Peaceful Heart FarmCast
96 episodes - English - Latest episode: over 1 year ago - ★★★★★ - 10 ratingsHomestead podcast where the conversation revolves around the value of tradition; traditional food prep and storage, traditional cooking, and of course, traditional artisan CHEESE. Topics discussed here are designed to create new perspectives and possibilities for how you might add the taste of tradition to your life.
My husband and I work a small farm and are building a farmstead creamery. We practice sustainable living and produce farmstead and artisan cheese, hand-made in small batches. You can find more information at www.peacefulheartfarm.com.
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Episodes
Raising Goats to Make Your Own Cheese - Part 1
January 14, 2023 20:57 - 32 minutes - 23.3 MBRaising goats to make your own cheese is a great goal. Today I’ll go over the basics of how to get started. Making the cheese is another topic for later. Let’s just start with what it takes to raise and care for the animals that make it happen. First let me take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. As always, I appreciate you all so much. Thank you. There is no show without yo...
Knitting is My Favorite Winter Activity on the Homestead
December 16, 2022 22:16 - 34 minutes - 23.9 MBHave I mentioned that knitting is my favorite winter activity? Things have slowed down and I can have some time to catch up on my knitting projects. The garden has been put to bed. I’m still making cheese, butter and yogurt, but canning is done for the season. I have even gotten all the frozen fruit out of the freezer from this past spring and made the promised cherry and blueberry jams. For the first time, I made brandied figs. This and so much more coming up in this podcast episode. But fi...
I'm Back From My Podcast Vacation
November 11, 2022 23:01 - 40 minutes - 29.6 MBI’m back from my podcast vacation. It has been three months since I recorded anything. We were both very, very busy and the things that keep the homestead financially solvent become front and center. It’s good to be back in front of the microphone. Let me take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners. The subscriber numbers continued to go up even though I was absent. Again, thank you so much. And a big welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast...
Multitasking on the Homestead
August 04, 2022 22:19 - 28 minutes - 21.2 MBMultitasking. How do I get so much done in one day? This is a question I get often. I do a lot of multitasking on the homestead. I didn’t just wake up one day and do this. There was a process that I went through to get from a scattered, unfocused, ineffective person to one who can just get things done. Now of course, I’m not always in that zone and there are days when I’m going into a room and wondering why I am there, multiple times a day. There are remedies to the unfocused mind. And I’m g...
Homestead Musings
July 12, 2022 01:21 - 21 minutes - 15 MBToday I’m doing a little bit of Homestead musing. More “a day in the life” sort of podcast. I’ll make is a short one and I hope you like it. I love sharing my life with all of you. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Our Virginia Homestead Life Updates We g...
Raising Animal Protein
June 15, 2022 21:57 - 39 minutes - 27.4 MBRaising animal protein for food on the homestead. What are some of the options? And what are some of the factors to consider when making your choices. As you may know our choices for raising animal protein on the homestead currently includes cows, goats, sheep and poultry. In the very near future, we plan on having pigs. There are other types of protein that we may have or have considered. I’ll talk about all of those. But first, as always, I will never take you all for granted. You make t...
Planting the Garden
April 01, 2022 14:54 - 25 minutes - 17.8 MBPlanting the garden this year is a little tricky. Each year I have to determine what vegetables I want to grow. I don’t plant everything. After years of just planting everything that caught my eye, I am now choosy about what I plant. There are quite a few farm updates to talk about. Before I get to it, as always, I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate...
Producing Your Own Food: Planning
February 21, 2022 21:14 - 36 minutes - 25.2 MBToday I will be continuing the conversation on producing your own food. There is a lot to cover and what I can include in this podcast will only whet your appetite for more. Growing food for you and your family is one of the most satisfying occupations in the world. That is of course in my humble opinion. I’ll keep talking about it as long as you want to keep listening to it. Welcome new listeners and welcome back veteran homestead-loving regulars. Thank you so much for stopping by the Far...
Seed-Starting Basics
February 05, 2022 00:53 - 37 minutes - 25.9 MBToday, I’ll follow up on the basics of getting started with gardening with an intro to seed-starting indoors ahead of planting in the garden when the weather warms. But before we get to that, more homestead updates are in order. I’ll be talking about our beautiful livestock guardian dogs for the most part. There is so much to share about these fantastic dogs. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop ...
