Musings from Mamacita: Our goat herd matriarch, Sugar Muffin

As we now have 14 goats in our Chivas herd, I wanted to write about what makes each of our goats unique.

Sugar Muffin is the first goat that comes to mind because she was one of the first two goats I bought from a breeder in Southern California just over five years ago.  When I first decided to raise goats, I started looking for Nubian goats, which are the most common breed in California.  However, when I laid eyes on Sugar Muffin and her sister, it was love at first sight.

Sugar Muffin and sister, Precious, are Chamoisee French Alpine goats having tan, brown and white with black markings on the head, a black stripe down the back, and black stripes on the hind legs. To me, they look like antelope or impala and since I have visited Africa a few times, there was no doubt I wanted these goats because they are truly beautiful, majestic, and stately.  Quite honestly, I bought them just because they were the most beautiful goats I have ever seen.

Sugar Muffin (Sugar for short) did not have a huge udder like her sister, who we later nicknamed Dolly Parton because she was so well endowed!  Ironically, the two does produced about the same of amount of milk.  Just proves the point that “size isn’t everything.”

Over the past five years, Sugar Muffin has given birth to twins or even triplets and has been the best mother.  Her kids are always extremely good looking with good dispositions.  Since Sugar Muffin is the oldest in our herd now, she is the matriarch and she definitely rules.  But she is still sweet and loving with me and is still my favorite.  I love her.

With the abundant milk that Sugar Muffin and Precious produced, I was able to begin making the goat milk soaps that now are the foundation of our goat milk skin care line.  If you’d like to learn more about how Chivas Skin Care came about, please take a look at our story here.

“Musings from Mamacita” is a column written by Donna Johanson, Chivas Skin Care co-founder.  As the mother half of this mother-daughter venture, Donna often signs emails to her daughter Lauren as “Mamacita,” which is the diminutive form of Mom in Spanish.  As the team grows, Donna will now sign emails to the rest of the Chivas team as Mamacita.

In her column, Donna will share stories about cooking, gardening, caring for her animals, and other news from the Chivas homestead.

Video: How Donna makes Drunken Fig Jam

Watch this video to learn how Donna makes her beloved “drunken fig jam” with figs from the Chivas farm.  We know that figs are out of season now in California, but figured posting this was better late than never.  And you can use the same principles of jam making, canning & preserving for nearly any fruit jam.

Plus, gossip has it that the equally loved Pomegranate Fig goat milk soap will be making a limited edition appearance on our website in December, so keep your eyes peeled (no pun intended).

If you have problems with the video, you can view it on You Tube here. Plus, find the complete recipe below.

“Drunken Fig Jam”

Recipe via Epicurious

Preparation

Using vegetable peeler, remove peel from lemons (yellow part only) in long strips. Cut peel into matchstick-size strips (about 3 tablespoons).

Combine lemon peel, figs, sugar, brandy, and 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt in heavy large deep saucepan; let stand at room temperature 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Bring fig mixture to boil over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat to medium; continue to boil until jam thickens and is reduced to 6 cups, stirring frequently and occasionally mashing mixture with potato masher to crush large fig pieces, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from heat.

Ladle mixture into 6 hot clean 1/2-pint glass canning jars, leaving 1/4-inch space at top of jars. Remove any air bubbles. Wipe jar threads and rims with clean damp cloth. Cover with hot lids; apply screw bands. Process jars in pot of boiling water 10 minutes. Cool jars completely. Store in cool dark place up to 1 year.

This video was brought to you by YDT-TV, a webisode series on www.yourdailythread.com.  If you’re not familiar with Your Daily Thread (aka YDT), it is an on-line magazine that keeps you in the know about the latest green news, local events, eco-discounts, lifestyle tips and more in Los Angeles.  And it just so happens to be co-founded by Lauren Johanson, the daughter of the Chivas mother-daughter duo.  We hope you check it out and enjoy!

Musings from Mamacita: A tribute to our duck, Honey

It is with great honor and sadness that I am writing about our pet duck, Honey.  I say this because Honey passed away on September 30, 2009.  Honey was one of two ducks that the Easter Bunny had brought to my children 12 years ago.  She was the most beautiful duck.  She was large and so soft with light honey-colored feathers.  For this reason and because of her sweet personality, we named her Honey.

We had built a coop for the ducks and chickens, but I would let Honey free in the backyard whenever my husband went out of town.  She loved this and would lay eggs in different spots in the backyard.  It was like Easter egg hunting almost every day.  And what large eggs she laid!  Her eggs were great for baking.

Once in a while, I would let her go swimming in the pool.  She loved that – flapping her wings, dunking under water which would drive our dog, Moose, crazy.  With enough time in the backyard, she would get so tame that she would venture into the house and play with Moose.

Honey loved our dog Moose and Moose was so gentle with her.  It was a beautiful sight to see them together

When Honey was around six years old, she was attacked by a bobcat or coyote.  I didn’t think that she was going to survive.  My friend, Pat, and I doctored her up and after about two weeks, she was back to normal.  She was such a good patient; I think she understood that Pat and I were trying to help her.

I will miss Honey.  Twelve years is a long time for a duck and also for me.  She was part of the gang.  Honey was a great duck.

