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Clabber and Quark

Writer's picture: Rich and Shelley McGlamoryRich and Shelley McGlamory

Colonel's Blog, Earthdate 13 Jan 2023...

Hey Y'all!


Happy Friday from Air2Ground Farms!! Thinking of our active duty friends and family, we wish you a very happy and relaxing 4-day weekend! I attached a "Happy Friday" pic of Shelley and I after unrolling hay for the beef cows. There aren't any rules or regulations dictating what we can and can't wear, so we just make do with personal choice. We both obviously chose a black squadron hat for this Friday. Oh, by the way, no one asked me how long it had been since I shaved! Still getting used to this. We moved the new milking machine into the milk barn yesterday and used it yesterday evening and this morning. We really like it and think it will work well for us long-term. We also made things with milk. We made ricotta and paneer cheese, not flavored this time. We found a small bottle of citric acid at a health food store, so we will begin experimenting with different cheeses. At our 'staff meeting' this morning, we discussed the need to relax our expectations for what we can get done each day, especially until we get into a routine with the milk products. We still haven't covered the garden, or built the new sheep paddock. It's also time for the hogs to move to a new paddock. I will just leave those items with you 'in the parking lot' as items that we need to get done and I will update you as we are able to do so. Today we will refresh the straw for the milk cows, work on the website/webstore, and make things with milk.


So, it turns out the federal government's take on raw milk is as wrong as the food pyramid. Who has ever heard of clabber? How about quark? [Not talking about the Ferengi on Star Trek.] [Nor am I talking about the subatomic particles that combine to form hadrons, the most stable of which are protons and neutrons making up the nuclei of atoms.] The FDA says "There are no beneficial bacteria in raw milk for gastrointestinal health. Bacteria found in raw milk are not probiotic." https://www.fda.gov/food/buy-store-serve-safe-food/raw-milk-misconceptions-and-danger-raw-milk-consumption Do a quick web-search for lactic acid probiotics. You will find lactic-acid producing bacteria are the most commonly used probiotics in foods. Raw milk is full of lactic acid producing bacteria and magical things happen when they are allowed to flourish. Raw milk ferments unlike pasteurized milk that spoils. Not ones to just believe what we read, we set out to ferment our raw milk. The process is: put the milk in a jar, cover it from light, let it sit at room temperature. We were skeptical. After 4 days, nothing happened. Not spoiled, just nothing. Day 5, magic. The milk had solidified into curds and whey forming 'clabber.' The lactic-acid producing bacteria flourish in that environment, causing the milk to become acidic and destroying the non-beneficial bacteria. They continue to grow without competition until at last the proteins in the milk begin to cling together. The result is clabber. This fermented milk product is reminiscent of yogurt, with a hint of cottage cheese and sour cream, but much milder than all of them. It has historically had many uses to include just eating it. If you drain the clabber until it is thick enough to handle, it is 'quark.' How cool!?!


Local Farm Report 12 Jan 2023:

Harvest:

25 Chicken eggs

9 Duck eggs

3 Gallons of milk

Sales:

N/A


Cheers! Rich & Shelley

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quentinmccool
Jan 13, 2023

This is an incredible read of foods we should all eat when we miss the farm to table rules of life and longevity. Makes me miss the days of living in Japan, Germany, and Hawaii where you could eat a lot of local produce in the 80s before grocery stores stocked half the shelves with processed and highly processed food.

Thanks!

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Hey Quentin! Thanks for the comments! We are trying desperately to get away from the stores and do as much for ourselves as we can. I am interested in your perspectives. Please continue to share! Cheers! Psycho

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