Delamere Dairies' goats milk products : a heartfelt review!

I really like goats.  I like their silly characters, their lust for life and adorable faces.  I even liked old Harvey, a billy goat I used to know who once got free from his pen and ambushed a 3* Hotel in Surrey by getting into the dining room, then refusing to be lured out of the front door by the chef bearing bread rolls, ultimately requiring frog marching down the driveway and back to his pen by myself and a friend.  (Harvey, that is, not the chef).  Yes, I even liked smelly old Harvey.

Somewhere around 35 years ago, I had my first taste of goat's milk and approved.  However, because it wasn't easily available i.e. in the local supermarket, I didn't take it any further.  I wish I had, now that I discover how sensitive I have become to cow's milk.  I could have saved myself all that bother!

Harvey - a legend in his own lifetime

So, fast forward to now and we were in our local supermarket when I noticed a 2 litre carton of goat's milk and decided to invest in it.  I had read how much easier to digest goat's milk is from cow's and how skin troubles such as psoriasis (which I get occasionally) are helped by it.  Well, I had no idea quite how much of a difference it would make.

Immediately, almost all my IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) symptoms upped and disappeared.  I noticed that immediately of course, but was leery of putting it down to the goat's milk until a few days had passed.  Yes, things like beetroot and spring onions can still bring on a full IBS attack, but now I can go for weeks without suffering it.  However, the effect of drinking cow's milk - in a latte or chai, for instance - is startling and something that, no doubt you're comforted to know, I won't go into here.

Goat's milk does still contain lactose - but in much less quantity than with cow's milk.  So if your problem is lactose intolerance as opposed to an allergy, you may find you can do very well using Goat's milk.  Interestingly, Goat's milk is non-mucous forming and can even help to neutralise mucus production.  People with perpetual runny noses and hay fever have been known to experience almost instant relief on Goat's milk.

With me, one other thing that has been affected - and it can only be the change in milk, because nothing else has ever changed it - is the venous eczema that I have on the front of my shins.  This is basically like any other kind of eczema, involving dry skin and itchiness.  Well, since changing to goat's milk, the eczema has improved hand over fist.  It hasn't gone - well, it's been there for so long, I suspect it would take a while and the loss of a significant amount of weight for it to go - but the improvement in it is quite radical - and ongoing.

Spreadable goat's cheese with ham and with cherry tomatoes

So I thought I'd find out more about goat's milk products, which led me to Delamere Dairies and their Facebook page.  Being so enthused about goat's milk products, I offered to sample some of theirs - and give them a review here on Rhubarb & Ginger.  So here we are.

The very next thing to happen, was the arrival of a large polystyrene box.  I opened it carefully, keen to see what was inside - and as I removed the lid, out popped a goat!  Well I wasn't expecting THAT!  Nerys (for that is her name), is however, a plushie goat so should hopefully be cheap to keep as she won't be eating the furniture, curtains or our shoes.

Look out!  Nerys is on the loose!

Once we'd wrestled Nerys into submission, we unpacked the remainder of the box.  Well, what a gorgeous lot of goodies!  A raspberry (for me) and strawberry (for hubby) goat's milk yoghurt - both probiotic - disappeared down the hatch straight away and my goodness but they're tasty.  Absolutely no hint of goat until the very last trace of fruity flavour has disappeared from your tongue - and then it is no more than you would detect in the goat's milk or a soft goat's cheese.

Now I could go through and just tell you how everything tasted, but that'd be dull and not my style.  So I immediately got to work on "doing something with" everything in the box.

First up, was the fantastic probiotic goat's yoghurt with honey.  Oh my word, but this stuff is to die for.  Goat's yoghurt is very like Greek yoghurt, except it is a little bit whiter - as it contains no carotene - and has a much silkier texture.  If you've ever had a "Pearl de lait" yoghurt, that's the closest I can come by way of comparison.  I'm going to run out of superlatives during this review, I can tell.