New Year, New Projects
January 29, 2022 00:48 - 42 minutes - 29.4 MBI’m back, finally with a new year, new projects. Hope you are doing well. I hope you had wonderful Christmas and New Year celebrations with your families and friends. It has been four months since I’ve talked with you all. It takes a great deal of time, energy and money to make this podcast happen. More on how you can support us later in the podcast. For right now I want to say how much I appreciate all of you. I’m putting forth the effort to get back on track and to once again interact with...
Homestead Update and Health Update
September 30, 2021 22:32 - 26 minutes - 18.6 MBIt has been a while so how about a homestead update and health update. I republished a couple of podcasts. I hope you got a chance to listen for the first time or relisten if you were interested in the topic of cheese. It’s going to be close, but I think I can get this podcast published today. Let’s hope all goes well and I am able to accomplish it. If it doesn’t, I am likely to abandon the effort for another week. My life is topsy-turvy and I only have so much time each day to take care o...
Cheese Makes You Happy
September 08, 2021 15:01 - 31 minutes - 22.5 MBHow Cheese Makes You Happy! Today’s Show Homestead Life Updates Cheese and Nutrition Nutritional content Cheese tastes good Facts about fat content Lactose intolerance Why cheese makes people happy Cheese Fondue Recipe Homestead Life Updates Scott is working hard on getting the creamery built. Every day that does not bring adverse weather sees him out there building the walls. There are also lots of other odds and ends and details he adds in there that breaks up the monot...
A Cancer Diagnosis
August 12, 2021 19:53 - 13 minutes - 9.26 MBA cancer diagnosis is causing temporary changes to the podcast. We have had a cancer diagnosis and that will affect what I am able to do on a daily basis. I will be caring for Scott and picking up a lot of tasks he normally handles. In the end, it looks like he will be fine. However, getting to that end point will entail traveling a very difficult road of chemo and radiation. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving r...
What I Love About Homesteading
July 29, 2021 21:46 - 26 minutes - 18.4 MBToday I want to talk about what I love about homesteading. Quite a few of the previous podcasts have contained lots of information about animal predator issues we have been having. I know it has been a real downer. As for me, it has definitely been a downer and I want to do this podcast to bring a balanced perspective and more positive outlook on our life here on the homestead. We don’t always have such a bad time of it. In fact, what I love about homesteading is a much better representation...
A Day in the Life on Our Homestead
July 15, 2021 18:19 - 24 minutes - 17.3 MBA day in the life on our homestead. My brother-in-law says we are always working. He is so right. And we love it. There is never a dull moment around here. For sure, sometimes it seems like just too much and wouldn’t a life of leisure be preferable. No, not really. As I imagine that life, I can only see boredom and always searching for something new and interesting. Here we don’t have to search for it as it comes to us every single day. Today I’ll give you an overview of a whirlwind day I re...
Canning Peas
July 01, 2021 00:42 - 26 minutes - 18.3 MBCanning peas is great fun. We have been shelling peas for several days. That is also quite fun. I’ll be talking all about that and more in today’s podcast. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Our Virginia Homestead Life Updates It’s a beautiful time of year...
Cheddar Cheese
June 17, 2021 01:46 - 24 minutes - 16.8 MBToday’s topic is cheddar cheese. That’s right. It’s time for another trivia podcast and this one is all about cheddar cheese. Is your mouth watering yet? I must say that I make a fantastic cheddar cheese and I hope you get to try it one day. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much. Before we get started on the cheddar facts, let me give...
Honey! Fun Facts
June 03, 2021 02:22 - 31 minutes - 22 MBToday is going to be all about honey. How sweet is that? Honey is a yummy treat that has lots of health benefits. But what is it really? And how is it made? What’s the best way to store it and how long will it last? All of these questions and more will be answered in today’s podcast. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and, as always, welcome back all of you who are veteran homestead-loving regulars stopping by the FarmCast for every single episode. I appreciat...
Livestock Guardian Dogs; Let's Add to Our Homestead
May 21, 2021 01:23 - 26 minutes - 18.4 MBLivestock guardian dogs is a natural follow-on to the previous podcast about coyotes. At that time, we weren’t really willing to make that step. However, after speaking with other sheep herders, we’ve decided it is time. This is a really big step for me. I truly still feel quite uncomfortable about my ability to properly care for a dog. I don’t really know what my block is in this regard, but I’m jumping in there and I’m going to move past it. I believe some of that revolves around the years...
