Newborn, GA
Farm History: Johnston Dairy Farm is a family owned and operated dairy that has been in continuous operation since 1956. The dairy was first started by J.H. Johnston in August of 1956 with 17 cows. At that time, the cows were milked in a flat barn. In 1977, J.H. Johnston decided it was time to modernize and the current parlor barn was built. J. H. Johnston continued to operate in that barn until his retirement in 1992. At that time his son, Russell Johnston, purchased the cows and equipment from J.H. Russell is still the owner and operator today. Russell's wife, Holly, and their children, Ransom and Rush, enjoy helping, too.
In today's world most children do not understand where the food they eat comes from or how it is made. We would love for them to come and explore our farm and learn that food doesn't just appear in the grocery store.
- Currently we milk between 80 and 100 cows a day .
- There are 4 employees at Johnston dairy. One full time and 3 part time.
- We grow many crops including wheat, barley, grain sorghum, peas, hay, and oats.
- Our cows produce around 60 pounds of milk a day per cow (thats a little over 8 gallons!)
- The cows consume 95 pounds of feed a day, each. They also drink up to 40(yes, 40!) gallons of water a day.
- Cows sleep as little as 1 hour a day. And, no, they don't sleep standing up!
- A cow is pregnant for 9 months before she calves.
- A cow is two years old before she starts giving milk.
- It takes 10 pounds of milk to make 1 pound of cheese.
- A calf is weaned from milk after only 2 months. She will then gain a pound and a half of weight a day for the next 18 months.
- A cow really has only one stomach, called the Rumen, and it has four chambers.
- These are a few of the many interesting things you and your group will learn about at our farm.
Please, come and enjoy the experiences offered at Johnston Dairy Farm.
http://johnstonfamilyfarm.com/
Mission Statement:
Our mission is to share the wonderful lifestyle we live each day with everyone we can. We feel that each child should be exposed to a wide variety of experiences so that they can have a better understanding of the world and life itself. We feel especially blessed to be able to do what we love for a living.
You can order a gallon of whole milk for delivery with your CSA box. Please send your order to taylorganic@bellsouth.net. The cost is $5.75 per gallon.
Collard Green Coleslaw The hot dressing poured over this salad slightly wilts the greens without cooking them. Chilling the salad lets the flavors develop. Serve as a side dish, or use instead of lettuce to top vegetarian barbecue. Other greens to try in this recipe: Swiss chard, beet greens, or flat-leafed kale.
Serves 8
Ingredients:
- ½ lb. collard greens, tough stems removed (8 leaves)
- 3 medium carrots, grated (2 cups)
- 1 medium onion, grated (1 cup)
- 1 medium red bell pepper, diced (1 cup)
- ½ cup rice or cider vinegar
- 1/3 cup sugar
- ¼ cup canola oil
- 1 tsp. powdered mustard
- 1 tsp. celery seed
- ½ tsp. salt
- ¼ tsp. ground black pepper
Directions:
1. Stack 3 or 4 collard leaves flat on work surface. Roll tightly into a cylinder, hold together, and thinly slice to make narrow strips. Coarsely chop strips once sliced. Repeat with remaining collard leaves, and transfer to large bowl. Stir in carrots, onion, and bell pepper.2. Whisk together vinegar, sugar, oil, mustard, celery seed, salt, and pepper in small saucepan, and bring to a boil, whisking to dissolve sugar. Remove from heat, and pour hot vinegar mixture over collard and vegetable mixture. Stir to coat vegetables with dressing. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Cover, and chill 4 hours or overnight.
Source: Vegetarian Times Issue: January 1, 2009 p.70
Low-Fat Potato Gratin with Greens
You can use any variety of greens in this recipe such as spinach, collards, kale, chicories, etc.
Serves 6
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 pounds peeled Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices
- 1 teaspoon salt, divided
- Cooking spray
- 1/2 lb greens such as spinach, collards, chicories, kale, etc.
- 2 tablespoons minced shallots
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups 1% low-fat milk, divided
- 3/4 cup (3 ounces) grated gruyere cheese (can substitute Asiago)
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 4 bacon slices, cooked and crumbled, Optional
- 1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°. Place potatoes in a large saucepan; cover with water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes or until potatoes are almost tender. Drain. Sprinkle potatoes evenly with 1/4 teaspoon salt; set aside and keep warm. Blanch the greens in boiling water for 1 minute. Squeeze out the excess water and chop.
Heat a medium saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add shallots; cook 2 minutes or until tender, stirring frequently. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Sprinkle flour over shallots. Gradually add 1/2 cup milk, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Gradually add remaining 1 1/2 cups milk, stirring with a whisk. Cook over medium heat 9 minutes or until thick, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; stir in 3/4 teaspoon salt, Asiago, chives, pepper, and bacon.
Arrange half of potato slices in an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Topp with half of the greens. Pour half of cheese sauce over potato slices. Top with remaining potato slices, greens, and cheese sauce; sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake at 350° for 35 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and lightly browned.
6 servings
Ingredients:
- Cooking spray
- 3 tablespoons dry breadcrumbs, divided
- 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
- Dash of ground nutmeg
- 1 cup fat-free milk, divided
- 1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
- 6 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) finely grated Gruyere cheese
- 1/2 lb spinach
- 6 large egg whites, lightly beaten
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°. Blanch the spinach in boiling water for 1 min, drain and squeeze out the excess water. Finely chop the spinach. Coat a 1-quart souffle dish with cooking spray; sprinkle with 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs. Heat a medium saucepan coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add onion; saute 2 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat. Add flour, salt, peppers, and nutmeg, stirring well. Gradually add 1/2 cup milk, stirring with a whisk until well blended. Stir in 1/2 cup milk. Cook mixture over medium heat 2 minutes or until thick and bubbly, stirring constantly with a whisk. Remove from heat.
Place egg yolk in a bowl. Gradually add milk mixture to egg yolk, stirring constantly with a whisk. Return mixture to pan. Cook 1 minute or until thick. Remove from heat; stir in cheese and spinach. Cool 5 minutes.
Place egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form. Gently stir one-fourth of egg white mixture into milk mixture; gently fold in remaining egg white mixture and 2 tablespoons breadcrumbs. Spoon into prepared dish. Bake at 400° for 30 minutes or until souffle is puffy and set. Serve immediately.
Whole Wheat Carrot Cake Pancakes
Whole wheat pastry flour is produced from soft-wheat. It has a finer texture than regular whole wheat flour resulting in lighter baked goods. I like to top these pancakes with warm agave syrup.
4-5 Servings
Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. whole wheat pastry flour
1 c. finely grated carrots (use the smallest grater blade on your food processor)
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. sea salt
2 Tbsp. finely chopped walnuts
2 Tbsp. raisins
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1 1/2 c. buttermilk
1 egg
1 Tbsp. canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Whisk dry ingredients together in a medium bowl. Whisk wet ingredients together in a small bowl and fold into the dry ingredients. Heat a pancake griddle over medium heat and spray with cooking spray. Cook pancakes 2-3 minutes per side until lightly browned. Serve with warm syrup. Makes ~10 pancakes.
