Ladies and Gentleman I have an announcement!
I just finished making the cheeses and butters that are now awaiting Judgment day in Seattle for the 2010 American Cheese Society annual cheese competition! OMG my cheeses will be competing against all the Big Guys throughout North America. I was planning on sort of pretending/ignoring the fact that I have entered four of my favorite products into the competition this year because I thought that I couldn't bare to have so many people know, but then I changed my mind, as I am apt to do (because I am whimsical and bc I am certain my chances of winning are higher if I submit my cheese.)
Jacobs Creamery certainly would not be here today if it wasn't for my tenacious spirit and along with my tenacity is a whole lot of hard work (and milk of course)! I don't give up easily so if it so happens that I am not an award winning blue ribbon holding Cheese Czarina by the end of the month than those Judges have another thing coming. I will continue to submit my cheeses until they realize what wonderful texture, flavor and charisma they have! SO there!
The competition is part of a conference Cheese-a-Topia! which is an event entirely dedicated to cheese and everything that surrounds it.
Cheese-o-philes come from all over the country and world to participate and I am deeply saddened that I will be unable to go. However a select someone has my mobile number and I will be called during the award ceremony (with the news!).
I am also deeply saddened by the fact that my most wonderful Twins (Ashley and Jacque) will soon be departing-good luck at school girls (you will be missed). I must say that I think that I have the most wonderful cheese slinging crew ever! Thankfully Vanae is still with us although she too will soon be departing as she will soon have a very new member of her family that will need her attention :) Added to the dairy babe ensemble is Emma who always has a lot to say and is starting to develop some cooler hauling muscles and Becky! Becky has volunteered for the American Cheese Society in Seattle and will likely be cutting all the cheeses for the competition! I feel so very lucky to have such wonderful ladies to work with.
New this week is cheddar cheese curds! Since our production of cheddar is successfully underway I have pulled out some of the hand milled curds for your enjoyment. So far we have the Nerdy Curdy original and Hhhhhot n Spicey! (which is somewhere between you feeling like you need to strip off all your clothes and run into the Willamette river and pure fiery enjoyment for your mouth with a smoked edge) and the Salt n Pepper which has some black and white cracked pepper! They are very very very skweaky and fun to eat.
For those of you waiting in anticipation for our other new cheese please remember Lady Gouda is maturing and will make her first live appearance in the fall.
Sadly this week Madam Honey Greek and Senior Fromage Blanc ran away together and will not be appearing at the JC booths. Hopefully they will be back the following week.
All right that is all folks! Please eat more dairy and farm fresh eggs (you know what happens when you eat eggs from the store now) and come try some of our Nerdy Curdies this week!
Tatata
Yours respectfully,
Cheese Czarina
Friday, August 20, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Have a very gouda day!
Smashin and crashin this is the newsie of cheese!
It appears that I have forgotten about my dear old friend who is with me on the farm and at the markets, that has moved cheese and milk, butter and eggs with me for the last year. It appears my dear old friend Le Van du Fromage needs a break. I of course didn't listen until he put his foot down and demanded a night off (of which I was most grateful-except when the repair bill came)
So come Sunday afternoon with Le Van certainly not going anywhere for any apparent reason off to the beach I ran! Its lovely to be able to spend some time with friends, I get so busy wrapped up in cheese and markets that I seem to often forget to take a minute and enjoy things.I feel so very fortunate for all my friends and neighbors who help me keep my truck running and who happily hold ladders at 9pm so I can climb into an upstairs window (having forgotten my keys!) I was reminded how lovely it is to sit down to a long table filled with drinks, cheese and food and have a good laugh and relax! with someones else's butter on my bread. Always part of the meal is a lovely cheese and I am happy that I can play a part in peoples meals and celebrations that way. I have tons of recipe ideas for my delicate and lovely soft cheeses and dairy products and always let a little wimper/sigh when asked about the others.... the older ones.... the wiser and tastier ones.... the hard and sexier aged cheeses!!!!!
Since I am a cheesemaker I have decided to make more cheese!
I have decided to add some cheeses to the wonderful line of Jacobs Creamery products. This week I finished my very first batch of gouda!!! Gouda gouda gouda gouda! It will not appear for some time as I feel like a true love it only deepens and develops more character with time, but it will make for an exciting fall and winter :) There will of course be a coming out party for the new cheese and its sidekick (announcement next week) which will be a very fun evening indeed.
