December shares include...

December Monthly Shares: 
Chuck Roast,
Pork Breakfast Sausage,
Pork Sausage (Sweet or Hot Italian),
Lamb Loin Chops,
Ground Beef

Happy December, Folks!

Our second monthly distribution is a nice mix of beef, pork and lamb. There is a fair amount of variability in the chuck roast weights, so some of the lighter roasts will be paired with a soup shank and/or an extra pair of lamb chops. Also, you have a choice of sweet italian sausage links or hot italian sausage. I tried to write notes about these choices on each package so you can get your preference of hot vs sweet sausage and maybe more lamb chops vs beef soup shanks.

No-lamb shares this month will have larger chuck roasts or beef shanks, while no-pork shares will get lamb sausage in place of the pork sausage.

Looking ahead to January, I plan to distribute broiler chickens in our January monthly shares. If you'd like, we also have soup hens available and you can substitute five (5!) soup hens in place of your broiler. 
We usually sell broilers for $30-35 per bird, while the soup hens go for $8-9 each so this is a deal if you like making chicken soup or stock.These are retired layers, and a few years old, so don't expect to roast them. They'll be tough and need to be cooked long and slow, but will give lots of flavor for soup. I'll send a box of soup hens to each site, but email me at meatcsa@thetrustees.org if you want me to reserve some hens for you. If you'd prefer the broiler, great, and no need to to do anything but pick up your share. Hens will also be available for sale if one or two sounds good but 5 is too many.

Happy Holidays,
Jesse

November Winter Meat CSA

Brrr, its cold and windy this morning! Days like this are perfect for a nice roast or steak in the evening, and yippee, we've got those for you! November shares include either an eye round roast (regular shares) or a top-round roast (no-pork shares). The top rounds tend to be a teensy bit bigger and helped balance the no-pork share weights better than the eye rounds. I'll try to make sure we swap those around in a future month.

Making up shares is always fun, although it can be challenging to hit 7 lbs each with the natural variety in meat cuts. My target is 7 to 7.1 lbs for everybody, but there will be the occasional share in the 6.9 range or the 7.2 range. It should all balance out over the season. This month, with relatively heavy cuts, there are more in the 7.2 range, so it's a bonanza. But, ok, you're thinking, a beef roast, but what else? Let's unwrap:

On the left we have the regular share, with 2 porterhouse steaks, bacon and a ham steak in addition to the roast. I figured bacon might be a nice treat for a family breakfast over the holiday weekend, and hamsteak could get cubed into a variety of dishes or go into another breakfast. 

On the right we have the no-pork shares, with the same porterhouse steaks, plus a pound each of ground lamb and ground beef. As I was packing these I was thinking about shepherd's pie and stuffed cabbage leaves. (There are a lot of stuffed cabbage recipes out on the internet, but this picture is of the our copy of Good Meat by Deborah Krasner, which I heartily recommend. The roast recipe below is based on one of hers as well.) 

I didn't include any lamb in the regular shares this month, but will do so in December--if you'd prefer not to get lamb in your shares please send me a note at meatcsa@thetrustees.org. Scroll down for a nice roast recipe, although with a little cream in the sauce it may not work for the kosher/halal no-pork folks. Sorry about that, and I'll find something for you next time!

That's all, but before I go I wanted to share this great shot Desiree got through her binoculars of a frosty hawk the other morning: 

Spice-Rubbed Eye Round Roast with Beer Sauce

I found the original version of this recipe for oven-roasted eye round in Deborah Krasner’s Good Meat (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2010), which if you don’t already have you should seriously consider buying. Allow almost 2 hours total preparation time, starting with defrosted meat, but actual cooking time is under an hour. Have a good sharp knife to slice the finished roast thinly.

For the spice rub: kosher salt, sugar, sweet paprika, ground coriander, ancho chile (or chili powder), ground ginger. I use about a tablespoon of each; some may prefer to go a little lighter on the paprika and chile.

