DYK Cows Can Upcycle?

Dexter is back this week with a new round of Did You Know with some Beef Month facts for you.  When I was in school they called it recycling, but now the cooler term is up-cycling trash into something more valuable.  -A Kansas Farm Mom

Did you know May is Beef Month?  For the beginning of the month I want to share why I like to think about how cows are the ultimate up-cyclers. 

Did you know that cows eat the corn leftovers from ethanol production called dried distillers grains that is high in protein? They can also eat the leftovers from beer and whiskey production called brewers dried grains. 

Soybean meal is the most widely used protein source in livestock feeds. Did you know most vegetable oil is soybean oil? I guess you can say that soybean meal is the leftovers from our fried food fascination.

Everyone likes to wear cotton t-shirts and a good pair of blue jeans. Cows like the leftovers of that too! The seed has to be removed from the cotton fiber. The seed is then pressed for the oil. The leftovers are made into cottonseed hulls and cottonseed meal for cows. The meal is high in protein and the cottonseed hulls can be fed for fiber or we can even feed the whole seed (mainly to dairy cows).  We feed several pounds of cottonseed hulls to our show heifers. Dairy farmers even feed while cottonseed for protein and energy.  Check out this post called Trash to Nutritional Treasure from the Arizona Beef Blog for more information.

Beet pulp can be fed to cows, too. Beet pulp is the leftovers of making sugar from sugar beets. Our heifers can eat beet pulp for fiber. The cows enjoy are sugar addiction, too.

Not only do they eat of our leftovers, but 85% of the ground that cows graze is not suitable for crop production. My friend Dairy Carrie has a great post on what they feed their dairy cows and links to other farms and ranches who share their upcycled feed even from oranges.  For even more information about Bovine Upcycling with lots of great statistics check out this post from Cow Country Blog.

Cows truly keep the earth cleaner for all of us and produce high quality protein that we can all enjoy. We have enjoyed this new casserole mom found this winter. 

Beefy Cheesy Cornbread Casserole

1 pound ground beef

½ cup chopped onion

Salt and pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 (8.5 oz) Jiffy Cornbread mix

1 egg

1 can cream style corn

2 cups Monterey Jack or Cheddar Cheese

Preheat oven to 350*F.  Butter the bottom and sides of 8x8 casserole dish.

Brown and drain beef and onion.  Add seasoning and stir well.  In a small bowl, combine cornbread mix, egg, milk and corn.  Stir well.  Pour half of cornbread mixture into dish.  Add beef and onion and spread evenly.  Add cheese and remaining cornbread mixture.  Bake 35-40 minutes.

 For more posts written by Dexter, check out the Mad Cattle Co. tab on this page.

Dexter's Did You Know? Genetics

About a month ago, I made an infographic on my Facebook page, MAD Cattle Company, stating that U.S. cattle producers produce 20 percent of the world’s beef with only seven percent of the world’s cattle. My first blog post also talked about this topic.

 

The next day in discussion with my biology teacher, we began to wonder how this could be and how our operations could help make the percent of beef produced by the U.S. even higher.  We came up with only one answer.  Genetics.  We can control what genetics our herds include.  We also looked at what types of cattle third world countries are raising and found that they are still picking for survivability and work while the US ranchers usually select from growth or carcass traits to improve your eating experience and to keep costs low for the consumer.

 

Next, we looked at how our own operations could influence the U.S. gene pool.  Now, some of you might be wondering how genetics from two extremely small operations could influence something so large.  Our answer would be simply to improve our cattle and help provide extremely good replacements to grow the U.S. beef supply.  

Did you know that genetic improvement in one herd is going to eventually affect everyone who buys cattle from them either for slaughter or replacements?  Genetics tend to spread like wildfire especially if they work.  Through artificial insemination, smaller producers can affect even those who buy their cattle for replacements and beyond.  

I assumed the U.S. cattle industry is emphasizing the importance of genetic improvement and selection.  How many more percent of the total beef supply could we control if more people improved their genetic bases and stopped buying and keeping the cheapest animals at the sale barn?  I was surprised at how few people utilized genetic technology such as A.I. (Artificial Insemination) to improve their herd’s genetics. I investigated how few people looked at Expected Progeny Differences (a selection tool that predicts how well an animal could perform) as a serious factor in bull selection and found not many do.  I have begun to wonder how much higher the U.S.’s beef supply would be if individual herds started using the technology already at their fingertips.

U.S. feedlots tend to use more specialized personnel than other countries such as nutritionists who formulate balanced rations based on what is locally available as well as supplements to improve feed efficiency.  I plan to talk more about feeds next time.-  Dexter

Enchilada Lasagna

1/2 cup onion
2 tablespoons butter
2 pounds lean ground beef
2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 cup water
1 (10 oz) can tomato soup
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1.5 cups light cream
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 teaspoon salt
12 corn tortillas

Saute 1/2 cup onion in butter in skillet.  Add ground beef.  Cook until brown and crumbly.  Stir in flour and chili powder.  Cook five minutes longer.  Add water. Cook until thickened stirring constantly.  Combine soup, cheese, cream, 1/2 cup onion and salt in bowl; mix well.  Slice tortillas into strips.  Layer tortillas, ground beef mixture and soup mixture 1/2 at a time in buttered 9x13 baking dish.  Bake at 325*F for 30 minutes.  Yield:12 servings.

