Families that use RAW MILK c'mere please!

[lookatreestar]

Anyone have links for tried and true cheese/yogurt recipes. The simpler the better

[dublinup]

Originally Posted by lookatreestar Anyone have links for tried and true cheese/yogurt recipes. The simpler the better

Look up recipes on heavenly homemaker for making things from raw milk.


This week I've made cottage cheese, ricotta, buttermilk (I usually use my buttermilk for morning pancakes using the martha stewart buttermilk pancake recipe), and if I keep this baby in for another day or two, I'll get a few batches of mozzarella and butter done. I am grateful to have my own Jersey, because for me to make 2 batches of cottage cheese, 3 batches ricotta, 4 quarts of buttermilk, 3 balls of mozzarella, and 1 cup of butter, I'll have gone through about 4-4.5 gallons of milk. On one hand that seems pricey. On the other, when I add up what I would have spent on the equivalent amounts of store bought goods, I probably would have spent far more than even the most expensive raw milk.

[lookatreestar]

i agree, by the time i buy the cream on top, low pasteurized not homogenized, grass fed blah blah blah dairy products the milk has already paid for itself.

[weesej]

We pour it into a pitcher after we skim the cream. I use the cream for coffee, or cooking with (soups, pasta, etc) and if I get enough I make butter. The only thing you can't do is make instant pudding mixes....they will taste sour if you do not scald the milk first. BTW we pay $2 a gallon, but we are in dairyland buying direct from the farm.

[10Newtons]

We have found that if we take out the cream the milk stays longer...over a week at least!

We use the cream for any recipe that calls for milk.

We pay $3/gallon

[keen1981]

Originally Posted by 10Newtons We have found that if we take out the cream the milk stays longer...over a week at least! We use the cream for any recipe that calls for milk. We pay $3/gallon

Holy awesome price!

[10Newtons]

Originally Posted by keen1981 Holy awesome price!

I know!

I didn't realize it was so good until I read this thread. We do have to deal with some other issues...ours is sold as "pet food" since it's not legal where we live.

[emkeegan]

We pay $3.50 per half gallon. Usually we go thru a gallon a week. I find that it stays good for about 2 weeks.

I'm not a huge milk drinker - but I can drink the rAw milk, can't stand store milk anymore!

[FernHollow]

We have 2 dairy goats in milk right now and that is where we get our milk from. I have issues about buying raw milk from anyone I don't personally know to feed to my kids. I have one child with health issues so I am extra careful with him because he has a fragile immune system. With that said, I have zero issues giving him raw milk from our goats because I know *exactly* what they are fed, what health testing has been done and how it is handled. I am super duper careful about sanitizing all our equipment, refrigerating it properly, testing the goats regularly, etc. I think it is really a great super food for his health if done in safe manner. I follow the same recommendations our state requires for selling raw milk even though it is just for our own family.

As for using it, we just drink it, add it to smoothies, cook with it, add it to cereal. I'm making a big batch of ricotta with some excess today to put into lasagna. Goat milk if done properly just tastes like nice whole milk, it should NEVER tasty "goaty". I will have 3-4 goats in milk next year (breedings spaced opposite end of the season) and plan to start playing with making hard cheese. Enjoy your raw milk, it is great for you

[TPLmommy]

Originally Posted by kismetbaby Not to hijack, but. . .Did anyone find the taste of raw milk hard to adjust to? Just bought my first ever quart of raw milk and tried to drink a glass last night and found it very. . .um, strong tasting. I don't know if it was the fat content or the fact that I haven't drunk cow milk in a few years (switched to almond milk), but I felt like I could taste cow and it kinda grossed me out. And I used to like the taste of pasturized milk. So now I have to find other ways to use it as I don't want to wast it. . .maybe I'll freeze it for now. How long would it last in the freezer? Either that or try my hand at yogurt making. . .

I have noticed that spring & summer milk is much stronger tasting (& has more cream) than fall & winter milk. So I actually had to adjust a little to spring milk, my family doesn't seem to notice though. You might like it better in the fall.

To the OP, we drink ours straight & use it for any recipe that calls for milk. It costs $8 for a 1/2 gallon (ridiculous, I know) that is sold in normal plastic milk cartons. Ours is "drinkable" 5-7 days in the fall & winter & 7-14 days in the spring & summer. Once it sours I use it for baking or if it's just slightly sour I can sometimes sneak it into smoothies. We are transitioning to the GAPS diet (only cultured or fermented dairy) so we will just be making kefir with our raw milk once we are on the full diet. I prefer to just buy yogurt instead of make it since it's only $3 for a quart of organic whole fat yogurt, so I save money & time.