Terrabyte Farm

[WARNING: this beginning part is a bit preachy, if you want to head straight for the recipe scroll down.]  These two words strike fear into the hearts of anyone trying to eat healthy.  Of course, consuming too much of anything is not a good idea, but both butter and lard, if made from animals that have been pastured and grass-fed, can actually be part of a healthy diet.  It all goes back to the saying, “You are what you eat.”  This is very true, especially for animals.  Cows are ruminants and they were made to eat grass which is very high in Omega-3.  Unfortunately, they are fed mostly corn and soy, both seeds, high in Omega-6.  We should consume a ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3 that is something like 2:1 or 4:1, but Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO) produce meat and dairy products that have something on the magnitude of 10:1 ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3.  By eating beef and dairy from animals that consume mostly (if not exclusively grass) you are eating a better, healthier product.  And, that does not even begin to touch on the fact that these CAFO animals are fed massive amounts of antibiotics and growth hormones to maximize production.  Pigs are omnivores like humans and are meant to eat everything.  Pastured pork is much leaner, healthier, and again, very high in Omega-3.  So, for those of you thinking you have to eat salmon to boost your Omega-3 levels, find yourself some pastured pork instead and have some delicious bacon and free-range eggs and feel good about it.

The reason we decided to take the plunge to start this farm was that we really love to eat good food and feed our children the best we can.  Please understand that we are by no means saints or food purists, we are busy parents and head through the drive-thru on occasion just like everyone else.  Also, we respect other people’s decisions and don’t judge them for their food choices, we understand everyone has different values and priorities.  But, we try to eat as much as we can from local sources where the meat and produce have been raised organically and sustainably and we try to focus on eating what is in season in our area.  This food tastes better and is better for our bodies and our local community. Unfortunately, this can also be very expensive, and growing your own is a way we found to be able to consistently eat a higher quality of food than we might otherwise be able to.  Plus, it gives us access to foods we would not even be able to buy in any store unless we grew it ourselves.  

Okay, coming off my soap-box.

A few months ago, we bough a share of a pig from our very good friends and neighbors at Hurricane Farm.  When the pork was dropped off, we were also offered a large portion of fat.  I put a slab in the freezer for future sausage making and rendered the rest into lard.  You can see instructions on how to do this here and here.  Basically, you take the fat, cut it in to chunks and on either the stove-top or in the oven, slowly boil it over several hours until you are left with a vast quantity of liquid fat (the rendered lard) and a bit of solids (the cracklin) which you can eat as well.  Then you strain the lard into jars and put it in the fridge or freezer.  I think we had about 16 pounds of fat and made about 16 pints of lard.  Once the lard cools it is lovely and white and you can use it in tons of recipes as a substitute for butter or shortening.  You can also use it in soap-making, which we do as well.  I know the idea of lard sounds gross, and I can tell you without a doubt that I would NEVER, EVER consider eating commercial lard.  Not only are the pigs fed a horrendous diet, but the lard is full of weird stabilizers and preservatives to keep it shelf stable.

A post on a blog I frequent explained how the family had made butter.  It sounded pretty easy and straightforward, so we decided to give it a try.  We are very lucky to have a farm in our town that sells raw milk commercially at our grocery store, food co-op, and the amazingly cute general store in our town.  When I have purchased the milk in the past, I have always noticed the “cream line” as this milk is not homogenized and comes in a glass bottle, so after a few days the cream rises to the top and you can see it.  I thought this would be the perfect thing for making butter as I happen to know these cows have the loveliest bit of land to graze on during the warm months and eat hay made right from their own fields in the winter.  I bought two gallons and poured them together.  Then I let them sit for a day so the cream could rise.  I skimmed it off and then following the directions found here, proceeded to make butter.  What I made was a HUGE MESS.  Instead of skimming off about two cups of heavy cream, I probably took off two cups of half-and -half.  When I tried to whip the butter in the food processor, I had too little cream and too much milk and all of the milk began streaming out of everywhere after it had volumized from the air being whipped into it.  I did make about two tablespoons of butter and it was DELICIOUS.  The next day I had Mike pick up a few pints of heavy cream from the grocery store and I tried again.  This time, the butter did exactly what it was supposed to do and after filling our butter bell, we made the rest into honey butter and ate it on toast with that nights dinner (rotiseried pork roast with corn, green beans, and peaches we had canned this summer).

If you have ever made whipped cream, you know if you go to long, it will turn into butter when the fat solids seize, and the “buttermilk” separates out.  In addition to a half pound of butter, we also had about two cups of buttermilk from the two days experiments.  This is not the same as buttermilk you buy in the store which has been cultured, but it is still great for baking.  

We decided to use it to make some East Texas tortillas, recipe found here, and some buttermilk biscuits.  We also used the rest of the raw milk to whip up a batch of 30-minute mozzarella.  Finally, I sauteed some shrimp in butter and garlic and we had a delicious, if not a bit strange dinner last night.  Here is the recipe for the biscuits.  I highly recommend that you try making butter and use the leftover milk to make these biscuits, they were SO good.

 

Buttermilk Biscuits

adapted from The Cooks Country Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen

• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 8 tbsp unsalted butter but into 1/2 inch chunks and chilled
• 4 tbsp lard (or shortening) cut into 1/2 inch chunks and chilled
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk from butter making plus 1 tbsp lemon juice OR 1 1/4 cups commercial buttermilk

1. Add the lemon juice to the buttermilk and allow to sit at room temp for at least 10 minutes.
2. Heat oven to 450F.  Use either a 10 inch cast iron skillet or line a baking sheet with parchment paper (I prefer cast iron)
3. Mix together all ingredients EXCEPT buttermilk by hand or in the food processor until the mixture resembles a coarse meal.  Transfer to a bowl and slowly add the buttermilk, mix until well combined.
4. On a lightly floured surface, knead 8 or 10 times until the dough is smooth.  Pat into a circle about 3/4 inch thick.  Using a 3 inch cutter, cut biscuits and place in pan. You should have 9-12 biscuits.   Lightly press the center of each biscuit with your thumb, this helps it rise properly.
5. Bake for 5 minutes then reduce oven temp to 400F.  Bake for 12-15 minutes until golden brown.  Cool and eat.  These can be stored for up to two days if they last that long!