Discovering Goats’ Milk: St Helens Farm products

St Helens Farm is an actual farm in East Yorkshire. They have been around for over 27 years and produce a range of products made from goats milk, many of which can be found in supermarkets across the country.
Before my experience of some lovely products from St Helens Farm. I had never tried goats’ milk. I’m not sure if this is perhaps because of the lack of it or because I thought it would taste totally different to cows milk which is what I am used to drinking and using.

I was sent a box of lovely fresh goats’ milk products last week. The products arrived packed with ice and were still cold and fresh when they arrived.

In my box were cartons of goats milk and products made from goats milk – yoghurts, butter and cheeses.

GOATS’ MILK
I found the goats milk a very similar taste to cows milk which I was not expecting. In my past experience, I have found anything that is not cows milk does not taste so good. However goats milk is more or less the same taste. I have been giving it to my children too and they didn’t notice any difference.

The milk comes in cartons and in varieties of skimmed, semi skimmed and full fat just like cows milk. I don’t drink a lot of milk by itself so it really doesn’t bother me how much fat or how skimmed the milk is, I can drink and use them all. Just like cows milk, this milk can also be added to hot drinks and I drink a lot of tea and again it tastes just the same when using goats milk. It can be used exactly the same way as the cows variety, drank, poured over cereal and used in cooking/ baking etc. It makes an excellent alternative for those people who cannot have cows milk in their diets and it also contains 20% less cholesterol than cows milk. The skimmed variety contains no cholesterol.

YOGHURTS
I absolutely loved the selection of tasty goats milk yoghurts I received. First were some packs of limited edition fruit flavoured yoghurts.

They came in two sweet flavours, in single serve pot. Cherry & Cranberry and Peach and Passion fruit. They consisted of a thick mountain of creamy yoghurt on too with a generous fruity layer on the bottom. We all enjoyed these fruity delights.

The yoghurt goodies don’t end there as 3 big 400g pots were also in my box.
Natural, Low Fat and a honey flavour. My favourite overall was the honey. I found the yoghurt had such a lovely creamy taste, add the sweetness of honey and it was just heavenly. The yoghurt was not too thick but just right.

Using the low fat yoghurt I was able to make a variety of healthy morning smoothies, using just the yoghurt and fruits such as bananas and berries. Both tasted great and it’s a good sneaky way to get those fruits into children too.

BUTTER & CHEESE
St Helen’s Farm goats’ butter is made by churning the cream in a large stainless steel vessel, which drains off the buttermilk and thickens the cream. To this, they add a small amount of colouring and salt.

I’m more used to using buttery spreads rather than actual butter, not to mention butter that’s come straight from a farm. So it was a very nice treat to be using some real butter for a change. Again I goby it had that rich creamy taste and is just lovely on hot toast. Like most butters it does go hard in the fridge. I think the best way to use this is to just cut off a section of the butter at a time and place what is needed in a covered butter dish so it’s just right for spreading when needed.

St Helen’s Farm mild goats’ cheese is, typically, matured for about 3 months. The mature goats’ cheese has a more complex flavour and is matured for up to 12 months.
I don’t eat much cheese myself but found my children enjoyed this cheese both on sandwiches and toast. It’s a hard cheese and so requires either slicing, chopping or grating and has numerous uses both in cooking or just munching on cold when feeling hungry.
In 2012, St Helen’s Farm mild goats’ cheese was awarded a Gold Star in the Great Taste Awards and it is regularly selected by the judges as a winner in the Cheese and Dairy Shows held across the country each year.

MUG
As well as my lovely food products I was kindly sent two mugs. On one side is the St Helens Farm logo and on the other it says “I love Goats Milk” great for pouring in a lovely cup of tea with goats milk.

The mugs cost £7.95 each and can be purchased directly online from St Helens Farm
A little goat teddy was also in the box which Izebella has now claimed herself.

Goats milk is easier to digest than cows milk as it contains different proteins and smaller fat particles. Goats milk is proven to help with certain health conditions such as IBS, catarrh and many others. It has a deliciously mild taste and is closer to cows milk than any other recipe based options such as soya milk. Many people around the world drink goats milk than any other milk.

St Helens Farm products can be in a variety of supermarkets. To see who sells what, visit the Stokist list page