Love that we get to talk about so many different ideas in the world of cheese with our conversation with artisan cheddar cheesemaker and dairy farmer David Hemme with this episode!

1. Curds: The solid part of milk that forms during the cheesemaking process when an acid or enzyme is added.
2. Hoop: A device used in cheesemaking to shape and press the curds into a solid block.
3. Creamery: A place where milk is processed into various dairy products, such as cheese, butter, and cream.
4. Artisan cheese: High-quality cheese, typically handcrafted by skilled cheesemakers using traditional methods and often made in small batches.
5. Cheese curds: Fresh or young cheese that hasn’t matured fully and still retains a slight squeak when bitten into. These are more common with artisan batches.
6. Ciabatta: A type of bread, also known as ciabatta, with a soft and chewy texture. Oh so good too.
7. Soprasada: A type of Italian dry-cured sausage, typically made from pork.
8. Artisan pizza: A traditional, high-quality pizza made with carefully chosen ingredients and often baked in a wood-fired oven.
9. Hispanic cheese: Cheese varieties commonly consumed in Hispanic cuisines, such as queso fresco or queso blanco. They have a different type of stretch and melt qualities than cheddar.
10. Shelf-stable cheese: Cheese that is preserved using chemicals to prevent spoilage and allow for a longer shelf life without refrigeration.
11. Cereal rye: A type of grain used for cover cropping, which helps improve soil health and reduce erosion during the winter months.
12. Carbon capture: The process of capturing and storing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere to mitigate climate change.
13. Cattle manure compost: Decomposed or partially decomposed cow manure that is used as a soil amendment to enhance fertility and nutrient content.
14. American Cheese Society: An organization dedicated to promoting and supporting the artisan and specialty cheese industry in the United States through education, networking, and advocacy.
15. Young cheddar: Cheddar cheese that hasn’t matured for an extended period, resulting in a milder flavor and softer texture.

These concepts and their definitions provide insight into the various aspects of cheesemaking, dairy farming, and food production discussed in episode 411 of Grounded by the Farm.

Castmagic is the AI tool (link to Castmagic & give me a referral fee that doesn’t impact your cost) that helps with some of the content shared here and on social channels. It helps me do more faster since I don’t stare at a blank screen. 

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Family holiday recipes are near and dear to our hearts! When we first talked cranberries, I shared my family’s much loved cranberry salad recipe. And I made it last week as did my sister!

 

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With our latest episode talking about my family’s traditions, I thought it may be good to share some of the other recipes our family has enjoyed for decades! My mom credits her mom Louise with all of these recipes, not sure where she found them or came up with them.

My mom & sister’s crumbling cornbread & biscuits for dressing.

Corn Bread Dressing

This is the absolute must-have with turkey. Mom says she remembers having it on the table as a kid in the 40s and 50s and it remains a staple for the holidays in my family. And we like to have enough for leftovers so you may see us double this family holiday recipe! We’ve found reheating it in the panini maker is perfect cause all of us like a little crisp to the edges!

Ingredients:

1  10′ skillet cornbread
3 cans biscuits ( app. 25-30)
1 1/2 qt. broth
2-3 onions chopped
6 boiled eggs chopped
hot water
3-4 pieces chopped celery
sage
poultry seasoning
salt & pepper

Bake and crumble corn bread and biscuits. Use broth from turkey. Mix all ingredients together, season to taste. If extra liquid is needed, add hot water until mixture is fairly soupy. Bake in greased  9 by 13 inch pan in oven at 350 degrees about 30 minutes or unit it browns.

Ambrosia

This is one of the fruit salads that was a constant for us and it goes incredibly well with pound cake the next day for breakfast!

Mom gives the shortest directions which may make you think this is quick and easy but remember you section oranges so it takes time!

Equal amounts of crushed pineapple and sectioned oranges ( I usually start with 2 cans of pineapple and about 7 or 8 oranges for a family dinner)

Add some shredded coconut and a little sugar. Blend together and chill.

We’ve made it with fresh pineapple too, chopping the fresh pineapple after you’ve cored it takes some time. It tastes great but not sure the extra effort pays off so much because you definitely want added time to let the pineapple sit in it’s juice for a while.

Part of my sister’s Thanksgiving table this year — mac & cheese, dressing, ambrosia and deviled eggs! We like the carb color pallette!

Malcolm’s Favorite — Jam Cake

This cake was a mainstay when my mom was growing up and through her early adulthood. It was my granddad’s favorite so even though it takes longer than most cakes, grandmom would give in and make it. My brother is probably the biggest fan in the family now and we have it sometimes but not every holiday these days. (If you listened to the episode you will see why I preferred grandmom’s pies!) But we all think of it when it comes to family holiday recipes.

4 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
¾ cup shortening
1 tsp soda
1 ½ cups sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 ½ cups blackberry jam
1 tsp nutmeg
3 cups plain flour
1 tsp allspice

Cream shortening and sugar until creamy. Add 2 whole eggs and 2 yolks beaten. Cream everything together. Stir the soda into buttermilk and add that to the mixture and stir. Sift the flour & spices into it, add jam and stir well. Bake in three layers at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

Divinity Filling and Frosting

2 cups sugar
2 egg whites
¾ cup water
1 cup ground raisins (it takes a little less than 2 cups raisins to get the cup)

Cook together sugar and water until it threads when dropped from a spoon or forms a soft ball in cold water. Beat egg whites until stiff. Stir syrup into whites and add ground raisins.

