An Important Link . . . . .

Just found this farm's blog a few weeks ago and have been meaning to post this think to a fantastic article written on the "Honest Meat" blog.

http://www.honestmeat.com/honest_meat/2010/09/so-you-say-you-want-a-food-revolution.html

It is a shame about their farm though. I do hope they travel to Maine and see what the farmers here are doing. Maine is a state where our farm numbers have actually INCREASED by 13%.

Here is a great article from the Bangor Daily News that describes what is happening on the Ag Front in Maine.

http://www.bangordailynews.com/story/Opinion/Reasons-for-optimism-about-Maines-farms,157023

Buy local . . . . . Eat Well . . . . .

Is Healthy Food Expensive? I Am About to Bust The Myth.

Pictured on my dining room table is my weekly order to a local food buying club (as some of you know we also host one here at our farm store - pick up is on Friday's).

These healthy and fresh items (picked hours before delivery) include:

4 Pounds Kale
1 Pound Heirloom Tomatoes
5 Bunches of Chocolate Mint
4 Dozen Eggs
1/2 Dozen Duck Eggs
1 Pound Brussels Sprouts
1/4 Pound Mixed Baby Lettuce
3 Large Bunches Beets
1 Pound Beet Greens
2 Pounds Russian Banana Fingerling Potatoes
1 Pound Swiss Chard
3 Bunches Scallions

All of the products above totaled $76.25. Round out this batch of produce and eggs with a gallon of fresh raw milk and a few cuts of pasture raised meats and a pantry stocked with bulk beans, rice, flour and various oils, condiments and spices ~ you can eat very well on $100.00 or less per week.

It is so sad to see what people buy at the grocery store. 9 out of 10 carts are loaded with processed boxed foods, soda's, chips, frozen entrees, etc. Most of these products are not only cheap but so easy to cook . . . . just heat and eat. The health consequences for eating foods loaded with the wrong kind of fats, preservatives, salt, etc. can lead to obesity, diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

We are three generations removed from routinely eating fresh, local foods and knowing how to cook from scratch (healthy meals based on primary ingredients). The local food movement in our own remote area of the country has begun to catch on and I believe will continue to grow. As local farmers/producers it is our job to not only grow and raise the healthiest, best tasting food but show everyone that - YES, it can be purchased reasonably with some simple menu planning and staples bought in bulk.

Future posts will feature some of my favorite (quick) recipes using locally produced products and staples that everyone should have on hand.

Buy local . . . . . eat well . . . .

Hen of The Woods Mushroom!!!

Over the past few years I have noticed a very distictive mushroom growing at the base of our neighbor, Ed's Oak tree. Last year Ed tried some of this mushroom as he was told it may be edible (and I thought so too) and called us the next day to say the mushroom was delicious and he was still alive to tell us about it. Please, if you are foraging for mushrooms for the first time ~ take your harvest to someone who can positively identify what you have picked and don't use yourself as a guinea pig.



This year Ed is down in Portland, ME while his mushroom has grown over the last week. Mark called him up yesterday and asked if we could harvest it. Ed said "go ahead but freeze some for me". Well, we harvested two from the same tree a 25 pound "Hen of The Woods" mushroom and a smaller 5 pound "sister" mushroom. We had these this morning sauteed with a mixture of our chicken and duck eggs scambled and they were great. This evening I made an old fashioned cream of mushroom soup with some raw jersey cream and milk from Olde Sow Farm ~ fabulous.



We froze the smaller mushroom for Ed and bagged up the rest for our freezer. Hen of the Woods is really one of the only mushrooms that can be frozen raw. I put up 18 2 lb bags of mushrooms for this winter (along with our chantrelles).



This mushroom is also known as "Mitake" and is not only a superb culinary gourmet treat but also boasts medicinal traits as well. It is reputed to stimulate the immune system in various ways. Google the mushroom and you can find out more about it.

We have enough meals to get us through until the next harvest in the fall...

Buy local . . . . forage. . . . and eat well.