For the sauce: 1 bottle dark beer, 2 Tbs heavy cream

Rub all but 1 tablespoon of the spice mix over the beef and let sit at room temperature for an hour. Preheat the oven to 350, and roast the beef, fat side up, in a pan that fits it as closely as possible, like an oval oven-proof frying pan or small sheet pan with sides. (The idea is to capture the juices while minimizing evaporation.) Roast about 15-20 minutes at 350, then increase to 425 for another 15 minutes or so to an internal temperature of 130 degrees. Let the roast rest on a platter, lightly tented with foil, while you make the sauce.

Use about 2/3 of the beer to wash all the juices and crispy bits from the roasting pan, scraping if needed, and add the last tablespoon of spice mix. (With a 2-3 lb roast you don’t quite need an entire beer, so its ok if you drink a little.) Add any juices that have settled from the resting roast. On the stovetop (you can use the roasting pan if its stovetop safe, otherwise use a saucepan), boil the beer and beef juices until reduced to about a cup in total. Remove from heat, and whisk in the heavy cream.

Slice the roast thinly across the grain, and serve with a drizzle of sauce. Delish!

Week 19: Brisket and Broilers

This week's share: Brisket &/or Skirt steak

Next week's share: Rib Steaks

Hi Folks--

Just a brief note this week as I'm pressed for time with moving animals and picking up inventory and other prep for Winter Meat CSA season. I moved what will probably be the last batch of broiler chicks for the season out onto pasture this past week. They are still in their "awkward" phase--partly feathered out--and I'm keeping busy opening and closing  their "tractor" AM & PM and giving them a little supplemental heat at night. The extra work of keeping them comfortable outside is worth it; the exercise and pasture greens are good for them and great for their flavor!

As promised, we're doing brisket this week. Skirt is an option if you'd prefer, but brisket is a bit of a treat because there just aren't that many briskets on a steer. I'm including this delicious crock-pot brisket recipe from Kitchn which seems perfect for this colder fall weather. This is best prepared a day ahead, and can cook all day (or all night--which is how I prefer to do it).

As expected we are filling up quickly for Winter Meat CSA, so if you haven't gotten around to signing up yet, please don't wait! The folks up on the North Shore are really taking to the Appleton Meat CSA offering!

Take care,
Jesse

Week 18: Winter Meat CSA FAQs

This week's share: Ground Beef

Next week's share: Brisket &/or Skirt steak

Hi Folks-- This week has been a whirl of prep for the Chestnut Hill Farm Harvest Festival and Southborough Heritage Day. Both are a great opportunity to meet folks and talk about the Winter Meat CSA. Plus they were fun events! We grilled beef skewers and burgers, made some pulled bbq beef, and had a blast!

Southborough Heritage Day

 As we move through Winter Meat CSA "signup season" I've gotten several good questions that I thought I'd address here.

I don't eat X. Can I substitute? With a few caveats, yes. This is the most common question I get! Whether you keep kosher/halal and won't use pork, or really dislike lamb, or whatever, I am happy to try to accommodate your needs. But, here are the caveats:

1. I need to know up front so I can plan distributions throughout the season. It is much harder to make a swap during pickup, so please don't ask! This will be a season-long decision, not a "can-I-have-beef-shanks-this-week-instead-of-lamb-shanks-because-my-relatives-are-coming-and-they-don't-like-lamb?" kind of thing.
2. Some meats are more limited than others. This year, broiler chicken and lamb will be harder to substitute in than pork or beef, and we will have more beef than anything else. So, everybody gets beef. If you'd prefer no pork, you'll probably mostly get beef in its place. If you're asking for no lamb, you'll get a mix of pork and beef in its place. No lamb and no pork will mean mostly beef with some chicken. (I don't have many people request no chicken!) All that said, I will have soup hens ("retired" layers) that I can substitute instead other meats upon request, and will do so at a discount--meaning that if you take a soup hen you'll get more than 7 pounds in your share to balance the lower value chicken.
3. Please try new things! This is directed towards the lamb skeptics, not the no-pork faithful, but if you haven't had good lamb in a while or ever, give it a chance. And soup hens make some delicious soup!

Will you let us know what's coming up next? Yes. Mea culpa: I didn't do a good enough job of staying on top of the blog during the summer beef CSA to give you a heads up for your weekly shopping and a few of you have asked for a longer lead time so you'll know what to expect. That's a fair complaint. I'm listening and I'll commit to supporting your meal planning with both "in this pickup" and "in next pickup" information.See up there at the top? Already implemented!

