Boom Boom Pow!

Boom Boom Pow!
Wow for those of you that are used to my lyrical tendencies don't worry! I haven't written another Ode to my Blue or and snappy rhythm to Lovely Feta (o the feta I made...) But I have pulled some fun lyrics from some tunes from a club out in Doty.... which is my Ipod in the cheese room of course (sadly there isn't even a stop sign in Doty never mind a club to visit after cheesemakes).

So I have one busy Cheese Czarina! Let me tell you!
Starting in a week and a half Jacobs Creamery fromage blanc will be offered at all nine New Seasons Stores!
Boom Boom Pow! I know! We will be cranking up production to make sure everyone gets some! We will be featured in the New Seasons special flyer! Yee Haw!
A selection of Jacobs Creamery products will be appearing in the New Seasons stores throughout June so keep it in mind if you cannot make it to one of our nine farmers markets! That is right nine markets. This next week the JC booth will be at the brand spankin new NW 23rd market. This used to be my old hood and it is a pretty kick ass place to be. There are great shops and restaurants and wonderful variety of happy hour locations. Thankfully the market goes 3-7 so if you go early you will be able to get happy later :)
We will also be back at the Hood River market so think of us on Thursdays!

This week we got 6 tons of flax seeds for our dairy cows! Flaxseed is very high in omega-3's which if you have stood close to my parents booth you most likely heard all about how salmon is very rich in them and how wonderful they are for you. Well! Flaxseed next to fish has the highest levels of omega-3s and is very good for the overall health of the cow. It also helps makes the Mighty Bull go Boom Boom with the Moo Cows so we can have more little moo cows which eventually means more milk which eventually means more cheese which should all make you all very happy.


HHmm did I mention that I am going to be in all nine New Seasons stores in a week and a half????....

Since its a berry fabulous long weekend we will be celebrating with a berry special special on our creme fraiche. Our creme fraiche is a summer favorite and pairs beautifully with some fresh berries. The product originated in France where I studied in college and its also where I fell in love once- before the whole french affair ended I was able to get the family recipe for creme fraiche and now happily duplicate it (with their blessings of course). My recipe is modeled after the dairy rich region of Brittany in France and I have had people from Normandy come and tell me how wonderful it is. If you add a pinch of sugar and vanilla you might go to dairy heaven. If this happens please send us a postcard. The Doty address is on our Facebook page! Yes Jacobs Creamery is on FB! So please fan us and talk to us about cheesy stuff, recipe ideas and whatever pleases you.

I know the weather lately hasn't been supper summery but the conditions have been ripe for grass growing-when the grass grows the cows eat it and I am very fond of churning butter when this all goes on so we whipped up a very large batch of fresh cream cultured butter in both the salted and unsalted varieties this week and even got some super cute little glass jars as packaging. Quantities of the super cute glass jar packaging are limited and are sold as a first come first serve basis.

Our chickens have stopped their molting and are back in production (thankgoodness) we have been a little low on the ol eggs these past weeks but the small breaks of sunshine (and the five gallon tub of yogurt they ate) have encouraged the laying and the eggs have been shooting out the vents this week! We will also be selling the very last of our very popular Two Faced Blue this week. This is a particularly wonderful batch that I did in February right before my Moose Milk Hunt in Montana and it has aged wonderfully. We will also have some Fresh with Ewe which is a blue bloom cheese made with full sheep's milk specifically designed for the cheese connoisseurs.

Saturday you can find us at the PSU farmers market www.portlandfarmersmarket.org as well as Hollywood.
Sunday we will be in Hillsdale and Milwaukie.

May you all be very well and come see us soon.
Here is a delightful recipe adapted from the Epicurious website without their permission.

Yummy Strawberry Gratin with Creme Fraiche!

What you need is.....

• 1/2 cup unsalted Jacobs Creamery butter
• 1/2 cup panko (Japanese bread crumbs)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (freshly ground is best!)
  
• 1 tablespoon turbinado sugar such as Sugar in the Raw
• 1 cup Jacobs Creamery crème fraîche (on special this week!)
  
• 4 cups (from about 2 pounds) strawberries, hulled and halved lengthwise - from your favorite farmer (currently mine is Happy Harvest :)
  
• 4 tablespoons wildflower or regular honey

Next...
Preheat the broiler!

In 10-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, melt butter. Add panko and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Add cinnamon, and sugar, and toss to combine. Transfer to medium bowl and set aside.

Spoon 2 tablespoons crème fraîche onto center of each ovenproof plate. Arrange 1/2 cup strawberries on top of each circle of crème fraîche. Drizzle each plate with 1 1/2 teaspoons honey and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon panko mixture. Working in batches, place plates on large rimmed baking sheet and broil until the crème fraîche starts to bubble and turn light golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Keep warm while broiling other batches and serve immediately.

