Calling All Cowshare Owners

Spring is the time for babies and they are popping out all over the farm.  The dairy cows will not be outdone by the sheep (although they are seriously outnumbered) and several cows have calved which means more milk.  More milk means yogurt, buttermilk, ricotta and cream.  Brayden will have some extra for our cowshare owners at the market but if you want to be certain to go home with some extra products please order at least two days before the market or drop off.

We have two new girls in the milking line, Luna and Buttercup.  They came to us via our friend Bob DePauw in Illinois, the only farm we trust for our new heifers.  These two beauties are the last girls we think we will need to purchase from off the farm but we will now begin to keep all of our own replacements.  

Next time...

our dairy sheep, Dolly (Parton) and our dairy goat, Stella ( I love yelling "Hey Stella!! in my best Brando impersonation) will be ready for milking and I will have more information on shares available for sheep and goat milk and yogurt.

Spring has Sprung at River Cottage Farm

When Mother Nature tries to make up her mind on whether or not to offer up spring things can be tricky.  Do we shear the sheep or not.  They are much too hot when the temperatures rise above 65 but with nighttime temps still in the 30's, it's just a bit chilly for naked sheep.

Should the plastic get folded up and put away or just set alongside the bed, just in case. Broccoli, beets, leeks, onions, asparagus, carrots, lettuce, and kale are already up and growing in the raised beds and the dips in temperatures keep us on our toes.

But finally she seems to have made up her mind and we will have spring.  The parrot tulips are up and glorious in all their pink splendor and the red tulips, keeping all the herbs company, beckon us to eat our meals out in the garden, which we obey, gladly .

Welcome Spring!!

Three Farms Unite to Form Local Harvest Alliance

Local Harvest Alliance

Festina Lente Farms and River Cottage Farm and Sunny Point Gardens have united to form a new market style CSA program, Local Harvest Alliance. Subscribers to this CSA program will be able to purchase from an extensive list of healthy farm fresh, chemical free, local food!


Just a few of these products include fruits, fresh cut flowers, herbs, vegetables, grass fed beef, pastured pork, chicken and lamb, eggs, raw milk, cheese, dried beans, gluten free grains, mushrooms plus much more. Please visit the Local Harvest Alliance web site, read about our CSA and then visit the sites of all three farms to learn more about us.




Our market style CSA is different than most CSAs and it works like this. You subscribe to the program, you instantly earn a bonus credit and then you

shop for what you want and when you want it.

Subscribers will be able to log in to our web site any given week to see what each farm has available and place an order. We then bring your order to the Community Farmers Market on Saturdays for you to pick up.

Local Harvest Alliance;
"Connecting People to Their Food, The Earth and Community"

Please view our on line store to view some of products
that will available throughout the growing season.

http://www.localharvestalliance.com/csa-member-ordering.html

Seeing Through the Eyes of Beauty

Photo by Rhayna Apple

                                                 

 Every now and again I hear a sentence that makes me shudder, in a good way.  Like when I read "He is the breath inside the breath” and had to put my book down while I caught my breath.  My soul loves that kind of talk.  Soul candy I suppose. I feel as though a layer of something unseen has been pulled back and I had the good fortune to be in the right place at the right time and got a lucky glimpse into something or some place unseen. 

Today I read that “a beautiful thing, though simple in its immediate presence, always gives us a sense of depth below depth, almost an innocent wild vertigo as one falls through its levels.” 

I am sure that all we need is to open our eyes, no matter where we are, to see beauty but the farm is such a wonderful picture of this. 

I see children come to the farm who look out onto green pastures teeming with life and see not abundance but scarcity and void.  No T.V., no games, no air conditioning, no action, no entertainment.  Other children though, widen their eyes as if it were their duty to keep nothing hidden from their heart and soul.  They see the birds, the bugs, the thickness of the wool on a lamb, the long black eyelashes on a calf, the velvety black noses of the cows, the different colored feathers of a chicken that looked "just" red from far off. They see the subtlest shades of green, blue and brown of the various colored eggs.  They see things crawling in the dirt and flying in the air.  They notice that different size bees are on the same plant.  They hear the unique calls of the birds in the trees or the tapping of a woodpecker searching for lunch. Depth upon depth they fall through layers of beauty.

William Stafford wrote that “hearing things you do not need to hear dulls your hearing”.  I am certain that seeing what we shouldn’t see dulls our vision.  I see it so starkly in the children that visit our farm and it worries me for them and for me. 

Work on a farm is grueling.  It is never ending and always demanding.  I am trying to take a clue from the monastery farms we have either visited or read about.  We try to remember to pray while we collect eggs or gather the cows for milking.  We are thankful for the cycles of the moon when we sow clover in February that will feed our cows in May.  We are thankful for the sheep that will grow the wool this winter to keep us warm next winter.  We are thankful for the buzzing bees, happily gathering pollen to make honey for our bread and tea.

