Don't worry, that garlic won't get eaten by the lions. (At least not all of it. The grass was another story though). We've had some really awesome farm/family days the last couple of weeks. It's so fun to see the kids outside playing, creating castles in the mud and in their imagination! 

The garlic and strawberry plants look good. That's garlic in the foreground. We plant it in late fall so it begins to sprout and grow.  Then it goes dormant over the winter so that this time of year, it's already planted and ready to take off. That way, we can have garlic scapes, green garlic and garlic bulbs for you quickly in your CSA bags. So, the garlic is looking good this year. The strawberries are looking good too. In the above photo, the strawberries are covered with what looks like a giant piece of cloth.  It is. It's called remay, and it helps the plants survive the winter. We hold down the cloth with sandbags all along the edge. Here is a photo of a strawberry plant:

The edges of the plant are a little brown from the cold, but the new growth in the center looks amazing.  We're hopeful for great strawberries to start us out in the CSA bags in May.

This was a day that Adam was working with the bees, so the boys were playing "lion" while Adam had the hives open just a few feet away. It was a sunny day, so the bees were happy, and so were the boys!  This was just the start of their adventure. They also climbed a giant dirt mound from when we cleared out the pond last fall, rode on the tractor and helped mama pick up tree limbs from when Adam grafted.

​Spring goodness!

Remember when breakfast was a bowl of cereal or a piece of toast? (And maybe it still is?) Try re-thinking what breakfast looks like. Through much trial and error, I've discovered I need two things for breakfast to really feel good: protein and veggies.

I still will sometimes have some oatmeal with nuts or granola and yogurt, but the sweet taste in the morning just doesn't do it for me anymore.... and it definitely doesn't hold me over till lunch. Even the oatmeal with nuts feels heavy in my belly at first, but then I feel like I need more nourishment.

So I've created alternatives for myself.  This one is my favorite: kale with mushrooms and fried eggs.  I dice the mushrooms and throw them in a cast iron with a little butter, or just some water so they don't burn.  While those are cooking, de-stem and cut the kale small, then toss it in the pan. Let it wilt and then add a splash of vinegar, either rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar), and then a little splash of coconut amino acids for a hint of sweetness. You could also use balsamic reduction or just skip it.  Then put those in a bowl or plate and use the same plan to fry and egg or two.

I won't lie, it does take a little more time than putting a piece of bread in the toaster. But honestly not that much more time. Maybe 5 minutes. And it's soooo worth it.  I don't do this every morning yet, but I'm working towards it because when I do, my whole day goes so much better. I'm energetic, my brain functions better, and I just feel better (as long as I've gotten enough sleep! But especially on those days, it's important for me to eat well to get through the day).

Making this one change has meant way more veggie intake for me, too, and is a great way to get through that CSA share! I'd love to hear your ideas for veggies for breakfast. Send them my way!

Last year, we bought bees. Three hives. Not for honey, mind you! For pollination. (We have maple syrup and sorghum for sweeteners). They have a job on the farm. It's to go around to all the flowers and "spread the love" so to speak so that fruits will develop from the flowers. Also, as I'm sure you know, bees are so important not just for vegetable and fruit pollination, but to make the whole system work. We need them. They did their job by being bees, and visiting all the flowers on the farm, and then around October we weren't seeing them anymore. The hives had died. We were very disappointed, but it was our first year, so we thought, "well, we'll try again next year."  Well, over the winter we've made friends with a new beekeeper, Monica. She wants to learn to keep bees to do her part to help out the bees.  She came over to see where we kept our hives, and she volunteered to manage the new batch for us for the year.  We took a family trip out to the hives to check them out, and low and behold: 

Nourishing Hope: Dinner and Ideas
(working title... anyone great at coming up with good titles?)

We're partnering with Farm to Fork Cafe for an exclusive dinner conversation! This is for foodies and thinkers. Adam and Rae will lead a conversation on topics that animate us, that we just don't have time to delve into in the farmers market bustle: climate change on the farm and farmer-led solutions, policy at the local and national levels that affect small family farms, ideas and practices around food justice and farm justice, including racial and economic injustice that are built into our current food systems, and more.  Bring your appetite and thoughts to the table and let your mind and tastebuds expand with delicious Barr Farms fare lovingly prepared by Farm to Fork Cafe. This will be a small intimate event to allow for depth of conversation.

