Monthly Archives: December 2021

Meat CSA December 2021

Terra Farma Meat CSA December 2021

In your share this month:

  • Roast (beef or pork) THURSDAY – Sweetheart Ham SUNDAY
  • Chicken
  • French Garlic Sausage
  • Breakfast sausage
  • Bacon
  • Ground beef THURSDAY – Steak SUNDAY
  • Bonus

It’s time to renew your membership!

If you haven’t already done so, there’s still time to renew for next season, or all of next year, at a discount. We are being forced to raise prices next year, as, like everything else, our costs have increased dramatically this year, but we are extending the discounted price for renewals for the spring season through the end of this month. Also, you can sign up for the entire year of 2022 at 2021 prices. Our email to you on 11/17 has those links to sign up, if you can’t locate that, just let us know and we’ll send them to you. There will also be a new location in Woodstock, so if you are in SE, that might be a good option for you. We are also adding new shares, so if you have friends who have been wanting to join, now is the time.

On the Farm

Word of the season: Mud! One of the challenges of raising pigs on pasture west of the Cascades is creating enough dry space for them during winter. We do have a small-ish permanent building for some of them, but they all have outdoor areas that they love to turn into mud pits. The pigs think it’s great, the farmers, not so much. It doesn’t help that we currently have 22 pigs on-site, by far the most we’ve ever had through winter, but 6 will go in for processing in February and 12 more in late March, so there’s a little light at the end of the tunnel. We are also considering finding a beginning farmer that wants to raise pigs and has better winter facilities than we do, who we could mentor, provide them with animals and equipment, and guarantee that we’d purchase a certain number from them every year. It would help alleviate our workload a bit while helping to develop the next generation of farmers. If you know of anyone who might fit that bill, feel free to put them in touch with us.

Everything else is kind of in standard winter mode, with daily milking of the cows and goats, caring for the laying hens and their eggs, along with the rabbits, sheep, and the goats that are not being milked. The only recent new additions are a 6-month old steer that was given to us by some friends who bought a house in White Salmon, WA that came with a collection of poultry and this ones steer who they didn’t feel comfortable taking care of; and a batch of 100 baby chicks which will become our next batch of laying hens in about April.

Product Spotlight

French Garlic links – these are one of our favorites; flavored with garlic, red wine, and a collection of herbs and spices, these are delicious on their own or added to all kinds of dishes. We recently had them as an addition to homemade mac and cheese, so good! It’s probably best known, though, as an ingredient in the hearty soup, cassoulet; here’s a recipe:

Smoked Sausage Cassoulet

Ingredients

  • 2 bacon slices
  • 2 cups chopped onion
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, drained
  • 2 (15-ounce) cans Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 pound pork roast, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
  • ½ pound French garlic sausage, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 8 teaspoons finely shredded fresh Parmesan cheese
  • 8 teaspoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Step 1

Cook bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan; crumble. Add onion, thyme, rosemary, and garlic to drippings in pan; sauté for 3 minutes or until tender. Stir in crumbled bacon, salt, pepper, and tomatoes; bring to a boil. Remove from heat.     

Step 2

Place half of the beans in a large bowl; mash with a potato masher until chunky. Add remaining half of beans, pork, and sausage; stir well. Place half of the bean mixture in a 3 1/2-quart electric slow cooker; top with half of the tomato mixture. Repeat layers. Cover and cook on LOW for 5 hours. Ladle into bowls. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and parsley.

Bonus item – Stroopwaffels

The classic Dutch treat that is literally translated to “Syrup Waffle” is handmade in our kitchen. You can eat these as is, like a decadent cookie, but we do highly recommend setting them on top of your cup of hot coffee until the caramel interior softens a bit, then dunk and eat.  Note: these do contain gluten, dairy, and eggs.