Stepping over dung beetles on their way to the depths of the earth and walking under the birds that keep my garden free of pests I thank God for beauty, especially the beauty that calls me to remember who I am and of what I am made.  My feet planted firmly on the ground but my head, oh my, the heavens my mind can reach while in the grasp of beauty.  

Thanksgiving Comes to River Cottage Farm

It's that time again and here is my favorite recipe for turkey this year.  Again, from the wonders of Williams-Sonoma...

Cranberry Glazed Turkey

Begin roasting the turkey at a higher temperature so the skin will crisp and brown, then reduce the heat to ensure the bird cooks slowly and evenly. It's important to let the turkey rest before carving. This allows time for the juices to be absorbed back into the meat, making the bird easier to carve and the meat moister.

Ingredients:

• 1 fresh turkey, about 16 lb., neck, heart
    and gizzard removed (reserved, if desired) - 12-15 minutes per pound if larger or smaller
• 2 cups sweetened cranberry juice
• 6 Tbs. (3⁄4 stick) unsalted butter,
    melted and cooled
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 2 TB herbs - (I like sage but you can use whatever you have on hand)

Directions:

Let the turkey stand at room temperature for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Position a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 425°F.

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the cranberry juice to a boil and cook until reduced to 3/4 cup, 12 to 15 minutes. Add 4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) of the butter and stir until incorporated. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Remove the giblets and neck, if included, and reserve for making gravy, if desired. Rinse the turkey inside and out with cold water and pat dry with paper towels. Trim off and discard excess fat. Season the body cavity with salt and pepper, and place the herbs inside the cavity. If desired, truss the turkey with kitchen twine. Spread the remaining 2 Tbs. butter over the turkey breast, and season the outside of the turkey with salt and pepper.

Place the turkey, breast side up, on a rack in a large roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes. Reduce the heat to 325°F and roast for about 1 1/2 hours more, then begin basting every 15 minutes with the cranberry juice mixture. Add about 1 cup water to the pan to keep the glaze from burning. Continue roasting until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the breast, away from the bone, registers 165°F, and inserted into the thigh registers 175°F. Total roasting time should be 3 to 3 1/2 hours. If the breast begins to cook too quickly, tent it loosely with aluminum foil.

Transfer the turkey to a warmed platter, cover loosely with foil and let rest for about 20 minutes before carving.

Serves 12.

Williams-Sonoma Kitchen.

Making Bone Broth - Traditional Stock

When the cold weather creeps in it is time for me to make broth.  The warmth and nourishment seem to fit well with my quest toward natural and seasonal living.  I used my last quart of beef broth last week for the sensational, crowd pleasing Shepherds Pie (recipe forthcoming). Something in me just doesn't feel right when there is no stock in the freezer.  I have had the severe misfortune some years ago of depleting my stock of stock and being forced to resort to store bought "stock". What an ordeal! What salty, tasteless, flat squalor!

I normally put up at least 52 quarts of bone both broth throughout the winter, one for each week but after reading the article by Allison Siebecker I may have to double that amount. Her article describes in detail the benefits of bone broth as well as explaining each component of bone broth and its benefits. Here is her list of ailments that are benefited by broth: aging skin, allergies, anemia, anxiety, asthma, atherosclerosis, attention deficit, bean maldigestion, brittle nails, carbohydrate maldigestion, Celiac Disease, colic, confusion, constipation, dairy maldigestion, delusions, dental degeneration, depression, detoxification, Diabetes, diarrhea, fatigue, food sensitivities, fractures, Gastritis, grain maldigestion, heart attack, high cholesterol, hyperactivity, hyperchlorhydria (reflux, ulcer), hyperparathyroidism (primary), hypertension, hypochlorhydria, hypoglycemia, immunodepression, increased urination, infectious disease, inflammation, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Crohn's Disease and Ulcerative Colitis), insomnia, intestinal bacterial infections, irritability, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Jaundice, joint injury, Kidney stones, leaky gut, loss of appetite, meat maldigestion, memory, muscle cramps, muscle spasms, muscle wasting, muscle weakness, Muscular Dystrophy, nausea, nervousness, Osteoarthritis, Osteomalacia, Osteoporosis, pain, palpitations, Periodontal Disease, pregnancy, rapid growth, restlessness, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Rickets, seizure, shallow breathing, stupor, virility, vomiting, weakness, weight loss due to illness, wound healing.

Broth is one of those foods that have been around for centuries and due to our overly busy schedules we have let fall by the wayside, imagining hours of straining and stirring. Nothing could be further from the truth. Stock making can be an easy and enjoyable part of natural and seasonal living, if you remember a few key tips.

