The Party's Over

Thanksgiving will soon be over for another year. Then it's time to relax, put your feet up and reminisce about the day. You've earned it! But wait, your out-of-town family is staying with you, and you still feel like you must be in hostess mode. Thinking ahead, here is a simple make-ahead breakfast or brunch recipe for Black Friday morning (before or after shopping.)  

Breakfast Casserole Bites

Ingredients

2 pieces whole wheat bread
8 eggs
1/2 cup milk
salt and pepper, to taste
4 ounces grated cheese, I like sharp cheddar
1/2 lb cooked and crumbled breakfast sausage or bacon

Directions 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Distribute 12 foil muffin cups into a muffin pan. Cut the bread into half inch squares and evenly distribute them on the bottom of the muffin cups. In a mixing bowl or large measuring cup with a pour spout, thoroughly whisk together the eggs and milk. Add salt and pepper. Evenly distribute the mixture into each muffin cup. Bread may float to top.
Sprinkle an equal amount of both the grated cheese and the crumbled bacon or sausage into each cup on top of the egg mixture. Bake for 15 minutes or until eggs are set. Enjoy now or freeze for later.

Make a big batch and freeze. Thaw them overnight in the refrigerator. Heat in microwave (after removing foil muffin cups) or reheat in toaster oven.

Thanks to Pinterest and 100daysofrealfood.com for this recipe.

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And The Winner Is...

I just got in from milking cows, and as promised, here are the answers to the Dairy Trivia Game I posted yesterday.

• How many servings of dairy are recommended each day ? Adults and children nine years and older are encouraged to have three servings of milk and milk products each day.
• What percentage of dairy farms in the United States are family owned? 99 percent of U.S. farms are family owned.
• Which dairy product is proven to refuel tired muscles after physical activity? Chocolate milk contains an optimal ratio of carbohydrate to protein. It is almost twice as effective as commercial sports drinks.
• How much milk does an average dairy cow produce per day? The average dairy cow produces anywhere from six to eight gallons of milk each day. That's 2,000 gallons of milk every year!
• How far away does a cow's sense of smell reach? Cows can smell something up to six miles away.
• What is the approximate cost of milk per glass? Milk is a nutritional bargain costing about 25 cents per glass.
• How many hours a day do most cows chew their cud? Most cows chew at least 50 times per minute, and spend 10 hours a day chewing their cud in order to aid in digestion.
• How many spots are identical on the average dairy cow? Every cow spot is like a snowflake; no two are the same.

I hope you enjoyed learning a little Dairy Trivia. 

The girls and I say thanks for playing!

Food For Thought

Thanksgiving celebrations center around food and family. But when all that's left of our family Thanksgiving feast is empty bowls, turkey bones, and full tummys, then what? At our family holiday festivities we go nuts over board games. Some of us play like we are the big cheese, or cool as a cucumber, while others find themselves in a pickle, but either way there's no sour grapes. It's always fun to end up being the top banana, but if not, oh well, that's the way the cookie crumbles. No use crying over spilt milk!

Here's some food for thought. Why not try this Dairy Trivia game on your family?

How many servings of dairy are recommended each day?
What percentage of dairy farms in the United States are family owned?
Which dairy product is proven to refuel tired muscles after physical activity?
How much milk does an average dairy cow produce per day?
How far away does a cow's sense of smell reach?
What is the approximate cost of milk per glass?
How many hours a day do most cows chew their cud? 
How many spots are identical on the average cow?

I'll post the Dairy Trivia answers on tomorrow's post. Let the games begin! 

To learn every thing from soup to nuts about dairy go to Midwest Dairy You may just find some answers to the Dairy Trivia!
 




 

Competition For Norman Rockwell

As a child, my family always celebrated Thanksgiving with my dad's family. Dad had four brothers, all farmers, all living within 5 miles of each other. Even though we saw each other often, it was special to come together on Thanksgiving. The moms kept themselves busy in the kitchen, complete with aprons to protect their holiday dresses. The dad's waited anxiously for the feast, while discussing farming and football. And the cousins played, and played until we were coaxed to the dinner table to join in the table prayer. We shared a wonderful meal, shared stories, and shared lots of laughs. As late afternoon rolled around, we all headed home to feed and milk the cows, thinking about our "Norman Rockwell" Thanksgiving celebration.