Eat and be happy. Drink some wine with it and be merry!
Have a wonderful extended weekend!
Kiss Kiss
Yours always
Cheese Czarina!

O the places we go....

Time to reflect....

There are many times during the season that I am pulled in many directions and try to do my best to forget as little as possible and get the most done, with added daylight hours its a busy day. Even on the longest and busiest of days I still take time to think about what I am doing, who I am doing it with and think about how awesome it is that I make cheese! but I also think how lucky I am to have found something so early in my life that makes me so content. I always thought that I would find that contentment in practicing law-so the fact that I walk by a cowing peeing out her butt in the morning on the way to the cheese room makes me laugh! Even though it happens nearly every morning (my timing must be perfect) it still makes me laugh. As I laugh I look at the cows grazing and the green hills and the flowers blooming and hear the birds chirp and the rooster crow and I am enjoy the ambiance.
Being a farmer and a producer of cheese is very enjoyable on many fronts. I choose who surrounds me I listen to wonderful hip hoppping tunes all day and I create products people enjoy.
I pulled up to the Hillsdale market on Sunday and got hello how r u good mornings from my favorite vendors, I got a handful of berries from each booth that had some and I got some freshly picked first of the season squash blossoms!
The squash blossoms are my favorite and the fact that I was the very first to get some made them taste even sweeter when I stuffed them with a little herbed ricotta and sauteed them!

I think of the farmers markets as a great representation of the American opportunity. Its a wonderful tool to bring communities together, bring great produce and artisan goods to the city and fresh eggs of course! The connection that people have with the person that grows their tomatoes or makes their cheese or provides them with their thankgiving turkey all benefit the community and it is something that I have enjoyed watching grow and experience.

Since the connection with your dear Cheese Czarina is very important you can now find me on FACEBOOK!!!
WHoot Whoot! Yes please make Jacobs Creamery a fan of yours and stay in touch with your favorite dairy producer!
We will also shortly have photos of the creation process as well as more farm photos so please check us out!

The forecast for this weekend is warm and with the warm weather and added markets I decided that it was time to put Le Van du Fromage back to work! Its the maiden voyage of the season for Le Van so wish us luck!

This morning I hand scooped the ricotta and found it so light and pillowy and creamy and absolutely delicious I thought that there would never be a better weekend to promote it! So this weekend we will have a very special special on our ricotta :)
We also have a small amount of fresh curds from today's batch of cheese - since they have been requested as well as our herbed fromage blanc which has been gaining popularity every week!

Enjoy the lovely sunny weather while eating some dairy this weekend!
Until next week.
Yours always
Cheese Czarina!

ps don't forget to find us on facebook!

Mati, Mai, Ma, Moeder, Madre, Máthair, Majka!

It comes around every year even if some forget it! or try to ignore it or celebrate it a day early or late. Its something that cannot be changed, it is a most important day- because where would we be with out them? It sends men and women and boys and girls scrambling north, east, south and west and it makes any florist, cheese maker, pudding maker, butter churner, salmon smoker all work a little harder for their flowers and cheeses and pudding and butter and smoked salmon for all be loved and shared with their one and only dear and true. That is right ladies and gentleman it is Mother's Day weekend! Whoot Whoot lets hear it for the Mom's. So I thought I would entertain you with some motherhood quotes of my own- that is stories of my Mother not the other way around.

"My mother used to buy my shoes three sizes bigger because she was sure I would still grow"

So this week there has been a hip hopping tumble of cheese making fun! Oh my! One day we had four cheeses touch the walls of my little vat which made me think that perhaps..just perhaps....it may be time for a new one. I started my cheese making career in a thousand gallon tunnel of a vat which every time I looked at made my mouth go aaaawwww. Then I moved to an eight hundred gallon vat- which was still just a little too big and hard! Then one day I found myself in an 600 gallon Vat but still the fit was not quite right. Suddenly I found this little itty 100 gallon Vat and I snuggled in and was very content.
Until now. I think that I may be ready to ascend like Goldilocks did to a different bed so to speak. Until then I will happily churn and stir my little vat with much glee and happiness.

Happiness Happiness Happiness
"One day my mother told me a very funny story about hazelnuts and still to this day the slight mention of it makes me laugh- sorta hysterically and fall on the floor with tears in my eyes from laughing so hard" -what a wonderful Mum she is!

Happiness can be found in some very smooth and creamy mascarpone! I pumped out a strawberry flavor in addition to the sweet and creamy original and its berry wonderfulness at its best!
I know what your thinking. You are going to ask "But Cheese Czarina where o where will we find you this weekend?"
Of course you will want to cook your Mum breakfast in Bed with none other than our curd fed worm and slug eating chickens eggs! and you will of course want to put some cream cheese (yummy olive debuts this week) on her bagel and of course you will want to feed her strawberries and pudding so that she knows you got the very best and you will of course want it all on Saturday or if you are a very late bloomer early Sunday morning.
Saturday we will be at Hollywood and PSU in our glorious new spot and Sunday we will be at the Old Faithful Hillsdale farmers market and Milwaukie! Its Milwaukie's opening weekend so there should be a lot of hoopla there!

