Cream…..that thick, luscious stuff that makes all our dreams come true.
You know it: whipped cream, butter, sour cream, and ice cream. The yummy goodness you pock and prod the local supermarket picking out your favorites only to find its more expensive than last time or your favorite just isn’t on the shelves…..
Admittedly, we don’t like electronical things….you can tell by our lack of blogging this winter. Besides age and life in general….we just don’t really like computers... ....anything that requires electricity just isn’t our thing…..Yes, even our coffee pot is the old tried and true non-electric version, makes the best coffee ever!
So luckily we were able to find a Manual Cream Separator from the Ukraine. Lovely thing, but with a shortage of milk because of pregnant does……we really didn’t have enough to spare. Don’t get us wrong, Adal did ok milking through the winter….but not much was left for anything else beside oatmeal, some cheese, and for general drinking.
But FINALLY, most of the kids are weaned and we have so much milk!!!! BUT……here we go with the buts… ..the directions weren’t what we had hoped for……though in English, not exactly explanatory in nature. Parts? Yep, it told us the names of the parts…..but not necessarily how to clean, use, and enjoy the thing. We had used it once or twice last year, but hey that was last year!
We’ve been using it for a while now and OH MY! How wonderful it is to finally enjoy the toy. Does it entail a little work, yes to clean…..but it is still so very worth having. So let’s talk……………
You know it: whipped cream, butter, sour cream, and ice cream. The yummy goodness you pock and prod the local supermarket picking out your favorites only to find its more expensive than last time or your favorite just isn’t on the shelves…..
Admittedly, we don’t like electronical things….you can tell by our lack of blogging this winter. Besides age and life in general….we just don’t really like computers... ....anything that requires electricity just isn’t our thing…..Yes, even our coffee pot is the old tried and true non-electric version, makes the best coffee ever!
So luckily we were able to find a Manual Cream Separator from the Ukraine. Lovely thing, but with a shortage of milk because of pregnant does……we really didn’t have enough to spare. Don’t get us wrong, Adal did ok milking through the winter….but not much was left for anything else beside oatmeal, some cheese, and for general drinking.
But FINALLY, most of the kids are weaned and we have so much milk!!!! BUT……here we go with the buts… ..the directions weren’t what we had hoped for……though in English, not exactly explanatory in nature. Parts? Yep, it told us the names of the parts…..but not necessarily how to clean, use, and enjoy the thing. We had used it once or twice last year, but hey that was last year!
We’ve been using it for a while now and OH MY! How wonderful it is to finally enjoy the toy. Does it entail a little work, yes to clean…..but it is still so very worth having. So let’s talk……………
Gear Housing
Let’s start with the basics….this picture shows the main housing. This contains all the gears that run the drum that separates the cream from the milk. Notice the plastic cap on the side of ours? This is where you put the oil PRIOR to using your separator for the first time. We used 1-1 ½ cups of 3-in-1 Multi-Purpose Lubricate oil. You will need to screw this separator to a counter for stability…..make sure you can turn the handle wherever you attach this….the handle does go lower than the actual gear housing.
Drum
This confusing grab of parts is what actually separates the cream from the milk when you run the separator. Don’t panic, it really isn’t as difficult as it looks.
Following the pictures above by clicking on the arrow....
Step 1: Add the gasket to the base.
Step 2: Place the follower to the base. This piece holds the disks in place. There is only one way to fit the disks on this piece.
Step 3: Start adding the disks alternating between the textured disks and the smooth ones. You should start with a textured disk and end with a textured disk.
Step 4: Add the next piece, this will slide into the top cap of the drum....not the small screw at the top. This is the cream adjuster. Turn the screw in clockwise to thicken the cream, or counter clockwise to thin the cream.
Step 5: Add the drum cap....line up the top and lower parts as shown in the picture. This will make sure you don't loose any milk!
Step 6: With the tool provided, screw on the top screw/ring....using the tool tighten it down as tight as you can until there is no gap for milk to escape.
Step 7: Add the drum to the gear housing.
Step 1: Add the gasket to the base.
Step 2: Place the follower to the base. This piece holds the disks in place. There is only one way to fit the disks on this piece.
Step 3: Start adding the disks alternating between the textured disks and the smooth ones. You should start with a textured disk and end with a textured disk.
Step 4: Add the next piece, this will slide into the top cap of the drum....not the small screw at the top. This is the cream adjuster. Turn the screw in clockwise to thicken the cream, or counter clockwise to thin the cream.
Step 5: Add the drum cap....line up the top and lower parts as shown in the picture. This will make sure you don't loose any milk!
Step 6: With the tool provided, screw on the top screw/ring....using the tool tighten it down as tight as you can until there is no gap for milk to escape.
