Simmons Farm CSA

It wasn't until about a year ago that I first heard the term CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). It's a brilliant concept where (non-farmer-like) people from the community pay a local farmer (up-front) for a share in her/his harvest throughout the growing season. Yes, it can be a little pricey, but I believe it is totally worth every penny (and more!). This year, I'm a member of the Simmons Farm CSA - let me list the reasons why I'm happy to be participating:

• The farm is less than 5 miles from my house (4.6, to be exact);
• The farm has been around since about 1643, and it has stayed in the same family that entire time;
• In 2004, the livestock and the 102 acre farm were certified organic;
• I know my farmer, Karla, on a first-name basis, and she knows me, too;
• I can see where the fruits and veggies are grown;
• I can get organic eggs, cheese, and meat from the farm, too;
• I can meet the animals and see how they are treated;
• I'm exposed to veggies I probably wouldn't eat otherwise;
• I'm learning how to eat what's in season;
• It feels good to support a local, organic, family-run farm!

There are plenty more reasons why I'm so grateful to be participating in the CSA at Simmons Farm this year. Here are some of them:

The week 6 bounty - it's too much to list!

As you may or may not be able to see from the picture, I've got cabbage and zucchini to use this week. I think I will make cabbage Kielbasa supper with the cabbage, but can you believe I've never cooked with cabbage? There will definitely be a blog post about that. :) I thought about baking with the zucchini, roasting it, or even grilling it, but I've got an awesome cookbook called "The Classic Zucchini Cookbook," so I decided to poke around in there to see if anything sounded good. I found a recipe in it for summer squash enchiladas that sounds to die for (maaaaaybe it's all the cheese in the recipe, but who knows!), so watch for that post, too!

A closer look at the AMAZING pork chop that was my meat share this week.

As an add-on to my veggie share, I chose to participate in the meat share, too. Simmons farm also offers egg and cheese share add-ons, but I decided to stick with just veggies and meat. I've already gotten and enjoyed some breakfast sausage (seriously, the BEST sausage I've ever tasted EVER) and some hamburger (oh. my. gawd. best. burgers. ever!). I'm currently hoarding another package of ground beef and a package of sweet Italian sausage in the freezer! I already know what I'm going to do with the sausage...stuffed eggplant...YUMMY!

Gotta run...I've got some cooking to do!