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That's no dyed egg! It's the most deep aqua aracauna eggs I have ever seen, provided by one of Ahlam's awesome chickens. Pretty natural colored eggs are just one of the pleasures of eating locally!
May your eggs be colored and baskets overflowing this year.
One of the pleasures of CSA membership is receiving produce that we would never choose for ourselves. It forces us to learn how to cook and eat different things. Somethings we agree we wouldn't choose to purchase again, but some things have become favorites. My current favorite CSA vegetable is kale. We will be seeding kale in our garden this weekend because I love it so much. It is super high in vitamins K, A, and C, low in calories, and contains organosulpher phytonutrients, substances believed to prevent cancer. It is so sweet that Lil calls it 'rabbit food' and can be convinced to eat it raw.
Sometimes we throw kale in a salad or soup. It is delicious sauteed just to wilting with a little olive oil or butter.
Tonight I tried baked kale thanks to recommendations from friends. I removed the leaves from the stems (saving stems in freezer for veggie stock) and washed them. Then I drizzled a cookie sheet with olive oil, laid the kale in one layer, put a bit more olive oil on top and sprinkled with salt and pepper. I baked at 250 deg for a about 20 minutes.
The result is a sweet crispy chip. We ate it with dinner and are finishing off the leftovers right now. Yum!
What is your favorite CSA discovery? How do you love to prepare it?
We are busy! Here's what we have been doing this week: 1) I went to a fun meet and greet CSA event at Wild Goose last night. Farmers from 2 Silos, Bridgman, Elizabeth Telling, Toad Hill, and Wayward Seed were there, all with spaces in their veggie/egg/meat CSAs still available.
2) We received a new rain barrel from the Rain Brothers today. It's already installed because it was just replacing the broken one. And after tonight's storm, it might be full. Yeah for rain catching!
3) We keep watering our seedlings. They are starting to look great! We need to thin some already.
4) I spent a half hour or so removing honeysuckle and english ivy vines from the fence between our house and our neighbor's. Jan was out weeding from her side too. We both realize these voracious growers will be a constant battle, but it is such a pleasure to work alongside a neighbor. I am so grateful to have another gardener next door. :)
5) I have taken pictures for posts about making butter and the usefulness of glass jars. Still working on the editing and writing, but good stuff is coming soon.
6)I'm hearing the grumbling about no finished kitchen pictures. That's because it isn't done yet! Another post is slated for the little things we have yet to finish...
I just got this from Wayward Seed farm:
The Wild Goose site suggests a $5 donation. Wild Goose is located at 2491 Summit Street Columbus, OH 43202
The organic wine sealed the deal - I'm going to try to make it tomorrow night!
A few years ago I stopped buying yogurt in little containers and purchased the big containers to prevent waste. Then we transitioned from flavored yogurt to plain because most flavored varieties have so much sugar, thickeners and other unhealthy additives. Now we are making it ourselves. Homemade yogurt is so easy and yummy you should try it too! Start with good milk. We use our raw milk from the herdshare. Our milk comes whole and unhomogenized. If I want extra special yogurt, I leave all the cream in, but usually I skim most of it and reserve for making butter. (Post about making butter forthcoming.) If you don't have a herdshare (really, only us crazy hippies do), choose fresh local milk wherever possible, in whatever fat content you prefer.
You must also have a starter to make yogurt. For 1 quart of milk, you need 5 oz of starter yogurt. I like brown cow plain or fage. You can also piggyback with yogurt you make, but potentcy dwindles over each generation, so it's best to use a storebought starter at least every other batch.
Most recipes recommend pasteurizing your milk by gently heating to 180 deg. F, then quickly cooling to 110 deg. F before adding the starter. Pasteurization prevents any incompatible cultures from interfering with the yogurt cultures. I have been told that this step isn't necessary for raw milk, but I haven't been adventurous enough to try making yogurt without pastuerizing yet.
After the heating (or not), thoroughly wisk in the starter yogurt. Pour into containers and keep at about 110 deg for 6 - 12 hours.