Now I hate to get to philosophical or feely weely on ya'all but I am going to do it anyway.
We each go about our lives concerned with traffic or getting kids off to camp or playdates, we worry about meetings and work and life's struggles. Regular day to day things make up our lives. Its easy to turn a blind eye to people that we can help and ignore things we can do to make our community a nicer place to live. I recommend (besides eating more good dairy) that you take a moment and do something for another and not expect anything in return (except a smile) you might be surprised at how lovely it makes you feel afterward. It can be something as simple as loading groceries into someones car or baking a pie and leaving it on your neighbors doorstep or mowing your friends lawn :)
I like the feeling of helping people so I am happy to announce the partnership between Jacobs Creamery and P;ear (yes that is the way it is spelled). The organization is assisting homeless youth and giving them the tools they need to succeed in life, part of which is cooking. We are donating product to assist them in developing their culinary skills and are thrilled that we can be a part of their education and are happy to support such a wonderful organization. If you are interested in volunteering or donating here is their web site information.
http://www.pearmentor.org/
Thankfully Le Van survived his ordeal. If he was a human he would have had the equivalent of a blood transfusion, a lobotomy, a c-section (just kidding) and a catheter put up his whatnots, as well as a transplant of some important intestinal organs. He is happily resting and recovering. Like all the Jacobs Creamery girls (and boy) hes tough as all hell and wont even consider taking a day off! Back in action we will be tomorrow- hopefully for a very very long time.
And that my friends is all I can say, until next time please eat more dairy and fresh farm eggs, walk your neighbors dog and let someone in when they indicate!
Cheers!
xoxox
Cheese Czarina
It appears that I have forgotten about my dear old friend who is with me on the farm and at the markets, that has moved cheese and milk, butter and eggs with me for the last year. It appears my dear old friend Le Van du Fromage needs a break. I of course didn't listen until he put his foot down and demanded a night off (of which I was most grateful-except when the repair bill came)
So come Sunday afternoon with Le Van certainly not going anywhere for any apparent reason off to the beach I ran! Its lovely to be able to spend some time with friends, I get so busy wrapped up in cheese and markets that I seem to often forget to take a minute and enjoy things.I feel so very fortunate for all my friends and neighbors who help me keep my truck running and who happily hold ladders at 9pm so I can climb into an upstairs window (having forgotten my keys!) I was reminded how lovely it is to sit down to a long table filled with drinks, cheese and food and have a good laugh and relax! with someones else's butter on my bread. Always part of the meal is a lovely cheese and I am happy that I can play a part in peoples meals and celebrations that way. I have tons of recipe ideas for my delicate and lovely soft cheeses and dairy products and always let a little wimper/sigh when asked about the others.... the older ones.... the wiser and tastier ones.... the hard and sexier aged cheeses!!!!!
Since I am a cheesemaker I have decided to make more cheese!
I have decided to add some cheeses to the wonderful line of Jacobs Creamery products. This week I finished my very first batch of gouda!!! Gouda gouda gouda gouda! It will not appear for some time as I feel like a true love it only deepens and develops more character with time, but it will make for an exciting fall and winter :) There will of course be a coming out party for the new cheese and its sidekick (announcement next week) which will be a very fun evening indeed.
Now I hate to get to philosophical or feely weely on ya'all but I am going to do it anyway.
We each go about our lives concerned with traffic or getting kids off to camp or playdates, we worry about meetings and work and life's struggles. Regular day to day things make up our lives. Its easy to turn a blind eye to people that we can help and ignore things we can do to make our community a nicer place to live. I recommend (besides eating more good dairy) that you take a moment and do something for another and not expect anything in return (except a smile) you might be surprised at how lovely it makes you feel afterward. It can be something as simple as loading groceries into someones car or baking a pie and leaving it on your neighbors doorstep or mowing your friends lawn :)
I like the feeling of helping people so I am happy to announce the partnership between Jacobs Creamery and P;ear (yes that is the way it is spelled). The organization is assisting homeless youth and giving them the tools they need to succeed in life, part of which is cooking. We are donating product to assist them in developing their culinary skills and are thrilled that we can be a part of their education and are happy to support such a wonderful organization. If you are interested in volunteering or donating here is their web site information.
http://www.pearmentor.org/
Thankfully Le Van survived his ordeal. If he was a human he would have had the equivalent of a blood transfusion, a lobotomy, a c-section (just kidding) and a catheter put up his whatnots, as well as a transplant of some important intestinal organs. He is happily resting and recovering. Like all the Jacobs Creamery girls (and boy) hes tough as all hell and wont even consider taking a day off! Back in action we will be tomorrow- hopefully for a very very long time.