How will pickups work? As in, the actual pickup day logistics? In an effort to cut down on plastic waste, we won't provide a bag for each distribution, so plan to bring a reusable one. And unlike with Summer Beef CSA shares, we won't have you pick and pack your own--there will just be too many people picking up to manage inventory and hit our 7-lb/share target this way. Instead, we will usually bundle most of your vacuum-packed, frozen meat in butcher-paper-wrapped packages so you can "grab-and-go." If there is a choice of say, flank steak or hanger steak (like last week), we'll either have folks sign up for their choice the distribution beforehand or we'll wrap them and it will be the luck of the draw. Some larger items--broiler chickens and possibly larger roasts--we'll have you take separately.

Those are the big 3 questions I've been getting, but if you have others, send me a note or comment on this post!

Cheers everyone,
Jesse

P.S. -- I just have to share this picture of my daughter with that big sirloin tip ("flap meat") from the week before last. Oh my, grilling deliciousness!

Week 16: Fall Bonanza!

This week's share: Flap Meat aka Steak Tips or Sirloin Bavette

 Wow, this time of year is busy--and its the time of year when we turn the corner, inventory-wise. Rather than slowly emptying, our freezers have begun to rapidly fill! In the past week we picked up our lamb from Adams Farm Slaughterhouse and sent the pigs and the first trailer load of steers off harvest! Raised by Trustees staff at Katama Farm (aka The Farm Institute) on Martha's Vineyard, the lamb looks delicious: beautiful loin and rib chops, sweet and hot italian sausage, and kabobs to boot. Look for these in the winter meat CSA this year!


Speaking of which, the signup for winter meat CSA is almost live! Our web team is testing and double-checking the signup page and I hope to be sending current members the link in the next day or two with full public access next week! I expect a lot of interest--we've had really strong interest at Powisset Harvest Fest and at the Boston Local Food Festival, and I expect the same at Chestnut Hill Farm's upcoming Harvest Festival on October 8th. (Pssst, you should come! More info here!) What's more, we had a nice article in the MetroWest Daily News on Saturday, online via wickedlocal.com, here. What I'm trying to say is: don't delay when you get the signup email!

In other news: chicks! Our last batch of broilers for this season is just starting and boy-howdy they sure are cute when they're all tiny and fluffy.

Ok, enough about winter meat CSA. In this week's share we're offering "Flap Meat"--or sirloin bavette, if you're a francophone. here. The sirloin tips are a little heavy for our 2-lb summer shares (2- to 2-1/2 lbs), so take one each and enjoy! This is the classic cut for steak tips; delicious, with great beefy flavor, but needs to be cooked a little more done than some other steaks. Seriouseats did a great article (w/ recipes!) on it a few years ago, here.

And just because I'm so worn out with all the climate-disruption-induced havoc of the past few weeks, a reminder of what grass-fed cattle look and sound like when they are helping displace feedlot emissions and sequester carbon:

Take care, everybody!
Jesse

Week 14: Welcome to Southborough!

This week's share: ribeye steaks (2)

We are we going?

Well, it's a fair bit later in the season than I expected, but I hauled the first steers from Moose Hill Farm to Chestnut Hill Farm yesterday evening. The rainfall this season has meant that grazing pressure on the grass wasn't too bad at MHF. It was an easy ride over and they settled right in for the night after a quick walk around to explore the new pasture.  I like to walk with them, make sure they get a sense of where the fence is before dark and bring them to the water, but it's probably more for my benefit than theirs. They just want to find the best grass.

Dawn found them getting to know the new neighbors, my family's resident goats at Chestnut Hill Farm. The goats have been cleaning brush from around some old stumps up behind the "Hangar" barn, and everyone was very interested to meet each other.

