We discovered a small farm nearby that makes artisanal cheese from
their own dairy herd and bakes wonderful bread in a brick oven (for
those of you who are familiar with such ovens, this one is by Alan
Scott of Ovencrafters).

The farm offers demos/classes and on this beautiful Indian Summer day
we drove off into the country to check it all out. (moon roof open)

We got to watch (and taste along the way) the cheese making, from the
fresh milk going into the vat (yes, we met the cows) to the curds
being put into molds, were given a wonderful demonstration & talk
about the entire process and were mightily entertained by the
wonderful stories told by the owner, Jonathan White.

The second part of the morning was spent near the wood-fired oven
making rye levain epis and some foccacia and with a bit of the aged
cheeses, making mozzarella from the curds we had watched being
created in the morning and, of course, tasting our way through it all.

The farm was lovely, with children (the oldest daughter, 15, sells
eggs from the absolutely free-range chickens that wandered all over)
around, cats & dogs lounging about and a charming herd of cows
(several varieties) lending their lowing in the background.

All in all, we had a wonderful day spent pursuing my favorite hobby
(that being anything to do with food) and came home with some terrific
breads & cheeses.

I cannot recall how I stumbled on the web page for this place (it is
in northern Sussex county of New Jersey, near the NY state border,)
but heartily recommend a trip out for anyone who is in the area. (it
is about 90 minutes from Manhattan). The only flaw in the day was when
we locked the keys in the car, but we were rescued by AAA)

If anyone wants to see pictures of the place (including the oven!),
just click below:

http://www.cowsoutside.com

Boron