There are many ways to keep yogurt at temperature for the incubation period:
- in the stove with pilot light
-in a dehydrator set on low
-wrapped in an electric heat pad (the kind you might use if you pull a muscle in your back)
-in a yogurt maker
After experimenting with the other methods with little success, Alex gave me a yogurt maker for my birthday last year. I almost never advocate one-use tools, but the yogurt maker has its place in our kitchen. I ditched the plastic containers that came with the set and designated a set of pint glass jars instead.
I like to leave an inch of room at the top for adding sweetener, fruit, or granola, or all three for a parfait. When packing lunch on the go, I often add frozen fruit to keep the yogurt cool and tasty.
There you have it. Homemade yogurt, free of sweeteners, thickeners, and other unhealthy stuff, and full of love!
Readers have been asking me about recommendations for Summer CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) subscriptions. Wikipedia has a good entry on CSAs if you are not familiar. The truth is that this year, we will not participate in one. We think we can grow everything we need in our backyard garden supplemented with trips to the farmers market every once in awhile.
For two years we participated in small CSA. We can't remember the name at the moment, but I'll update later if it comes to us. The quantity was fine and produce was OK although not everything was grown on the farm. The closest pickup was really too far away for us.
Last year we were part of a tiny CSA run by our neighbor's sister. It was fantastic to directly support someone I know. She is not offering a CSA this year.
If we were signing up again this year, here are the CSAs I would consider:
*Athens Hills CSA from Green Edge Gardens - we are getting the winter veggie CSA and it is bountiful and delicious. They write on their blog that they will be offering a summer CSA too.
*2silos meat CSA - 2silos will be offering a summer version of the meat CSA this year. They also have an veggie CSA but it is sold out. Alex recently reported on the winter meat CSA if you want more info.
*Elizabeth Telling Farm - We don't have personal experience with this CSA, but others in the community like it. We are always impressed with their produce at the farmers markets.
*Wayward Seed - Again, our only experience with Wayward Seed is through the great vegs we saw at farmers markets. They also offer a fruit CSA which I am trying to figure out if we want to invest in.
*Sippel Farm - This CSA is sold our for the 2009 CSA season, but it is the most recommended farm by friends. They are already taking names for the 2010 season!
Are you participating in a CSA this year? If so, which one?
Did I miss any you would recommend?
To this point I haven't posted much on our kitchen/food blog. Rachel has been after me to remedy this oversight and now the Restaurant Widow has taken me to task over not posting about my meat CSA. First off, what is a CSA? If you are reading a food blog, I expect you know already. For those who do not know, CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture. The basic concept is that at the start of the season you pay a local farmer or cooperative a certain amount of money (anywhere from $300-$600 is the usual price). In return, you receive farm products on a regular schedule. The products available are up to the farmer and usually reflect current production. Previously Rachel and I have participated in vegetable CSAs. It is quite fun and enjoyable to receive a surprise bag of vegetables, fruit, flour or honey on a weekly basis.
This fall I decided to try something new. 2Silos farm offered a meat CSA for the first time. 2silos supplies local grocery stores with a variety of organic, heirloom and free-range eggs. Their meat CSA started in November and is slated to run until April. So far I have received pork, beef, chicken, lamb, rabbit and a goose for Christmas. The pick-ups occur on the first Saturday of each month and I receive a bag of approximately 10 pounds of meat products.
Cuts have been quite varied. I have had london broil, flank steak, round steak (made into jerky below), NY Strip, ribeye, and ground chuck from the beef family. As far as pig products, I had so very nice tenderloin medallions, loin chops, and bulk breakfast sausage. Each month, I receive a whole frozen fryer and a dozen eggs. The lamb has been ground and also in packaged chops. I just cooked a whole fresh rabbit last week and it was delicious. I also apparently have game birds to look forward to in the next couple of months (quail, pheasant, etc...).
The goose I ordered for Christmas has been one of the highlights of the meat CSA. While not an included feature of the CSA, the Christmas Goose option was only an extra $25. For anyone who has ever bought goose, you will know they generally run about $30-$35 for a frozen goose. Prior to this goose I have never cooked a fresh goose. This was hands down the most delicious goose I have ever eaten. I put it in a simple brine and then used Julia Child's steam-roasting method to cook it. It was incredibly tender and everyone loved it at Christmas-eve dinner. I have to give credit to 2silos for raising a very flavorful bird.