“Musings from Mamacita” is a column written by Donna Johanson, Chivas Skin Care co-founder.  As the mother half of this mother-daughter venture, Donna often signs emails to Lauren as “Mamacita,” which is the diminutive form of Mom in Spanish.  As the team grows, Donna will now sign emails to other members of the Chivas team as Mamacita.  In her column, Donna will share stories about cooking, gardening, caring for her animals, and other news from the Chivas homestead.

Raw Food Smoothies: “The Rawkstar”

When I lived in Los Feliz a few years ago, I lived with an amazing raw food chef, September Death.  While roommates, September taught me so much about the benefits of raw food, tools and tips for implementing raw “un-cooking” into your day-to-day life (think dehydrators, mandelines, VitaMix) and many of her very best recipes.  The one recipe I cannot live without is “The Rawkstar” smoothie.  It’s absolutely delicious, healthy and nutritious, and surprisingly leaves you feeling full.  I seriously make it a few mornings every week!  You can find the recipe below.  And for more information about raw foods and cleanses, check September out at redcarpetcleanses.com

But first, a note on the first ingredient – milk!  You can use any kind of milk; ideally it would be raw.  My Mom and I use fresh, raw goat milk from our Chivas farm because it is readily available to us and because it has so many health benefits.  If raw goat milk is not an option, you can buy pasteurized goat milk at select Trader Joes’s, Whole Foods and other natural food markets.  Another good option (especially for anyone who is lactose intolerant) is almond milk.  You can make homemade, raw almond milk by (1) soaking 2 cups of raw almonds for 8 hours;  (2) straining almonds; (3) blending the almonds with 4 cups water; (4) straining again and serving. Or you can just pick up a carton of almond milk at Trader Joe’s or the like; preferably unsweetened, organic, low-fat.  Cow’s milk, soy milk and rice milk are obviously options too; although I’ve never tried it so I can’t speak to it.

“Rawkstar” Breakfast Smoothie

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups milk (you choose)
1 cup kale leaves (I buy a bag of baby spinach and stick it in the freezer to use)
1/2 cup of frozen mango (I like pineapple either in addition or in replacement of)
1/2 frozen banana (I like to use avocado; same creaminess, but with added green factor)
1 T Cinnamon (sounds strange, but makes it what it is)
1 T Raw Almond Butter (again, Trader Joe’s has a great raw, smooth version)
Pinch of sea salt

(Optional:  I also like to add supplements and powders to my shakes, such as Udo’s Choice flax, omega 3 & fatty acid blend, Maca powder, lecithin powder and bee pollen.  Plus, I really need the added sweetness of agave or honey).  (Note: You can learn more about these types of supplements and powders at Mountain Rose Herbs).

Instructions

Blend all of the above ingredients until creamy & smooth (generally the high-quality the blender, the smoother the shake – I love my VitaMix!)

Your Goat Questions Answered!

We’ve had several customers express interest in learning more about our goats. For the curious, we’ve prepared some FAQs related to the goats and their birthing process.

Q: Who is in charge of the goats?
A: Donna is certainly our resident expert on our French Alpine goats. She’s been raising farm animals for years, and this photo of her with Lauren and her eldest son John speaks to her experience.

Q: Will you keep all the baby goats (aka kids) that are born this year?
A: Most of the kids that were just born will stay on our farm. We already have demand for any kids we can’t keep from people who are interested in starting to raise their own goats.

Q: Is a veterinarian involved in the birthing process?
A: Our vet handles check-ups, but Donna takes care of the day-to-day issues that may arrive. If we have a problem, then we certainly involve our vet. The way a goat handles her pregnancy is different for each mother, just like with humans.

Q. How much milk do your goats produce? Do you still milk your goats before and after they give birth?
A. Depending on the season, our goats produce between 1-2 gallons of milk each day. Donna hand-milks the goats twice a day and enjoys this time as a reflective, relaxing part of her day. Our goats aren’t milked during the last few months of their pregnancies and until after about three months after they give birth, when we wean the kids. We miss having fresh milk for our morning coffee and other goodies, but we think it’s important for the kids to have this nourishment from their mothers. This practice goes against industrial farming practices where kids are taken off their mother immediately and fed a powdered milk replacer.

Q. If you’re not milking the goats, then where do you get milk for your soaps?
A: To plan ahead for being without milk for a few months, we store surplus milk in our industrial freezers and use this in our soaps while the goats prepare for their kids.

Meet the newest members of our team… our baby goats

We had an impromptu photo shoot with the newest members of the Chivas Skin Care team, our new baby goats (aka kids)!  We hope you enjoy a look at their wobbly, lovable cuteness.

Springtime on our Farm

We wanted to share some photos from our farm in Camarillo, California.  Our farm is home to our production facility and our adorable goats.  It’s also where where we grow some of the herbs used in our soaps and delicious fruits and veggies like oranges and avocados.

We enjoy retreating to oasis of country living that’s just an hour’s drive from Los Angeles.  What’s your personal oasis?

Podcast from the Chivas farm at Lime.com

We were so thrilled to have the film crew from Lime.com visit us here at our farm. We had a “lovely” day and were able to create a “fine” podcast that tells the personal story behind Chivas Skin Care! (Can you tell I just spent the weekend at a wedding with a bunch of Brits?) Thank you Darya, D & Eric for all your positive energy. I hope you recovered from the eggplant parmesan, goat milk & tomato tart, strawberry rhubarb pie and peach liquor. Plum liquor will be on your way as soon as it has finished fermenting Best to each of you in your work promoting healthy living through film. View podcast here.

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