Dinner with a Philadelphia Cheesemaker

Every once in awhile I dream of getting a milk cow or goat, and Sweet Husband reminds me of the reality of living with an animal that must be milked twice a day....no vacations, no spur of the moment dinners out.  But this weekend I got to have dinner with a lovely cheesemaker (Sue Miller of Birchrun Hills Farm and her sweet son), and it must be said--although she admits that she and her husband take separate vacations these days--she seemed quite at peace with that particular downside of farm life.

And if it meant eating her cheese everyday, I might forgo joint vacations as well.

My favorite was the Equinox, but the Birchrun Blue--a super smooth tasting blue cheese--is Sue's specialty.  

Of course, while I enjoyed the cheese, I enjoyed the conversation more.

I've talked a little with our own lovely milkmaid about what they do at the farm and why (humane rearing, judicious antibiotics, no growth hormones--organic-esque, as I like to call it), so it was fun to compare Sue's very similar philosophies.  In the case of both women, I think there's a lot of respect and affection for the cows.  "Family members" would be a misnomer--these cows aren't sleeping at the foot of the bed.  (What cow would want to?)  But it's a pretty good life for a cow.

Even the boy cows are well treated.  We got into a funny discussion about how the "men" of most farm species generally don't fair so well.  I, of course, had to talk about my rooster problem and their likely eventual fate in the stew pot (Sue kindly assured me that the first time butchering is the hardest, and after that I'll be a pro), and then we talked about veal cows.

For those of you who don't know, veal is a byproduct of having dairy cows.  You have to breed a cow to get her to produce milk.  Sometimes the eventual calf is a girl, in which case she grows up to be a dairy cow herself.  When the calf is a boy however, he can still be used for meat, i.e. veal.  Sue's son has made a college scholarship for himself out of their "boys", who are happily and humanely raised on pasture, not in restrictive boxes.  It's a good situation for all the males involved, both human and cow.

I also took the opportunity to question Sue about Pennsylvania's dairy laws.  At a farmer's market the day before, I had seen raw milk for sale (which would be illegal in Kansas, where you have to sell direct from the farm or set up a cow share like the one that we're members of), so I was curious.  While Sue said she doesn't sell raw milk, it's not illegal to do so, and there are no silly hoops to jump through.  She does make raw milk cheese, which must be aged for sixty days before it can be sold to the public.

Combined with the arrival of Ashley English's dairy book in my library reserves (Homemade Living: Home Dairy with Ashley English: All You Need to Know to Make Cheese, Yogurt, Butter & More) I am so very inspired to start in with some cheese and butter making again.

But I promised a giveaway, yes?  

For today, I have a quarter-pound size lunk of Pennsylvania cheese.  It didn't come from Sue (her's is kind of hard to get), but Sweet Husband and I had some for dinner tonight and it's a cousin to the Equinox cheese that I liked so well.  I'm also throwing in some hard salami from Garces Trading Company.  

If you're interested, answer this question below:  If you had a cow, what would you name her?

I'll pick the winner Wednesday morning.

And the winner is Moxie!

Comments

[Tracy]

It would all depend. To me naming anything has so much to do with being inspired by the person/animal being named. But I might call her Betty. That sounds like a retro farm-girl name. :)

[Meryl]

I love it!  I keep thinking we need to name a chicken Betty, but (please dont laugh too hard) Im waiting until we decide if were going to have more kiddos or not because I could see myself naming a little girl Elizabeth and calling her Betty.

[Amy]

I've really enjoyed reading about your trip! Reading this reminded me of a quote from Life of Brian, "Blessed are the Cheesemakers..." And my husband is drooling over the photos and insisted I enter your contest.

If we had a dairy cow I think it's name would have to be Bessie or Mabel. Not terribly original but fitting. :)

[Emily E]

i probably would name her daisy do not know why that name just came to me when i read the question:)