Coyotes on the Homestead
May 07, 2021 00:16 - 26 minutes - 18.2 MBCoyotes are a plague when you have sheep. Today’s podcast is going to be all about coyotes. Probably more than you ever wanted to know. Some things about coyotes might surprise you. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Our Virginia Homestead Life Updates So ...
What is a Freemartin Heifer?
April 22, 2021 20:57 - 22 minutes - 15.6 MBWhat is a freemartin heifer? That’s today’s topic. It is related to one of our cows having twins. Stay tuned for those details. In other news, “is that a skunk?” That’s what I thought yesterday when I was walking out to get the cows. You never know what you are going to run into on the homestead. And the dogwood trees are in bloom what a treat. It’s different for us out here in the country. Driving along the highway, there are lots of dogwood trees in everybody’s yard. These are well-trimmed...
Spring Birth on the Homestead
April 08, 2021 00:58 - 27 minutes - 19.1 MBSo much going on with spring births on the homestead. And abandoned lamb was the immediate task to take care of today. A quick trip to town to get supplies and now I’m late getting to this podcast. That’s what it’s all about on the homestead. I have so much to share with you today and most of it is so much fun!! I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate ...
We've Learned a Lot About Homesteading
March 26, 2021 00:46 - 37 minutes - 26 MBWe’ve learned a lot about homesteading and living the homestead life over the past 16 years. Today I want to share some of that with you. If you are looking at moving to a rural setting, dreaming of it or simply respect those who do make that choice, there is always so much to learn. One of the benefits of the lifestyle is that everything changes on a daily basis. Let me take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who sto...
Fun Facts About Milk
March 09, 2021 23:37 - 32 minutes - 22.1 MBFun facts about milk. Anybody up for some trivia. “Fun facts about milk” is my topic for today. We have fresh milk again and it is always a treat. There isn’t much milk at this point because Rosie is quite a small cow and it’s her first calf. I’ll talk more about that fun fact in a bit. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so ex...
Flavored Cheese
February 24, 2021 21:48 - 26 minutes - 18.2 MBHave you considered flavored cheese in your home cheesemaking operation? Likely most of you are not making your own cheese. You’ll want to seek out some flavored cheeses from your local markets for a real treat. There are so many possibilities here that I couldn’t possibly cover them all in this short podcast. Today, I’ll give you just a brief overview of what you might consider in tasting and in creating with your cheeses. Welcome new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-lo...
What is Flocculation when making cheese?
February 10, 2021 23:53 - 24 minutes - 16.9 MB© Copyrighted
Prepare for Disaster
January 14, 2021 23:57 - 27 minutes - 18.9 MBPrepare for disaster is a motto I grew up with living in rural Michigan. Back in the day, when the power went off due to a winter storm, it could be off for several weeks. Today we have much better electrical systems and our current provider has kept us in good shape. We have never been without power for more than a few days. But even that can be disastrous if we are not prepared. Today I want to talk about how we prepare for disasters that may or may not happen. First, let me take a momen...
Pickled Quail Eggs
December 23, 2020 00:04 - 23 minutes - 16.5 MBLet’s get back to the quail and pickled quail eggs. So much has happened. Many changes since the last time I talked about them. Ten jars of pickled quail eggs that have been completed. And so much more to talk about, especially the creamery roof. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much and I’m so excited to share with you what’s going o...
Our Raw Milk Cheese Creamery Progress
December 11, 2020 00:34 - 26 minutes - 18.7 MBOur raw milk cheese creamery was the center of the day today. The construction is moving along nicely. Our state inspectors made an appearance and helped us out with details on safety measures. We work with them every step of the way to make sure all safety concerns are addressed. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited ...
Thanksgiving Tradition
November 27, 2020 01:05 - 22 minutes - 15.9 MBThanksgiving tradition is the topic today. I try not to date my podcasts, and today is no different this will be appropriate today and for many years to come. I promise. Let me take a minute to say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you today George Washington’s First Thanksgiving Proclamation and a little bit about Abraham Lincoln’s...
