Beth Parker and her family have a small farm in upstate New York, near the border with Canada and Vermont. It’s beautiful country, close to Lake Champlain.
Beth’s Story
I am the Parts Manager for a Chevrolet Dealership. My husband and I have a son Parker 13, and our daughter Lily is 10. Chris and I are celebrating 20 years together this year!
At the Happy Pike Festival that we have every year in Chazy! It starts with a fishing derby and everyone has the same shirts (which are a different tie-dye design every year).
We have a little hobby farm with goats, pigs, chickens, ducks, bunnies and puppies!
We eat the eggs that the chickens and ducks (great for baking) lay. We raise most of the animals with the purpose of food for the freezer. We started the farm as a fun thing for us and the kids to do together.
My son thought it would be a good idea to breed rabbits to sell. We said sure, but you know how rabbits are and soon there were a lot more rabbits then there were people wanting a pet rabbit!
We had 3 turkeys a couple years ago – that was fun! We also had a male and female pheasant that we picked out at the fair. So, depending on where we are, we usually come home with something!
I think it builds character in the kids too… shows them responsibility and hopefully a good work ethic which a lot of kids lack these days!
I started making goat cheese about 4 years ago. I thought how hard could it be… get a goat, make cheese. LOL! It had to be cheaper than my goat cheese addiction!
I mentioned it to my father in law, who can get his hands on just about any animal you can think of, and he showed up a week later with a milking goat (Sandy) and a friend (Cloud). Sandy is an Alpine and Cloud is a Saanen goat. So, I started milking Sandy! I took a little while to get the hang of it but I did it – I was milking my goat!!
We now have 5 goats. Sandy had a set of girl twins (Ruby and Midnight) and Cloud had one girl (Bunny).
This was such a fun summer with the babies. Unfortunately Sandy developed mastitis so we had to bottle feed the twins and couldn’t use her milk. Cloud has stepped up and has given us plenty of milk though!
We are now getting about 1 gallon a day – we milk in the morning and night time. I use all the milk for cheese.
Ultimately the cheese I make is enough for us, friends and family. I have been asked to make it for a local deli/store in Vermont, which is just across the bridge from us. But, right now it’s just a hobby.
How did you learn to make cheese?
I got on the internet and found a great cheese making company that had videos, stories, supplies, and pointers to help me succeed at making cheese. This, of course, was New England Cheesemaking Supply Co. (cheesemaking.com).
I had many jars of goat milk in the fridge and my supplies ready. So, I hit YouTube and found a step by step instructional by a young woman on a farm… I have watched this video over and over and have now perfected the recipe with a little of my own spin.
The creative part of my cheese is what I mix into it. I also roll the log in spices, fruit or seeds to go with the mixture.
The cheese making process is long but worth every bite! One of the favorite party foods in my circle is the goat cheese that I make! It is a hit everywhere we go!
This cheese slate was for our book club! My mother and are a part of this club with a great group of ladies. We share our opinions on select books but some of us just go for the food and drinks!
When we go to parties or host them I am usually responsible for the charcuterie board. I usually have at least a couple of my goat logs with some venison summer sausage or meat sticks that my husband makes from his hunting ventures! Of course I incorporate the standard cheddar, Brie, salami and prosciutto etc… with always a fruit on the tray!