And that my friends is all I can say, until next time please eat more dairy and fresh farm eggs, walk your neighbors dog and let someone in when they indicate!
Cheers!
xoxox
Cheese Czarina
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Until the Butter end!
Have any of you ever grabbed a mug of coffee or tea and sat down at the table to look at the paper?
Have any of you ever looked at the coupon sections?
When I do I find myself thinking that perhaps I need to buy some kittens because I would just love to save $3.00 on six bags of kitty litter- or I start wondering if perhaps I could use four cans of mens aftershave....
Those coupons are just never ever what you need but they always look so appealing.
I thought that Jacobs Creamery should make a landmark attempt and create a coupon for something people need and want!
So don't let it slip pastyoureyes! because coming out next Tuesday in the Foodday section of the Oregonian you will find a coupon valid at the Jacobs Creamery farmers markets for a cheesy discount on cheese!
You might think -NO WHEY! But yes it is for real and whey cool might I add that you can get a coupon to use at the farmers markets and also see some wonderful recipes for things that will be fresh from the farms that week! Whey cool!
Oh dear dear dear dear me! I must say that I really do love my iddy biddy little town and my Washington zip code. My town is so small that when Mr.Little came to check up on T-King he didn't even need to ask for directions. He just showed up and started topping the freon up! and I really do love the fact that I have a licensed milk bottling plant. What doesn't thrill me is the fact the federal government has made very strict regulations that apply to me when I cross over state lines with my milk.
So what's a girl to do?
Well so far this season I have had a ton of requests for my glorious leche but have not gotten very far with the feds and their regulations (which apply to all producers crossing state lines whether they have 20 gallons or 200,000lbs the rules are the same!). Thankfully T-King is fired up and will have a pick up spot for milk every Friday late afternoon in Washington- but very close to Oregon :) so it will make it very convenient for you Oregonians to get some farm fresh milk.
If you are interested in our 'milk stop' please email me and let me know what quantity you would like and I will give you all the glorious details for our milky meeting.
Our milk will be days out of the cow when you get it and unlike the store varieties it will be pasteurized in small batches according to the state minimum requirements which will make it a very tasty and highly nutritional.
We will be selling cream line whole milk in what every quantities you desire.
Sometimes I get calls very late at night from hostesses saying things like "Oh my gosh my dinner party just doubled and I need more of your butter!" eeekkkk! well don't have a cow! now if your are a scattered hostess or just feel like a little impromptu Jacobs Creamery after market hours there is no reason you have to wean yourself away from JC products! You can visit your favorite neighboorhood New Seasons store! They are very excited to be carrying our hand churned european style cultured butter and hand scooped Italian style ricotta. We do of course prefer to see your smiling faces but if your in a pinch and cant make the market its a wonderful alternative!
Sometimes I ramble on and on and on and on. To be clear I am dairy dairy sorry for my rambles and will review the hot points below :)
1)Get your coupon! Fooday Oregonian-Tuesday! - a good coupon that you can use for cheese at the markets!
2) Milk! Two day turn around fresh from our udder to you!
Pick up on Friday late afternoons in a soon to be disclosed location!
3) Don't have a cow! - New Seasons has our stuff!
There you go in three easy points! I really hope you all have a lovely weekend and that you have written Jacobs Creamery products on your shopping list (I love seeing that!) and that you have good plans for fresh butter and eggs n cheese and some glorious sunshine for the weekend.
A tout à l'heure! or until later!
Ciao
Your very own genuine cheese making and chicken chasing
Cheese Czarina !
Have any of you ever looked at the coupon sections?
When I do I find myself thinking that perhaps I need to buy some kittens because I would just love to save $3.00 on six bags of kitty litter- or I start wondering if perhaps I could use four cans of mens aftershave....