Cheers,
Jesse

Week 13: Mid-season review and winter CSA preview

This week's share: ground beef

I thought it would be fun to do a little mid-season review this week. We're two-thirds of the way through the share, and here's what the summer beef CSA has included: ribeye steaks; T-bone steak, london broil steak, sirloin steak, skirt steak, chuck roast, porterhouse steak, ground beef (5 weeks including this week), and one members' choice selection. Prices vary of course, but I calculate that our running average is $13.69/lb based on our retail prices. That's a conservative figure using 1.8 lbs for the weeks when steaks were distributed, which can be difficult to combine into precise 2-lb pairs, and 2.2 lbs for the chuck roasts, which were a little larger. Figuring exactly 2-lbs per week works out to about $14.25/lb. Either way, we're running somewhere around a 20% discount off our retail prices. Not a bad return for your $11/lb investment!

While the money is always a factor, there is so much more going on that you are supporting. At Moose Hill, we're seeing really good regrowth of clover in the pastures. This is important because clover is a legume, which fixes nitrogen from the air, and is a key driver of soil fertility. At Chestnut Hill, the new fences will allow us to dramatically improve management of the former hayfields and improve the grassland both for livestock and ground nesting birds. At Powisset, some of our neighbors in the equine community requested changes to the fence system for the safety of riders, and the delayed start and good growing season produced more grass than we could keep up with. After nesting season we had the fields cut for hay to buy some more time to complete the fence updates.

As we look ahead to the winter season, we have most of the details worked out for the Winter Meat CSA. As last year, the winter shares will include beef, pork and chicken, and this year we are adding lamb from The Trustees FARM Institute at Katama Farm on Martha's Vineyard. Based on your feedback, we are simplifying the share offerings to a single 7-lb size and instead offering two distribution schedules, biweekly or monthly. If you want more meat, go biweekly. Less meat? Monthly is for you! Full paleo family? Get one of each! We are also extending the winter shares, going November through May this year, and adding a distribution at Appleton Farms in Ipswich. This aligns the Meat CSA offerings with Trustees vegetable CSAs, and will allow us to offer our members more-or-less-continuous year-round service. We haven't confirmed pricing yet, but we don't expect significant increases.

The sign-up page on the website is being updated, and current shareholders will have the first chance to subscribe. Watch your inboxes for the link and don't delay because we're expecting increased demand this year!

Take care,
Jesse

Week 10: Home again, home again, jiggety jig

We had a great time in Maine last week, but its also great to be home--there's a lot to do and too much time away from the farm makes me itchy! I dove right back into working on fencing at Chestnut Hill Farm and am making pretty good progress. So, back home, back in the field, and back to a full kitchen, its time for one of my favorite summer recipes: cousa mihshi. This ground-beef-stuffed summer squash recipe was given to us by a CSA shareholder about 10 years ago. Her father was Lebanese and she said that he made it every year only during the summer because that was when the zucchini were the sweetest. This has become the staple stuffed zucchini in our household and we look forward to it every summer as well.

Cousa Mihshi
1.5 lbs of cousa or zucchini squash up to 8 inches in length
1 small chopped onion
butter for sauteing
1/2 cup uncooked rice
1 lb of ground beef
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp salt
pepper to taste
1lb can of stewed tomatoes

Cut the squash lengthwise and remove the cores leaving 1/2 inch of sidewall, careful not to pierce the sides. Rinse in cold water and drain. Saute onions in butter in a large pan. Place rinsed, drained rice in a bowl and add meat and seasonings, mix. Add half of the diced tomatoes to meat mix. Stuff the zukes 3/4 full. Arrange the stuffed zucchini over the onions and pour the rest of the tomatoes on top. Barely cover with water and a little additional salt. Cover and cook on medium heat for about 35 minutes or until the rice is done. Enjoy.

Good fences--and vacations--make happy farmers

Hello from Maine! I'm up in Acadia National Park with my family. As a farmer it's always a special treat to be able to take a summer vacation and it's been several years since our last one. So, a special thanks to Connor for handling chores this week!

In farm news, fence posts are all set in the big field at Chestnut Hill farm. This stage of fence construction is always interesting. I like to use Google Earth to plan fence systems and figure out gate locations for efficient rotations, cattle handling, and trail access. As much as the system needs to work for grass and livestock management, it also needs to allow the multiple use goals of various human activities: walkers, birders, etc, and at Chestnut Hill Farm, vegetable production with its need for deer exclusion fencing as well.

