Food: What to know

So I've been thinking about what it is I really want to share with people that are just begining to understand how important food production is to all of us. I've found that most people know very little about where their food comes from and the people that produce it. Therefore this post is all about the very important behind the scenes events that take place in the food production indusrty, so here it goes, things you should know about:
1. The Organic Consumers Association- these are the people that have your back, if you buy organic foods, they are at the forefront of the movement to ban GMO's in the USA or at the very least have them labeled. Check them out at www.organicconsumers.org
Their mission: The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) is an online and grassroots non-profit 501(c)3 public interest organization campaigning for health, justice, and sustainability. The OCA deals with crucial issues of food safety, industrial agriculture, genetic engineering, children's health, corporate accountability, Fair Trade, environmental sustainability and other key topics.
2.The Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund- These are the people that bail out your farmers, for doing such things as starting food co-ops and providing raw dairy to people like you and me ( or maybe just me if you haven't yet read about the nourishing benefits of raw dairy). Check them out at  www.farmtoconsumer.org

Their mission: " Protect the constitutional right of the nation’s family farms to provide processed and unprocessed farm foods directly to consumers through any legal means.
Protect the constitutional right of consumers to obtain unprocessed and processed farm foods directly from family farms."

3. Millions Against Monsanto- If you do nothing on Facebook but join this group you have done one good thing. Monsanto is "the Giant Evil" of food production. I am not exaggerating educate yourself on this biotec company because their mission is to "control the world through controlling food production". THEY ARE TRULY BIG BROTHER.
Check them out at www.millionsagainstmonsanto.org

Their mission: (In short) Challenging the Biotech Bullying of the Infamous Chemical Company

4. HOMEGROWN.ORG ( On a happy note)- they are on Facebook or you can sign up on their website to learn about all sorts of nifty stuff like bee keeping, raising chickens, canning... Super great resource for all sorts of "home" scale gardening/ farming.
Their mission: HOMEGROWN.org is a place where we can learn from each other, share our questions, and show off how we dig in the dirt, grow our own food, work with our hands, and cook and share our meals - all things that we call HOMEGROWN.
5. The Stone Barns Center (last but SO not least)- Not only is this place in NY it is also the home of serious pioneers in the food world. Com'on people it's in NY and we're not talking upstate this is a hop skip from NYC and LI. A must see and the workshops are fantastic and are for all levels of farming/home food production.

Their Mission: Stone Barns Center's mission is to celebrate, teach and advance community-based food production and enjoyment, from farm to classroom to plate. Through education, demonstration and outreach, the Center aims to spark changes in food-related practices and policies that will positively affect the health of individuals, communities, local food economies and the environment.

End of Summer Peach Salsa

End of Summer Peach Salsa

• 1 cubed small local peach
• 2 heirloom tomatoes (my favorite Cherokee purple & Striped German)
• 3 chopped chives
• 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
• 1/2 fresh lime squeezed
• pinch of salt
• pinch of sugar
• *special ingredient ( I use something called "Bone Sucking Sauce, ingredients include habanero's and smoke hickory flavor) any hot sauce will do but the smokier the better it really compliments the peach flavor
• chill and let sit over night refrigerated
• Enjoy the more local your ingredients the better

   

http://www.farmersalmanac.com/calendar/gardening/

Be sure to check the Farmer's Almanac for best days to plant, still plenty of time to plant root crops, head lettuce, carrots and more...

Transition Foods (from summer to fall)

  Fall is in the air, at least here in NY but I still have some awesome summer goodies from the garden, and I'm ready to use them in a different way. Usually I consider it an abomination to cook heirloom tomatoes in the summer, but now I want my food warm, that's where my transition recipes come in. Summer ingredients in fall meals. These beauties were made into a tasty pasta dish.

 

Main dish: Pasta, zucchini, heirloom tomatoes garlic and fresh basil.

Side dish: Sauteed beet greens with garlic and oil

* the beet roots I put aside for another recipe... coming soon

Fall for food

As summer winds down it's time to start thinking about fall foods. Personally if I eat one more cucumber I don't know but something bad might happen. Clear your garden beds of any debris like old tomato plants, string beans and such and start anew, with things like Brussels sprouts, cabbage, beets, head lettuce, kale and other hearty greens. I like to add some fresh compost to any new plantings I put in. Local farm stands and garden centers should have some veggie starters to help you on your way. If you can't find any grab some seed and plant away. Once the cool weather hits you'll be glad you did all this preparation and you can enjoy some warm dishes from the garden.

Take that Irene.. how to know which green tomatoes to pick

Take that Irene- how to know which tomatoes to grab before Irene does...If the fruit feels heavy not hollow then pick it and put in a bowl with either a banana or apple. This will help ripen them. The ones that feel hollow less dense leave on the plant. Even if your plants blow over as long as they don't get ripped out of the ground they may still ripen on the plant after the storm. Some for you some for Irene.



Beets, beets, they're good for your heart...

 

Beets, well I'm not sure if they are good for your heart, but I'm pretty sure they are good for you. Often people tell me they love beets but so seldom do I hear people like the greens. I'm a big fan of eating the whole plant.  The greens taste amazing quickly sauteed with some sea salt, and for the root well I have a couple variations on the same recipe but here's the family fave for this summer.

Beets with Avocado and Feta

1.Quarter 6 med. size beets and boil till soft (8-10 minutes) then plunge in cold water and peel off skin.

2. Cut up about 1/4 cup chives add to cooled beets

3. 1/2 cup cut up celery

4. Cube up one cup of Feta firm cheese add to cooled beets

5. One whole firm avocado cut into small cubes add to cooled beets 

6. Add sea salt ( huge fan of Celtic sea salt) and fresh ground pepper to taste

Grow something... anywhere

In an effort to feed my family which is quite large, I began doing what I love, growing food. What started as a pastime is now a passion. Having worked on organic farms of varying sizes and locations I began using what I know to put food directly in the backyards of people who want to eat fresh and know how their food is grown. Follow along and see how we grow... literally! Enjoy! And grow something... anywhere.