When thinking about goats...

I love finding new food products.  Such a simple statement; but it is actually one that is loaded with appreciation for the conceptualization and realization of an idea. It is hard to know where the idea started without talking to the creators of a product.  I know I have my own foodcentric ideas that involve me baking up a product worthy of a specific niche.

Keeping that in mind while I change course a bit, I will start by saying, three years ago, I acquired chickens.  Chickens, regardless of whether you choose to consume them for meat or not, provide a person with an equally useful product; that being the eggs that they provide daily.  The statement that chickens are a "gateway" farm animal is true; at least from my perspective. No sooner were my hens pecking their way around the yard, than I began to envision what other animals were possible for keeping on our 1.3 acre lot.

Goats were, so I read, an animal that could be kept on just such a plot size; and I had particular interest in Nigerian Dwarf goats, to be specific.  For to me, the smaller the goat, the more that could be allowed on my property...yes? So began my quest to find reasons for goats; other than just having goats. Through further research, I learned that Nigerian Dwarf goat milk has a higher fat content than other goat's milk, while goat's milk in general has a higher fat content than cow's milk.  Nutritional benefits of this fact, aside, and there are many, I began to think of things to make with goat's milk.

During my time spent deliberating over what I would do with goat's milk given the opportunity to keep goats, I came to the realization that making caramel from goat's milk would be a food product adventure that I would be interested in embarking on.  With that said, it never fails to inspire me when I find a fellow human being carrying out a plan of action that I covet, as well.  Let me introduce you to, Big Picture Farm.  Before anybody thinks I am looking to create a business, however, I am not.  Any product I am interested in making, on the size property we currently own, would be for personal consumption only; and of course to share with family and friends.

But, to see people creating a product that is lovingly made and packaged with such detail and homage to the animals responsible for providing one of the main ingredients, is a thing to be savored.  Let me tell you, I took my time relishing the packaging, and the story of the animals provided within the packaging.  And, just when I thought I couldn't be any more impressed with a company for the love of their product, I folded back the white parchment paper to find that they had printed the faces of some of their goats on the chocolates themselves!

As you gaze at these chocolate-covered caramels, there is no way you are picking out a caramel to eat without finding the picture of "your" goat on the enclosed "who's who" goat brochure packaged along with the caramels.  My eleven year-old son picked his caramel based on which narrative he enjoyed the most.  This is, I will say, tough to do given the fact that every narrative within the brochure does a fantastic job of personifying each goat pictured on the chocolates.

But, enough about the packaging and presentation.  The caramel, though, "How was it?" you ask.  It was soft and sweet; with just a touch of that goat's milk "tang". Goat's milk does, in fact, have a tang or twang, what ever one might call it, that characterizes it differently than cow's milk.  But, considering the health benefits of goat's milk, a person should feel all the better for eating one of these chocolate-covered caramels.

In closing, I would recommend purchasing these slightly pricey caramels as a treat to yourself (and your family, if you are willing to share).  And, I don't mean "slightly pricey" to be taken as a complaint.  With what the owners of this company are doing, I can appreciate the reason for the cost. It just means that they will be all the more enjoyable after showing some restraint between purchases.

A Sampling of Springtime

It's been a long time, been a long time, been a long lonely, lonely, lonely......Oops, O.K., so I was about to start this post off with, "It's been a long time..." and I was sidetracked, like I often am, by the recollection of a song that has similar phrasing.  With the sounds of Led Zeppelin reverberating in my head, I will continue on with the main point of this post, which is to give you a little sampling of my springtime.

This year, Easter found me making macaroons, a fantastic recipe I found in a 2001 issue of Country Living Magazine.  They come out light and airy and then after being dipped in bittersweet chocolate they are divine.  The recipe is as follows: 

Chocolate-Coconut Macaroons

2 large egg whites

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 1/2 cups sweetened, shredded coconut

3 1/2 ounces bittersweet chocolate

1 teaspoon vegetable oil 

1. Prepare the batter: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In a large bowl with mixer on medium speed, whip the egg whites until soft peeks form.  With the mixer still running, gradually add the sugar in a steady stream and mix until well blended.  Add the vanilla extract and continue to beat until mixture becomes soft and glossy peaks form.  Add the flour and beat until stiff peaks form.  Gently fold in the coconut.  Allow the macaroon mixture to rest 10 minutes.

2. Bake the macaroons: Line a baking pan with parchment paper.  Place heaping tablespoons (I use a cookie scoop) of the macaroon batter on the pan, two inches apart.  Use thumb and index finger to pinch each small mound of batter into a pyramid shape.  Bake until golden brown - about 13 minutes.  Remove from oven and let the macaroons rest on the baking pan for 2 minutes.  Transfer macaroons to a wire rack to cool. 

3. Dip the macaroons: Place chocolate in a heatproof dish over simmering water or in the top of a double boiler.  Melt, stirring occasionally to prevent burning.  Remove from heat and stir in the oil.  Dip the tip of each macaroon into the melted chocolate.  Place dipped macaroon on wire rack and let cool until set.  Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

So, there you have a recipe from an 11 year-old magazine.  And, I'm a little surprised that it's been that long since I first discovered this recipe. Some notes I might add are that I have actually used semi-sweet chocolate chips and they come out just fine.  In the future, I would also like to try shredding the coconut finer before I mix it in to the batter.

  

And then, finally, daffodils....a whole field of them to be exact. After eating the macaroons, (well, not right after) we took a little trek through the woods to a daffodil field that is surely a sight to behold.  The field can be found in Parson's Reserve which is one of many reserves that are part of Dartmouth Natural Resources Trust. 

With that, you've had a little taste of my springtime.  There's more to share, but I'll save that for another post.  And, I promise not to serenade you with any more from Led Zeppelin.