Then, of course, comes actually putting posts in the ground and the rocky landscape imposes its own constraints. It's a compromise. Next week I'll be stringing wire, which goes fairly quickly, and the cattle should arrive in Southborough soon.

The beef share this week is bone-in sirloin steak. These are nice, big, classic steaks, and a special treat because industrial meat cutting and packing practices have made them less common and more difficult to find. They present nicely on a plate, and are big enough to easily share if you prefer a smaller portion.

Another option is to trim them down. When camping, hauling big steaks around (and keeping them cold until ready to cook) can be a challenge. The following recipe for Korean bulgogi (BBQ beef) is a camp-friendly option that is equally delicious at home. Any flavorful cut of beef will work, steaks or boneless roast, but I prefer sirloin, round, or London broil. It's simplest to start with boneless steaks, but while bone-in steaks or rolled roasts add an extra preparation step, it's well worth it and a great option for a kid-friendly meal that can travel.

Camp-friendly Bulgogi Skewers

Meat:
 2 lbs boneless steak or roast, about 1" to 1-1/4" thick pieces, partially frozen

Marinade:

1/3 cup Sesame oil

1/2 cup Soy sauce

2 Tbs Rice vinegar

1/4 cup chopped scallions

2 Tbs Sugar

1 Tbs Ginger, minced, or 1/2 tsp powdered

1 Tbs Garlic, minced, or 1/2 tsp powdered

Supplies: 
A very sharp knife

Skewers

Ziplock gallon bags, or similar sized Tupperware container

If necessary, start by defrosting and boning out the steak, or removing kitchen string, unrolling the roast and cutting to 1" or 1-1/4" thick and anything over about 2" or 3" long, with the grain running lengthwise. Then, back in the freezer. You want the meat partially frozen so it can be sliced thinly--fully defrosted it will be too squishy to safely cut.

Using a very sharp knife, slice the partially-frozen beef as thin as you can manage--ideally less than 1/8." A deli slicer works great if you have one, but isn't necessary. 

Now you have a decision: do you want to do all the prep at home, and carry Tupperware, or carry a smaller ziplock package which can be frozen but will need more prep in camp. If you are traveling a long ways, the latter is preferable, but if you aren't going far and you want to speed up onsite prep you can carry finished skewers in Tupperware.

Mix up the marinade, mix in the beef, and give it a few hours to overnight. For camping, I mix the marinade and beef in a ziplock bag, press all the air out, double-bag, and refrigerate or freeze it prior to travel--which is nice because it helps keep the cooler cold. At home or at your destination, thread the beef onto the skewers in a zigzag pattern.

Grill over high heat, and enjoy!

Week 8: cranking along in the deep summer...

Hey folks-- Sorry I missed the blog post last week, but the big news is that the wayward steers are back with the herd! What a relief! Our plan to tempt them into one of the pastures near the rest of the cattle finally paid off, and Connor and Kate were able to quietly shut the gate behind them one evening. We brought the rest of the cattle to them and they are slowly settling down.

I've been cranking along putting fenceposts in at Chestnut Hill ahead of the cattle. The regular rainfall has kept the grass growing well--so much so that it is well ahead of us. This has meant a change in plans; we are cutting hay at Powisset Farm rather than grazing the first growth and will bring the steers to graze in the early fall, after grazing at Chestnut Hill Farm in late August. Every year is a little different!

We're offering chuck roasts this week with a recipe for pulled BBQ beef. The nice thing about this is while it needs a long cooking, you can quickly throw everything in the slow cooker in the morning and then only have a few minutes of prep time in the evening! Just the thing after a long day...

Cheers,

Jesse

Pulled BBQ Beef Sandwiches

2 to 2-1/2 lbs bone-in chuck roast
1/2 cup ketchup
2-4 Tbs brown sugar, if desired
1/4 cup of your favorite BBQ sauce
2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbs Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1-2 garlic cloves, minced, or 1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp pepper--black or cayenne as you prefer
6-8 sandwich buns

Optional toppings: cheddar or monterey jack cheese, onions and peppers (cooked or not as you prefer), pickles, etc

Yield: 6-8 sandwiches

Place roast in slow cooker. Combine additional ingredients and pour over meat. Cover and cook 8-10 hours on low heat or until tender. Remove meat, allow to cool slightly and, using two forks, shred meat and remove bone(s). Skim fat from cooking liquid, return meat to cooker and cook an additional 15 minutes. Serve using slotted spoon to ladle shredded beef onto buns. Top as you prefer and enjoy!

