Goats have a reputation
Hey friends,
Goats have a reputation for eating anything. Poison ivy, tin cans, whatever feels good to their attention seeking lips. But if we want the best milk - to make the best goat's milk caramel - it really matters what the goats are eating.
Unlike Fat Toad Farm's founders, I've never owned a goat. I adore goats and deeply admire the folks who care for them. But my expertise is in the kitchen. I love experimenting, testing and figuring out what works. All of this is sped up by the fact that I can taste flavors in my head (gustatory hyperphantasia), so by the time I put milk to kettle I have a good idea of what to expect.
Learning the science behind what the goats eat and how it affects the flavor of their milk has been fascinating. If goats get into a patch of ramps (wild onions), you can taste it in their milk. If they eat something that disagrees with their ruminant digestive system, their milk can develop a stronger, off flavor.
Our caramel is cooked down for 5 hours and the flavors of the goats milk are condensed and amplified. So we need sweet, mild goat milk at its best. Our farms, Ayers Brook Farm and Joneslan Farm feed their goats mostly dry feed, which brings out those sweet, fresh, tangy notes that taste so, so good in our caramel.
Choosing the best ingredients for our foods and then taking great care to not screw them up is our signature move at Butterfly Bakery of Vermont and Fat Toad Farm. And we are so fortunate to be in a place like Vermont where we can find that quality right down the road. Thank you for being on this fantastic culinary adventure with us!
What are you putting your caramel on this week?
- Claire
Fat Toad Farm CEO
