Community Spotlight

• There is no doubt about it that when Mother Nature turns up the heat during the summer months, one way we enjoy cooling down is with a delicious cone or dish of ice cream, a flavored milkshake or a gigantic sundae or banana split…. Especially if it is homemade ice cream. The Blain community is lucky to have two creameries to satisfy the sweet confectionery cravings of everybody. In our spotlight this month, we are highlighting the Meadowbrook Creamery, LLC owned and operated by Kenton and Ranita Nolt and their daughter Kiana. When I chatted with them, they also had a young helper, Angela, who is Kenton’s sister and watches Kianna…but admitted to enjoying some ice cream now and then!

• Kenton is no stranger to the dairy business, having grown-up here on the Conoco View Dairy farm owned and operated since 2011by his dad and mom, Linford and Mabel Nolt. The dairy itself specializes in many items, such as raw and pasteurized milk, seven or eight types of cheese, butter, cream, and various flavors of milk and yogurt drinks.
• As a young man, Kenton left the farm and worked away from home for several years, but then his dad asked him to come back and help run the dairy portion of the farm because they also specialize in beef, turkey and chickens. Managing the dairy portion of their operation, Kenton had a dream to make and serve homemade ice cream. His dad encouraged him in this endeavor and April of this year, Meadow Brook Creamery opened for business. Kenton said that they have been pretty busy since they started, visiting various venues and he even set up at the Blain Lions Club Park on Friday nights during July.
• At the present time, they have nine flavors but are constantly expanding with new seasonal flavors. It takes Kenton 12 minutes to make a two and a half gallon batch of ice cream using a commercial batch freezer that uses Freon as cooling instead of ice like a small ice cream maker uses. Kenton says his favorite is cookies and cream but he enjoys a good peach milkshake! Ironically, his wife, Ranita, is lactose intolerant so she can’t even sample the goodies!
• Meadow Brook ice cream is sold in half gallon, quarts and pints at the Conoco View farm store or you even book their ice cream trailer for an event that you are hosting! To check out any of the other dairy products from either Meadow Brook or Conoco View, you can locate their website at www.conocoviewdairy.com or call Kenton at (717) 636-1892.