BEARDED BILLY FARM MAKES THE NEWS
NOTE: This blog post was written based on Bearded Billy Farm's article written by Sarah Smith from the June 24, 2021 issue of the Tattnall Journal - The Journal Sentinel of Tattnall County, Georgia.
"Beginning with the fall of 2016, I purchased my first breeding pair of Nigerian Dwarf goats with the intent of becoming self-sufficient as much as possible. My dream included fresh milk, goat cheese, yogurt, free-range chickens and turkeys, and an abundance of eggs, along with fertilizer and compost for the garden." - Amanda Adams
Amanda Adams grew up as a farm kid in Villisca, Iowa, and later moved to Homer, Alaska, for the remainder of her young adulthood. She loved being outdoors and the lifestyle that came along with living on a farm.
“All I remember as a child is my roots, and farming is deeply embedded into every memory or event,” Amanda said. “Farming has always been in my blood. It gives me a sense of contentment when I am outside caring for my goats and digging in the dirt. It has always been a way of life.”
Both sides of Amanda’s family farm... cousins, aunts and uncles, great great uncles, and great grandparents. Some family members even worked a second job to support their love and passion for farming.
Amanda traveled for a few years and expanded her horizons to new environments. She graduated in 2002 from Iowa Western Community College with her associate of applied science degree and her License Practical Nurse degree. She worked 15 years with the elderly and loved everything about the job.
After being away from the farm for several years, Amanda and her husband, Scott, moved to Glennville in 2016. Amanda missed the simple farm life she once had as a child. Glennville was her pick because of the small town and friendly feel it has. She hoped the move would allow her to give her children the simple and fun childhood that she had as a little girl.
“I wanted to have a life that was similar to how I was raised. I have a lot of fond memories on the farm, and I believe that is what gave me my values and work ethic. Those are the same qualities I want to instill in my children,” Amanda said. “It was important for us to get our children out of the city and back to a simpler way of life. To be honest, it was more me pushing for it, as Scott is a Disabled Veteran with Deployment related Burn Pit exposures.”
Scott retired from the Air Force in 2015 after 23 years of service. He grew up a “city boy” in Alexandria, Virginia. He enjoys the five acres of land they have in Glennville and the convenience of bigger cities nearby. Amanda began working at Rogers State Prison in maintenance, where she stayed for five years. She began her own farm after reading all of the books on goats she could get her hands on. After seeing success from her farming, Amanda resigned from Rogers State Prison in 2020 and began working at the farm full-time. The change in occupation has worked out in her favor, as she now owns the Bearded Billy Farm.
Amanda bought her goats from different states here and there and only bought goats that had good milk production for her goat milk products. Amanda and Scott make goat milk soups, laundry soaps, lotions, pet ice cream, pet paw balms, lotion bars, pet shampoo, and insect repellent.
The goat milk soaps and lotion bars created by Amanda have healing properties that help with various skin conditions for pets and humans. Hunter Stanfield of Glennville is a cancer survivor who has skin irritations from his cancer treatment. Hunter uses Amanda’s goat milk soap and lotion bars to heal his skin from different conditions. The results have amazed Hunter and his mom, and they are regular customers of the Bearded Billy Farm shop.
To contact Amanda regarding her business, call (912) 455-5490 or email her at amanda@beardedbillyfarm.com. To shop her products and learn more about her company, visit beardedbillyfarm.com or visit the farm.
Amanda and Scott have six children: Gavin Adams, 26, of Maryland, Kiersten Adams (engaged to Holden Pell), 22, of Alabama, Marian (married to Jeremiah) Acosta, 21, of Virginia, Erica (married to Parker) Rollyson, 17, of Colorado, Madelynn Adams, 13, of Glennville, and Viola Adams, 9, of Glennville. They have a 1-year-old grandchild, Ares, who is the son of Erica and Parker.
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Amanda Adams’s Recipes
Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream
1 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon of salt
1 quart of ND milk
3 slightly beaten egg yolks (place in a small bowl; whites are to be placed in a larger bowl for later)
2 tablespoons of butter
1 cup of peanut butter
6 tablespoon Tapioca Starch
2 tablespoon of cocoa
1 teaspoon of vanilla flavoring
¼ cream of tartar
Stir dry ingredients together in a large pan; gradually add milk. Cook and stir over medium heat until bubbly and cook and stir further for an additional two minutes. Remove from heat and add a small amount of the heated mixture to egg yolks. Stir well. Add the egg mixture back to the original mixture, stirring well and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in butter, vanilla flavoring, and peanut butter to mixture. Place in the fridge or freezer until cooled.
Beat egg whites until stiff with the ¼ teaspoon of cream of tartar and ½ teaspoon of vanilla flavoring. Add 6 tablespoons of granulated sugar and beat until glossy. Stir the meringue mixture into a chilled counter top ice cream maker. You determine how long your ice cream maker should run. Put finished product into small freezer containers and place in the freezer. Microwave on defrost setting for a few seconds after taking out of the freezer to eat.
Ham Balls
3 lb ground ham
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground pork
1 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp pepper
3 cups ground fine graham crackers
3 eggs
2 cups goat milk
1 tsp salt
1 tsp liquid smoke
Mix all ingredients, form into a ball or a loaf. Place in a greased baking dish. Bake at 350 for 1 hour at 30 minutes or halfway point of cook time, add sauce to top of ham loaf or balls cook for additional 30 min until done
Sauce: 1 can of condensed tomato soup, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 tsp dry mustard, 1/4 cup vinegar, mix well. Any recipe I use, I substitute goat milk for the cow milk, to me you can't tell the difference.