London broil by any other name...

True confessions, folks: I hate the name "london broil." The steaks themselves can be quite nice done properly but "london broil" is just unflattering. Moreover, the name actually refers to the cooking method of marinating a steak from the shoulder or round and then searing it over high heat. The traditional method here is to use a very acidic marinade, and it can be overwhelmingly so and result in an underwhelming steak. But that is the fault of the cook, not the meat.

Obviously, I need to set you up with a proper recipe here, one that does justice to this perfectly nice, but poorly-named, cut. As I looked through our collection of cookbooks and cruised the web the other week I just didn't see anything that I was particularly excited about. So I decided to play around and see what I could come up with for you.

Lemon juice and/or vinegar are common bases for london broil marinades, but lime provides a nice, light, summery alternative. Many marinade recipes these days rely on soy sauce for the combination of salt and liquid, but some folks can't or prefer not to use soy and in any case soy-based marinades can be heavy and I wanted something light to let the lime stand out. What goes with lime in summertime?... tonic water! Now that we're playing with bitter flavors, escarole is a perfect complement. I think the experiment turned out well--in fact, it smelled so delicious that I forgot to take a picture in the rush to eat! Here's what was left when I realized my error:

Lime-tonic london grill with escarole

We enjoyed this straight up, just meat and veg, but it would also pair delightfully with a cold rice, pasta, or corn and bean salad.

Meat:
2 lbs "london broil" (2-3 steaks)

Veg:
2-4 heads of escarole heads sliced in half lengthwise and drizzled with olive oil and a dusting of salt. (Could substitute other grillable leafy produce like romaine lettuce or bok choy. Even a slightly bolted and bitter lettuce could work well here.

Marinade:
juice of 2 limes
1/2 cup tonic water
2 tsp salt, or to taste -- some folks may prefer less salt, and if so, better to use less at the beginning than rinse the steaks before cooking (!)
1/4 tsp black pepper, or to taste
1/2 tsp Cholula or similar hot sauce
1/4 cup garlic scapes, minced (I tested this a few weeks ago while garlic scapes were in season; scallion should be very similar, or substitute maybe 1/8 cup of minced onion or garlic bulbs)

Preparation:
Make up the marinade in the morning or the day before. Lightly score the steaks on both sides with diagonal cuts <1/8" deep and let the steaks marinate in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours--24 or even 36 hours is fine too. Bring them to room temperature prior to cooking. While the grill is heating, cut the escarole and drizzle it with olive oil, then set aside.

Grill the steaks on an oiled grill-- I had a good bed of coals about 3-4 inches from the grill, hot but not super hot. Depending on the thickness, allow 7-10 minutes per side, turning once. Throw the escarole on a cooler spot on the grill when you turn the meat and grill both sides just enough to wilt the heart and get some crispy blackened bits at the the edges of the leaves--but not too much! I found that the steaks wanted to come off first and briefly rest under a tent of aluminum foil while the escarole finished up. If you put the escarole over higher heat than I did, well then it might go the other way around.

Enjoy!

Jesse

Wild and beautiful and oh so cray cray...

This week's share: ground beef.

This week's news: in farming, like most things, predictable things happen unexpectedly. We don't know precisely when things will happen, but we know things will go wrong, eventually. This week, the unexpected predictable thing was where steers ain't s'posed to be:

Yup, that happened.

Last Monday, we picked up the last group of cattle for this year from a well-regarded grass-based farm in NY and released them into their quarantine pasture. Being NYers and Yankees fans, these boys had been vet-checked at their home farm but need to be kept separate from our steers until the local animal inspector can make sure that they are healthy and not transporting any inappropriate sports merchandise. Its a formality, but you never know.

It turns out that these boys are a wilder bunch than the rest of the herd, a bit unmannerly and apparently unused to close contact with people. By 4 pm on Independence Day, four of them were out of the fence and running. We were able to herd them from the east side of Moose Hill Street back across the road and into the woods at the back of the main farm and the Mass Audubon sanctuary before they disapppeared.

