evolution of a farm booth

I was looking at some old photos and started to see a trend of bigger to smaller. More to Less. Lots of product to little... and vice versa as the year unfolds. It never stays the same.  It might be because of the sheer enormity of time and space constraints, on what it takes to get to a market to sell my wares with what is going on at the farm. births. deaths. kids. I really don't think people truly understand how much work it is to go mobile, set up shop, work it, have items, and then break it all down at the end of the day.  In the beginning, all I had were a few eggs, some milk, and soap. As the years continue I've added, honey, kefir, art bags, wreaths, feta in jars, milking demonstrations, kids, chicks, hens,  etc.

This is how it started and has progressed in the last 5 years.....
I started out with one table, no shade, and brought a goat to keep me company. Note: bring doe's not bucklings as they pee on people too much. Pierce here should have been in a pen but he behaved on leash.

Then of course the booth would get bigger. I would bring animals to show off. And goats to milk. and the trailer to haul them in. And pens to set them up in... And I would bring hens and roosters. And would do my darndest to make him crow. He never did. But he loved to make a mess.

I like to go to events where I can set up right where parked. That is awesome. They do that up North. Not so much down here. Then you just pack up and leave, rather then haul in haul out. need a cart. drag. carry. Back breaking. Leave the coolers in the truck and you're golden.

I would have 5-6 hours of market time. So, i can't just milk one goat. I would bring 3 or 4 so that I could milk them once an hour. Educate. And show people just how cool it is to get fresh milk.

Sometimes my tables are just filled with stuff to sell. Sometimes not even my own. Books for sale that the author sent me. Soaps from friends. Honey. Wax.  You name it, I'll try to help friends out and sell it.

At times even co-sharing a tent with a fellow friend and soap maker. It rained this particular day and made things interesting. The last thing needed is water when selling soap. And if goats in tow? oh wow.... Where to put them when a down pour starts. One year luckily they had a car port and i needed some help but we made it to the carport before the lightening started. I lost all product that day.

It's difficult to move the goats for the day. They need water (their water from home yes, prima donnas) feed, hay, then all the milking equipment, and pails, buckets, hand sanitizers and clean up material for when the day is over and goat pellets are everywhere. They need shade, or another tent. Which entails more set up and weights for when its windy. The pen below is hog panels cut up and just clips keeping it in place.

If really lucky my neighbors come help me. Patty (pictured below). She is a grandma now. Guess what she likes to do on weekends.

If feeling a bit radical, I'll have milk and cheese tastings. Add to the list plates and disposal items.. But to get all that to a market -- needs coolers. Lots of them.  Heavy, bulky, filled with ice well packed milk so it would stay cold.

If there is no milk to bring then selling art cards, note cards, wreaths, hand bags, soap, honey, eggs. Things that are not as perishable as milk and cheese.

This is when the booth is at its best. When fresh eggs, cheese, kefir, honey, and milk are in bounty. And rarely all at the same time. Things change as the season and lactation and weather changes. Timing is critical and you can't always know what mother nature has in mind. The chickens went on strike last year right at the height of milk production. What the heck?

Each time I go to an event the booth changes. Love that ! Its go with the flow of what is available. Yes, a business but not one that has same product each time.

And of course... when I can bring kids the products in booth gets smaller. kids are just like the full size does, they need lots of stuff to take them off the farm for the day. Bottles, nipples. extra milk. coolers. feed. hay. Bringing kids bring lots of people to the booth. But harder to sell when you're making sure the kids are happy. note to self: have a #delilahsdairy sign for picture taking and tagging you later. I love to see photos that people took when visiting the booth.

This  of course is my favorite set up. Everything fits in one trunk. No milk or cheese to bring. Set up in 10 minutes. break down easy. and we're off. Of course, its also my favorite since its only 3 hours, at another farm, with good food and drink. #swanktable events. ( check them out www.swankspecialtyproduce.com)

Going to market is exhausting. Truly. Back breaking. It does take a full day to get the farm back in order. Me to recover.  Animals thrive on routine. Take them out of their element, and all sorts of things can happen. Milk production gets thrown off when you milk them middle of the day. Boy, can they get cranky, they are always milked at 8 am. Plus, the 2 or 3 days before an event,  you're washing and cleaning, trimming hooves, shaving udders,  so that people see the best representation of your animals. If they are sick you can't bring them, too thin? etc.  I sit there the morning of event, look over all and see who is happy, mad, looks awful, looks off, looks great, loving, not interested, cranky, then choose based on who gets along with whom, not all goats get along and in tight quarters? omygosh.

Yeah! this last photo is my favorite. :)

Feta? From Goats?

I love making Feta. And yes!  from Goat's milk. Any cheese can be made from goat milk. Traditional Feta is made with sheep milk.  I read somewhere it shouldn't be called Feta since it is from goat. How about Feta-da!

It's not a difficult cheese to make. Takes about 3 hours in the kitchen and about 3 more hours thru the week. Mostly, it's me waiting for the enzymes to do their magic or the rennet wait time. Draining takes about 5-9 hours. And the curing of it by salting, and draining additional whey takes about 4 days. Then I stick in the fridge to cure. Finally, it goes into a jar with oil and herbs.

look at size of cheese at beginning to drain and size after 8 hours below cut.

I like to baby my Feta. Its right there in a air tight tupperware right by the coffee, every time I go in to get a cup of joe, I re-salt and drain out more whey. I will do this 4 times or more on the first day. Subsequent days: 3 times or down to 2 by day 3 or 4. This is the key,  drain that whey out constantly and at some points coat with salt again.

2 gallons of milk yield this much Feta.

Cut up in 3 inch sized cubes to cure.

When the Feta starts to harden and there is little to no whey draining in the tupperware, I then put in the fridge. I will check it again the next day, just in case more whey came out. If by the 4th day your Feta is still rubbery feeling- its' a dud batch. You can keep trying to salt and pull out the whey but you are increasing the chance of mold starting. If you see mold? Chickens get a treat! I like it hard to the point of crumbly. But not crumbled. That is what old fashioned true European Feta is like. Once it goes into the oils (or brine) it needs to stay that way.

Timely, but so worth it.

I use a modified Mary Jane Toth " Goat's Produce Too" recipe.
Yes, so many books and I go back to the simplest and my first recipe book when needed. It works. And when I try a new recipe from another book and something doesn't work out? I know its because the book is lacking a critical step. Goat's Produce Too has never failed me.

I like the Strong Feta recipe. I have tried a few different cultures in the past. Each one is good for a certain taste you're trying to achieve. Since mine is strong and salty and aged long, I go with cultures that add to that pungent flavor I want.  I want my Feta strong! When messing around with the different cultures it's first a good idea to know how your Feta sets up. I made it the same way over and over before I started messing around with various cultures.

Every batch though will be different. That is the beauty of small production. I'm never going to sell something that I don't absolutely love, but there are times when one batch is tangy-ier (is that a word?) and some batches are harder and crumblier.  One batch had a hint of something. Only I could taste it way back at the roof of my mouth but it was there and slight. And I liked it. And guess what? I can't figure out what It was.  Oh well. That's the fun of it. If you want consistent always the same, never different -then store bought is for you. Me? I'll stick with Feta-da.

 Rosemary, Thyme, Olive and Sunflower oil Feta.