Summertime

Summer weather has now arrived, hasn't it?  We still have plenty of pasture for the Beefalo, but the heat and lack of moisture is beginning to have an effect.  Personally, I notice the high humidity; it really saps the energy.

 

Our calf crop is not as "bunched" as much as it has been, or as much as I prefer, although it does mean I could have calves to sell the year around.  We are still having calves being born almost weekly and they and their mommies seem to be doing well.

 

It seems that more people are becoming aware of Beefalo.  Recently we were contacted twice about purchasing some of our yearling heifers as well as some steers. In addition, as many of you know Dr. Shealy who purchased ten cows with calves by side from our farm nearly two years ago donated his entire herd and farm to Missouri State University.  Earlier this month I visited briefly with Dr. Anson Elliott, the head of the Universities Agriculture Dept., who is excited about the Beefalo and their possibilities.  He feels they are perfectly suited for the forages common to southern Missouri.  The University already has Hereford cattle, so there is the potential of a "cross breeding" program to demonstrate the value of increasing hybrid vigor, not just between breeds, but species as well.  I believe this will be obvious as more people become aware of, and involved in Beefalo.

 

Switching gears. we are going to take three animals to the State Fair in August.  The National Show for Bedfalo has been moved from the Ozark Empire Fair to the State Fair this year.  The date for the Beefalo judging is August16th.  If you are at the fair August 15-18th please stop by.  Until the next time take care.

Spring???

This past Winter has not been especially hard, but by stretching out until May it has been a long season.  Most of us have been ready for a normal Spring for the last six to eight weeks, but not this year.  Two days of Summer; next two days thirty to forty degrees cooler.  Life in the Ozarks!  But at least we are getting plenty of rain; I've had washed out water gaps and a fence line to show for that.

 

Our cows seem anxious to consume a lot of grass, and it is trying to grow, but temperature fluctuations has slowed its growth.  Region wide (central U. S.) the weather has alternately aided (rain), and retarded growth (cold).  Overall though, because of the good rains the outlook is better than last year.

 

With that thought in mind more heifers are being retained nationally instead of going to slaughter.  There seems to be a tepid effort to rebuild the nations beef herd.  We have several replacement females on hand and are offering twenty (20) open yearlings for sale.  In addition we have fourteen (14) older heifers that may or may not be bred that are also available.  With one exception all thirty four (34) heifers are sired by LNH Rondo who is pictured on this blog.

 

Until the next time everyone take care and best of luck.

World's Best Steak Baste

1 c. soy sauce
2 lg. onions, coarsley chopped
1/4 c. browning-and-seasoning sauce
2 Tbsp. bottled chopped garlic in oil
2 tsp. Beau Monde Seasoning or italian herb seasoning mix

Combine the soy sauce, browing-and-seasoning sauce, garlic and Beau Monde Seasoning or italian herb seasoning mix in a container of electric blender or food processor. Cover; whirl for 1 minute until well blended. Store baste in tightly covered jar in refridgerator.
To use, spread baste on both sides of steak, burgers or chops just before grillings; continue to brush with baste during cooking. Also, use the baste on broiled meats to create a "barbequed" flavor.

Hot Beefalo Sausage Party Rye Appetizers

Fry and crumble 1 lb. beefalo sausage and drain.
Add 2 lbs. cubed velveeta cheese and melt with beefalo sausage.
Spread mixture on party rye, covering to edges.
Place on baking sheet under boiler until brown and bubbly.

SPRINGTIME???

It seems Mother Nature can't make up her mind; one day it is hot, the next day it is cold.  Grass tries to grow, but not as fast as the cows want to eat it.  Maybe next week.

As usual the cattle are ready for Spring and the new lush green grass  that comes with wet and warmer weather.  Baby beefalo start eating forage just days after birth and we have several calves already on the ground with more on the way.  It's also that time of the year when farmers often purchase new stock for the upcoming season.  We have a variety of classes availableat this time:  yearling heifers, bred and open older heifers, and some with calves by their side.  We have older cows as well if that is someone's preference.

In addition we have a two year old scurred, black purebred bull and a one year old scurred, buffalo colored, purebred bull for sale.  Both of these animals are halter broken to lead.  As we have mentioned before the quickest, easiest, and cheapest way to get into beefalo is to use a purebred or fullblood bull;  all of their offspring will qualify to be beefalo.

If any of our readerss are students at MSU, or have children at MSU you are probably aware the the Aguculture Dept. (Darr Agricultural  Center) recently received a donlation of a farm, and a small herd of beefalo, from Dr. Norman Shealy.  These are the beefalo we sold to Dr. Shealy in 2011.  We congratulate and commend Dr. Shealy on his generous gift. You can read more at Ozarks First dot com.

That is about the extent of our information for this posting.  Until the next time everyone take care.

Corned Beef

5 qts. water
2 c. clear pickling salt
1/4 c. or 2 oz. saltpeter
1/4 c. brown sugar
1Tsps. Peppercorn
1 Tbsp. picking spice
8 bay leaves
5 cloves garlic, mashed

Combine the above ingredients and boil 5 minutes. Cool to room temperature. Pour over 10 pound beefalo roast and refridgerate for 2 weeks. Rearrange meat once at half-time. Use pickling crock, stainless steel or enamel-ware container. For top, try a glass pie plate topped with a lidded jar of water.

Creole Rib Steaks

4 strips bacon, coarsly chopped
1 med. onion, thinly sliced
1 med. green pepper, coarsley chopped
2 stalks celerey, cut in 1/2'' peices
2 med. cloves garlic, crushed
1 can (28 oz.) whole tomatoes in puree
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. dried thyme leaves
1/4 tsp. hot red pepper sauce
4 (about 8 oz. each) boneless rib beefalo steaks, 1'' thick

In large skillet, cook bacon until crisp. remove bacon; set aside. Discard all but 2  Tbsp. drippings; in drippings, saute pepper, onion, celery and garlic 3 minutes. Add tomatoes and puree, bay leaf, thyme, pepper sauce, 1/2 tsp. salt and reserved bacon. Simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Remove and discard bay leaf; cover sauce to keep warm.
Preheat broiler. Sprinkle both sides of steaks with salt and pepper. Place on rack over broiler pan. Broil 5 inches from heat, about 6 minutes per side. Spoon Creole sauce over steaks. Make 4 servings.