Step 7: Add the drum to the gear housing.
Cream and Skim milk Receivers, etc.
Now comes the final pieces of your amazing cream separator....
The drum may do the actual magic, but you need to have a way to add the milk and get it back separated! That's where these pieces come in. Notice the two that look like the number nine...this is the cream and skim milk receivers. One will be deeper than the other. This will fit over the housing with the drum...this is your skim milk receiver.
Next add the cream receiver.....you can adjust these to 'aim' in any direction you want...just make sure you have two bowl to catch it all!
Next comes the float chamber and float....this is what regulates the milk flow into the drum. Just drop the float in the chamber than add the large bowl or milk receiver on top. Finally, add your tap....align the hole at the bottom of the tap to the 'closed' position inside the milk receiver. Make sure this is in the off position every time you separate cream.....ALMOST READY!!
Next add the cream receiver.....you can adjust these to 'aim' in any direction you want...just make sure you have two bowl to catch it all!
Next comes the float chamber and float....this is what regulates the milk flow into the drum. Just drop the float in the chamber than add the large bowl or milk receiver on top. Finally, add your tap....align the hole at the bottom of the tap to the 'closed' position inside the milk receiver. Make sure this is in the off position every time you separate cream.....ALMOST READY!!
The rest of the story.....
OK, here are the points that will make sure you enjoy your separator as much as we do ours.
Never use it for the first time without adding the oil to the gear housing. Make sure you wash everything, but the gear housing prior to using it for the first time as well.
Use fresh milk, and we mean fresh! Once done with milking, we filter the milk than use our cream separator. You want the cream the temperature it came out of the goats.
Start slow and end slow....crank the handle slowly, you can't force the handle to start or stop.....or you'll damage the cream separator. You'll hear the drum and gears start to run....with each crank you'll hear it slowly start to 'get up to speed'. Once you're cranking the handle 65-70 cranks per minute, (remember the One One Thousand Two One Thousand count), than you can open the tap to let the milk flow. We recommend pouring some of the 'skim' milk back through prior to finishing, just to flush as much of the cream out as you can.
Listen to your cream separator....are the gears making funny sounds? Slow down the cranking, just a tiny amount. Once you've done it a few times, you'll know when your doing it right or not.
Once done, wash everything except the gear housing. Take the drum apart too, but on the sink or over a bowl, there will still be some milk and cream in the drum. It's best to wash it with a mild dish soap or baking soda in water. Make sure it's dry than reassemble for the next time.
Never use it for the first time without adding the oil to the gear housing. Make sure you wash everything, but the gear housing prior to using it for the first time as well.
Use fresh milk, and we mean fresh! Once done with milking, we filter the milk than use our cream separator. You want the cream the temperature it came out of the goats.
Start slow and end slow....crank the handle slowly, you can't force the handle to start or stop.....or you'll damage the cream separator. You'll hear the drum and gears start to run....with each crank you'll hear it slowly start to 'get up to speed'. Once you're cranking the handle 65-70 cranks per minute, (remember the One One Thousand Two One Thousand count), than you can open the tap to let the milk flow. We recommend pouring some of the 'skim' milk back through prior to finishing, just to flush as much of the cream out as you can.
Listen to your cream separator....are the gears making funny sounds? Slow down the cranking, just a tiny amount. Once you've done it a few times, you'll know when your doing it right or not.
Once done, wash everything except the gear housing. Take the drum apart too, but on the sink or over a bowl, there will still be some milk and cream in the drum. It's best to wash it with a mild dish soap or baking soda in water. Make sure it's dry than reassemble for the next time.
Rich cream, but skim milk?
There are lots of things to do with the cream. Just place your cream in the frig to age a little. Skim milk? Don't throw it away! Its still drinkable! We use it for puddings, milk based soups and gravies.
Troubleshooting......
Here are some basic things we've found with our cream separator:
Too much cream? You have the screw to loose, just tighten it to get a thicker cream.
No cream? The screw to adjust is too tight, loosen it a bit.
Milk leaking? Your drum isn't assembled correctly.
Too much cream? You have the screw to loose, just tighten it to get a thicker cream.
No cream? The screw to adjust is too tight, loosen it a bit.
Milk leaking? Your drum isn't assembled correctly.
Cream without a separator?
Of course you can! It just takes a little longer to get the cream. Pour your goat milk into a wide container....let is rest for a day or two. Skim the cream from the top.. ...that's it. You might not get as much as you would hope, but many people do it just the same. Many people even freeze the cream until they get enough for their needs or project.
Now that you have luscious cream....
...start dreaming about what comes next!
blessings
Brenda Lee
...start dreaming about what comes next!
blessings
Brenda Lee
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