I made a breakfast fruit plate, involving three types of melon and some passion fruit - all of which would go so very well with honey.  Mmmmmn, starting the day with gorgeous sweet melon, set off with tangy sharp passion fruit and the smooth, silky yoghurt - well you can't ask for better.  It would make a lovely light dessert, too!

Then there were the ubiquitous goat's cheeses, that received my lunchtime attention.  Even here they had a little edge of difference.  There is the silky, mildly flavoured spreadable goat's cheese that is a lighter daughter of ricotta & mascarpone - except goat instead of cow.  This one would be a perfect candidate for making cheesecake, although I haven't tried to yet.  Note the "yet".

L-R The herby, the spreadable, the medium matured and the one with honey.

Then there are the two "logs" of goat's cheese - one with herbs and one with honey.  I seriously can't choose between the two to name a favourite.  The herb goat's cheese goes so well with cucumber, the one with honey is fabulous with a squeeze of lemon juice.  They are both so cleanly flavoured, with a little tang yet so creamy too.

Goat's cheese with honey

Lastly for the cheese, there is a block of medium matured hard goat's cheese.  I just love this one.  I love how the cheese is so white and crumbly - very like Feta - with an intriguing, complex flavour that just lasts and lasts on the tongue.  From being crumbled into a salad, through being toasted for a sandwich, to just appearing on a cracker, there's no job this fantastic cheese isn't capable of doing.

Oh and let's not forget the goat's butter!  Made from the cream of the milk, goat's butter ordinarily comes up less yellow than cow's would do because of the lack of carotene.  It's the flavour that counts though - and goat's butter is so much lighter in texture than cow's.  It doesn't feel so heavy, or claggy - and is just divine on some hot toast.

The herby one.  Mmmmn, good!

I put the butter to use in making a couple of open sandwiches - both with the spreadable goat's cheese but one with honey roast ham (fantastic combination) and the other with some sliced cherry tomatoes with a dash of salt & pepper.  Now the ham one was good - but the creamy, delicious goat's cheese paired up with the sweet tomato, on goat's butter, on some fabulous sourdough bread - now that was a thing of beauty.

I seriously think that I will never drink cow's milk again (which I feel a bit bad about, knowing the trouble the milk producers are having keeping going at the moment), but looking at the health benefits, quite apart from the gorgeous flavour, it just has to be worth it, for me.

Medium matured- crumbly!

As for the goat's yoghurt, goat's butter and goat's cheese - well, they all get a serious "thumbs up!" from not just me, but the entire Eatwell family.  I've even got my Mum over onto the goat's milk!

Even my son has swapped from cow's milk to goat's for his bedtime glass of milk.  Nerys, of course, has a cookie with hers.



Thank you, Delamere Dairies, for being such good sports and also your remarkable generosity.  More power to your goaty elbows - and give the goaty girls a pat from me, the very next time you see them!

Proof - if proof were required.  ;)

Goat's cheese, leek & hazelnut super-smart tart!

Now there are some tarts that are nice but dull - and some tarts that are surprisingly delicious.  This is one of the latter.

I liked the idea of this tart for more than one reason.

First of all, I really like leeks - they're the only one of the onion family that I can eat without experiencing some severe regret in the tummy department, later on.  I particularly like the way they are so adaptable and can be used in so many different ways.  My favourite leek recipe is the Tave Me Presh or Baked Mince with Leeks.  If you haven't tried this recipe yet, do give it a go.  Trust me, it's fabulous.

Goat's cheese always gets a thumbs up from me.  There was a time when I found goat's cheese to be entirely too "goaty" for comfort.  It always tasted wonderful, but I just couldn't get past the smell.  It always brought back memories of Harvey - a goat-I-once-knew - and his stinky beard.  ~shudder~  Why boy goats think it's sexy to pee on their own faces (which could be defined as a talent, I suppose), God only knows.