My grandparents…. he was a butcher and she was a homemaker extraordinaire who put in the extra time for his favorite cake at the holidays.

The post Trusted Family Holiday Recipes — Dressing, Ambrosia & Jam Cake appeared first on Grounded by the Farm.

Not every crop needs the bright sun and blistering heat of summer to flourish. In fact, some of our most familiar vegetables are considered cool weather crops, meaning they may do even better in the early spring and fall than in the middle of summer when all the other crops are growing like crazy. Some examples of cool weather crops include broccoli, cabbage, and other brassicas (relatives of the wild mustard plant: kale, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and more). Other crops include lettuces, carrots, peas, onions, and the list goes on!

Why Cool Weather Crops?

Growing crops in cool weather, whether on the farm or in the backyard garden, can have some distinct advantages, the biggest of which is a reduction in insect pressure. This means, fewer bugs are around to gobble up the vegetables. It is a lot harder for cabbage moths to lay their eggs with an autumn breeze nipping their wingtips. In addition, these cold- and frost-hardy plants mean farmers can extend their growing seasons into times of the year when they wouldn’t normally be able to farm. Some crops even taste better with a little touch of cool weather, due to plants producing sugars to protect themselves from freezing.

What does this mean for farmers?

Planning for cool weather crops can be a critical part of a farmer’s year. A few years back, I got the chance to visit a friend in Virginia with plans for getting broccoli and cabbage ready to grow for places like Whole Foods and Ingles’ Markets. He lets his seedlings grow in a hydroponic system so the seedling trays are kept in water.

This method ensures his seedlings are healthy and strong when it comes time to plant them out. When the weather is chilly, they grow under tunnel greenhouses, and when things warm up, they open their greenhouses up to let the seedlings bask in the fresh air. In the below picture, you can see how similar the seedlings look! The main way to tell the broccoli apart from the cabbage is the slight color difference.

On the Podcast

We’ve talked to several farmers who grow crops that do well in cool weather.

Lettuce, especially head lettuce (like iceberg) is a great crop to grow when the weather is cooler. Way back in 2019, we talked to lettuce farmer, Jon Dinsmore. You can also check out a tour of his lettuce farm in Arizona.

Onions are another crop that can be grown in the cooler months. In fact, for onions to produce seeds, they need to overwinter! Check out our talk with Shay Myers of Owyhee Produce and see a video of the unique way onions are harvested.

And if you want to know more about gardening, urban farming, and how you can get started with your own cool weather crops (and warm weather crops, for that matter), you should really take a look at the We Sow, We Grow program, led by Natasha Nichols up in Chicago. She’s doing incredible work and helping gardeners of all levels and backgrounds grow food.

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I cannot believe it has been two years since we ventured toward the cranberry marsh that cranberry farmer Amber Bristow works. With the central roll this uniquely American fruit plays for my family’s holidays (I posted family favorite cranberry recipes for Amber & my families) and so many others, we took some time to catch up.

And there has been a lot going on with Amber! She’s added a cran-baby to the family, and yes, he already likes cranberries. How cool is that? But we talked about a lot more than cranbabies. So much has happened in the last couple of years, so let’s take a rundown on what she’s been up to!

Cranberries and TikTok

We talked to Amber before cranberry juice went viral! Remember that TikTok of the man riding his skateboard, just chilling and drinking cranberry juice? This one video just captured the feeling that everyone was longing for. So much so, that sales of cranberry juice went crazy with folks looking to pick up that vibe.

@420doggface208 ♬ Dreams (2004 Remaster) – Fleetwood Mac

The phenomenon gave Amber the boost she needed to join TikTok, and she very quickly discovered that the folks on TikTok definitely want to see her cranberry videos! It took a little courage because putting herself out there on TikTok was a little outside her comfort zone, but her following just blew up one day after she shared a cranberry harvest video. She’s not too sure how but one video of harvest this year has 6 million plays already! Seems folks love seeing how unique cranberry farming is and the chance to see what a real cranberry marsh looks like!

Please note: links for Stur & cranberry seeds are affiliate links and we may make a small commission on purchases.
There is no change in the price paid though.

Good for the Body

We also explored some new foods Amber is loving that showcase cranberries. She has found some delicious water enhancers called Stur that is great for jazzing up your glasses of water. And the pomegranate cranberry flavor is pretty great. And then there are cranberry seeds. Ocean Spray has partnered to help reduce food waste by turning a byproduct of juice-making into a healthy booster for salads and smoothies. Turns out, cranberry seeds have a lot of great vitamins, fiber, and antioxidants, and can be used like chia seeds or flax seeds to boost your favorite foods! I had never even heard of this before, so you can bet I had to order some.

Great for the Planet

Whether you’re in the midwest like Amber and call it a cranberry marsh or you live in the northeast and call it a cranberry bog, cranberry farms can be a great support to the local ecosystem. Many animals take advantage of the cycle that the cranberry marsh follows.

