Today's episode of Cutting the Curd is all about goats! Tune in as Anne Saxelby and Sophie Slessinger chat with Louisa Conrad of Big Picture Farm in Vermont about all things goat. Learn how she fell in love with goat cheese and what makes kidding season such a crazy time of year. Find out about how the seasons affect the milk and cheese and what makes goats such unique creatures! Later on, they catch up with Gregory Bernhardt and Hannah Sessions of Big Picture Farm who are also in full-blown goat mode. This program was sponsored by Hearst Ranch.

"I've always been totally obsessed with cheese and farming. It wasn't until I got to Blue Ledge that I learned the mystical magical power of goats and fell head over heels."

--Louisa Conrad of Big Picture Farm on Cutting the Curd

"Our goats seem to milk best with longer daylight. Once we pass the longest day of the year their milk starts to decline."

--Hannah Sessions of Blue Ledge Farm on Cutting the Curd

Do you love butter? Then this is the show for you. Tune in to this week's episode of Cutting the Curd as Anne Saxelby and Sophie Slesinger chat with three incredible guests about the different sides of this dairy delight. First, hear from artist Jim Victor who's incredible butter sculptures have been featured recently at the Pennsylvania Farm Show. Next, food science expert Harold McGee chats about different types of butter and how you can make your own at home. Finally, Diane St Clair gives listeners some great details on her butter making and dairy farming. This program was sponsored by Cain Vineyard & Winery.

"There's sweet cream butter and cultured butter. They require different types of handling. All the cream no matter what needs to come from really good milk."

"Usually when people make butter in the kitchen, it's by accident. They're usually trying to whip cream."

"Sadly the best indicator of quality in butter is probably price."

--Harold McGee on Cutting the Curd

Upstate New York has become a hot bed for young farmers, organic dairy and delicious products. Tune in to this weeks episode of Cutting the Curd with Anne Saxelby and Sophie Slesinger as they sit down with Dean Sparks of NYFoods. NYFoods offers consumers quality organic dairy products with the goal of saving as many New York family farms as possible. They partner with both milk cooperatives and small family farms to offer the best in milk, eggs, cheese and butter. Learn about butterfat content, milk trains, distribution systems, logistics and the challenges facing small farms and processing facilities trying to get their product to your plate. Whether you're a dairy geek or an aspiring farmer you can learn something new to help you along your path on this episode! This program was sponsored by Whole Foods Market.

"We've had a lot of conventional farmers come to us and ask how they can become organic, which is a blessing."

"Upstate New York is such a bastion for amazing food right now. It's not new to us, but it's new to a lot of people."

"Our vision in 2012 is to get our logistics viable enough to get into bigger markers."

"Re imagining distribution systems shouldn't be so hard. My farm is 150 miles from here!"

--Dean Sparks of NYFoods on Cutting the Curd