These days, I seem to have been able to get past the Eau de Harvey and into the lovely creamy texture and fresh flavour of goat's cheese.  So I could imagine how the creamy goat's cheese would go so well with buttery leeks.

The tips of the goat's cheese caught a tiny bit - but it certainly didn't mar the flavour!

Now the addition of hazelnuts to the equation is a new one - and jolly interesting, I thought.  I have to be careful over the use of nuts in my cooking, as hubby has some tooth issues and we don't want him to lose one of them on a surprise nut.  The problem was easily dealt with, as the nuts are sprinkled on top of the tart filling as opposed to being mixed in.  I simply sprinkled hazelnuts over three quarters of the tart - and sprinkled a little red chilli on hubby's portion.  Where there's a will, there's a way!

It may seem ridiculous to be concerning one's self over the fat involved in pastry, when the filling of the tart includes full fat creme fraiche and full fat goat's cheese.  However, as the old lady said as she wee'd in the sea - every little helps.  Because this tart uses filo pastry sheets to build up its pie crust, you can at least consider that a certain amount of fat has been reduced.  Aha, yes, I hear you thinking "but, surely you need to brush the filo pastry with melted butter?".  No - you don't.  I know, it goes against all previously received wisdom, but you just lay the pastry sheets down - and fill them up with filling, then bake.  Don't ask me why or how, but it works.

I gave the egg mixture a jolly good whisking before pouring into the pastry and I think it was worth doing so, as the filling rose beautifully.  It was light and fluffy - almost souffle-like, although I hadn't taken the eggs that far.  All in all, it made for a lovely light, fluffy forkful of deliciousness.

I served the tart with a simple salad made with a watercress/lambs lettuce/rocket combination of salad leaves and a diced avocado.  Just think of all the lovely nutrients we gained from that combination.  I always feel healthier just thinking about eating watercress and avocado, never mind actually doing it!

I also made some mini Paprika Roast Potatoes, which went extremely well with the whole combination.  They aren't so bad as you might think, either, as you simply dice the potato then toss it in a tablespoonful of rapeseed oil (which has health benefits all on its own), a pinch of salt and pepper and 1 tsp of sweet smoked paprika.  Roast in a hot oven (I put them on the rack above the tart, which was cooking at 180degF) for some 45 minutes, remembering to give them a toss around half way through and you're done.

Obviously, hubby knew that the tart was vegetarian - but I seriously doubt that son & heir even gave it a moment's thought that he had no meat on his plate.  Now that's the kind of meat-free meal that makes you want to serve another! 

With the salad and the roast paprika potatoes, it made for a satisfying meal

GOAT'S CHEESE, LEEK & HAZELNUT TART   (feeds 3-5)

Ingredients :

4 large filo pastry sheets, halved
a knob of butter
1 leek, trimmed, quartered lengthways and sliced finely
1 tsp Dijon mustard
250g creme fraiche d'isigny (or low fat creme fraiche if you must)
2 medium eggs
140g soft goat's cheese
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
25g toasted hazelnuts, chopped.

Method :

1.  Pre-heat your oven to 180degC/350degF/Gas 4.

2.  Taking one half sheet of filo pastry at a time, lay it into the bottom of a 23cm quiche dish or loose bottomed tart tin.  Without brushing with oil, lay the next one at an angle to the first - and so on - until the sheets have covered the tin and formed a base for the tart, with no gaps for leaks and with the edges draped over the sides of the tin.

3.  Heat the knob of butter in a frying pan and once melted, add the leek pieces.  Cook on a gentle heat until softened but not browned at all.  Set aside to cool slightly.

4.  In a large bowl, whisk together the mustard, creme fraiche, eggs and a third of the goat's cheese.

5.  Add the leeks and stir through, including some seasoning.

6.  Pour the egg mixture into the flan case and add pieces of the remainder of the goat's cheese, distributing them evenly.

7.  Sprinkle over the hazelnuts and fold in the overhanging pieces of filo pastry.  Brush these with a little oil.

8.  Bake the tart for some 25-30 minutes, until the filling is risen and golden, with just a little jiggle left in the centre.