I also receive odds and ends each month. So far I have found pig kidneys, pig liver and chicken liver in my grab bag. I am still trying to decide how to cook the pig offal, and will update when I do. The chicken liver and goose liver made an excellent stuffing for the Christmas goose.
Overall, I have really liked this meat CSA. Denise at 2silos has done a great job running it and communicating with the participants. We receive a monthly newsletter and Denise is quick at answering any questions. The meat has been of very high quality and of a nice diversity. I like being able to easily receive a more than generous quantity of meat each month that is raised by a local farmer. Since the CSA began I haven't had the need to purchase any meat from a grocery store.
The intangible benefit of CSA participation is that not only do you get really high-quality product on a regular basis, you support your local agricultural community. Many farmers are being forced out of business by large scale factory and commercial farming. To survive, farmers have turned to non-traditional methods to generate revenue. Some have explored niche markets like heirloom vegetables and animals. Others have gone the organic route. Establishing a CSA is a very good way for a farmer to make a guaranteed income over a season.
So take a look at the 2silos meat CSA. Denise is accepting applications now for the CSA that will run over the summer. And if meat isn't your thing, consider one of the many fine vegetable CSA's that are available in the Columbus area. Either way, you will love the diversity of food you receive, and you will have the satisfaction of supporting a farmer in your local community.
Eating made from scratch meals is common in our house. Most days we eat 3 meals of homemade food, mostly made from scratch. Many people we meet are stunned that we do this. 100 years ago everyone ate from home, but now many people are used to lunch out, and often breakfast and dinner on the run.
Yet research from dietitians and psychologists alike confirm that eating at home, and eating made from scratch food is healthier for our bodies and familial relationships.
So, how do you do it?
1) Make the commitment. There are lots of reasons you might make homemade foods a priority. We enjoy the food more than premade, like the culinary adventure, and feel closer as a family when we eat homemade foods.
2) Join a CSA, co-op, or herdshare. This winter we have a weekly veggie CSA from Athens Hills, weekly milk /egg share from a farmer friend, a monthly meat CSA from 2Silos Farm, and monthly dry goods co-op from Frontier. We've already paid for these items at the beginning of the season. The pickups are closeby. We can't stand to waste food, so once the groceries are in the house, we feel obligated to use them.
3) Plan. Some people are meal planners who have a rotation of 21 dinners, or do a month in advance. We are not such people. We do try to write on a whiteboard on the fridge weekly our dinner plans. That way we at least know how we will use most of the CSA foods and what we need to prep ahead.
4) Reduce trips to the grocery store. When you have the right mix of planning and CSA/co-ops, grocery store trips become less needed, and the temptation to buy premade is reduced.
5) Take baby steps. Slowly eliminate some of the processed food you eat and replace it with homemade. You might start by baking bread once a week. Or take a weekend day and make a big batch of jam, canning or freezing some for later. Make double batches of soup, spice rubs, waffles, etc. and freeze or save the half you don't use for a quick meal later. Much of the homemade food we eat is canned or frozen by us when we have time. We all have things to work on: boxed crackers, corn chips, and cereal are still staples here, as is store bought kefir, cheese, and wine.
6) Lower your expectations. Restaurant eating normalizes the experience of eating a meal with 4 or 5 components, often each with their own sauce. Very often our homemade meals are much simpler. Breakfast is yogurt and granola, oatmeal, or toast. Lunch is usually packed for on the go eating: a simple protein (cheese, slice of meat, boiled egg), salad or veggie sticks, whole piece of fruit, and starch (chips, crackers, bread). Dinner is protein (meat, beans, or meat substitute), starch (potato, rice, muffin), and veggie. Here is a picture of tonight's dinner -fritatta with swiss chard, baked potato with leftover mushroom sauce from last night, and applesauce canned in the fall.
7) Enjoy the benefits! If you make food from scratch more often, you might find yourself with a new friend in your CSA provider. You will gain confidence in your cooking ability and your family will become closer. You might even feel healthier.
What do you do to Eat Homemade?