CSA

or Community Supported Agriculture! Have you heard of it?

This year Josh and I joined a CSA, which according to our farm is a place where 

"people sign up to receive a share of locally grown produce over a growing season. By joining you express your support for a locally grown food supply and for the farmers who grow it. CSA members pay for their shares in advance, allowing growers to plan ahead and purchase supplies for the coming season. In return, you will receive a weekly share of fresh, high quality produce that has minimal impact on our planet's resources by being raised naturally, organically, and sustainably."

I first heard about CSA through reading In Defense of Food by Michael Pollen. This book isn't full of 'hippy, all-natural talk' but has made me think about what I put in my body. Pollen explains how commercial farming has actually caused the nutrient value of our food to decline and small organic farms actually produce better, nutrient-rich produce. (Do you like how I used produce and produce in the same sentence? I'm so cool.) Coming from a family who owns their own business, I love supporting these local farms. (Shout out to Horton Brothers Printing...PS Mom: You have got to update the company photo. Is it like 15 years old?) And on top of it all, not only are Josh and I eating more veggies but we are getting the best food for our money.

Our farm is Mason Creek Farm from Fayetteville, Ar. This past Friday we drove and picked up our first basket. It contained: spring lettuce, sorrel, spearmint, garlic chives, pak choi, and broccoli raab. 

So what was the first thing I did when we got home? Google searched what the heck these things were! Seriously, I have never heard, much less eaten, much less cooked of half of these veggies. Needless to say, CSA has forced Josh and I to experiment with foods we never would have touched before...and it's a lot of fun! Our menu this week consisted of chicken chow mein, sauteed broccoli raab, beef with pak choi, penne with sorrel, spearmint tea, and lots of salads! Whew..thats a lot of good eaten!

The only down side is that the amount of food we get is ridiculous; there is no way two people can eat all of these veggies. Sadly, we are probably going to waste some of it...a person can only drink so much spearmint tea.

So stay posted! This is only basket 1 of 8. I can't wait to see what the growing season brings us!

If you are interested in finding a CSA near you, this is the website where I found our farm

Are you apart of a CSA? What do you think about eating locally?