Amber sees so many wild animals on the farm, from the pairs of geese that return year after year, to frogs, raccoons, possums, and now a family of otters! With all of that ecology talk and knowing how kids would be interested, we had to do a lesson plan about growing cranberries! It’s available on TPT if you teach, homeschool or want to purchase for someone who does.

She also helped me understand how climate change is affecting cranberry farmers and how the extension service is coming through for farmers with data and recommendations.

 

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The 2022 Cranberry Harvest

Of course, I can’t share an update without cranberry marsh harvest videos. And no one shoots cranberry harvest videos like Amber does!

 

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You can find Amber on the web and social media everywhere as CranberryChats!  She has several recipes there too!

The post Life Beside a Cranberry Marsh: Smoothies, Ecology and a Cran-Baby (Updated) appeared first on Grounded by the Farm.

Every year, as the holidays roll around, all the gift guides start popping up, and I have so much fun going through all of the ideas folks offer up. I love gifts from the farm, handmade gifts, and other kinds of gifts that people don’t see every day. Unique gifts that leave folks smiling and asking, “Where on earth did you find that?”

This year, I’ve been thinking through all the farmers we’ve interviewed here on the podcast, and there are so many that provide gifts that are bound to make the people in your life smile. So buckle up for the Grounded by the Farm Holiday Gift Guide! You can get these great gifts from the farm & share the farm’s story too!

Lavender Luxury

What is more luxurious than lavender? Lavender from Long Row Lavender Farm, just west of St. Louis, Missouri. Their online shop has everything from bath and body to food and cooking items (made with lavender, of course) to items for the home, like linen sprays and sachets. They’ve even got a men’s line of personal care products.

Tracy Smith, her husband Chad, and their four children started the farm several years ago as a way to spend time together outdoors. They would take things to local farmers markets and eventually decided to build a gift shop. Later a cafe was added and with seating around the farm, it’s become a popular destination. If you are nearby, make a next trip and get gifts from the farm!

• Visit the online shop: Long Row Lavender
• Listen to the Interview (includes a video tour!): Longing to Visit a Lavender Farm? Get to Making Plans!

Hams, Bacon & Other Southern Favorites!

Broadbent Foods seems to take over the steering of my car whenever I’m driving through Kentucky and my stomach says thank you. That was happening before I met and interviewed Ronnie & Beth Drennan. Since then, I may have been accused of starting a friend’s addiction to ordering online from Broadbent.

Whether I “need” bacon or not, a few packages of peppered bacon is always in order and I love the small end pieces for seasoning various things I may cook up. And putting some hot pepper jelly in a thank you gift for a weekend with friends may have earned me a forever welcome invitation.

• Visit the online shop: Broadbent Country Smokehouse meats and don’t forget to check out the pantry items, etc.
• Listen to the interview & see a behind the scenes tour: Hickory-Smoked Country Ham & Bacon on the Menu with Broadbent

Breakfast and Beyond

If you’re looking for something they really won’t find anywhere else, take a look at the Funks Grove offerings! You may remember Jeff Hake from our episode on pawpaws. Well, Jeff does more than just forage. We talked about the fruit leathers, but you have really got to take a look at their pancake and muffin mixes, sweetened with their very own pure maple sugar. If you’ve got a bread baker in your life, be sure to take a look at their heritage wheat which they sell either already ground or as whole berries for folks who either want them whole or want to grind the flour themselves. And then, of course, there’s the Maple Ramp seasoning blends, the maple black raspberry sauce, their very own, handmade fruit leather, and more. This is a small operation, so they don’t sell from their website, but you can reach out to them via email or phone and they will ship!

• Check out the Funks Grove offerings: https://www.funkspuremaplesirup.com/
• Give them a call or email to check availability: ​​(309) 874-3360 • info@funkspuremaplesirup.com
• Find shops that sell their products (in Illinois)
• Listen to the interview and take a tour: Foraging Pawpaws, Fruit Farming and Making Fruit Leather in Funk’s Grove

Fresh Avocado Delivery

The search for the perfect avocado is a familiar one for many of us. But avocado farmers like Mimi Holtz, who is known simply as Mimi Avocado online, know what to look for and what impacts the tasty goodness we all crave. Mimi and her family run a fourth-generation farm outside of San Diego, California, and they can take the pressure of finding the perfect grocery store avocado off by sending you the very best, perfectly picked and packed avocados directly from their farm. So if you know someone who loves their guacamole or avocado toast, an avocado box might be just the perfect gift!

• Shop for Avocados: CaliforniaAvocadosDirect.com
• Listen to the interview: Getting the Perfect Avocado For Our Kitchens & The Farm
• Take a video tour of the avocado farm

Gourmet Popcorn? Yes, PLEASE!

Something about popcorn just feels festive. But you’re not going to want to string Ella & Ollie popcorn and hang it on a tree. You’re going to want to eat every last, fluffy, delicious piece of it. Matt Helms and his family run a popcorn farm just east of St. Louis, and their popcorn is just *chef’s kiss* the best. Of course, you could string it to decorate your tree, but I prefer it drizzled with a little truffle oil or just simply air popped in their handy microwave popper and lightly salted. Seriously, this is good popcorn. In addition to giving it as gifts, I just keep it on hand for when I want a quick snack. (And yes, popcorn IS a whole-grain food!)

