The Real Deal

As a child, I spent a lot of time at my friend Kay's house. Her family had a metal insulated box by their back door that collected their fresh milk delivery. How great was that? Since I was a farm kid, we did not have such a delivery service. We did however get Schwans products delivered to our door. "The ice cream man is here!" my mom called. That was back in the 1960's. 

Fast forward to 2012. Jeremy, our Schwans driver, came last week with his delivery truck filled with delicious products, including ice cream. He and I got into a big discussion about real whipped cream vs non-dairy topping, and I am happy to announce that Schwan products proudly wear the REAL® Seal.

The Real Seal is a great tool in the fight against imitation dairy products. Only products made in America with real dairy ingredients are eligible to use it on their packaging. The REAL® Seal logo on dairy products serves as a promise to consumers and food producers that its contents have undergone a rigorous certification process. 

Jeremy delivers the REAL goods!

Shopping at home, or at the grocery store, I always look for the REAL® Seal. I demand good tasting, good quality dairy foods. Don't you?

PS- Schwans was started by a Minnesota dairy farmer!

Whoooo Goes There?

Milky Way, Milk Duds, Cow Tails, these are some of my favorite candy treats. (Notice the dairy theme here?) Wash them down with a cold glass of milk. Yummy!

Since we live in the country, there are not many Trick-Or-Treaters that haunt our house. But the few that visited were too cute not to share their photos.

You butter believe Sara and Michael love Halloween!

Cooper, the cowardly lion, brought mom and dad.

Alex and Scott, as Boba Fett and Mario, say cheese!

I Want My Mummy!

 

Halloween at our house has always been a family celebration. This simple spook-tacular recipe (found on Pinterest) is a perfect way to have your little goblins help prepare a meal.

Happy Halloween!

These Fun Halloween Ingredients
 English muffins
Pizza sauce
Black olives
Scallions
Red or green pepper
Cheese sticks or slices
Instructions
1. Heat the oven to 350º F. For each mummy, spread a tablespoon of pizza sauce onto half of an English muffin (toast it first, if you like).
2. Set olive slices in place for eyes and add round slices of green onion or bits of red or green pepper for pupils.
3. Lay strips of cheese (we used a pulled-apart cheese stick) across the muffin for the mummy's wrappings.
4. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the muffin is toasty.

Proud Dairy Farmer in St. Louis- part 2

These are the questions attendees of Show Me the Blog asked following my presentation. 

(See Proud Dairy Farmer in St. Louis- part 1)  

  

What about drinking raw milk? The dairy industry recommends that no one consume unpasteurized milk. Selling raw milk is illegal in Minnesota. (Pasteurization is a simple, effective method to kill potentially harmful bacteria. It does not affect the nutritional value of milk.)

Do you milk the cows 7 days a week? Yes, two times each day.
So if you're here, who's milking the cows? My kids and husband.  Usually my husband and son milk in the morning, and my husband and I milk at night. When one of us needs to be gone, someone else steps in.

Because of the demands of farming, have you ever gotten a family vacation? Yes. Since we farm with my in-laws, we are able to take 3-4 days off each year. As they get older, we seek out others to help.

(L-R) Becky, Alex, Sami, Jan

Lastly, a conference-goer thanked me for telling my farming story. She stated that so often farmers get a "bad rap" and she expressed a big thank you for what we do! A thank you to her for her kind words! Also I'd like to thank Show Me the Blog for allowing me to share my story.

Besides my presentation, Minnesotan Becky Bode, from Bode Dairy spoke about what happens on her farm to care for their cows and the environment. I encourage you to check out her blog to see what happens on her dairy farm.

Samantha Carter, of Midwest Dairy also joined our presentation. Besides introducing Becky and I, she explained that Midwest Dairy represents the 9,500 dairy farm families in the 10 Midwestern states and works on behalf of dairy farmers to increase dairy sales, foster innovation and inspire consumer confidence in dairy products and practices.

Finally Alex Economy, a Registered Dietician, representing  Hy-Vee Food Stores demonstrated how to make Mozzarella Pepper Salsa. Served on an endive leaf, or a cracker, it was a huge hit!

Proud Dairy Farmer in St. Louis- part 1

This is a summary of the presentation I gave last week at the Show Me the Blog in St. Louis, Mo.

