Comfort food and cheese save the day!

Today I was working on another article about the LaMancha goats and the great cheese Rhonda Gothberg is making at Gothberg Farms in Bow, WA, but it’s not finished and I got hungry.

It was a drizzly, chilly day and I was in extreme need of comfort food. My little tomatoes are nowhere near using for cream of tomato soup, so I flung open my pantry and cast about for something feel good. I reached for a container of organic cream of tomato soup that had been awaiting this very day.

I heated it, and put it in a pretty Bettye Barclay bowl. For me, an indispensable part of the enjoyment is presentation and the bowl Bettye made was lovely to look upon and it reminded me of great times with that artist.

So, I was ready to spoon away, but I knew it was missing something.

I had already finished off a small but delicious wedge of Gothberg Raw Caprino Romano, which would have been such a nice addition to the soup. Gone. Even a dollop of her Greek Style Yogurt would have been marvelous. Gone. Her Woman of LaMancha would have been perfection! Didn’t have any.

However, I did have a little bit of Garcia Baquero winey goat cheese. I immediately grated it and tossed it into the creamy soup, topped off with a Spanish olive.

Ay Carumba! It really hit the spot! I was comforted. I was warmed. My mouth was happy. I heartily recommend grating whatever cheese you have into soup. And we are definitely entering Soup Season!

So, let me tell you the very little I know about Garcia Baquero Winey Goat Cheese. Garcia Baquero is the major producer of Manchego cheese in Spain. However, that cheese is made with sheep’s milk, and is aged anywhere from 3-9 months, or longer.

Winey Goat Cheese, made with 100% goat’s milk is very similar to Manchego in its fine salty sharpness and wonderful finish, but there is a slight taste difference … not better or worse … just different. It, too, is a semi-firm cheese that has been aged, but I couldn’t find out for how long. I did find out that part of its distinction is that it was soaked in red wine.

Garcia Baquero has been distributed in the USA since 2008 by Norseland, Inc.

So, when you’re putting together a Spanish cheese board, remember to include some Winey Goat Cheese. It pairs well with cured meats and autumn fruits and goes well with Rioja or Tawny Port.

www.gothbergfarms.com

The Market at Birch Bay

Inspiration--and more--found at Gothberg Farms ...

About a year ago I acquired a copy of “Artisan Cheese of the Pacific Northwest” by Tami Parr, and quickly browsed through the list to see what cheesemakers were in my neck of the woods. I love driving down to La Conner to wander through the galleries and see what’s what at the Museum of Northwest Art, so I was delighted to see that Gothberg Farms in Bow, about an hour’s drive from Birch Bay, was right along my route to La Conner. I didn’t make immediate contact, but I found Gothberg Farms on Facebook and have been following Rhonda’s activities.

I was intrigued not only with what Rhonda has been doing with her cheese and how she’s continually developing delicious new magic with her goats’ milk, but also with the compliments and loving that are consistently posted on her FB page. I wanted to meet this woman who I knew was going to be amazing even before I met her!

Opportunity smiled on me when this summer Rhonda had a couple of hours open up at the same time I had available, so I whipped down to Bow-Edison and we finally met. I was not disappointed. She is every bit as friendly and encouraging and amazing as I had anticipated!

She warmly greeted me with her faint Texan drawl and I was immediately shown the milking room, shown where they transform the milk into cheese, the 52-gal pasteurizer, the coolers, the “cave” (a converted refrigerator trailer) where some of the cheese is aged—everything was soooooo squeaky clean and orderly!

Then we went into the barn and I met the purebred LaMancha goats responsible for the great milk that ends up as great cheese. (Did I mention that everything was spotless and smelled sweet and fresh—in the barn, I tell ya!) Each of the does has a name and her own personality and all were curious. They were quite personable and friendly. I couldn’t help myself; I had to smile at all those cute faces.

Parr wrote in her book, “After a career as a nurse executive, Rhonda Gothberg was ready for something else. ‘I wanted a family goat for a little home milk, a few chickens, a little home cheese,’ she laughs.’ One mother-baby goat pair turned into several more and several more … and now Gothberg finds herself with a milking herd of 14 LaMancha goats, along with a thriving cheesemaking business. She’s the kind of person whose energy and enthusiasm leave little doubt that she’d be successful at whatever she put her mind to.”

Rhonda was not at all boastful of her accomplishments, and made frequent reference to her family, staff, friends and neighbors in helping her to make it all possible.

