Losing My Bloginity...

Hello and welcome to my first blog!  With the encouragement and support of my great friends and family, I have decided to take my New Year's Resolution one step further and blog about it.  I have committed to support my local farmers by investing in two Community Supported Agriculture ("CSA") shares: one with Chestnut Farm in Hardwick, MA and one with Sunshine Farm in Sherborn, MA (more about those later) and fill in the gaps as much as I can with visits to my local farmers markets.  As my dad said on the phone the other night, I am trying to reduce the amount of "food with a bar code" in my daily life.  My goal is to become a locavore!

I am not a trained cook, I do not have a fancy schmancy kitchen or all the best equipment.  In fact, I live in an apartment with my loyal, loving and at times neurotic dachshund Oscar, and my feisty, sweet and playful kitten Tess.  I work for an investment firm in the city, which often times means I am home after 7:00 during the week.  This means most of my cooking occurs on the weekend and I have learned to maximize my freezer and to relish leftovers.  A couple years ago, I recognized that I needed to start incorporating better food and ingredients into my everyday life, so I made the switch from your standard big box grocery store to Trader Joe's and Whole Foods.  I rarely go into Stop & Shop (like Safeway for my West Coasters) now, and when I have to, I feel a bit out of my element. 

The Beginning
From an early age, thanks to many Saturdays in my grandmother's kitchen, I have enjoyed baking.  My mom bought me a Better Crocker's Junior Cookbook when I was about eight and I used it quite often.  The snickerdoodle recipe was tops!  I was fortunate to grow up in a one income household, so we always had meals at home and usually had dinner at the table as a family a couple nights a week.  As I went off to college, I realized I needed to learn a few things about cooking!  My friends from college may remember my first attempt at chili and cornbread made in a mini crockpot and electric kettle.  I used dried beans and apparently they hadn't completely re-hydrated, but the cornbread was awesome!  Of course, who could forget my spaghetti dinners on Friday nights in grad school?  I would have the girls over, we would eat, drink and play cards until the wee hours of the morning.  Keep in my mind, my kitchen in my RHD apartment was a converted hall closet--no joke!  I had to buy special pans for the oven because it wouldn't hold a standard cookie sheet or muffin tin.  After I had moved about 5 times and by the time my brother and I bought our condo in 2004, I was really getting into my groove. I moved back to Massachusetts in 2006, which marked a turning point for me in many ways.

My first summer back, I discovered Jones Farm in Chelmsford and Wilson Farm in Lexington. My lovely friend Heidi was with me the day I first set foot on Jones Farm.  I was doing yard work and was there for the nursery.  When we went inside to pay, we discovered all the fresh produce and homemade mozzarella.  We made the most mouth-watering caprese salad with tomatoes, basil and mozz that we bought from the farm, and finished it off with grilled chicken and farm fresh corn for dinner that night.  It was the most satisfying meal after a long day gardening in the July sun.  That was the turning point for me...that was when I fell in love with (1) tomatoes, which if you know me, I have despised since I was little, and (2) farm-to-table cooking.

"What is a CSA?" You Might Ask...

Yes, let's get back to that...well, CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture.  You invest a set amount of money into the local farm by purchasing a "share" of the farm, which will help the farmers plant, feed and harvest the crops.  In return, you receive the bounty of the farm.  I have chosen two very different types of CSA shares: from Chestnut Farms, I receive 10 pounds of meat once a month.  It is a variety of cuts of pork, lamb, beef and chicken.  I will get some ground meat (this month was ground lamb), a breakfast meat (pork sausage patties this time), stew meats in the winter, grilling meats in the summer, a higher end steak cut, and chicken pieces. They also offer fresh eggs to their shareholders.  From Sunshine Farms, my friend Cindy and I will be splitting a whole share once the summer harvest begins.  For about 20 weeks starting in early June, we will share a whole bushel a week of the summer and fall's freshest and ripest fruit and vegetables.  I CAN'T wait for this!  While both farms are not certified organic,which I have learned doesn't always mean what you think it means, they do not use fertilizers, growth hormones or pesticides. The fruits and veggies are grown on approximately 30 acres of farm land, which is a mile from my house. The animals are hand-fed local grain and hay and allowed to graze freely on the farm and to forage in the forest.

What Now?
In my attempt to eat more healthfully this year, I plan on sharing my stories, including successes, failures and all the funny things that happen along the way. I will post pictures, recipes, links to my favorite websites, cookbooks I use, and of course, pictures!  I plan on taking a field trip to Open Barn Day this spring at Chestnut Farms.  If they'll let me share, I will introduce you to my farming families as well.

Until next time, be well and support your local farmers!