This mashed potato recipe often finds its way to our holiday table. I love that it can be made ahead and even frozen so every day can seem like a holiday.

Make-Ahead Mashed Potatoes
5 pounds potatoes
8 ounces low-fat cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup low-fat sour cream

4 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
Peel potatoes and cut into chunks. Put potatoes in pot and fill with cold water. Cook 25 minutes until fork tender. Drain potatoes and keep them in hot pot. Add all other ingredients. Mash all together. Place in freezer containers to freeze. Thaw in refrigerator for 2 days. Spray interior of slow cooker and add potatoes. Brush the top with 1 tablespoon butter and sprinkle with paprika. Cook on low 2-4 hours. If preferred, bake in oven at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes.

For other Dairy Mom favorite recipes, check out Dairy Makes Sense

Show and Tell

One of the best things about traveling is meeting new people. Many of you know that in October I attended the Show Me the Blog Conference in St. Louis, Missouri.  I have been posting about some of my experiences, but in this post, Janice Person does the show and tell for me! Janice is a wonderful new friend and blogger telling her story at Janice Person - A Colorful Adventure. While in St. Louis, Janice asked me about dairy farming and I am excited to share this video with you that Janice posted on her blog.

Click here to view the video  "From a Minnesota Dairy Farm to a St. Louis Bloggers Conference"

Thanks Janice, for helping me share my Barnyard News and Views about my life down on the farm. The video is wonderful and I love that you gave me the opportunity to share about my dairy life that I am proud to be a part of.

It's Sundae Sunday

How appropriate that National Sundae Day is on a Sunday. 

Cousins Dara, Sara and Michael

My family has a long Sundae history. We have always been huge supporters of dairy farming and dairy foods. Along with my family, all of my mom and dad's siblings were dairy farmers, and many of my cousins too. You can bet there is always milk and ice cream at our family gatherings.

My mom and dad took their love of Sundaes to another level. My parents own and operate the "Dairy Diner," or what I like to call "Driving Miss Dairy." Miss Dairy served her tasty treats to fair-goers, auction buyers, and festival friends. Every delicious treat served was our way of promoting dairy and showing the pride we have as dairy farmers.  Besides Sundaes, malts, ice cream cones, and ice cold milk, Mom and dad also served other treats, but everything served included dairy. But with age comes change, and the Dairy Diner is now in semi-retirement. Miss Dairy, however, is a frequent guest at family events. Family reunion picnics, my mom and dad's 60th wedding anniversary and Sara's butterhead party held after she was named a Princess Kay finalist, have all played host to the Dairy Diner.

Ice cream Sundaes, I salute you. You are like a member of our family, and always will be! 

So what's your favorite Sundae topping? Leave a comment.

Time To Change The Sheets

It's time to change the sheets. No it's not laundry day. I'm talking about our cows bedding. Our goal is to "change their sheets" frequently so our cows are clean and dry, which helps keep them healthy. We provide our animals with comfortable beds to encourage resting so they can concentrate on producing that milk we love! 

Each bale is about 4 feet tall and weighs about 500 pounds.

Besides using straw (the stalk of the oat plant) for bedding, we also use corn stalks. This is what is left in the field after the corn is removed. The stalks do well at absorbing moisture and they are readily available. Even after baling the corn stalks, this process still leaves behind plenty of crop residue in the fields to protect and enhance the soil. The residue provides cover which aides in preventing erosion and adds to the soil's organic matter. And when the "sheets" get soiled, the mix of stalks and manure is again returned to the field, to enrich the soil for the next crop. 

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Sara poses among some of the 900 stalk bales ready for bedding.

To see what else farmers do to utilize our resources, visit Dairy Farming Today