Rhonda had been a Realtor before becoming a cheesemaker, and so looked around Skagit Valley for just the right farm before she and her husband Roy found and bought the dilapidated 40-acre cow dairy farm in Bow. Over the years, with a lot of sweat equity and not a little inconvenience, they’ve rebuilt the house and the renovated the old cow barn, and have since built a new barns for the does, and bucks.

One thing quickly led to another and in 2004 Gothberg Farms became a licensed Grade A goat milk microdairy. Rhonda has been marketing her cheese for only seven years, but has made a name for herself. She has it down to a science, folks! This woman knows responsibility and accountability!

Not only has she grown her dairy and makes great cheese 3-4 days a week with the help of her staff of loyal and knowledgeable ladies, she also gets involved in her community.

She mentors other aspiring cheesemakers, answering questions, making recommendations based on what she had researched and learned firsthand.

Because it’s important to Rhonda to provide the best for her goats, she researched the best feed for her herd, and convinced Conway Feed to custom mix a grain ration to her specifications. This augments the high-quality Eastern WA alfalfa hay and Skagit Valley pea hay. Conway Feed now offers the Gothberg blend to other feed customers, as well.

Rhonda supports the efforts of 4H kids in her community. She speaks at various workshops and seminars. She gets involved with and sells at farmers markets in Everett, Anacortes, Mt. Vernon and Bellingham. She participates in community causes, dinners, and farm/cheese tours. She keeps current an informative and folksy website, frequently updates Facebook, and Twitters! She's involved in sustainability causes and is knowledgeable about animal husbandry and food industry regulations.

She collaborates with Slough Food where you can choose from Gothberg Farms finest cheeses among a global assortment, and John will recommend just the right wine to pair with your choice of cheese. Breadfarm uses Gothberg Farms cheese in one of their rustic country loaves, and Skagit Co-op is another retail source for her cheese. Gothberg cheese is featured on the menus of a number of local restaurants, including Adrift in Anacortes, The Rhododendron Café in Bow, and Nell Thorn in LaConner. Metropolitan Market in Seattle also retails her cheese.

Since Rhonda uses only the milk of her own herd of 20 or so LaManchas to make Gothberg cheese, I wondered what those restaurants did during the winter when the does are dry and fresh cheese is no longer available. Rhonda said they stock up on the chevre in the summer and freeze it.

I was quite the skeptic, but I froze some of her chevre and about a month later let it defrost to room temperature and it was creamy and tasteful and I couldn’t really discern the difference in taste or texture from fresh! Interesting tidbit to know!

In this article, I wanted to highlight Rhonda and how she got started as a cheesemaker. I’ve discovered that quite a few artisan cheesemakers had successful careers as something else, but at some point decided to take a different road.

For all of Rhonda's obvious efficiency and capability, I was moved most by her statement on her website, "It is still magic to me every time the milk turns to curd! I love the entire process, from goats, to kidding, to milking, and cheesemaking. This is a lifestyle change which is most welcome and most rewarding."

As an aside, although Rhonda's passion is artisan cheese, she still has her Realtor license and with her intimate knowledge of the Skagit Valley, she is willing to help folks buy just the right place. If she's in the midst of something and can't assist you herself, she'll put you in touch with someone she knows and trusts will serve your real estate needs; she's that kind of gal!

It amazes me how she finds time for everything!

Next time I’ll share more about Gothberg Farms goats and their wonderful cheese! Yum!

However, I can’t wait until then to share the following recipe I lifted from the Breadfarm website:

CHEF DREW’S GOAT CHEESE SPREAD

This recipe was created by our good friend Drew Jackson. After he made it for several dinner parties, we finally asked for the recipe. We love it made with Rhonda Gothberg’s fresh Chevre. Made right down the road from Breadfarm, it is quite frankly the best cheese around!

½# Gothberg Farms Fresh Chevre (or other goat cheese)
½# unsalted butter (at room temperature)
4T shallots, minced
Salt & Pepper, to taste

Puree goat cheese and butter in a food processor. Add shallots, salt and pepper and whip to combine. Refrigerate until ready to use. Serve with crostini or toast points.

Enjoy!


Slough Food
5766 Cains Court Suite B, Edison, WA
http://www.sloughfood.com/

Breadfarm
5766 Cains Court, Edison, WA
http://www.breadfarm.com/

Adrift Restaurant
510 Commercial Ave., Anacortes WA 98221
http://www.adriftrestaurant.com/