Hello
The photo above is probably my favorite of all our Fresh Fork images. For years, my friend Tim has been follow us around documenting our events, our farmers, and the Fresh Fork experience. I don't know why, but at some point probably 5 years back we were out at Eshleman Fruit Farm at daybreak. The dew was heavy on the trees and the sun was just coming over the horizon. Rich was showing us the orchard and the cherry trees were in full blossom. As I reached for the tree, Tim snapped this image.
Which brings me to my favorite product this week. Cherries. There will be a mixture of sweet and semi-tart cherries. This week's varieties are danube, ranier, and jubilee, and I can't say which you will get or if we will even have all 3. Rich and his team are busy picking today and they are just crossing their fingers that they get to them before the birds do.
Oh, and a few quick Admin Items
The Fresh Fork rush.
We have noticed that across all stops there is a tendency for members to all want to pickup in the first half hour to hour. Often, when we are setting up there are folks waiting for us before we even start. I was in Hudson last week and there must have been 20 people in line at 3:45 - the stop starts at 4. This initial rush makes it difficult to get everyone through in a timely and accurate manor. And at Lakewood, another stop I worked last week, we had 81 people in the first 45 minutes....then like 8 people the last 45 minutes. We are extremely happy that you are excited come get your groceries but please feel free to stop in at any random time that fits into your schedule. We try our hardest to have trucks run on time and they never leave early. You are welcome to stop in at any point.
And a quick note, a few stops were extended on Week 2 to help get the kinks worked out.
These have returned to their regular times,
including:
Lakewood - 4 to 7 PM
Chagrin Falls - 7 to 8 PM
Hudson 4 to 6:30 PM
And, we still need a few greeters.
In particular, we are looking for a greeters to help in Hudson on Fridays from 3:30 PM to 6:30 PM and Akron on Wednesdays from 3:30 PM to 6:30 PM. Please reply to this email if you are interested. Must be available to work the full season through October 31.
July 4th
-- No changes to our schedule -- see you at the usual Saturday locations & times.
Special Order Transfer
- We know that some of you may be picking up your share earlier than usual due to the holiday weekend. Please see below for how to make these updates in your account. We are not able to accommodate location transfers after your order has been placed. You, however, can make some changes in your account BEFORE placing your order to change the location.
Sincerely,
Trevor & the FFM team
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Long Days Around the Farm
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Thank you for all of you who have commented on enjoying the stories about the farm. This week is exceptionally busy, and I'll be sure to include a more thorough account in next week's newsletter.
If your head isn't spinning yet, here has been what we have been up to this week:
- Monday: 3:30 AM Catch 1,500 broilers to haul in for harvest. Move 30 drag pens to a new field and get in place. Sort out hogs and beef to send in for the weekly harvest. Finish some field work and lay plastic mulch for the fall produce plantings.
- Tuesday: 3:30 AM Catch 2,200 broilers in the brooder building to move to pasture. Unload them into their new drag pens on pasture. Add feed and connect the water lines. Plant fall produce. Move remaining 1,200 broilers to a temporary grassy patch until tomorrow. Clean out brooder building and sanitize.
- Wednesday: 3:30 AM. Catch 1,500 broilers to haul in for harvest. Add fresh sawdust to brooder building and crank the heat up to 99.5 degrees. 1,200 Thanksgiving turkeys will arrive around lunch, just hatched that morning. Move the 1,200 broilers from their temporary patch to the pasture where we caught birds this morning.
- Thursday: Back to normal 6 AM start time. Catch up on cleaning hog barn, usual chores, and cultivate the potatoes and produce patch while the sun shines. Move beef to new pasture field way out back (new planting this spring of perennial rye, turnips, chicory, and clover). Really excited about this knee deep, bright green field. The beef are going to love it.
- Friday: Chore ahead to get ready for the weekend including grind feed.
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Chef Ashley & team are at it again with our favorite
Buttercream Sugar Cookies! The cookies are made from organic spelt flour, and topped with a buttercream frosting made from A2A2 Guernsey milk and Minerva butter. In the true FFM + WVF way, the colored frosting is made from all natural ingredients -- the red comes from beet powder and the blue is from butterfly pea flower. Sold as a 4-pack.
Available online and at the back of the truck while supplies last!
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Cream Cheese -- This is a new product from Paint Valley (dairy processor of our milk). With no additives or preservatives, this cream cheese is simply A2A2 Guernsey Milk + Cream, cultures and salt. We've been asking for a product like this for a long time and we're so happy it's finally being produced!