• Shop for popcorn, poppers, and accessories: Ella & Ollie Online Shop
• Listen to the interview: Popcorn… family legacy and local future
• Take a video tour of the farm: Family-Owned Popcorn Farm Has Quality Focus

Gifts for Teachers

The joy of discovery paired with the growing interest in where our food comes from makes food and farming a perfect way to enjoy learning. The Grounded by the Farm curriculum has a great fit for teachers, parents, troop leaders and others who spend time trying to unlock the magic of science, the utility of math, the comprehension of our language…. even ideas for entrepreneurship! It’s really limitless how many things the world of farming and food opens up.

• Grounded by the Farm Lesson Plans on Teachers Pay Teachers (TPT)
• Grounded by the Farm Lesson Plans on Etsy
• Listen to our interview with Whitney Choate, the teacher who worked with us to develop this curriculum

The post Holiday Gifts from the Farm! appeared first on Grounded by the Farm.

Milk is in just about everyone’s fridge. And cheese, yogurt, sour cream, and ice cream. Especially ice cream. Dairy products are so ubiquitous that it can be easy to take them for granted and not think about where they come from. But let’s take a moment to dig in and get the scoop with some dairy basics we have featured on the podcast. If you still have questions, please speak up!

Shout out to Midwest Dairy for sponsoring the series and helping us line up participants.

Different Ways to Dairy

When I got the chance to tour two different dairy farms, you better believe I jumped at the chance. I always enjoy the chance to compare and contrast, and touring and then sitting down to talk with Anthony & Charlie Coblentz and Logan Courtney. I think like everything, when you are presented with two things, you undoubtedly will see similarities and differences. The physical pieces are easy to catch and various topics were highlighted at each farm as questions were asked.

What was most striking to me, though, was how focused both farms were on making sure their cows were pampered and comfortable. The Coblentz’s black and white Holstein cows like lots of shade and a nice fan to relax under. The Courtney’s Jersey cows prefer to enjoy the great outdoors. One farm milks on a schedule in a traditional milking parlor, the other whenever the girls what to come in and get milked by the milking robot! And those are just a few of the ways their dairy farms differ! But the real thing that brings both farms together is the care they take with their cows. Though they do things differently, the dairy basics are the same. Happy cows make lots of milk!

Dairy and Sustainability Go Hand-in-Hand

Environmental common ground isn’t what everyone expects to find when environmental scientists and farmers sit down together. But maybe we should. The health of our soils, shifting weather patterns and the role of greenhouse gases and more means there is a lot to talk about and work on too.

Some of the cows grazing on the Peterson farm

We talked with Missouri dairy farmer Alex Peterson and Alisha Staggs, a sustainability expert who leads the dairy program with The Nature Conservancy‘s (TNC) North American Agriculture program. TNC is one of the world’s largest and most respected environmental organizations. As it turns out, grazing cows on prairies can have a huge benefit on the landscape, both with manure as a natural fertilizer and having the cows walking across the grasses to gently work the soil. Prairies, with their complicated and extensive root systems can hold as much and sometimes more carbon than trees. According to Alex, this is a win-win-win situation!

And it’s not just dairy that’s getting in on this. Beef ranchers in Missouri are also working with TNC to graze their cattle on the tallgrass prairie as a part of the prairie management plan, eating invasive plants, pushing seeds into the ground with their hooves, and fertilizing with manure. Like Alex’s dairy cows, these beef cattle are helping the prairie build more root mass, improve soil, and capture more water.

Say Cheese! Our Conve with a Cheesemonger!

There are titles that go almost unnoticed, but being a cheesemonger definitely stands out! It took a long time but eventually, I met a cheesemonger. That cheesemonger, Jessica Keahey (founder of Sweet Freedom Cheese in Bentonville, Arkansas), led a virtual meetup and cheese tasting. I was lucky enough to meet her in person when I toured the Coblentz and Courtney dairies, but nothing prepared me for the glorious cheese heaven when I finally made it in person to her cheese shop Sweet Freedom in Bentonville, Arkansas.

I got to try so many cheeses, from the simplicity of a cheddar made with carmelized onions to something seriously adventurous, and I even had to bring some home with me. I learned how to correctly store cheese (hint: NOT in plastic wrap) and the secrets to making a fantastic charcuterie board.

All of that cheese tasting reminded me of our season 2 episode with Farmer Tom in the UK and his Cheese-a-Day Challenge. It’s so great to meet folks who are so passionate about food and love to have fun with it like these do.

Staying Up-to-Date

We love connecting food and farming with a new episode every two weeks. We’ve covered a lot of favorite foods in the past and make it easy for you to find farms in your part of the country with this map. You can subscribe to get emails on future episodes from the website, listen to the podcast in your favorite app and connect with us on social media. In fact, if you find a platform we aren’t on, please let us know so we can add it!

Connect with Grounded by the Farm Online

We love connecting with listeners/readers online. You can find and follow our podcast in almost any app out there. In fact, if you find a platform we aren’t on, please let us know so we can add it!