Fortunately, they have settled down about and are returning to be near the other steers in the pasture, spending significant amounts of time in and near "Margaret's Meadow" an unfenced open area adjacent to the main pastures. We have provided a water trough outside the fence and once they are using it regularly, we will begin moving it further and further into an empty pasture near the other cattle until we are able to catch them inside and close the gate. We will also be building some fence behind them in the woods to limit their ability to move away from the farm.

I wish I could include a picture of them frolicking in the woods, but they don't hang around when they see the paparazzi. The best I can do is this picture of where they've been:

Look, fresh sign! Have a great week, everybody...
Jesse

Looking Ahead to Independence Day -- Freedom to Choose!

As I've been thinking about what to put into the share this week, I've wrestled with how best to support your 4th of July grilling aspirations next week. Should I offer something new and interesting? A premium cut like porterhouse? But not everyone wants to experiment on a holiday, and 2 lbs doesn't go far if you're throwing a party... Maybe some folks didn't cook those ribeyes yet, and a few more would make a perfect batch for you and a few of your friends. Hmmm... Or maybe just ground beef, so you can pick up a few more lbs at retail and make a mess of burgers without breaking the bank for your party? A real head-scratcher for your farmer.

In a traditional, strict pricing model, any decision I make won't be optimal for some CSA members, and will push our per-pound-price average in one direction or another. Porterhouse, or ground, or chuck steaks would all need to be balanced later in the summer by something else. But this is CSA, and the thing I love most about CSA is that it offers the farmer a little more flexibility in terms of strict pricing and lets us focus on relationships. While I don't know what will fit your plans the best, you do! So here's the deal, in honor of Independence Day and our many freedoms, individual and collective:

You pick! Take any two pounds of beef that will round out your plans. Rather than worry about whether you take porterhouse or ground, I'm just asking that you honor the spirit of CSA and our cooperative freedoms and let us know what you selected and how it turned out. If some more burger is just the ticket, go for it. If you've got some steaks in the freezer from winter CSA and need some more, go ahead and match them.

In the spirit of this, I think Connor's Instagram post from last night is perfectly appropriate:

Yep, we're all in this together, yet free to make our own choices. It's what makes life good and makes America great! Post a comment to this post next week and let us know how your 4th of July grilling adventures turned out.

Keep being excellent to each other, and Happy Independence Day!

--Jesse

Week 2 - Burgers!

Hey everybody-- Week 2 brings us burger, or rather, ground beef, and I thought I'd share my approach to turning ground beef into burger.

First, defrost. Seriously, it doesn't work otherwise. Either in the fridge overnight or put the cryovac package of ground in a pot under cold running water for 20 minutes or so. If you have a lot of faith in your microwave defrost settings, that might work but in my experience I end up with some parts hot and some frozen.

Second, divide the meat. I like to put a little oil on my hands, mix it all well, and first form all the meat into balls so I end up with even-sized burgers--or the right mix of bigger and smaller ones for the kids. This is also the time to add anything, like cheese, onion, mushrooms, etc. Because I like to cook burger medium-rare, I pre-cook any onions or mushrooms so they don't prevent the meat from cooking evenly, and make sure to let any cheese warm at least to room temp before adding it. I have been known to throw in a dash of salt, fresh cracked pepper, garlic, etc, but less is more when making additions so that the grass-fed flavor will shine through and the burger will hold together.

Third, I make the patties about 3/4" thick, and then I firm up the outer edges if they have cracked by pressing a dimple into the centers while compressing from the outside in. The idea is to get the outer edge nice and smooth while leaving the centers a little bit thinner, to help them cook evenly without puffing up.

Finally, cook over medium-hot heat, about 2-3 minutes on the first side and about the same plus 30 seconds more on the second side. They stay juiciest if they only get flipped once and never pressed. Ideally that little dimple puddles up with juice and helps keep everything moist. As I noted above, Des and I like mine a little on the rare side, medium for the kids, which usually works out if I give them the thinner ones and we take the thick ones.

Cheers,
Jesse

Summer Beef CSA starts next week!

