Die-Hard Locavores & Holiday Feasters -
This is the moment our bellies have all been waiting for....the delicious climax of the local bounty...the FINAL HARVEST...the mouth-watering results of an exhausting season in the midwestern dirt... & the fantastical gathering of some of KC's finest farmers. Get your gravy on this Friday from 4-9 PM at:
The BADSEED Pre-Thanksgiving
Farmers' Market Extravaganza
"Local Organic Delights for your Holiday Feast"
(Our Biggest Market of the Year!!!)
The Food Revolution will be in full effect like you've never seen it before. This is "walmart one stop shopping" for the ethical eater....EVERYTHING you need for your holiday feast all in one place!!!! Get stuffed......(or stuff a pastured local turkey instead!)....either way - EAT UP KANSAS CITY!
FYI - WE DOUBLE FOOD STAMPS. Swipe your EBT card for up to $30 and get $60 worth of farm-fresh products!!
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Every year when the Thanksgiving Market rolls around I am faced with the intimidating task of composing a riveting "market e-mail" that will warm you soul, tantalize your taste buds, and convince your pocket book to "go local" (and organic) for you holiday feast. In other words - I am called upon to spread the GOSPEL OF LOCAL FOOD for the sake of the farmers, the eaters, and the good earth.
This year is no different.....(except for the fact that I have a 5 month old baby "helping" me type). Let's just say that the miniature "Wendall Berry" is sitting beside me spouting agrarian baby talk and I am doing my best to catch a few brilliant quotes between the goo goos and the ga gas. I'm a bit distracted to say the least!!!
Anyway, enough stalling....rambling....and more stalling. (I am trying REALLY hard to fight the urge to copy and paste my brilliant "rant" from last year....I might have to steal bits and pieces here and there!!!!).
Alright, here goes nothing...
Traditionally speaking, Thanksgiving is a celebration of the local bounty. The first Thanksgiving days in New England were harvest festivals, or days for thanking God for plentiful crops. That is why the current holiday takes place late in the Fall, once all the crops have been gathered from the fields. The original festival lasted three days.....three glorious days of FEASTING and celebrating the good earth!!
Today's Thanksgiving Holiday is a little different. Estranged family members gather around a table full of factory foods. The microwave "dings" and Aunt Kathy jumps up to retrieve a steaming casserole of canned green beans smothered with (pre-shredded) mozzarella cheese and corn flakes. Wild-eyed little Johnny chases his daily Ritalin dose with a can full of high-fructose corn syrup and turns to Mom and asks, "Mommy, what is Thanksgiving?". In a half-convincing manner, Mom explains that Thanksgiving was the day when the Pilgrims and the Indians made peace and everyone lived happily ever after. Johnny immediately jumps up from the table (knocking over a forlorn pile of instant mashed potatoes) and belts out his finest "indian war cry". Vanessa, the embittered punk-rock teenager, rolls her eyes disgustedly knowing that that the only creature exploited more than the American Indian is perhaps the "butterball" turkey sitting in the middle of the table....
Okay, Okay....I APOLOGIZE for my incredibly stereotypical and hopelessly cynical take on modern American life, BUT you catch my drift, right? This fanatical farmer has one dark sense of humor and if you didn't make the connection, I'm the grown-up version of the eye-rolling "Vanessa" in this little Thanksgiving tale.
The point is this - YES, we've gotten a little off track! Today's global-consumer culture has plagued our bodies, our minds, our souls, and our beloved environment. We have become complacent, unsatisfied, and fearful......and (frankly) the "food" in the supermarket just aint FOOD anymore! However, an alternative does indeed exist!! We CAN heal ourselves one meal at a time. Thanksgiving dinner is a perfect time to start!
Remember: Food is Life, Food is Culture, Food is History. Food binds us to the earth and connects us to one another. With every bite we exercise our values, our ethics, and our compassion towards every living creature and the very ground we walk on.
As your dedicated Farmer and "mistress of the BADSEED", I sincerely encourage each and every one of you to put REAL FOOD on your holiday table . As we all know, there are MANY social and political reasons behind supporting sustainable agriculture and community-based farms. However, in this particular instance, I want to focus on a much deeper reason. I truly believe that there is a spiritual and natural phenomenon that occurs when we eat from the immediate earth. This age old act literally grounds us and connects us to our physical environment and the communities we live in . We midwesterners weren't meant to eat garlic grown in China, processed and powdered, then shipped half-way across the world. We were meant to pull a glowing pink radish from the rich black earth, wave it at the heavens and scream "I AM ALIVE" as we bite into it's crisp white flesh. Alright.....(maybe now I'm just getting dramatic). Before I go off the deep end, let's just wrap it up with this - EAT LOCAL FOR YOUR THANKSGIVING FEAST and reconnect with LIFE, with each other, and the glorious dirt beneath your feet.
See you Friday.
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Recipe Round-UP
Like last year, I managed to get my "motley crew" of crazed farmers to submit some oh so delicious Thanksgiving Recipes featuring their own homegrown delights and other seasonal fare. The attached document includes:
Roasted Root Vegetable Fantasia (from yours truly)
Stuffed Pumpkin (from Deb at Chestnut Charlie's Tree Crops)
Sweet Potato Bread Pudding (from Lexie at Hippie Chow Natural Foods)
Rice Salad (from Paula at Parker Farms)
Bossa Dip (from Sarah at Green Dirt Farm)
Wild Persimmon Pudding (from Alice at Western Hills Produce)
Roasted Swiss Chard with Feta, Brazilian Collards, & Classic Sweet Potato Pie (from Laura at Blue Door Farm)
ENJOY!!!
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.....and now, this week's offerings from our fabulous farmers
Listen up KC - THIS COULD BE YOUR THANKSGIVING TABLE:
In the flesh:
*All-Natural Meats including grass finished beef, delicious grass-finished lamb cuts, all-natural pork products and Pastured Poultry from Parker Farms
*Note from Paula Parker:
"We still have a few PASTURED TURKEYS that are not spoken for. If you need a turkey for your Thanksgiving dinner please come into Badseed this Friday and get one. These are $4 lb. for pasture raised turkeys. These will be the centerpiece for your Holiday feast.
We also have finished our pasture broiler chickens for the season. We had a really good fall for pastured chickens. These are priced at $3.95 lb., if you would like to order 5 or more, you can have them for $3.75 lb. because we need freezer space. These are great for making chicken soup with the broth as well as countless casseroles. Remember pastured poultry is a seasonal item in this part of the country. They will store long term in the freezer, we are just cramped for space right now.
Also, this week we will have Fun and Easy Cooking in the Kitchen cookbooks made by Tiffany Parker ($9 a cookbook includes 26 recipes)."
*Certified Organic Beef including steaks, roasts, ground, and special cuts from Wells Family Farm
In the Shell:
*URBAVORE Urban Farm and Western Hills Produce will also have free-range eggs in limited quantities. Come early for these coveted yolks!!!! (otherwise, Kenny should have a large supply to meet your needs)
*Locally foraged BLACK Walnuts from John at Small Potatoes Farm*John will also have a few other garden goodies....*Fresh Organic CHESTNUTS from Chestnut Charlie's Tree Crops
*Check out their website for loads of mouthwatering recipes like Classic Chestnut Soup with Marsala Mushrooms....
In the Mold:
*A savvy selection of French Farmstead Sheep's Milk CHEESES in aged and fresh varieties from Green Dirt Farm
*Check out their Facebook page at http://facebook.com/greendirtfarm on Friday morning for an updated list of what they'll have for you!