Those coupons are just never ever what you need but they always look so appealing.
I thought that Jacobs Creamery should make a landmark attempt and create a coupon for something people need and want!
So don't let it slip pastyoureyes! because coming out next Tuesday in the Foodday section of the Oregonian you will find a coupon valid at the Jacobs Creamery farmers markets for a cheesy discount on cheese!
You might think -NO WHEY! But yes it is for real and whey cool might I add that you can get a coupon to use at the farmers markets and also see some wonderful recipes for things that will be fresh from the farms that week! Whey cool!
Oh dear dear dear dear me! I must say that I really do love my iddy biddy little town and my Washington zip code. My town is so small that when Mr.Little came to check up on T-King he didn't even need to ask for directions. He just showed up and started topping the freon up! and I really do love the fact that I have a licensed milk bottling plant. What doesn't thrill me is the fact the federal government has made very strict regulations that apply to me when I cross over state lines with my milk.
So what's a girl to do?
Well so far this season I have had a ton of requests for my glorious leche but have not gotten very far with the feds and their regulations (which apply to all producers crossing state lines whether they have 20 gallons or 200,000lbs the rules are the same!). Thankfully T-King is fired up and will have a pick up spot for milk every Friday late afternoon in Washington- but very close to Oregon :) so it will make it very convenient for you Oregonians to get some farm fresh milk.
If you are interested in our 'milk stop' please email me and let me know what quantity you would like and I will give you all the glorious details for our milky meeting.
Our milk will be days out of the cow when you get it and unlike the store varieties it will be pasteurized in small batches according to the state minimum requirements which will make it a very tasty and highly nutritional.
We will be selling cream line whole milk in what every quantities you desire.
Sometimes I get calls very late at night from hostesses saying things like "Oh my gosh my dinner party just doubled and I need more of your butter!" eeekkkk! well don't have a cow! now if your are a scattered hostess or just feel like a little impromptu Jacobs Creamery after market hours there is no reason you have to wean yourself away from JC products! You can visit your favorite neighboorhood New Seasons store! They are very excited to be carrying our hand churned european style cultured butter and hand scooped Italian style ricotta. We do of course prefer to see your smiling faces but if your in a pinch and cant make the market its a wonderful alternative!
Sometimes I ramble on and on and on and on. To be clear I am dairy dairy sorry for my rambles and will review the hot points below :)
1)Get your coupon! Fooday Oregonian-Tuesday! - a good coupon that you can use for cheese at the markets!
2) Milk! Two day turn around fresh from our udder to you!
Pick up on Friday late afternoons in a soon to be disclosed location!
3) Don't have a cow! - New Seasons has our stuff!
There you go in three easy points! I really hope you all have a lovely weekend and that you have written Jacobs Creamery products on your shopping list (I love seeing that!) and that you have good plans for fresh butter and eggs n cheese and some glorious sunshine for the weekend.
A tout à l'heure! or until later!
Ciao
Your very own genuine cheese making and chicken chasing
Cheese Czarina !
Friday, July 2, 2010
Moooilicious
Hello! Welcome to this weeks Cheesy Newsie!
I have a story to share with you!
Last Friday I was driving Le Van du Fromage down state route six and T King was blaring up top and I was excited for the wonderful weather and all the wonderful farmers markets ahead. I had a huge grin on my face and was feeling pretty darn good until things got a little quiet.
For those of you that have not been around T-King you need to know that he has a 'large and in charge attitude' which mostly comes from his very important job of keeping all the product I make VERY cold! The attitude is expressed by the noise that bellows from his exhaust.
I pulled into the next gas station and prayed to GD that the reset button would get him up and running again. Oh dear oh dear please work please work please work please work!
Crap -what am I going to do if it doesn't turn on? Please work please work please work.....
I pull into the nearest gas station which was all empty except for one huge man leaning against his Thermo King repair truck. HHHmmmm.
At first glance I thought I was having a hallucination, but then I realized that the man was too big to be a hallucination. I took a flying leap out of the truck and ran over to where he was.