• GroundedbytheFarm.com for photos & videos, blog posts, show notes, and more. You can even get new content emailed once a week by subscribing.
• Find your favorite foods on our website 
• Grounded by the Farm Facebook Page 
• Groundedbythefarm_ on Instagram 
• Grounded by the Farm on Youtube
• @groundedbythef on Twitter 

The post Dairy Basics: Get to Know Your Milk & Cheese appeared first on Grounded by the Farm.

There is nothing that will wake me up faster or better than the smell of hickory-smoked country ham and bacon. And when I want to buy country ham or the “good bacon” (a phrase our family started when several of us showed up for a weekend get together and I brought bacon from Broadbent’s while others brought grocery store bacon), it means Broadbent. Listen to this episode of Grounded by the Farm here or in your favorite app.

This probably isn’t a surprise if you have been listening to Grounded by the Farm long, as one or my early interviews was with a small family operation where they salt-cured hams in a traditional smokehouse.  Broadbent offers more scale, but owners Ronny & Beth Drennan point out they are small players in the country ham space. I point out they are big players in that space for me and my family, but acknowledge there are much bigger smokers who sell through mass retail, etc whereas Broadbent focuses on specialty retail, restaurants, and wholesale services.

Processing Pork into Hickory-Smoked Goodness

The Drennans not only set down with me for the audio interview above (ai transcript for episode 316), but they showed me around the facility, sharing a view of the process for curing, smoking and aging the hams, bacon and sausage they are known for. And while hickory-smoked is the biggest part of the business, they also do some products with applewood & maple which offers a range of flavors and the peppered bacon (it’s hickory-smoked) is amazing!

Prize Winning Hams

Broadbent is one of a series of smokehouses in Kentucky which takes traditional practices and puts them to work at scale. Ronny says the country ham community is a small tight one, and one that enjoys the friendly competition for the honors each year for the Kentucky State Fair’s grand champion.

The Drennans bought the business from the Broadbent family decades ago and Ronny laughs that one stipulation of the contract was they had to keep the quality high and continue winning some of those ribbons. The Drennans laugh and talk about how it took some study and experience to get it right but they got back in the competition.

Find Broadbent Online & Visit in Person

Broadbent offers its products through a range of retail shops as well as direct through the website broadbenthams.com. If you’d like inspiration on enjoying country ham, bacon and sausage, the company’s Instagram @broadbenthams or Facebook page BroadbentHams.

And don’t forget the company has a great gift shop and lunch counter if you are passing through western Kentucky! It’s right off Interstates 24 & 69 in Kuttawa, KY. And the lady who works the counter had lots of helpful ideas for recipes (and there were several printed for take home!) and various uses of some of the condiments, etc.

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When most folks think lavender, they imagine soaps, lotions, a few drops of essential oil on a pillow to help them sleep. Of course, I think of all of those things, too. I love lavender, and if something smells like lavender (actual lavender, not just weird and sweet and purple), I’m all for it. But I also like to keep lavender in my spice pantry because what a lot of folks don’t realize is how easy and delicious cooking with lavender can be!

Lavender is actually wonderful in a variety of dishes, both sweet and savory, and while I typically cook savory main dishes with it (keep reading for my pork chops recipe!), Janice brought back a couple of baking mixes from her visit to Long Row Lavender farm for me to surprise my family with over the weekend, and they were a hit!

Lavender & Chocolate?

I didn’t realize what a perfect match lavender and chocolate are! The Lavender Brownies were phenomenal, with the lavender adding just enough brightness to the flavor to elevate the whole dish from plain after-dinner brownies to something that felt fancy. It turned our dull Tuesday dinner into a special occasion. Then on Saturday, I snuck out the Lemon Lavender Bread. What a bright, fresh breakfast! Topped with a lemon-powdered sugar glaze, it was like lavender lemonade on a hot day! A perfect start to our weekend.

Now here’s the thing to remember about cooking with lavender. It compliments sweet dishes, but that is precisely because it isn’t sweet. The flavor of lavender is bright and almost astringent, similar to fresh rosemary.

Cooking with Lavender

In fact, if you aren’t sure where to start with incorporating lavender into your cooking, look for recipes that include rosemary. Many times, lavender can make a good substitute for the more familiar kitchen herb. If you want to go even easier, grab yourself a jar of herbes de Provence! Herbes de Provence is a simple blend of herbs – usually things like rosemary, thyme, basil, tarragon, and of course lavender – that is great on everything from fish to chicken to pork to salads and pasta sauces.  You can make your own, but Long Row Lavender sells a blend that is made with culinary lavender, so you know that one will be delicious and fool-proof. A great, all-purpose spice mix that can make a simple meal feel so elegant.

And that is exactly what I use for my pork chops. These pork chops are one of my go-to recipes for when I need to get dinner on the table in a hurry after coming home from Taekwondo practice and before we head off to a band concert or Girl Scout meeting. It’s just as fast as frozen chicken nuggets and so much tastier.

Pork Chops de Provence

(Even the name makes it sound special!)