Menu:
Appetizer
Salad
Barr Farms chicken dinner and two sides (vegetarian option available)
Dessert
One glass wine or beer  (or nonalcoholic beverage)

Thursday, April 2
6 pm
Farm to Fork Cafe
2425 Portland Ave, Louisville, KY 40212
$29 

We are REALLY excited about this event! It's going to be delicious... um, I mean fun. Look forward to seeing you there!

This event will be open to CSA members first, as a thank you to our members.

This recipe was submitted by Sarah Fritschner. She's an expert cook who likes to break it down to what is easy and what tastes good. She shared this with us cause it's all Barr Farms food! Sausage from the recent meat deliveries, and kale that she bought in the middle of the season to freeze for the winter. If you froze some greens, here's an idea of how to use them!  Thanks Sarah!​


Sausage, white beans and kale
2 tablespoons olive oil
8 ounces Italian sausage
1 to 2 cups frozen, chopped kale or spinach (8 cups fresh, chopped)
1 to 1 ½ cups cooked or canned white beans (navy, Great Northern etc.)
2 cups chicken broth
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
½ teaspoon oregano
Salt to taste


Heat oil in a heavy, deep skillet over medium-high heat. If your sausage is in links, cut away the casings and break up the meat into the skillets. Brown well, stirring and breaking up the meat. Add remaining ingredients except salt. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until much of the liquid is evaporated, leaving a sort of thick sauce to bind the ingredients. Taste for salt. Serve over rice, with pasta or grits. Serves 4.

Recipe by Mallory Froman. She says: "Super easy but it's how we always eat our squash!  The kids love it."

Ingredients:
1 large (or two small) Butternut Squash
1 TBS Garlic Powder
2 TBS Avocado Oil

Directions:
Peel and cut your squash into small squares (about 1/4 in).
In a bowl, coat your cut squash with the avocado oil.
Spread coated squash on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Make sure not to over crowd the pan (they won't crisp if they are).
Sprinkle with garlic powder.
Bake at 425 for 35-40 minutes or until squash are golden brown.

​Is your fridge overflowing with green beans (or yellow wax beans), like mine is?  I plan to cut, blanch and freeze mine so I'll have some for winter.  I'm also planning to try this recipe from CSA member Mallory Froman. She says, "the green beans were so good this week!  Here's how I fixed them. (I adapted the recipe from tasteandtellblog)."

• Ingredients:
• 1 1/2 lbs fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into 2 inch pieces
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 10 oz cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

Directions:

1. Place green beans in a large saucepan and cover with water.  Place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and simmer until the green beans are tender, about 10 minutes.  Drain off the water and set aside.
2. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Stir in the garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Add the tomatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes are soft.  Stir the green beans into the tomatoes and heat for another minute or two, until the beans are heated through.  Stir in the basil and serve immediately.

Submitted by Mallory Froman

Ingredients:
1 pound chorizo sausage (I used Barr Farm's)
1 pound potatoes, cubed about 1/2 inch in size (I used Barr Farm's)
1 bunch of Kale, chopped (I used Barr Farm's)

Directions:

1. In a large skillet over medium heat, cook and crumble chorizo sausage .  Once the sausage is cooked through, remove from skillet but leave rendered fat in pan.  
2.  Add cubed potatoes to skillet and cook until soft and begin to crisp on the outside.
3.  Add chopped kale to potatoes and cook until wilted.
4.  Add the chorizo sausage into the potatoes and kale and combine until all warmed through.
5. Serve hash warm!  My favorite way to eat it is with a fried egg on top!

Garlic piling up? This is a delicious spread, or a great addition to recipes.
Submitted by Mallory Froman

Ingredients:
Garlic (whole head)
Foil

Directions:
1. Cut the top off of the head of garlic so the tops of the cloves are exposed.
2. Wrap in foil.
3.  Place foil wrapped garlic on a cookie sheet and roast at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
4.  Let cool, unwrap the garlic, and squeeze the cloves out.  The garlic cloves will be soft and spreadable.

Use the roasted garlic in your favorite sauces and recipes or even use it as a spread!