"Are you a thermo king repair technician?" and in a very deep voice he said "Yes ma'am - I was checking out your unit as you drove in"
"Well come take a closer look I seem to have a malfunction" the man was so tall he hit the reset button from standing on the ground! (I have to use the ladder). Since young ladies driving refrigerated box vans down route 6 isn't all that common of an occurrence he seemed really interested in where I lived and what I did with such a truck. With T-King once again blaring away (thanks to some tinkering around) I discovered that this huge man was actually my neighbor and that his most favorite thing to eat is cheese :)
So I think what happened was this. When I was born in Dublin, Ireland I was given a very lucky charm :)
Big weekend ahead! Although you wouldn't know it by the weather Summer is in full swing for the ladies of Jacobs Creamery! 11 markets a week and the New Seasons stores are keeping me in my rubber boots! My polka dotted rubber boots of course! Next week you will find Jacobs Creamery salted butter and Ricotta in the cheese cases of New Seasons :)
The farmers markets are a wonderful spot to do your shopping for the weekends festivities.
Whether you are planning a BIG slip n slide party or a BBQ you will certainly find ingredients to impress at your local market.
My cream cheese mixed with some of the Smokery smoked fish works wonders for a spread for crackers. I cannot think of a better topping than my mozzarella for a salad other than .... well pudding and strawberries!
I wish all your firecrackers go off with a flash and that your neighbors don't do a naked dash!
Until next time. Eat more dairy and remember that real smiles come from cheese.
Adieu Adieu!
So long farewell
Yours always-making you wonderful cheesy creations!
Cheese Czarina!
I have a story to share with you!
Last Friday I was driving Le Van du Fromage down state route six and T King was blaring up top and I was excited for the wonderful weather and all the wonderful farmers markets ahead. I had a huge grin on my face and was feeling pretty darn good until things got a little quiet.
For those of you that have not been around T-King you need to know that he has a 'large and in charge attitude' which mostly comes from his very important job of keeping all the product I make VERY cold! The attitude is expressed by the noise that bellows from his exhaust.
I pulled into the next gas station and prayed to GD that the reset button would get him up and running again. Oh dear oh dear please work please work please work please work!
Crap -what am I going to do if it doesn't turn on? Please work please work please work.....
I pull into the nearest gas station which was all empty except for one huge man leaning against his Thermo King repair truck. HHHmmmm.
At first glance I thought I was having a hallucination, but then I realized that the man was too big to be a hallucination. I took a flying leap out of the truck and ran over to where he was.
"Are you a thermo king repair technician?" and in a very deep voice he said "Yes ma'am - I was checking out your unit as you drove in"
"Well come take a closer look I seem to have a malfunction" the man was so tall he hit the reset button from standing on the ground! (I have to use the ladder). Since young ladies driving refrigerated box vans down route 6 isn't all that common of an occurrence he seemed really interested in where I lived and what I did with such a truck. With T-King once again blaring away (thanks to some tinkering around) I discovered that this huge man was actually my neighbor and that his most favorite thing to eat is cheese :)
So I think what happened was this. When I was born in Dublin, Ireland I was given a very lucky charm :)
Big weekend ahead! Although you wouldn't know it by the weather Summer is in full swing for the ladies of Jacobs Creamery! 11 markets a week and the New Seasons stores are keeping me in my rubber boots! My polka dotted rubber boots of course! Next week you will find Jacobs Creamery salted butter and Ricotta in the cheese cases of New Seasons :)
The farmers markets are a wonderful spot to do your shopping for the weekends festivities.
Whether you are planning a BIG slip n slide party or a BBQ you will certainly find ingredients to impress at your local market.
My cream cheese mixed with some of the Smokery smoked fish works wonders for a spread for crackers. I cannot think of a better topping than my mozzarella for a salad other than .... well pudding and strawberries!
I wish all your firecrackers go off with a flash and that your neighbors don't do a naked dash!
Until next time. Eat more dairy and remember that real smiles come from cheese.
Adieu Adieu!
So long farewell
Yours always-making you wonderful cheesy creations!
Cheese Czarina!
Friday, June 18, 2010
That brine of mine is more than fine its Sublime!
Earlier this evening I went out to the barn to check on the little birds that recently hatched and as I was walking towards the barn I looked up and saw the half moon glow and a shooting star, and I of course made a wish! It was a super cheesy wish.
The business Jacobs Creamery was founded on an idea which basically was a whim that I wanted to make cheese and then more and more. It has sprung into something that brings me much joy. Looking through the catalog of winners from last years American Cheese Societies competition I am reminded that I have a long way to go.