The keys to this recipe are the cast iron skillet and making sure you’ve got thick, bone-in pork chops. You can do this with boneless. Heck, you could even do it with chicken breasts. But the bone-in pork chops really taste the best. The other key is the brining. Brining the pork chops ahead of time ensures they are juicy and flavorful all the way through. Yes, it is an optional step, and one I sometimes skip, but the flavor difference is apparent. Brining makes an already good dish into a great dish.

For the brine:

• 1 cup boiling or very hot water
• 4 Tablespoons kosher salt
• 3 cups cold water
• Optional aromatics in any combination: a couple of smashed garlic cloves, 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns, a piece of lemon peel, a sprig of fresh rosemary, a bay leaf, juniper berries, etc – feel free to get creative here, or just follow my standard of garlic, peppercorns, and bay.
• 4 bone-in, thick cut pork chops

Add the salt and aromatics to the boiling water and stir until the salt is completely dissolved. Add the cold water and cool your brine to room temp. Sometimes the cold water is enough to do this, other times an ice water bath does the trick. Once the brine is cool, pour it over your pork chops (I use a big casserole dish for this) and refridgerate for 30 minutes to a couple of hours.

To cook the pork chops:

• Olive oil
• Herbes de Provence
• Freshly ground black pepper

Place your big cast iron skillet in the oven and preheat to 4oo degrees. A smoking hot cast iron skillet ensures your chops will get that all important sear. Give it at least 20 minutes to heat.

While the oven and skillet heat, pull your chops out of the fridge and dry them thoroughly. If you leave them wet, they won’t sear. They’ll just steam and get weird. No one likes weird pork chops.

Rub olive oil all over your pork chops. You won’t be oiling the skillet, so make sure you get a nice thin layer all over the chops. Season with the herbes de provence and the pepper. Really rub those herbs in, even around that strip of fat at the edge. They are going to taste delicious when they sear. Now you can let your pork chops rest and relax until the skillet is ready.

Once the skillet is blazing hot, carefully pull it out of the oven and place it over high heat on the stovetop. Lay your chops carefully into the skillet in a single layer. Once you put them down, leave them alone. Don’t scoot them around or flip them or fiddle with them or peek at the underside. Just let them sizzle and sear. They will smoke a little. You may need to open a window. This is all normal.

Allow the chops to sear for 3-4 minutes. Use tongs to flip them. Not a fork. A fork will let the juices out that we’ve worked so hard to seal in. The chops should lift effortlessly from the skillet. If they stick, let them cook a little longer until they release.

Immediately after flipping the chops, transfer the whole skillet to the oven. Roast until the chops are cooked through, with an internal temp of 140-145 degrees F. This takes anywhere from 6-10 minutes.

Remove the chops from the oven and allow them to rest for at least 5 minutes. This will allow the juices to distribute through the pork and will allow the temp to come up another 5 degrees. Tent them with foil to keep them from getting cold.

Serve with a wedge of lemon, rice, and a side salad! Simple!

Would you believe I have never taken a picture of these pork chops? Probably because I’m so focused on getting them on the table so we can get the kids fed and off to their evening activities. In fact, I’ve got this meal on my meal plan for this week. Tomorrow is another one of those crazy days, so we will be having these simple, but elegant-tasting pork chops. Way better than mac and cheese and freezer chicken nuggets!

If you try this recipe, let me know in the comments! Or if you have a favorite way of cooking with lavender please do share! I love new food ideas, and Janice’s lavender farm visit got me thinking about all things lavender. What do you think about a roasted chicken with lavender? I usually use rosemary and lemon, but I bet I could sub in the lavender for the rosemary. Or a garlicky lavender foccaccia! My imagination is running wild with all the ideas here. What ideas have you tried?

The post Cooking with Lavender? Absolutely! appeared first on Grounded by the Farm.

As someone who loves an abundance of Asian cuisines, tofu may be on my plate or in my soup more than some Americans. But I haven’t had many chances to sit down and talk to someone about growing tofu soybeans. We can check that off the list as the conversation with Jennifer “Jennie” Schmidt about her family’s Maryland farm allowed us a chance to talk about diversification, how they determine what to plant, and more.

In 2021, they grew corn, soybeans, tofu soybeans, wine grapes and green beans for the fresh market. And a nephew is once again raising pigs on the farm. In the past they have grow several other crops including processing tomatoes (tomatoes that will be cooked down for sauces, etc). Understanding how farmers choose what to plant and how it has to be organized, is the central topic in this latest episode.

Note: An AI generated transcript of this episode is available at Talking Tofu with Jennie Schmidt.

Background on Schmidt Farms

Jennie’s family farm — she points out it was her husband’s family farm before she got so involved — is on the Delmarva Peninsula, the Eastern Shore. Her husband and his brother were running the farm for the most part.

Jennie, who trained as a registered dietitian and worked at a hospital as an RD, got involved in the farm with wine grapes. She ended up planting some and doing custom work with some wineries and others in the state for several years before her husband Hans was approached about a job in the state’s department of agriculture, working with conservation programs. Jennie laughs and says she told Hans he needed to work that job for the benefits and next thing she knew, she was partnering with her brother-in-law Alan in the farm’s day-to-day!