9.  Allow to cool in the tin for some 10 minutes or so, then remove and cool until just warm.

Serve with some mini paprika roast potatoes and a salad of watercress, rocket & spinach with avocado.

Printable version

Roasted Vegetable & Bacon Pasta

I am one of those people who believes that everything can be made better by including bacon with it.  Got to wait in the car for hours?  Have a bacon sandwich - makes it better straight away.  Got a boring old chicken recipe on the list for dinner?  Put some bacon with it - that'll cheer it up no end.  Got to stand on the touchline watching your son put his best foot forward for the local footie team?  A bacon roll can save the day.  So I wasn't wrong when I chose bacon for the meat aspect of this pasta dish.

From hubby's point of view, it could have been made better by losing the garlic and adding some oregano.  I thoroughly agree with him where the oregano is concerned - and have reflected that in the recipe set out below.  I'm not so sure about the garlic, however, as I feel it lent a lovely savoury depth to the entire dish which helped to make it a cohesive whole as opposed to a number of different ingredients on the same plate.

Son & heir had a friend over for tea that day and I felt I was taking something of a risk presenting said friend with a) courgette & aubergine, b) cooked tomatoes and c) goat's cheese.  However, I had confidence in the ability of the bacon to carry us through.  I was using some of Spring Fields Butchers' beautiful smoked back bacon which is always fabulous in that the rashers are huge, thickly cut and tasty as anything.  I would definitely go for some substantially sized rashers if you're going to be cooking this one - as limp thin bacon could wind up being too chewy when accompanying the soft vegetables and pasta.

We got a "thumbs up" from both boys, as they both cleared their plate and declared it to be "lovely" (and without a hint of sarcasm, too!).  Amazing.  Made me wish I'd included mushrooms in the mix!  (Which is a very good idea, if you like mushrooms, by the way).

Hubby wasn't too keen on the fact that the dish didn't have a sauce with it - just relying on the juiciness of the roasted vegetables and goat's cheese wasn't enough for him.  I suspect it's pure and simply a preference thing, as I was quite happy with the "sauceless" state and - to be honest - it made a pleasant change to not have an overwhelming cheese or tomato sauce.  I felt it gave the vegetables a chance to shine on their own, without being overshadowed by a sauce.  The rapeseed oil that I'd used to roast the vegetables was a lovely nutty flavoured one and the cherry tomatoes lent their juice to the overall picture.

The only thing missing was a lovely glass of wine, a patio and a warm evening!

ROASTED VEGETABLE AND BACON PASTA   (feeds 4)

Ingredients :

1 courgette , cut into one inch dice

half an aubergine, cut into one inch dice

a handful of cherry tomatoes, split across the stem end

1 red onion, halved and each half cut into four wedges

two cloves of garlic

sea salt & freshly ground black pepper

1-2 tsp dried or fresh oregano

2 tbsp rapeseed oil or olive oil

500g back bacon

400g spirali pasta

50-100g Parmesan cheese (to taste)

a handful of fresh basil leaves, shredded

130g soft goat's cheese.

Method :

1.  Pre-heat your oven to 180degC/350degF/Gas4 and prepare a baking tray large enough to carry all the vegetables.  I usually cover the tray with non-stick silver foil, just because it makes the washing up easier!

2.   Place all the vegetables, including the garlic, onto the roasting tray and sprinkle with seasoning, oregano and the oil.  Using your fingers, toss the vegetables until they are well coated with the oil.

3.  Place the tray into the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender and just beginning to caramelise.

4.  In the meantime, get a big pan of salted water on to boil for the pasta and grill the bacon, cutting each rasher into largeish pieces with some scissors and retain, somewhere warm.

5.  Once the pasta water boils, get the pasta in and cooking according to the packet instructions - usually 9-11 minutes.