I have many hopes and dreams in the forms of cheese that I still hope to make. Camembert, Tomme and aged Gouda would be fun and throw in a traditional Havarti and some Alpine cheeses and you get where I am going - more cheese please? Yes thank you.
Its good to have goals and struggles and successes and failures because that is what makes up life's experiences and make you look back and say 'I lived'. If I ever do get old (which will take a long time because I only age once every five years (milk keeps me young)) I will certainly look back and I will say "I did ten farmers markets a week!" I will be able to take my grandchildren into the cheese room and teach them the Jacobs Creamery recipes I will be able to look out onto the acreage and see them playing in the pastures and hopefully see them feed cheese curds and whey to the chickens, and read them my newsletters as good night stories. When I am old I think I will still have huge and amazing biceps and be able to move around hundreds of gallons of milk and product even though I am sure I will have a working milk pump. What I mostly look forward to is having a a real home for me and my business to grow and flourish a place where my grandkids can come and make cheese and where I can wake up in the middle of the night and run out in my nightie to check on the cheese. Those are my wants and dreams for when I am old.
Mostly when I look back on these last couple years I think of my Dad who has from day one been my hardest critic and also biggest fan. He was never too shy to tell me my cream cheese was too tangy and always had a good word for any yogurt and butter that was put in the kitchen. He carefully saves the smoked salmon trimmings for my chickens and loans me tables and tents in a flash and always lends me a hand packing up at the markets- even though my stuff is super heavy. We laugh when we get up in the middle of the night for markets and laugh when we are sore after sitting down on saturday afternoons. Most people assume that Jacobs Creamery is a family company and I often correct them and say - Ah no that is my parents business right next door. My Dad brought me up to think and act for myself so its only natural that I have my own business and sell right next door to his. Jacobs Creamery is a family business because without my Mum and Dads help it just wouldn't be the same.
In honor of fathers day I am having a Daddy's special on greek yogurt since its my Dads favorite thing to eat!
I am still young and vibrant and still full of vinegar, coagulant and cultures! So this week we have lots and lots of mozzarella.
Thank you Portland for your mad Mozz love! It loves you too. This week you can find some new recipe ideas up on Facebook! We have enough mozzarella for all of your salads!
Please come check us out we have updates on products, markets and availability!
We also have feta which is a creamy delight and I promise you I did not add cream - its just wonderful. That brine of mine is more than fine- its sublime! Come by for a taste!
This saturday we will be at PSU and Hollywood and Sunday you can find us at King, Milwaukie and Hillsdale.
Monday you can find us at the new Pioneer Square market, Tuesday Cannon Beach
Wednesday Interstate Farmers Market, Thursday Hood river and 23rd!
If you can say all of that in the correct order without a cheat sheet I will give you a pudding!
Be well and please eat more dairy. Give your Dad a hug and by him some yogurt - its very good for the digestion.
Quotes!
Customer "If I buy this will I get pregnant" Vanae "Oh no its not the cheese you have to worry about its the wine that can be a problem!"
"Are your eggs pasteurized" - this cracked me up because if you heat eggs up to 145 degrees for half an hour you would have baked eggs!
Adieu Adieu
Until next time
Yours always
Cheese Czarina!!
The business Jacobs Creamery was founded on an idea which basically was a whim that I wanted to make cheese and then more and more. It has sprung into something that brings me much joy. Looking through the catalog of winners from last years American Cheese Societies competition I am reminded that I have a long way to go.
I have many hopes and dreams in the forms of cheese that I still hope to make. Camembert, Tomme and aged Gouda would be fun and throw in a traditional Havarti and some Alpine cheeses and you get where I am going - more cheese please? Yes thank you.
Its good to have goals and struggles and successes and failures because that is what makes up life's experiences and make you look back and say 'I lived'. If I ever do get old (which will take a long time because I only age once every five years (milk keeps me young)) I will certainly look back and I will say "I did ten farmers markets a week!" I will be able to take my grandchildren into the cheese room and teach them the Jacobs Creamery recipes I will be able to look out onto the acreage and see them playing in the pastures and hopefully see them feed cheese curds and whey to the chickens, and read them my newsletters as good night stories. When I am old I think I will still have huge and amazing biceps and be able to move around hundreds of gallons of milk and product even though I am sure I will have a working milk pump. What I mostly look forward to is having a a real home for me and my business to grow and flourish a place where my grandkids can come and make cheese and where I can wake up in the middle of the night and run out in my nightie to check on the cheese. Those are my wants and dreams for when I am old.