Greetings from Minnesota! I am one of the 4,500 Dairy Farmers of Minnesota. I live on a true family farm. My in-laws, husband, daughter, son, and I all have active roles on our farm, and three of us work off the farm as well. My daughter is an 8th grade English teacher, my son is employed by our local television station, and I am an Elementary School educator.

So why am I here? Why do I blog? Twenty years ago, while hosting a school group on our farm, after explaining what we do to care for our animals and our land, and describing a typical day on our farm that begins at 6AM and ends about 14 hours later, a 3rd grader asked, "What is your husband's REAL job?" That really got me to thinking how important it is for us, as farmers, to tell our story. Not only do we need to share the farm to food story with children, but adults as well. So I began speaking to organizations, classrooms, and began serving on County and State dairy boards. When Midwest Dairy invited me to their social media workshop last February, it seemed like the perfect next step, and the gentle nudge I needed to enter the world of blogging.

What is the goal of my blog? I want to educate, inform, and entertain my readers. Being an educator myself, I look at every moment as a teaching moment. Recently my husband and I spent a day at the Minnesota State Fair sharing our story in the "Moo Booth." We shared what we do each day on our farm to keep our cows happy and healthy. Folks shared concerns with us, and asked many questions. They were also pretty surprised to discover that our farm is only 20 minutes from downtown Minneapolis and right across the street from a golf course! We connected with many consumers that day and by including these discussions on my blog, I could reach an additional audience.

My second goal is to inform. I bring attention to issues that affect farmers, and that can affect you. A current discussion involved the drought. Yes, it can possibly affect our income, and yes, we are concerned about having enough to feed our animals, but it will also touch your lives when you grocery shop. Another of my recent posts brought up the question of producing enough food for our ever-growing population. The world's population is expected to triple from 1970 to 2050, yet the amount of farmland will stay about the same. I feel one of our jobs as farmers is to encourage consumers to find out where their food comes from. I like to give my readers something to think about.

If you know my family, the entertainment part is easy. I include family stories into most of my posts. I also bring Hannah Holstein, my stuffed cow, along on many of my adventures. She's with me today at Show Me the Blog. Wave, Hannah! When I'm out and about, people often ask about her, and it is a great way to introduce my blog and my reason for writing.

I am a proud Dairy Farmer, and I'll share my dairy story whenever and however I can. My blog, My Barnyard View, gives me the opportunity to reach a greater audience to educate, inform, and entertain.

My next post will discuss the questions I was asked after my presentation, and I will also share what Bode Dairy and Midwest Dairy shared in the remainder of our presentation. Stay tuned...

Frostbite Fever

Who would think you could get frostbite in October in St. Louis, Missouri? I am living proof it can happen, and what a good thing it did! While attending the Show Me the Blog conference in St Louis, I was introduced to Frostbite Gourmet Ice Cream.  This delicious dairy delight is the creation of John Clopton, who prepares each batch of frozen goodness in an old-fashioned wooden ice cream churn, complete with rock salt and ice, just like he did as a child on his back porch.

Frostbite is made from mostly local ingredients, many of which come from the local farmers market. Rather than sugar, the sweetness comes from honey. Each batch is made from lactose-free milk and contains no artificial sweeteners or preservatives. As a dairy farmer, it makes me almost "giddy" to know that Mr. Clopton values the freshness of the ingredients he uses and supports his local farmers. I also appreciate the freshness of Frostbite as it is made within 24 hours of when it is served. Our conference was treated to some of Frostbites signature flavors- naked chocolate, whole bean coffee, pumpkin spice, and cinnamon (Frostbites most popular flavor.) "Were there any flop flavors when you were creating?" I asked. "Tomato!" was the reply. Hmm, I wasn't really surprised. 

I say thank you Frostbite, for supporting local farmers and for the delicious dairy delight you're scooping up!

HyVee Grocery RD, Alex Economy enjoys a sample from John Clopton

Feeding the Future

The Conservation Conversation

One of our jobs as farmers is to encourage consumers to find out where their food comes from. "I get food from the grocery store. It's always there." Do you feel this way? The worlds population will triple between 1970 and 2050, yet the amount of farmland will remain about the same during this time. Can farmers sustain the needs of the consumer? I encourage you to watch this short video to see what farmers think.

In 1940, 1 farmer fed 19 people.

In 1970, 1 farmer fed 73 people.

In 2010, 1 farmer fed 155 people.

We as farmers need to think smart, work smart, and plan ahead. I am proud to say that we care for our land, and are concerned for the future. Feeding the future is in good hands.