Cheese 2.0: Small Is the New Big
Photograph from scott361 on Flickr
Last month the Times Online published a fascinating article on the growing trend of backyard farming, with particular attention to the Dexter cow, a miniature breed that "gives 16 pints of milk a day...keeps the grass mown and will be a family pet for years before ending up in the freezer." In the U.K., as in the U.S., the rising costs of food are inducing many people to build miniature farms in their backyards, and what better animal could there be for a miniature farm than a miniature cow?
According to the article, the number of registered Dexter cows in the U.K. has more than doubled in the last 8 years. At a price of between £200 and £2000, people with a bit of grassy land on their property can raise an animal that produces "proportionately more beef for the amount of grain they eat." And 16 pints of milk (2 gallons) per day is a hefty amount too--it's about 1/4 of the amount that normal-sized cows produce.
But how does cheese made from Dexter cow's milk taste? I've never tried it but New York's The Finger Lakes Dexter Creamery, which makes a Dexter-milk Kefir, is staking its future on the breed. According to Jeffrey Roberts in his Atlas of American Artisan Cheese, "While small in stature, the Dexter is great on pasture, making them ideal for grass-fed cheese or meat operations. Their milk is thick, creamy, and rich in butterfat—ideal qualities for making excellent cheese."
Has anyone out there tried the cheese from this farm, or from another farm using Dexter cow's milk? Has anyone out there tried the beef from this breed? Better yet, anyone out there raising these in their backyard? Share your stories in the comments below.
About the author: Jamie Forrest publishes Curdnerds.com from his apartment in Brooklyn, New York, where he lives with his wife, his daughter, and his cheese.
View other entries from Serious Cheese.
Add a comment:
Previewing your comment:
HTML Hints
Some HTML is OK: <a href="URL">link</a>, <strong>strong</strong>, <em>em</em>
Comment Guidelines
Post whatever you want, just keep it seriously about eats, seriously. We reserve the right to delete off-topic or inflammatory comments. Learn more at our Comment Policy page.
If you see something not so nice, please, report an inappropriate comment.
6 Comments:
My fiancé is hell bent on getting some miniature cows for when we move out of NYC next year...for milk and later, for meat...I, on the other hand, am not so enthused, knowing that I'll name any cow I come into contact with, and then will be devastated when we end up taking it to slaughter. He's done a lot of research - there seem to be lots of different breeds asides from the Dexter that will work for backyard farms.
tkln at 2:46PM on 09/16/08
Don't you have to keep the cow pregnant and nursing to get milk?
arbeck at 2:58PM on 09/16/08
Now thats a great Idea......have a herd of mini-cows in my backyard..next will be chickens and then pigs eeeeeeeeeeehhaaaaaa
Markbb at 3:29PM on 09/16/08
I think home-farming is a great idea! What with these (industry-supported) laws about food production, like pasteurizing fresh cheese, and in general the poor quality of industry-farmed products like veggies, eggs and chickens.
I've declared that we will move somewhere that we can have chickens for laying (and eating). I wouldn't mind some fresh (ie unpasteurized) milk too.
I'm no anti-corporate rebel, but honestly: this grocery store-procured crap has got to stop. There's a not-insignificant segment of America that actually //would// pay more money for better quality produce, meat and dairy products. It's not //always// about the bottom line with Americans.
TikiPundit at 7:53PM on 09/16/08
My cousin and her family raise Dexters, I'll see if she's willing to share, I've been asking for one of these cattle to sell for a while now ;-)
OliverRanch at 10:46AM on 09/17/08
What a surprise to see two of our Dexters on your page! This is our little bull Far Far Away Farm Tonka and his friend Emmie.
They live on our 53 acre farm in SW Oregon with about 30 cows and 100 sheep.
Margaret
lilcows at 11:37PM on 09/22/08