1. Always use bones from healthy animals
2. The longer you simmer, the more you will pull from the bones
3. Don't boil the stock - just let it gently simmer - don't let it go over 200-220 F
4. Don't leave the lid on the pot
5. Use only organic vegetables
6. Try to use a variety of bones for their different properties

I try to keep four types of broth (chicken, lamb, veal and beef) in the freezer so that no matter what I want to make I have the right stock. For the less nerdy of us, beef and veal broth are great to have on hand because veal broth can be used for chicken and lamb. Veal broth is the most nutritious of all stocks because of the higher amounts of collagen which add tons of gelatin and makes the most wonderfully rich stock. If you don't believe me check out this blog for a humorous take on veal stock (also the pictures of stock making are great).

Well back to stock making. Here is the basic recipe:

Organic Cooking: Bone Broth

1. Bones -- raw bones, with or without skin and meat, from poultry, beef, lamb or veal - use a whole carcass or just parts (good choices include feet, ribs, necks and knuckles)

2. Water -- start with enough cold water to just cover the bones or 2 cups water per 1 pound bones

3. Vinegar -- 2 tablespoons apple cider, red or white wine, rice or balsamic vinegar per 1 quart water or 2 pounds bones - lemon juice may be substituted for vinegar (citric acid instead of acetic acid)

4. Vegetables (optional) -- peelings and scraps like ends, tops and skins or entire vegetable celery, carrots, onions, garlic and parsley are the most traditionally used, but any will do (if added towards the end of cooking, mineral content will be higher)

Recipe

Bones soaking in cold water and vinegar

Stock ready to skim

Combine bones, water and vinegar in a pot, let stand for 30 minutes to 1 hour, bring to a simmer, remove any scum that has risen to the top, reduce heat and simmer (6-48 hrs for chicken, 12-72 hrs for beef).It is VERY important to keep the temperature to 200F or below after the initial boiling because the bones stop releasing gelatin at higher temperatures.


Add vegetables anytime, up to the last 1/2 hour of cooking. A basic formula is 50% onions, 25% celery and 25% carrots.

If your oven can be set to a low temperature that maintains the stock at 200F or lower just put your stock into the oven overnight.

Strain through a colander or sieve, lined with cheesecloth for a clearer broth. Discard the bones. If uncooked meat was used to start with, reserve the meat for soup or salads.

An easy way to cook broth is to use a crockpot on low setting. After putting the ingredients into the pot and turning it on, you can just walk away. If you forget to skim the impurities off, it's ok, it just tastes better if you do. If you wish to remove the fat for use in gravy, use a gravy separator while the broth is warm, or skim the fat off the top once refrigerated. Cold broth will gel when sufficient gelatin is present. Broth may be frozen for months or kept in the refrigerator for about 5 days.

New Smoking Goose Products

Sometimes it's easy to forget how effective our newsletter and blog have become at getting the word out about new great products we produce or secure from other farmers.  Well, obviously our customers have been waiting for healthy, delicious charcuterie meats because our Smoking Goose meats surprisingly sold out only a few days after being announced.

So this week we will restock the Chorizo (both links and chubs), Sliced Turkey, Mortadella and Duck, Pear and Port Wine Sausage and will add to the mix sliced Pastrami.

I'll just add a little reminder here that all of the items that we produce or stock are always nitrate and nitrite free as well as gluten and casein free. A wonderful bonus is that all of the products we sell are produced from heritage breeds which helps to maintain breed diversity.

As I am write this post from the road I am waiting patiently for our River Cottage Farm veal to be magically transformed into River Cottage Farm Veal Bratwurst by the gifted hands of Chris Eley and his compatriots at the Smoking Goose headquarters.




True Artisanal traditionally prepared foods are what we want to save from extinction and it goes without saying that I couldn't be more please by our customer response to these products.

Over the past 20 years of working with farmers and local artisans we have found that the only way to save our local food economy is to safeguard artisinal mastery where we find it and promote it as best we can in order to ensure its sustainability.

A sad commentary on our limited food choices is the often repeated comment on the Smoking Goose sliced turkey breast.  Many customers who came back to stock up recounted their surprise to find this was really turkey and could barely remember the taste after years of accepting chewed up, filler filled, pressed down and sliced up turkey "product" in place of real sliced turkey.

As customers rally around such treasures we begin to see other small-batch producers seeking out farmers to meet the demands of their discerning customers and the upward cycle begins.

Feel free to visit their website and place a special order.  If you can't make it out to the shop you can order any of the items from our online store and we will be happy to deliver your order to the Franklin Farmer's Market or any of our delivery drop off locations.

So, please reach back and give yourselves a warm and heartfelt pat on the back.  We thank you  for your support, together we are really starting something wonderful here in the South!