Pecking Order
November 19, 2020 01:01 - 24 minutes - 16.8 MBPecking order and Quail are in the news again today. There is always something new with these little guys. I have so much fun with them. They are very entertaining. However, quail, and all birds and fowl, have a dark side. The “pecking order” occurs in many species of animal. It’s done to establish the dominant animal then the next most dominant, and the next and the next, all the way down to the “low man on the totem pole”. However, the very words “pecking order” have to do with birds pecki...
Sheep Breeding
October 28, 2020 23:51 - 22 minutes - 15.8 MBBreeding sheep is one of the most enjoyable enterprises on our homestead. Sheep were the first animals we introduced back in 2010. They have been a central part of our operation since then. I’ll talk about that today. Welcome new listeners and welcome back veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. Thank you all so much for listening. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Our Virginia Homestead Life Updates Before we ...
Fall Weddings
October 22, 2020 19:22 - 19 minutes - 14.2 MBFall weddings are really beautiful. June weddings are quite popular, but I prefer fall weddings. I just prefer the fall. The colors are awesome. Earth tones everywhere. Yellow, orange, brown, rusty red. Some of my favorite colors. Today I’m going to talk about what makes weddings special no matter the season. But first, I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I say...
What You Can Do With Milk
October 14, 2020 01:36 - 21 minutes - 15.6 MBWhat you can do with milk is my topic for today. There are lots of ways to use milk. It is a very versatile food. There is so much more than just drinking milk out of a glass. I know you didn’t drink it out of the jug, right? As always, I want to take a minute and welcome all the new listeners and to say welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Our Virginia Homestead Life Updates ...
Types of Cheese
October 07, 2020 23:54 - 20 minutes - 15.1 MBToday I’ll be talking about types of cheese. What I mean by that is things like fresh, aged, hard, soft, semi-soft and so on. Our specialty is semi-hard and hard aged cheeses, but there are many other types of cheese out there. So how are they different and how are they the same? But first, I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I cannot say how much I appreciate ...
Fall is in the Air
September 23, 2020 22:19 - 19 minutes - 13.6 MBFall is in the air here in southwest Virginia. For us, that means the air is much cooler. The leaves are still quite green, but that will be changing soon. Fall in the Appalachian Mountains is the height of the tourist season. What will it be like this year? Who knows? But the leaves don’t care. They will do their thing and it will be beautiful. Let me take a brief minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the Farm...
Quail Chicks Hatched -- WOW!!
September 03, 2020 01:24 - 19 minutes - 14 MBQuail chicks hatched – WOW!! How did I accomplish an 80% hatch rate? Well, I do follow specific procedures to ensure a better result. These procedures are working. I’ll talk about it today. Will it work for other eggs? I don’t know but you might try it and see if it works for your chickens or ducks or turkeys. Before I get started on that, I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast fo...
Harvest Season
August 27, 2020 00:52 - 20 minutes - 14.4 MBIt’s harvest season. I’m overwhelmed with tomatoes. Bumper crops are coming in at a time when I don’t really have time to address them. What’s a homesteader to do? That’s today’s topic. Welcome new listeners. Welcome back veteran homestead-loving regulars. Thanks for tuning in today. I appreciate you all so much. You make this podcast happen. I’m so excited to share with you what’s going on at the farm this week. Our Virginia Homestead Life Updates Cows Well, we have to make a decisi...
Canning Tomato Sauce
August 19, 2020 23:25 - 22 minutes - 15.6 MBCanning tomato sauce is the name of the game this week. I have about 150 pounds of tomatoes picked so far. I think I will only be canning about 50 or 60 pounds of them between today and tomorrow. Some of them are still quite green. We shall see how it goes. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. I appreciate you all so much. I’m so excited to share with you what’s...
Why Does Cheese Melt?
August 13, 2020 00:46 - 24 minutes - 17.2 MBHave you ever wondered, “Why does cheese melt”? Well, I’m going to talk about that today. What would we do without cheese that melts? Some are gooey. Others stretch forever. Pizza wouldn’t be pizza without stretchy cheese. And what about that oozing cheese on a grilled cheese sandwich? Ok, now I’m hungry. As always, let me take a moment for new listeners. Welcome to the show and again, as always, welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episo...
Raw Milk Cheese in Virginia
August 05, 2020 22:27 - 24 minutes - 17.3 MBToday I’m going to review how to get raw milk cheese in Virginia via our herd share program. And, because I have lots of new listeners, I’m going to review our creamery project. I do want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to my veteran homestead loving regulars. Thank you so much for stopping by the FarmCast every week. I appreciate you all so much. As always, there’s a lot going on and there is not nearly enough time in the day to get everything ...