For generations, the Schmidts have been looking at various options for the farm. They had pigs for a while and later focused on crops. Now a nephew is choosing to get back into pork. Jennie says they look at a lot of factors when they consider what mix to have on the farm — labor is a piece for some crops, the ability to partner with others who can supply the unique equipment needed for crops is a big piece as well. And like every farm, Jennie looks at the crops adapted to the environment, weather and soils that they are in.

Grain (corn, soybeans and wheat) play a big part in the operation as the poultry farms nearby need feed. Jennie says it’s probably for some people to believe now, but her favorite job is driving the combine for harvest. She puts hours a day in the seat for weeks on end and while she welcomed me joining for a couple of hours, for weeks on end. She says not only does she get a great feel for the results of the year, but it gives her time to think, listen to books, etc. I was lucky enough to join her in the combine for a ride this fall, here’s the video.

Choosing What to Grow

Jennie said labor, equipment, and the environment all play different parts in the decision of what to plant. And of course, knowing perennial crops like grapes, the commitment is for many years.

In fact, Jennie gave us a laundry list of some of the considerations on what goes where on the farm and some of the realities that can impact the choices they have.

Growing Tofu Soybeans

As I mentioned, I’m a fan of Asian cuisine and find the growing of tofu soybeans so interesting I asked a lot of questions! How they began growing them intrigued me though. Jennie pointed immediately to the geography she’s in. DC, Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York are all an easy drive and there are a number of companies specializing in Asian foods.

A group of farmers in the area formed a coop and went out seeking buyers when there was some question about the commitment to poultry in the area. The same equipment used for soybeans for grain can be used on these which was a great connection point. They also offer a high price for the crop. But alas, the market is only so big which means each farmer in the coop is given an allotment to plant rather than having endless opportunities to grow it. Jennie also mentions that harvest needs to be prioritized too as there can sometimes be some staining on soybeans and that is undesirable for tofu uses.

Growing Vegetables

As a registered dietitian, no doubt vegetable crops appeal to Jennie. They have planted tomatoes and green beans both in the hundreds of acres at a time. She points out that means harvesting several 18 wheelers full of either crop in a day. And which much of the crop management is easily done with irrigation that serves whatever is planted in the field, etc. The reality that specific planting and or harvesting equipment is needed means only planting the crops when contracts that also provide the expensive equipment and labor for the critical times. Planning allows farmers and the contractors to work together on timing so harvesting crews move from farm to farm.

Vegetable crops have rules that require the crop not be planted in the same field more than on a four year rotation, means long-term planning too! If you plant green beans in one field this year, you will be eligible to plant them there again in 4 years. Tomatoes have the same requirement. Limiting the likelihood of disease issues is the biggest reason for the requirement, which is a practice a lot of urban gardeners are familiar with!

Growing Wine Grapes

Growing grapes for wine is something that is a lot more common around the US now. Small acres are needed but the amount of labor required is high when it comes time to harvest. Jennie says they have expanded the vineyard and are growing several varietals. There are always more wineries interested she says, so the only limit is getting grapes harvested when needed. This was their biggest year ever and knowing there are some mechanized harvesters coming that will get tested, who knows what the future will do.

 

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Growing Grain

The largest acreage on Schmidt Farms is in grain — both corn and soybeans. It has a really good market locally with the number of chicken farms in Delmarva. The family likes to rotate corn and soybeans as corn contributes great organic matter for the soil — ie the plant parts that don’t get harvested stay in the field and biodegrade creating something like compost for future crops. And as legumes, soybeans add nitrogen to the soil.

Planting Cover Crops

The Schmidts also plant cover crops on the farm. Cover crops help improve soils, they are not harvested so they add a lot of organic matter. Jennie said wheat is planted as a cover as are a mix of radishes, rye, etc. She shared a photo of one of the tillage radishes she pulled in the vineyard to show her Instagram followers. They have the deep root and as Jennie points out, they can help reduce compaction and make it easier for roots to grow unrestricted.

 

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Find Jennie Online

Jenni can be found on social media in several places:

• Instagram DirtDietitian
• Facebook The Foodie Farmer
• Twitter FarmGirlJen

The post Growing Tofu Soybeans, Grapes, Grain & More: The Planning It Takes to Be a Truly Diversified Farm appeared first on Grounded by the Farm.

There’s not a simple single reason I became a cookbook lover and find myself with shelves and stacks of cookbooks. And I have found a vast community of cookbook lovers too.

In fact, a colleague who hosted us for a holiday party a few years ago has an entire vault filled with cookbooks! The amount of time this takes on a tour of the house…. it can singularly derail a tour!

And I have so many friends who have collections of cookbooks that go on and on.

Too many cookbooks? Is that possible?

I mean, I have too many books but the number of cookbooks…. well, I am not sure I’ve ever thought to myself I need to cull through them. But recently I did have to face it has gotten to be a bit much as I had to get a new refrigerator and in my current house, I have a shelf for cookbooks on top of the fridge. but every inch of the fridge was covered with cookbooks… stacks alongside the shelf, some books tucked under it too.

The shelf is now nice and somewhat organized to the books I’m most likely to want to flip through. There’s a bunch more in a box that may never be taken to the basement cause I keep getting back into it. Still others on a bookshelf in another room.