I will of course of course be standing next to my dear Mum and Dad saturday at the market it appears that the farmers market manager has a likeness for petting zoo style layouts and has placed us next to one another. We are again next to one another Sunday but mostly so that we can provide the other vendors and early shoppers with a good form of entertainment with my fathers discussions on the fondling of large kings (king salmon that is :) and my discussion of curd fondling and of course how good our eggs were that we had for breakfast!

The markets are all a lot of fun but not so much fun as a whipped cream fight!
"One day my older sister and I wanted to have a whip cream fight! So my mum dressed us up with bags on our feet and water proof jackets with the hoods tied down and gloves so that we wouldn't get dirty!!!"
When I was younger (but not much has changed) I had a likeness for singing-very loud songs that I would make up on the fly. Not understanding that you could not sing a drum beat or that I had no sense of key I would run around singing bits and pieces of whatever I remembered and would eagerly run up to my Mum and ask her "Mum what shall I sing" "Lisa dear please sing far far away"
Thinking that she was prompting me to make up a new song I would sing "Far far far away far far far away".
Wow I guess not much has changed! I still love to sing entirely off tune without knowing any lyrics-except now I do it while making cheese.

We will have a wide range of fresh cow and aged sheeps milk cheeses this week. I churned butter for almost five hours this week and have some of the loveliest spring pasture butter you will ever find! Please come and see us at the markets and enjoy spending the weekend with your beloved Mum! and make sure she knows that every single thing that she does for you does not go unnoticed and that you appreciate all that she had done and will do!

Her love is like the rush of life,
A bubbling, laughing spring
That runs through all like liquid light

And makes the mountains sing.

~Nick Gordon~

Adieu Adieu
Kisses and Hugs
Your Cheese Czarina!

I saw a strawberry the other day and I ate it and it was good!!

O the many cheeses I make!

The other day this guy asked me about the cheeses I make. It was part of a serious interrogation to see if I was actually the cheese maker. I get that a lot people-just don't seem to believe that I can really make cheese or that -shock - I actually do it on a farm.
Yes I do it on the farm!
Thankfully I passed the test.
After I told him all I do he was left with his mouth slightly a gap -sadly my Dad wasn't there to warn him the flies could potentially fly in.
"But how do you do it all" he asked.....

Well there are three reasons (and yes your about to hear about them!)
Actually I don't do it all myself I have a superduper wonderful team of curd slinging trash talking hard working girls :)

There is Zoe who is usually the first to rise- she digs getting things done which is why I like her. She sorta rocks in the best way because not only is she super dependable she loves hard work and let me tell you! Hauling 860lbs of milk from the cooler to the Vat is hard work. I like her for her dependability but I love her because she is handy and can fix a pump in under five minutes.
Then there is Kelsea Mae we like KM for her dead weight champion record of 695lbs! but we love her because she bakes us muffins and always tells me when I am making a funny face - which seems to be a lot. She also carries around snacks which often include some of my favorite candies-and since she is the tallest she can reach all those hard to get places that my vertically challenged self is faced with.
Both my girls are the reason we can run two creameries from one room.
The three of us produce and wrap and ship all the cheese on the farm. The girls care for it by flipping and salting and rotating it and I provide it with bountiful amounts of entertainment- by singing of course. The cheese just wouldn't be the cheese without me singing to it! (the hills are alive... with the sound of music ohhh lalalalala)
I manage the hours in the cheese room with Music! It makes the atmosphere fun and gets me going- especially if its late at night and I am packaging and I think no one is there I am likely to sing my favorite tune (usually off key but there is no onethere to complain).
That's three in case you can't count!

So you see I do sorta have a wonderful team to assist me in what I do :)

It does appear to have been a very cold winter. Very very very cold indeed since 3/5 of my Portland farmers market crew is pregnant! Oh my. Thankfully the twins will be back in town and showing their super double look at the JC booths across town and the Fraser duo (bro and sis this year yeah!) and of course Lovely Vanae :)

This week we have the Hollywood farmers market opening. Go visit Vanae and her delighful smile if you are in the neighboorhood. Next weekend the Milwaukie farmers market opens and I cannot wait! Summer is almost here folks! I just ate a strawberry!
Next week for our mother's day special we will be creating a delightful mascarpone and also a new secret flavor to accompany it! Its soooo secret in fact I am not even sure what it is :)

This concludes all the news that I am able and willing to share. However. There may be news. Large news. That I am unable to share. But like I said this concludes the news.

Have a beautiful week. I will think of you all very fondly consuming large amounts of dairy and eggs.

Much love!
Yours always
Your very only! Cheese Czarina!
Shebang bang!