6.  Once the vegetables are tender, take them out of the oven and squash the two cloves of garlic into a paste.

7.  When the pasta is cooked to your satisfaction, drain well and add the vegetables, bacon, parmesan, basil and some seasoning and mix gently to combine.

8.  Spoon the pasta mixture onto warmed plates and break pieces of goats cheese over the top.

Serve.

Printable version

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Green Pesto, Red Pepper, Green Olive & Goat's Cheese Tart

That's quite a mouthful to say - and it is also quite a mouthful to get on a fork!

Hubby and I dreamt up this tart when we were considering the menu for the week.  Hubby had a yen for a tart of some kind, but his suggestions for ingredients seemed to be headed down the Pizza Tart route, that we did only recently.  We were both agreed on the Goat's Cheese as being the thing we wanted to build the rest of the tart around, so the Chargrilled Peppers and Green Olives came fairly naturally afterwards.  However, the Green Pesto was a blindingly good idea of hubby's that worked perfectly.

These sorts of tarts really are quite ridiculously easy to do.  Couple them with a bit of salad and you've got the easiest and most satisfying supper that it's possible to have.

Quite simply, there are days when you're so happy to have something this easy on the menu.  Particularly at a busy time of year - as this is, being around Christmas - when you've been called hither and thither to attend to this purchase, or that appointment, or this convivial gathering, or that miserable soiree.  To know that following on from a small amount of slicing, a touch of opening jars and spreading, a wee bit of blotting followed by some gin & tonic while the whole assembly cooks will provide you with a delicious meal, is just perfect.

I must just highlight a point for anyone considering making this deliciousness - which is to remember to copiously prick the raw pastry prior to assembling your tart thereon.  If you don't perforate it, the pastry layers will puff up in distressing fashion, causing your carefully - and may I say, perhaps artfully - placed strips of pepper, pieces of olive and blobs of goat cheese to all tumble down the side of the pastry wave, leaving you with something more akin to a science experiment, than a delicious tart.  I know.  I forgot to wield my fork, my pastry remained prick-less - and the end result wasn't pretty.  Hey ho.

Contents of tart put right, in order to facilitate acceptable photograph!

The flavour of the end result was, however, superb.  I'd used a very mild, creamily cheesy green pesto, which didn't overwhelm the goat's cheese, but provided the great background flavour from which the other ingredients could all launch - and launch they did.  Served with a simple salad of green leaves, cucumber ribbons and marinated beetroot (marinated in raspberry vinegar & rosemary) that was dressed with more of the pesto, let down with a little olive oil and some white wine vinegar, it was a fabulous meal.

GREEN PESTO, RED PEPPER, GREEN OLIVE & GOAT'S CHEESE TART  (serves 2-4)

Ingredients :

1 piece of ready-rolled Puff Pastry, rectangular shaped
2-3 tbsp green pesto (I recommend a milder version)
2 large pieces of chargrilled red pepper (from a jar is fine), sliced finely
8-10 large Queen green olives, stoned and halved
120g soft creamy goat's cheese.

Method :

1.  Pre-heat your oven to 180degC/450deg F/Gas 4.

2.  Place the pastry onto a baking tray and flatten out.  Run a sharp knife lightly around the pastry piece, approx 1 inch in from the side, to detail where the tart crust will be.

3.  Prick the inside of the pastry crust - where the filling will be - copiously with a fork.

3.  Coat the inner of the pastry piece with a layer of green pesto.  Try not to make this layer too thick, or the pastry won't cook so easily - and make sure to not go over the line onto the pastry crust.

4.  Sprinkle with pepper slices and olive pieces, making sure they are evenly distributed.

5.  Dot the surface of the vegetables with blobs of the creamy goat's cheese, again, making sure it is evenly distributed.

6.  Season lightly with pepper and place into the oven to bake for some 25-30 minutes or until the pastry crust has risen and turned golden brown and the tart contents are showing browned tips.

7.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a moment or two prior to cutting.

Serve with a simple salad.