As I talked to a colleague earlier, she mentioned having planned a trip to Spain and my thoughts immediately went to the cookbook that I rely most on when Spanish cooking comes to mind and the family & friends who have shared paella and gazpacho recipes.

But I confess, I use a few cookbooks rather often and some cookbooks I have don’t serve as a guide for my cooking much at all. In fact, I’m sure I have a few that I have never cooked something from.

Why do cookbook lovers have such big collections?

I can’t speak for everyone, but I have a range of reasons for the ever-growing stash of cookbooks — and to be clear, I added one within a week or two of getting the new fridge!

Touchpoint with Family

So many favorite childhood memories of holiday parties or baby showers are inextricably tied to food. The most used and most loved of my cookbooks are the ones I’ve gotten that include family recipes. My mom’s recipes, her Aunt Ginny’s, our cousin Dot’s…. There are those cooks in your life who provided for you on a daily basis or at celebrations. When I can’t find the recipe I’m looking for a text string starts and I’m guided to the right place.

And mom just typed up a bunch of recipes so she could give all of us copies… As I opened it, I immediately was drawn to the marinade I remember my Aunt Ginny using for a party when her grandkids were home for a visit (they lived overseas a long time). It was a party that stood out for a few reasons, but I also remembered that chicken coming off the grill and loving it. And they have notes about which cake and pie was granddaddy’s favorite and the like which makes it beyond special. And our family’s favorite lasagna that we had for Christmas (thanks Leslie!) is there too!

The Church Ladies’ Cookbooks

Getting cookbooks from churches is definitely one of those IYKYK (if you know you know) kind of things. And in the south, it has been a thing since I was a kid! I remember mom & the women’s group putting one together when I was a kid. It’s forever been my favorite. A few years later the second edition was created and I have lost count of the subsequent count.

The thing about these cookbooks is they not only include some of the recipes your family becomes known for in a church congregation but if you are a connoisseur of church potlucks, you know who else’s recipes to look for!

Friends Know SO MUCH About Cooking

The reason my mind went straight to my cookbooks when a friend mentioned Spain is I have friends who wrote a book on paellas! The geographic differences, the spices, when you use seafood versus pork — all things paella. And I think I’ve probably bought dozens of copies. In fact as we talked I searched for another as it is out of print.

I have lots of friends and acquaintances who have written cookbooks. So many that now I wonder if I should write a series of posts on them all! (I’ve already shared about a friend’s book on foods in different regions of Mexico!)

Once upon a time, when I was bored of the food I was eating I launched an effort for an unofficial cookbook that ultimately our office in Scott published! It wasn’t sold of course, but the employees enjoyed it and years later as we joined another company, copies were made for others to enjoy.

That book is where I go for an infamous gazpacho recipe that tells not only how one colleague makes it but how his mom and mother-in-law’s recipes differ. It always grabs my mind in the depths of summer but there are also a bunch of other dishes that grab me with a “remember when.”

And a friend in Malaysia who helped me explore the ins and outs of Southeast Asian foods while in college, I loved learning some of her recipes but after we graduated and headed our separate ways, over some time I lost them since we never wrote anything down. Two decades later I visited her home, as I left she insisted I take some of the cookbooks she used routinely and had made notes in. They are cherished even more so as we recently lost her to cancer. And

Travel & Gathering Memories

Whether it is somewhere close by or somewhere much further afield, there are some cookbooks that when I pick them up, I can be transported to that diner or restaurant where we ate whatever it was. Maybe it was a gift from a friend sharing foods of their home or a book bought because I visited a certain restaurant and now needed more of that type of cuisine in my repertoire. (I especially remember a Turkish friend being so shocked I had a book on Turkish cooking years before we had met. But they have such great flavors and there was this great Middle Eastern market…. Yep, had to get it.)

And some of the smallest cookbooks came from various cooking classes I’ve taken over the years with friends. I’ll never forget one class in the home of Viking ranges where we had such a big group we were broken into two smaller groups, each making the same recipes. Someone missed one tip on how to prepare the pepper that was going in the curry and holy moly the difference was obvious in looks and flavor! I still shudder on that. One more recently gave us a great green goddess recipe that I have referred to over and over again.

Another big set of cookbooks have come because so many work trips took me to food conferences. In some, I met chefs like Kevin Gillespie of Red Beard Restaurants in Atlanta or celebrities like Freddie Prinze, Jr. who were exploring food more & writing a book.

Inspiration Readily Available

I cannot overstate this…. cookbooks can provide inspiration for folks like me! I’m not a great cook, probably not even a good one most days. And I go through periods where cooking feels a lot more of a chore, but when I’m going to a party or having friends over. Have mercy do a range of cookbooks get off the shelf as I consider what may be fun. I also watch YouTube yes.

Great Reads in Some

Now and then, you just There are some books that are part cookbook and part something else. Maybe you read up on nutrition, or cuts of meat, or gardening, or whatever. I really like those books whether they fall into the cookbook category or not!

Series on Cookbooks?

Thinking aloud on whether this is a way to spend some time in the coming weeks and months…. are there other cookbook lovers out there who would want to share?

The post Where are my fellow cookbook lovers? appeared first on Grounded by the Farm.