Texas Cheese

OK, say cheese! That’s right.  We’ve traveled through our backdoor and landed in cheese country.  No, not Wisconsin, but Schulenburg, Texas.  We have driven to one of our favorite places, Stryk Jersey Farm, just about eight miles west of Schulenburg off Highway 90, for freshly made Texas cheese.  Look for the crossroad sign on the right that says “Krenek-Stryk Road” and head up the road about a mile.  You will see their entrance sign on the right side of the road.  Follow the gravel road to the best kept secret in Texas, Texas-made cheese. 

Once you get to the homestead, you’ll notice a small building on the left.  That’s where they sell the cheese!  This is a full fledge working dairy farm.  The cows you see are the very ones who produce the milk for the cheese.  This is local at its finest!  The owners, Bob and Darlene are the nicest folks you will ever meet.  Their raw milk cheddar cheese can be purchased as Plain, Black Pepper, Red Pepper, Chipotle, Cumin, Merlot or Caraway.

If you are lucky, you can catch Bob and his helpers making the cheese in his large stainless steel vat in the building.  He will answer any question you have about cheese or cheese making even as he works.  And if no one is in the building, no problem, just make your way to the large cooler in the back and help yourself.  Crack that big cooler door open and go inside to pick out your cheese for purchase.  

 If you enjoy fresh raw milk or other raw milk products, check those out in the cooler, too.  Don’t worry, Bob has a permit from the state of Texas for Grade A Raw for Retail Milk Permit.  This special permit is stricter in its criteria than a regular state health permit for producer dairies shipping to pasteurizing milk plants, so you know it is safe to eat or drink.  Some of you may have never tasted fresh whole milk before and this will be a new experience for you and your family.  It’s especially good for baking or making homemade ice cream.  And if your homemade ice cream is great, feel free to invite us over to sample!

Once you’ve chosen your bounty, add up the prices and leave your money in the money box found in the middle of the room.  They are that trusting!  Payment is on the honor system and if you leave a little more, that’s OK, too!  These are hard working country folks trying to preserve their heritage and way of life.  For us, it’s another way to enjoy the bounties of Texas Thru My Back Door!

An Introduction

     The path to the backdoor is the road less traveled.  It’s the casual, warm and welcoming place where family and friends come to call.  This blog is the entrance for our family and friends to join us as we continue life’s adventure, learning new things, traveling to places both new and familiar, and finding hidden gems and treasures along the way.   

     Retirement has been a blast so far!  Now that both of us have retired, we have been having fun crisscrossing our state and enjoying everything Texas. From wine tastings in the hill country, to sampling local Texas-made cheeses, to locating the best tasting kolaches in the state, we have been on the go.  Many of our former co-workers seemed to think that we would quickly become bored and want to return to work.  Well, we will be disappointing them all because the truth is “We Love it!” The only downside to being retired is that we are so busy. In addition to our travels and catching up with friends and family, we’re fully engaged in building our Lake Livingston retirement home, which we’ve dubbed “The Sandy Creek Retreat”.  Our little piece of the Piney Woods will become our revolving door to the world that surrounds us.  We’ll share photos and stories from our travels, our favorite restaurants and recipes, and we’ll share our growing list of hobbies. Al will also share the interesting Texas history facts and legends he discovers as he researches his next two books. (By the way, if you are interesting in purchasing a signed copy of his first book – “The Second Coming-The Republic of Texas”, go to http://www.ajpetter.com/).

     We get the inspiration for many of our travels from news or magazine articles and from information Al uncovers in researching his books, but we’re also hoping to get ideas from all of you as well.  So please send us your comments and suggestions and join us by coming along … ‘Thru My Back Door’.