Dulcinea for the Holidays

Our first snow storms came in and powdered the farm with white fluff. Winter is upon us and with it has come a twinge of excitement for the holidays. Family and friends will be gathering and you can bet the farm that good food will be a centerpiece of the festivities. You can almost smell the turkey roasting already.
At this time of year cheese balls come out on stage and we have already tested out Dulcinea in a simple recipe that will make your mouth water and your guests smile. In literally less than ten minutes you can have a yummy ball of goodness ready for consumption.
For this recipe we used the smallest wheel of Dulcinea that we are calling "Little Shredders." (If you have a better idea for a name we are definitely open to suggestions.) The Little Shredders are slightly saltier than the larger wheels. The bolder flavor is perfect for cheese balls and shines through the cream cheese perfectly. Little Shredders also loose moisture faster than the big wheels, so it is a firm cheese perfect for this application as well.




To make this recipe you will need the following:

INGREDIENTS:
I package of your favorite brand of cream cheese
Half of a Little Shredder
Garlic Salt, Pepper
Chopped Nuts of your Choice- We recommend pecans or pistachios especially, but there are other delicious options as well.


TOOLS:
Micro Plane or Fine Grater
Paring Knife
Rubber Scraper
Small Bowl
Cooking Spray
Plastic Wrap


Place the cream cheese in a small bowl. Carefully trim the rind of of the cheese (or skip this step if you like the rind). Add the grated Dulcinea and a dash of garlic salt to the bowl and work it into the cream cheese using a rubber scraper. Work it into a ball in the center of the bowl. Lightly spray a piece of plastic wrap with cooking spray and then scoop the ball into the middle of it. Wrap completely and allow to chill. When ready roll in chopped nuts or other condiments of choice. Serve with your favorite bread or crackers.

If the traditional cheese ball is not appealing you may want to consider some other ideas.

* Spread on a tortilla and add your favorite sandwich items. Roll gently, but tightly and then cut into bite size wheels.

* Pipe into small cream puff shells for a savory version or cream puffs.

* Right after you have mixed it, place the cheese mixture in a pastry bag and pipe onto crackers, into cherry tomatoes, onto cucumber slices or into pear halves.

* Carefully spread it into the bottom of a pie crust to enhance the flavor of your favorite quiche.


Enjoy every bite and tell us how it goes for you. We would love to hear your ideas!

We Can Baa and Now We Can Moo Too

Lark's Meadow Farms in cooperation with Matt Griffin of G's Dairy have begun production of raw cow milk. There are now cows on our farm! Right now the herd consists of four beautiful Brown Swiss cows. These cows seem huge to us and one of them produces as much as milk as twelve of our ewes. Wow! The raw, rich, creamy milk will be available at G's dairy in half gallon and gallon sizes. For those of you who remember the good old days with unpasteurized and non-homogenized milk, one swallow will be an instant trip down memory lane. The remainder of the milk that does not go to G's is being made into cheese here on the farm. We are all holding our breath as we wait for the first batch to come of age.



The biggest cow, named Jada, produces as much as five gallons in one milking. Just like our sheep, the cows are milked twice a day. They have been on the farm long enough now, that they almost just go where they are supposed to without being directed. This is a new experience, since sheep never seem to get it.



Just like the sheep, they also need refreshing and so every few months we have a new calf on the farm. This is Asiago. She was a little bit stubborn about the bottle at first, but when she caught onto the idea she emptied a bottle in no time. The cows are in a rotation and only one is dry at a time, so that means that we always have milk, but the cows get the rest that they need. We will keep you posted as things progress. We are also looking for a few more Brown Swiss cows, so let us know if you have any leads.