Mostly when I look back on these last couple years I think of my Dad who has from day one been my hardest critic and also biggest fan. He was never too shy to tell me my cream cheese was too tangy and always had a good word for any yogurt and butter that was put in the kitchen. He carefully saves the smoked salmon trimmings for my chickens and loans me tables and tents in a flash and always lends me a hand packing up at the markets- even though my stuff is super heavy. We laugh when we get up in the middle of the night for markets and laugh when we are sore after sitting down on saturday afternoons. Most people assume that Jacobs Creamery is a family company and I often correct them and say - Ah no that is my parents business right next door. My Dad brought me up to think and act for myself so its only natural that I have my own business and sell right next door to his. Jacobs Creamery is a family business because without my Mum and Dads help it just wouldn't be the same.
In honor of fathers day I am having a Daddy's special on greek yogurt since its my Dads favorite thing to eat!
I am still young and vibrant and still full of vinegar, coagulant and cultures! So this week we have lots and lots of mozzarella.
Thank you Portland for your mad Mozz love! It loves you too. This week you can find some new recipe ideas up on Facebook! We have enough mozzarella for all of your salads!
Please come check us out we have updates on products, markets and availability!
We also have feta which is a creamy delight and I promise you I did not add cream - its just wonderful. That brine of mine is more than fine- its sublime! Come by for a taste!
This saturday we will be at PSU and Hollywood and Sunday you can find us at King, Milwaukie and Hillsdale.
Monday you can find us at the new Pioneer Square market, Tuesday Cannon Beach
Wednesday Interstate Farmers Market, Thursday Hood river and 23rd!
If you can say all of that in the correct order without a cheat sheet I will give you a pudding!
Be well and please eat more dairy. Give your Dad a hug and by him some yogurt - its very good for the digestion.
Quotes!
Customer "If I buy this will I get pregnant" Vanae "Oh no its not the cheese you have to worry about its the wine that can be a problem!"
"Are your eggs pasteurized" - this cracked me up because if you heat eggs up to 145 degrees for half an hour you would have baked eggs!
Adieu Adieu
Until next time
Yours always
Cheese Czarina!!
Monday, June 7, 2010
Fromage Blanc no bake strawberry Cheesecake!
No bake Strawberry topped cheesecakes!
Crust!
½ cup Jacobs Creamery butter
1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs
The Inside!
8oz Jacobs Creamery Fromage Blanc
1 1/4 cups Jacobs Creamery European Style or Natural Greek Style yogurt
2 Jacobs Creamery happy curd fed fresh farm chicken eggs
1/2 cup of sugar
I tablespoon of gelatin
2tbls of very cold water
The Top!
Two to four pints of strawberries (depending on how many you eat when you hull them)
2/3 of a cup of Jacobs Creamery creme fraiche
a handful of sprigs of fresh mint for garnish!
What to do!
Grease 10 muffin cups. To prepare crust, melt butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir in graham cracker crumbs. Press mixture into bottoms of greased muffin cups. Set aside. To prepare filling, beat Fromage Blanc, yogurt, egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl until smooth (hand mixer works great). Combine gelatin with water in a small saucepan. Simmer until gelatin is completely dissolved; stir into cheese mixture. Spoon filling into prepared crusts. Refrigerate 2 to 3 hours or until set. Remove cheesecakes from cups. To garnish, slice strawberries and arrange on cheesecakes. Whip cream until stiff. Put a dollop on top of each cake and top with a sprig of mint.
Serves 10
Thursday, June 3, 2010
The Sun will come out!
First off I should let all of your reading know that I am do indeed have whey all over me! I have whey soaked hands whey in my hair and whey even in my... well you get the point!
It was the very first Thursday in June and instead of being at the markets I was singing "Just a spoon full of sugar makes the medicine go down medicine go down medicine go - in the most delightful whey" to my very last batch of fromage blanc for the week which totaled a whopping 250 lbs!
