balsamic vinaigrette from scratch and added pomegranate crasins and walnuts to the salad.  It was delicious!  I had never made my own salad dressing before but I loved it!  My recipe was:

                ½ cup balsamic vinegar

                ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

                A spoonful of canned chopped garlic

                2 Teaspoons white sugar

                Some Salt

                Some Fresh Ground black peppers

I put it in a jar, sealed it tight, shook it like crazy and drizzled it over the salad.  I love it paired with the crasins and walnuts.  I can’t wait to eat more for lunch today!  I paired the salad with fresh grilled asparagus (prob. The last harvest of the year), rice pilaf and grilled chicken that I marinated in Italian salad dressing.  It was a light supper but oh so filling!

Enjoy some pictures of our new milk cow!

Three of the babies milking with Honcho the dog watching very close.

Look at that stud working those udders like a champ!