Barr Farms Offering Local Meat CSA

Most farmers markets are closed for the season, but you can still eat delicious, sustainable, humanely raised and processed beef and chicken. My good friend, fantastic farmer, and all around amazing person, Adam Barr, is offering a Winter Meat CSA of his grass fed beef and pasture raised chickens. He is taking orders for January and February 2010. The pick-up dates are January 16 and February 13 at the Phoenix Hill Market 829 E Market St. from 10-Noon. Contact Adam Barr for an order form or with questions.

Adam Barr

859-608-6458

adambarr@gmail.com

http://www.fungusamongus.us/

Sustainable Ag Training for Farmers in Louisville

SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE OF LOUISVILLE (SAL)
104 Forest Court, Louisville, KY 40206
Toward a joyous, diverse and sustainable community of well-nourished people
and well-compensated farmers and food workers…

SAL Launches Training and Accompaniment Program for Aspiring Farmers, Urban
Agriculturalists, Food Justice Organizers:
Start Date is March 1, 2010

Sustainable Agriculture of Louisville (SAL), having completed its 7th season
of education, advocacy, consultation and accompaniment of youth and aspiring
farmers in the summer of 2009, is now planning and recruiting for a first
training course for aspiring farmers to take place from March through
November, 2010.

Curriculum Outline: March-May, with weekly follow up sessions over Summer

Two or Three 90-minute sessions per week (times negotiated with trainees).
-The Decision to Farm, Process, Market, Community Organize: Refining the
Vision, Transition or Leap? Means of Production: Land, Water, Tools.

Location, housing, income and lifestyle.
-Soil Fertility Stewardship: Theory and Practice
-Crops, Animals and Fish: Integrated Agricultural or Aquaponic Models:
From worms to carp to cattle, by way of honey bees.
-Direct Marketing Strategies: Solidarity Economy mechanisms, CSAs, Farmers
Markets, Niche Markets, Value Added, Food Procurement Contracting, Human
Relations and Communications
-Business Planning basics
-Political economy, agriculture and democracy. Food sovereignty.

Practicum Opportunities: May-November. These mini-apprenticeships,
mentorships and experiential leaning opportunities constitute 50% or more of
the training experience. Participant-trainees will choose from a variety of
experiential work placements with area farmers, urban agriculturalists, food
processors, marketers, community organizations.

Accompaniment Program: This program includes a medium-term (2 years or more)
commitment to accompany participant-trainees in taking steps to acquire
access to the means of production, a process that will be adapted to the
unique needs and particular circumstances of each participant-trainee.

Cost: Sliding Scale Fee*. $250 minimal fee. *Pending fund-raising
activities.Time commitment: On average 4-15** hours per week, **varies with practicums.

For more information, to register to be among SAL’s first class of aspiring
farmer trainee-participants, to donate or to volunteer, please contact SAL
coordinator, Stephen Bartlett sbartlett@ag-missions.org (502) 896 9171),
or talk with SAL member Amanda Fuller, abfuller@gmail.com (502) 452 6770

We have nothing to lose but our dependency on an unjust and degrading food
system. And so much delicious shared life on the land to gain!!

Bardstown Road Farmers Market

There are still plenty of goodies to be had at the BRFM. Be sure to stop by and get your local goodness on before heading to Healthy Food Local Farms. Sign up for their e-newsletter and get the scoop on who and what will be at the market and tasty seasonal recipes. http://www.bardstownroadfarmersmarket.com/

Harvest Celebration of Local Foods Tonight!

Farm to Fork has partnered with Farmer Ivor Chodkowski of Field Day Family Farms to offer tastings of Beet Hummus and Butternut Squash and Chipotle Dip tonight at the kick-off event to the 10th Annual Healthy Foods Local Farms Conference. Come see us and try some delicious local food!

Friday night, November 6, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. "Harvest Celebration" with local farmers and chefs teamed for tastings of seasonal, sustainably grown Kentucky food. Seelbach Hotel, Rathskeller. Hosted by Greater Louisville Sierra Club Group and Slow Food Bluegrass. Advance Registration - $35pp or $40pp PAYMENT AT THE DOOR.

For more info on this event and the conference http://www.healthyfoodslocalfarmsconference.org/

Surprise Birthday Party @ Rauch Planetarium, a Yoga Retreat at Foxhollow, and an Icelandic Horse Competition

It was a marathon weekend of feeding many a fine folk local food. Here's how it went down:

Friday @ the planetarium. Full bar and passed appetizers of Bourbon Smoked Salmon on Endive, BBQ Shrimp on Grits Cracker, and good ole Country Ham with Blackberry Jam and Sherry Whole Grain Mustard on Yeast Rolls. Plated salad of Argyll Acres Buttercrunch Lettuce, Kenny's KY Bleu Cheese, Huber's Fried Winesap Apples, and Toasted Walnuts with Champagne Vinaigrette. The birthday guest, friends, and family enjoyed an elegant dinner buffet of Foxhollow Grass Fed Beef Tenderloin, Barr Farms Chicken Roasted with Mustard White Wine Sauce, Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes (taters courtesy of Nick Posante @ Finger Pickin' Farms), Roasted Butternut Squash and Root Veggies from Foxhollow, Charles Hambley's Green Beans with Kenny's Asiago and Lemon. Justin, Lena, and Shelly rocked as the killer (and very attractive) staff. Only regrets...no time to take pictures.

Saturday was an outdoor adventure as the sole vendor (fancy for concessions stand) at an Icelandic Horse Competition in Prospect. Cold, windy, and muddy, Samantha served up homemade breakfast items of country ham and biscuits, apple coffeecake, and quiche. And coffee...lots of coffee. Vegetarian and Foxhollow Beef Chili were sold out in 30 minutes at lunch (we made double batches for the next day). F2F's famous chicken salad was a hit as usual...what makes it so good? Adam Barr's chicken, dried cherries, and toasted pecans. Jenny, an intern at Foxhollow, was a great help with prep and dishes both days.

Doing double duty, I also prepared dinner for a yoga retreat at the farm center. After 7 hours of yoga, retreatants were rewarded with a nourishing meal of lemon, ginger chicken (Barr Farms of course), brown rice, red quinoa, fresh herb pilaf, roasted root vegetables (from Foxhollow), local salad greens, along with a simple, but delicious apple crisp.

Sunday started out cold at 32 degrees, but the sun quickly warmed up the temperature to 60 and eventually, Sam and I enjoyed a blue, cloudless sky while watching the lovely horses and their riders cantor around the gravel, outdoor track. But first, I had one more meal to get out...lunch for the yoga folks. Simple and sustaining, lunch was black-eyed peas and sauteed local greens, multi-grain pilaf, cornbread with Weisenberger Mill cornmeal and flour, and apple/ginger/cabbage slaw.

Wired after all the events ended, I finished up the dishes and re-organized the kitchen equipment rack. Home after 7 PM, I relaxed with my honey and the dogs over a glass of red wine and the next to the last episode of Mad Men.

And now it's Monday and I feel strangely let down. The part(ies) are over, but I bet there will be more to come...