Article by Rich C. Lakeberg, Ottawa County Department of Strategic Impact (posted with permission) The West Michigan growing season may not have started yet, but the Ottawa County Agriculture Preservation Board is celebrating a bumper crop after officially protecting its sixth property, Shady Side Farm, with the Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) program. This agreement guarantees…
I know you’ve been looking at seed catalogues lately. It’s still plenty cold outside, but now is the time to dream. And as you plan, I’d like to encourage you to consider incorporating wool in your garden. Why you should use wool: Conserves water. Wool holds 20-30x its own weight in water and releases it…
We definitely eat differently in the winter. More oven, less grill. More low and slow, less eat and run. And in my humble opinion, lamb shanks are best saved for fall/winter eating. Although they are an easily overlooked cut, you will be surprised and delighted once you try them. This recipe is a little work…
I just made this delicious heirloom bean and lamb stew. It’s turned cold again, and this hearty meal is a great option for a cold winter evening. The Farmer reports that it was tasty, hot and filling. (He usually doesn’t use any more words than necessary.) Our daughter was visiting at the time, and made the…
This is the time of year that we are in planning mode. I just finished setting up all the harvest dates for the year for our lamb and beef, and that feels good. I thought you might like a little glimpse into what we have in store this year with our grass-fed meats so that you…
We had folks visit us this summer, and while they were here they whipped up this light summer salad made with our einkorn berries. I asked if I could share the recipe. Just what you want for a summer dinner, this salad manages to somehow be light and refreshing on a hot day, and still…
This Asian Red Bean Salad is a simple and flavorful dish that combines cooked Amethyst, Painted Lady, or Spanish Tolosana beans with savory and tangy ingredients. The recipe features a soy sauce and rice vinegar dressing, complemented by thinly sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds. The beans are mixed with the dressing and seasoned with…
The Heirloom and Bean Feta Salad is a simple, fresh, and flavorful dish featuring Fort Portal Jade or Painted Pony beans. These beans are cooked and combined with thinly sliced red onion, crumbled feta cheese, and a light dressing of olive oil and lemon juice. A pinch of salt enhances the taste. This salad can…
Do you want to try grass-fed beef, but feel unsure about how to cook it? We understand! When we began our switch to grass-fed beef for its health benefits and great flavor, we had a lot to learn. After some experimenting, we’ve come up with several helpful tips and tricks that will allow you to…
This is one of our favorite things to have on hand for a quick breakfast or snack. So much hearty flavor! We often use melted lard as a replacement for the oil in the recipe. Bran Muffins A healthy, quick breakfast or snack loaded with fiber muffin tins 1/3 cup oil 2/3 cup boiling water…