Fromage balnc is a cheese that has rennet and the rennet does sort of look like a tonic so it inspired me. While hand scooping some serious poundage of ricotta today I was listening to the Alabama soundtrack which made my Italian style ricotta have a special country flare to it. You will definitely be able to tell as it was an especially special batch. This week we will have some very fresh squash blossoms at PSU. Squash blossoms are wonderful stuffed with ricotta and lightly sauteed in some Jacobs Creamery butter with a pinch of salt and pepper. The recipe will be up on our facebook page so please come check us out!
We are now in six markets a week with a new one starting next week which I will be doing on Sunday- it is the King Market!
Please come see me we will also be in Hillsdale which will be operated by the Twins and Milwaukie which will be operated by Vanae!
In addition to our markets New Seasons will of course be carrying some products, but if you are feeling like a treat and want some JC goodness to be involved you can sit down at one of the lovely cozy tables at DOC for a very local sourced and wonderful meal or Fenouil in the Pearl who is also making some lovely creative dishes with Jacobs Creamery products.
I am waiting for a glimpse of sun to whip up a batch of our signature crumbled mozzarella so if you all think supper sunny thoughts and repeat "The Sun is coming out" ten times a day I think I might be able to pull it off sooner rather than later.
Oh yes a recipe. This recipe is brought to us today by Nancy Cunningham all the way from Waco, Texas.
It is good to laugh and for this reason and this reason only I have included a joke.
It was the very first Thursday in June and instead of being at the markets I was singing "Just a spoon full of sugar makes the medicine go down medicine go down medicine go - in the most delightful whey" to my very last batch of fromage blanc for the week which totaled a whopping 250 lbs!
Fromage balnc is a cheese that has rennet and the rennet does sort of look like a tonic so it inspired me. While hand scooping some serious poundage of ricotta today I was listening to the Alabama soundtrack which made my Italian style ricotta have a special country flare to it. You will definitely be able to tell as it was an especially special batch. This week we will have some very fresh squash blossoms at PSU. Squash blossoms are wonderful stuffed with ricotta and lightly sauteed in some Jacobs Creamery butter with a pinch of salt and pepper. The recipe will be up on our facebook page so please come check us out!
We are now in six markets a week with a new one starting next week which I will be doing on Sunday- it is the King Market!
Please come see me we will also be in Hillsdale which will be operated by the Twins and Milwaukie which will be operated by Vanae!
In addition to our markets New Seasons will of course be carrying some products, but if you are feeling like a treat and want some JC goodness to be involved you can sit down at one of the lovely cozy tables at DOC for a very local sourced and wonderful meal or Fenouil in the Pearl who is also making some lovely creative dishes with Jacobs Creamery products.
I am waiting for a glimpse of sun to whip up a batch of our signature crumbled mozzarella so if you all think supper sunny thoughts and repeat "The Sun is coming out" ten times a day I think I might be able to pull it off sooner rather than later.
Oh yes a recipe. This recipe is brought to us today by Nancy Cunningham all the way from Waco, Texas.
You have to like fennel!
Ingredients
- 1 pound fresh green beans trimmed you can also you snap peas
- 1 fennel bulb, cut into very thin slices
- 1/8 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/8 cup Jacobs Creamery salted butter
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2-3/4 cup crumbled Jacobs Creamery feta cheese
Directions
- Fill a saucepan half full with water and bring to a boil. Add the green beans and fennel slices; cook until just beginning to become tender, about 4 minutes. Pour into a colander to drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking process.
- Return the empty pan to the stove and set heat to medium. Pour in the olive oil and butter and let it heat for a minute. Return the green beans and fennel to the pan. Season with basil, salt, and pepper; cook and stir until coated and warm. Transfer to a serving dish and toss with feta cheese and viola!.
It is good to laugh and for this reason and this reason only I have included a joke.
Two cows are eating grass and talking in the field. One cow says, "Have you heard about the Mad Cow disease that’’s going around?"
The other cow answers, "Yeah, makes you glad you’’re a penguin, doesn’’t it?"
That's it ladies and gentleman until next time
Don't forget our new mantra "The Sun is coming out" - (which sorta makes me want to sing a song from Annie "The Sun will come out tomorrow!")
Yours always
Cheese Czarina!
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