Jesse with steers; photo by Tim

I’ll discuss distribution details below, but first let me introduce myself: Hi, I’m Jesse!

 

As Connor mentioned in his last post, I’ve recently joined the livestock team at the Trustees. I live with my family at the Trustees’ Chestnut Hill Farm in Southborough, where my awesome wife Desiree is the farm manager and CSA vegetable grower. I just may be the luckiest guy alive. :)

In addition to being thrilled to get back to farming fulltime, I’m particularly excited about how the Trustees and this meat CSA operation can improve our stewardship of these beautiful landscapes, the community of people and wildlife who live within and near them, and the broader environment. Not all land and not all soil is the same, and much of Massachusetts and New England can’t compete in producing staple crops. Worse, our landscapes are badly fragmented by poorly-planned development. But our soils are great for grass and good agricultural stewardship can begin to restore our special places and improve the connections through these landscapes. Grass-farming, by producing delicious, quality protein with minimal inputs, can help reduce our carbon footprint while providing quality lives for our animals. Fewer trucking miles, shorter supply chains, no corn, no feedlots. More soil carbon sequestration, better water infiltration, more diverse and productive habitats, and the sound of contented cattle cropping the forage. What’s not to love?

Steers under a darkening sky; photo by Connor

Since I started, Tim and I have been hard at work building fence and growing the herd. We brought in a group of White Park steers from Appleton Farms, in addition to more of the Belted Galloway cross steers from our friends at Holiday Brook Farm that we had last year. Pigs are out in the woods, we expect lambs from the Farm Institute soon, and we expect another group of cattle next week. 

Pigs headed out to the woods; photo by Jesse

In a small change from our management approach last year, we are planning to keep the cattle in one large group that we rotate between farms as well as within each farm. This lets us get better grazing  impact on the pastures, but for shorter periods of time with longer rests in between, providing benefits to both the cattle and the land. It also lets us better integrate our ground-nesting bird reserve areas, as we will be able to more rapidly move animals into those areas after the fledglings leave their nests, which should help improve the habitat value of these fields over time. So if you live near Powisset Farm or Chestnut Hill Farm and have been wondering “where are the cattle?,” they’re coming, we promise! We’re making good progress at Moose Hill and they will go to Powisset next. We expect to start fencing at Chestnut Hill Farm soon, and anticipate that the cattle will arrive there in the later summer.

In exciting, and entirely happy news, Connor and his fiancé Kate were married at Moose Hill Farm over Memorial Day weekend. Congratulations Connor and Kate! And in exciting, but a little sad news, Tim will be leaving to go to law school later this summer. Congratulations, Tim, and I’m glad we have you for a little longer!

Ok, distribution logistics: because the summer beef CSA is more of a steady weekly trickle than a biweekly flood, the logistics are really pretty easy. Show up at your favorite farm during one of the regular distribution times, and the beef shares will be waiting for you in a freezer. Check your name off the list, grab your share, and you’re good to go grill! As a reminder, pick-ups are offered at the following locations and times:

• Moose Hill Farm, Wednesdays 4-6PM
• Chestnut Hill Farm, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, 2-6PM, PLUS Saturday 9-2
• Powisset Farm, Tuesday 2-6PM, Thursdays 10AM-6PM, Saturdays 10AM-4PM
• Weir River Farm, Saturdays 11AM-3PM

If you are picking up at Chestnut Hill Farm or at Powisset Farm, come whichever day of the week is most convenient for you! If you do have any questions, there will be folks there you can ask. Because two pounds per week isn’t much, you should expect shares to alternate between higher value and lower value cuts—this lets us give you two steaks at once so you don’t have to fight with your friends, which is good, right? But the next week it will be 2 lbs of ground, etc. Sometimes we may need to go a little heavy or a little light depending on the weights of the cuts, but it will balance out.

So, to start the season off right: ribeye steaks this week! Don’t use a recipe, just rub them with some salt and pepper to taste, slap them on a hot grill, flip them once, and get them off there while they’re still rare or medium rare!! Serve with salad from your favorite local farm. 

Enjoy!

--Jesse

P.S. We still have several shares available, so please spread the word among your friends!