Izzy (and Mama) Eat: The Gourmand Goes To College...

Tales of Empty Nest and College Boy Eats.. The Next Chapter

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Raw Milk Rave

I finally did it. Instead of ordering goat's milk as I have been doing thus far, I ordered the raw cow's milk. I wish I had some to show you but it is already gone. It was that good.

The delivery arrived Wednesday, while I was knee-deep in Thanksgiving preparations. This week's order included creme fraiche, 1/2 gallon milk, 1 lb. butter, and a quart of chicken stock.

The moment I brought the milk into the kitchen, I had to open it and have a taste. So wondrously creamy, rich and comforting no wonder people go out of their way to get their hands on it. And as for Izzy? He had some too but only after I felt fine and healthy the next morning. Which is how I can tame my worries about serving him unpasteurized dairy.

But back to the other goodies. The creme fraiche smelled good but it did have a peculiar off- taste. When my brother's girlfriend sampled it, her description was, "gamey." And then a third taster, E., claimed "gamey" as well. I definitely detected an unpleasant barnyardy aspect to it and sadly couldn't serve it with the Thanksgiving Tarte Tatin.

And the butter? Well I have been happy with it since the beginning but this week's batch made my holiday biscuits reek of the barn and I, for one, couldn't eat them. Not sure what my guests thought as they were most likely too polite to say.

I guess raw dairy is an unpredictable thing. I have been accustomed to a life of industrial foods which are designed for consistency. But do I really want to eat the barnyard? Not so sure..but I will keep drinking the milk and experimenting to find what tastes good to me.

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