Dexter is my oldest son and is working on a new 4-H project this year.  He is a 16 year old sophomore in high school.  He talks about cattle way too much, enjoys wrestling, likes to eat A LOT and I am making him cook, too.  He is involved in 4-H, FFA, as well as the church and school choirs.  He manages a Facebook page called MAD Cattle Company (Maddix & Dexter...because I wouldn't let them name it DAM Cattle Company ;) )

Ultimate Chocolate Lovers Recipe Collection-Celebrate 365 Blog Party

While I have taking a hiatus from the Celebrate 365 blog party and blogging in general Val from Corn, Beans, Pigs and Kids, and Jan from Tip Garden have added a couple of amazing new hostesses Cooking with Carlee and Ellen from Family Around the Table.

Their last party was a great roundup of soup recipes.

 The Sausage and Potato Cheddar Ale Soup sounds amazing as well as Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup.

My youngest son is always excited for a Loaded Baked Potato Soup and this Crockpot version has been added to the must try list.

Now on to this month's party All About Chocolate!  I may gain a few pounds just reading through these and you might find the perfect recipe for Valentine's Day for your sweetie.

An InLinkz Link-up

Meatball Sub Sandwiches

Last week, Dexter posted his first blog post with some beef nutritional information and a wonderful Italian Meatball recipe.  We used the meatballs to make the best Meatball Subs.

I hope you checked out his post.  He has a list started of things he wants to cover in blog posts and even has a teacher or two helping him with ideas when he gets done with his homework.  He is also working on infographics about beef.  

Since Dexter and some of his friends are just beginning to cook on their own and use this blog as a place to find recipes, I thought it might be a good idea to get a few more step by step instructions on making the perfect meatball sub sandwich.  Last year for Christmas gifts I made this awesome Garlic Parmesan Mix from Tip Garden which totally made the sandwiches better.  It has been popular with all the kids that have ate at my house since I made it.

 

The Best Meatball Sub Sandwiches

8 hoagie buns
1.5 cups prepared spaghetti sauce
¼ cup butter
1 tablespoon garlic cheese mix
Mozzarella cheese

Simmer cooked meatballs in 1.5 cups of prepared pasta sauce.  Melted butter mixed with 1 tablespoon of the mix to brush on the bread. Place the buttered bread on a cookie sheet under the broiler until they are good and toasted.  Spoon the meatballs and a little sauce on the toasted buns, topped with Mozzarella cheese and stick them back under the broiler until the cheese is melted.

During the busy season, I think I will put them in a crockpot to warm with the sauce.  When I say busy season, I am not sure that with two teenage boys there is a slow season.

I want to try them in a crockpot spaghetti recipe from the Show Barn Cook.  I this would be a great recipe for the show season, wrestling tournaments and my upcoming calving season.  

The guys all said this was one of the best recipes I had made in a long time.  Good thing they liked them, because I made a triple batch of the meatballs.  Two batches went into the freezer for my stockpile of freezer meals for calving season. Speaking of calving season, it is right around the corner and I am hoping that the temperature swings and winter weather will calm down for a week or two.  I need to finish up my “nesting” projects before the calves start hitting the ground. 

Did You Know by Dexter & Italian Meatballs

My oldest son is working on a new 4-H project this year.  I am encouraging him to write an article for the local newpaper once a month and I am planning to share it here as well.  Let me introduce Dexter. He is a 16 year old sophomore in high school.  He talks about cattle way too much, enjoys wrestling, likes to eat A LOT and I am making him cook, too.  He is involved in 4-H, FFA, as well as the church and school choirs.  He manages a Facebook page called MAD Cattle Company (Maddix & Dexter...because I wouldn't let them name it DAM Cattle Company ;) )


If you like the recipe or the facts he shares, please share with your friends and follow MAD Cattle Company.  We are going to track how many people see these for part of the project so please share!  As he gets more views, he is motivate to work on the next online project.  If you have questions about beef as a consumer, leave them in the comments and he will try to answer them in future posts.  Thanks! A Kansas Farm Mom

Did you know that a serving of beef is 3 ounces? Do you know how big that is?  Well to answer the second question a three-ounce serving of beef is about the size of a standard deck of playing cards (not a Uno deck of cards).

Yes, you read that right a serving of beef is that small.  Last Sunday after wrestling the day before, I wondered what I could do nutritionally so I wouldn’t be so stiff and sore after each tournament.  So of course, since I raise cattle, I began to look at the nutrients and their amounts in a three-ounce serving of beef.  I found out that beef contains 25 grams of protein.  I also found that protein from a meat source is more readily available than a plant source and protein is needed for the repairing of all muscles.  

                Did you know that the United States produces 20 percent of the world’s beef with only seven percent of the world’s cattle?   

Much of the reason has to do with the time and effort progressive cattlemen spend utilizing resources and genetic improvement that pushes for higher quality and heavier weight calves.  Many of you may be confused on how this might affect you.  The way that this affects every person in the U.S. is that 90 percent of U.S. beef is consumed in the U.S.  Furthermore, I found that America has been importing more lean trimmings of beef for hamburger and stew meat and exporting the fatter trimmings.  So, I think that as U.S cattle producers start to dial in on the perfect blend of quality and lean less foreign beef will be served in the U.S.

We recently tried this new recipe this is extremely good with spaghetti or as meatball subs.  Enjoy!

Italian Meatballs

1 egg

1 pound ground beef

½ cup bread crumbs or 2 slices of bread, torn into tiny pieces (you can use seasoned bread crumbs)

½ cup canned spaghetti sauce

1 teaspoon onion flakes

½ teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Break egg into a large mixing bowl and beat lightly with a fork.  Add ground beef, bread crumbs, spaghetti sauce, onion flakes, and salt.  Mix everything together with your hands.  Shape mixture into 1 inch meatballs.  Arrange them next to each other in a 9x13 baking pan.  Bake 20 Minutes.