The Blueberry Jam Journey
July 29, 2020 22:08 - 25 minutes - 17.6 MBBlackberry jam. That’s today’s topic. Seedless blackberry jam of course. I can’t abide those tiny seeds between my teeth. I’m also starting to preserve veggies from the garden. So much to talk about today. But first, a shout out to you all. Thank you and welcome new listeners. I hope you’ll stick around, subscribe and share my podcasts. Welcome back veteran homestead-loving regulars. I truly appreciate you taking time out of your day to listen to me. There are tons of things going on at...
The Blackberry Jam Journey
July 29, 2020 22:08 - 25 minutes - 17.6 MBBlackberry jam. That’s today’s topic. Seedless blackberry jam of course. I can’t abide those tiny seeds between my teeth. I’m also starting to preserve veggies from the garden. So much to talk about today. But first, a shout out to you all. Thank you and welcome new listeners. I hope you’ll stick around, subscribe and share my podcasts. Welcome back veteran homestead-loving regulars. I truly appreciate you taking time out of your day to listen to me. There are tons of things going on at...
Best Animals for a Homestead
July 23, 2020 02:42 - 34 minutes - 23.7 MBIn today’s podcast “Best Animals for a Homestead” is the topic. We have tried many animals and plan to try a few more. The best animals for a homestead will depend on your goals and land situation. I’ll talk about our thought processes and how we came to choose our animals and specific breeds. Let me take a minute to say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. If it were not for you, this show wo...
What to Grow in the Garden
July 16, 2020 02:40 - 37 minutes - 26.5 MBWhat to grow in the garden? That is a question we all ask ourselves each and every year. There have been years of great variety. And then there is this year where there are few different vegetables. Today I’m going to talk through our process of growing a garden. I hope you will glean at least a little wisdom from our successes and failures and changes of plans. As always, I want to take just a minute to say welcome to all the new listeners. I hope you enjoy this podcast and will subscribe...
Planning Your Homestead - Land
July 02, 2020 02:35 - 27 minutes - 19.8 MBThere is a lot to consider when planning your homestead. I thought I would go over a few of the ideas that we batted around when looking for land during our journey. There is so much to talk about on this topic. I’m only going to give a very rough overview of some ideas. Perhaps enough to get you started and on the road to tackling the learning curve. I’m also going to leave out some details on purpose. You don’t want to get too burdened in the beginning. Take your time. Think it through. Yo...
Starting a Homestead
June 25, 2020 20:03 - 23 minutes - 17 MBPeople are often surprised to hear our story of starting a homestead. It was a rather lengthy journey compared to what you might imagine. It was a lengthy journey compared to what WE imagined. And it still continues to this day. In fact, the building is going to continue for years. I begin to wonder if it ever ends and we just maintain what we have already built. I don’t know. That day hasn’t arrived yet. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and welcome back to ...
Life and Death on the Homestead
June 18, 2020 19:04Life and death on the homestead. It is our joy and sorrow in daily life. Much to talk about here. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and to say welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. Thank you so much for making this podcast possible. Our Virginia Homestead Life Updates Should I start with the bad news or the good news? There was only the one area of difficulty and there is so much good news to sha...
Life and Death on the Homestead
June 18, 2020 19:04Life and death on the homestead. It is our joy and sorrow in daily life. Much to talk about here. I want to take a minute and say welcome to all the new listeners and to say welcome back to the veteran homestead-loving regulars who stop by the FarmCast for every episode. Thank you so much for making this podcast possible. Our Virginia Homestead Life Updates Should I start with the bad news or the good news? There was only the one area of difficulty and there is so much good news to sha...
The Blueberries Are Ripening
June 10, 2020 22:38 - 23 minutes - 16.3 MBThe blueberries are ripening. Some are already ripe. We also have strawberries ripening. The varieties that we have are all everbearing, meaning they will bear fruit all summer long. That story and much more is coming right up. As always, I want to take a minute to welcome all the new listeners and welcome back the veteran homestead-loving regulars. I appreciate you all so much. Your presence is appreciated. Let me know if there is something in particular you would like to hear me talk abo...