Three groups came to visit the farm and dairy in November: on the

4th a group from Madrid, Soria and Bilbao;

and on the 26th, three families from the Basque Country.

The weather finally became really autumnal although some days the

temperature did reach 20 ºC. More generally, morning temperatures

were under 10ºC and midday temperatures between 12 and 15º. We

had a lot more damp weather and collected 207 litres in the rain gauge.

There was quite a lot of misty weather with drizzle which brought the

toads out in force.

The dairy herd was given alfalfa, silage, hay and a little feedstuff.

Recipe of the month: “Cachopo”

Cachopos are a typical dish from the northern Atlantic area of the

Spanish State, particularly Asturias. A cachopo is basically layers

of meat and cheese fried in bread crumbs… well the recipe belows

probably provides a better description! The ingredients can be

varied to taste, changing the type of meat or cheese, or adding

vegetables, for example.

8 beef fillets (between 100 – 120 g very thin slices) or more or

less the same size.

4 slices of serrano ham

8 slices of cheese

Pepper and salt

100 g of flour

2 large eggs (beaten)

200 g of bread crumbs

Oil

Put the flour in one dish, the breadcrumbs in a second dish and

the two beaten eggs in a third. Put the three bowls to one side,

ready for the breadcrumb covering.

Trim the steaks if necessary and, with a mallet or wooden mortar, 

crush the meat to tenderise, flatten and slim it. Season to taste

and place on a flat surface.

Begin to add the fillings. Place on each of four steaks a slice of ham

and a slice of cheese, adding more layers according to taste.

Cover each steak with another steak and squeeze around the

edges so that the meat is well sealed enclosing the inside.

Breadcrumb covering: First cover the fillets with flour, then pass

through the eggs and finally the breadcrumbs. Press the bread-

crumbs firmly and uniformly, keeping the  entire surface well

covered. If necessary, pass the fillets through the eggs and the

breadcrumbs once again.

Warm the oil in a frying pan, but not too warm as the cachopo

needs to cook on the inside and melt the cheese, aproximately

two minutes on each side, until golden brown. (This is why the

steaks need to be thinly sliced!).

When ready place on a paper towel to remove excess oil.

Roasted red peppers go really well with this dish either as a fillig

or as a side dish.

Plant of the month: Mycenaceae

The Mycenaceae are a family of fungi that contains 10 genera and 705

species. We found this one , possibly a species of Bonnet mushroom,

growing out of a pine cone!Five heifers calves were born in Novovember.