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In years past, we hosted numerous cooking classes and group events. This year is quite different being the limited social engagements.
Instead, we'll attempt to write more and share what we have learned over the years. For me personally, grilling, and particularly sausages and burgers, has been the most challenging items to perfect. There is a fine line between done and overdone, and heat and temperature pay such an important role.
I like to understand why I do something, so I'll start explaining a little about meat science at the highest level.
Proteins are what give meat its structure. A whole muscle cut cooks differently than a forced meat such as a bratwurst or a hot dog. The primary protein we focus on in meat is something called myosin. It gives meat it's structure and the nature of the protein is altered (some say denatured) during cooking. The goal is to keep that protein intact long enough for the other components to "setup".
When making a sausage, mechanical (grinding) and chemical actions (salt, acid, and water) affect the myosin. By adding salt and mixing, a sausage maker is able to extract the myosin from the meat and use it to capture molecules of fat and water. In some products - such as bologna or hot dogs - the meat is very finely ground and mixed rapidly to form what is called an emulsion, similar to how an egg yolk will suspend oil in mayonnaise.
I ramble on about all of this to help you understand when and how to apply different cooking techniques:
Sear: to provide a high heat direct cooking technique to rapidly setup proteins near the surface of meat to create a crust - or barrier - for moisture to escape.
Direct Heat: on a grill, the area above the flames
Indirect Heat: on a grill, the area away from the flames, lower temperature
So back to sausage. All sausages, particularly course ground ones like a bratwurst, do better with indirect heat. The salt and mixing action has already redistributed the myosin to create a thin, delicate pocket for suspending fats and water. We suggest cooking sausages on a grill over medium, indirect heat. One of the most common mistakes we see in grilling is to see a sausages being just hammered over too much flame and too much heat.
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Peas -- if you were missing peas on Saturday, you'll be receiving them this week! You received cabbage instead of peas last week, so you'll get peas this week instead of cabbage. Sometimes we end up having to split the produce between weeks and days of the week based on actual, real-time, full harvest availability. The farmers estimate what will be readily available for each of our delivery days when we check in with them on Monday's. Most times they're accurate, but there are times that you don't know the actual yield until you're out in the field and half-way through the patch picking. Instead of spreading the item thin in each serving to make it through the entire week, we make arrangements to get the item in again the following week. This also helps the farmer with his crop and ensures freshness of the product to you.
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Small Omnivore
Bok Choy
Cabbage
Radishes
Zucchini
Lettuce
Cherries
Pork Boston Butt Roast
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Small Vegetarian
Bok Choy
Cabbage
Radishes
Zucchini
Lettuce
Cherries
Kale
Candy Onion
Peas
Garlic Scapes
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Mini
Bok Choy
Radishes
Zucchini
Lettuce
Cheeries
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Large Omnivore
Bok Choy
Cabbage
Radishes
Zucchini
Lettuce
Cherries
Pork Boston Butt Roast
Chicken Breast
Cauliflower
Kale
Sauerkraut
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Large Vegetarian
Bok Choy
Cabbage
Radishes
Zucchini
Lettuce
Cherries
Kale
Candy Onion
Peas
Garlic Scapes
Sauerkraut
Mushrooms
Swiss Chard
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Small Vegan
Bok Choy
Cabbage
Radishes
Zucchini
Lettuce
Cherries
Kale
Candy Onion
Peas
Garlic Scapes
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Reminder: Carnivore Share bags are every-other-week
based on pick-up location. You will be randomly assigned to a group (A, B, C). Check for the assignment in your last name. By the end of the season, all groups will have received the same amount of all products.
Week 5 Carnivore Locations:
Akron, Beachwood, Bratenahl, Chagrin Falls, Cleveland Heights, Copley, Hudson, Mayfield, Mentor, Shaker Heights, Solon
**Carnivore share bags are only available at the first "dropoff location" listed on the location tab of your account as of 6/1. Carnivore shares cannot be transferred. We pack for the exact number based on location.**
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Your special order will only be delivered only to your primary location as selected in your profile (see below).
Please review this BEFORE placing your order (adjust + save as needed).
Please do not email or call to change the location of your special order.
It sounds easier said than done. Our software prints a pick list per location for what products we must take along. If we attempt to move it manually there is a high probability that we'll mess it up and no one will be happy.
Please leave the "new" location set in your profile until after you pick up your special order.
You will have to log back into your account to change it back to your usual stop BEFORE you place your next order the following week.
When you get to your check-in, please let the greeter know you also have a special order to pick-up. The order is packed separate from the regular share.
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