They're good for your heart...
Okay, so don't finish that phrase.
We're currently in beans, meaning the guys are able to work at a reasonable pace. It also means that the tractor rides are more educational for Anna, as my dad (the former ag teacher) is manning the grain cart. She announced yesterday after riding with Papa Ted that she got to try one of the soybeans.
"You what?" I asked.
"I got to eat one of them, Mom." she explained.
"Huh." I didn't know how to respond. I guess I have been living under the assumption that all of our stuff is inedible in its raw form. I mean, that's what field corn is, right? But soybeans...duh, Emily...don't I eat roasted and salted soybeans because Women's Running Magazine tells me it will help build muscle? Isn't that what we're growing?
Answer: yes.
However, I have never been one to just mosey out to the field and chew on a soybean. I like them roasted, salted, and from our good friends at Good Sense Snacks.
So this got me to thinking...am I missing out on a Farmer's Market opportunity? Should I be picking a load of soybeans, roasting them in my oven, salting them and packaging them up as Emily's Salty Soy Snacks?
Um, no. I don't have time to even make our regular dinner.
I know what you're probably thinking, "But Emily, don't you preach how your family helps feed and fuel our country?" Yes...I guess, however, I thought that our food and fuel had to go some where first and then be a food and fuel product. I hate to use the word processed because it has such a bad reputation in our society right now, but I guess I thought we had to take our crop out, have a little (gasp) processing, and then there you go.
However, after a conversation with my mom about "do we really feed the world?" I guess we do! How exciting! I know to all you farmers out there who read this are either sighing at my lack of knowledge or shaking your heads at my use of the "p" word, but, hey, my learning curve is still steep.
I guess I should be the one in the tractor with Papa Ted...maybe I'd learn something.
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Monday, October 17, 2011
Saturday, July 30, 2011
By the Book
I was just checking Facebook, and a friend of mine was commenting on how she was on Day One of "eating clean." After reading a few of the comments, I read it aloud to Joe, asking what he thought it meant.
His response: "We eat clean all the time."
Really? How do I know what's clean and what's not if I don't have this book that this woman is using? How can I do it, if I don't have the recipes, grocery lists, whathaveyou right in front of me?
Answer: We eat clean all the time.
Our dinner tonight consisted of a ham roast, from my father-in-law's hogs, sweet corn from our sweet corn patch, picked today by Anna and her cousin, grapes (which were from California), and whole wheat bread. Last night, same story: burgers from our family's beef cattle, tomatoes from the garden.
Did I need a book? No.
Did I eat relatively "clean?" I hope so. I don't have the book, and haven't done much past a google search on this topic, but I think I probably have a decent idea of what is clean and what isn't. At least, I hope so, as I think you can't get any cleaner and more fresh than this!
I know I'm lucky. I'm fortunate to have this fresh meat, produce, etc. at my fingertips, but it's not that hard to find someone somewhere who can help you to eat this way. Believe me, I'm no foodie, nor am I anything but a person who wants to eat well myself, have my kids eat nutritiously, to have all of us live a long healthy life, all the while having food taste good.
So do I need a book to eat clean? Probably not. I'm sure I'm not doing it exactly the way it's probably prescribed, but my point is I'm no food rocket scientist, and if I didn't have my own beef and own produce, I would have to search a little harder. However, my quest for you, dear readers, is HUNT(not literally, figuratively). Gather. Look around. Ask questions. To quote John Belushi in The Blues Brothers, "Bring me your children (actually I think it was sell me your children, but that freaks me out.)." Find a beef producer you know, or even one who you don't, and enjoy a hamburger from them before you proclaim that you hate red meat.
If all else fails, call me. Joe claims he can turn any vegetarian into a carnivore with one of his ribeyes.
I dare you.
His response: "We eat clean all the time."
Really? How do I know what's clean and what's not if I don't have this book that this woman is using? How can I do it, if I don't have the recipes, grocery lists, whathaveyou right in front of me?
Answer: We eat clean all the time.
Our dinner tonight consisted of a ham roast, from my father-in-law's hogs, sweet corn from our sweet corn patch, picked today by Anna and her cousin, grapes (which were from California), and whole wheat bread. Last night, same story: burgers from our family's beef cattle, tomatoes from the garden.
Did I need a book? No.
Did I eat relatively "clean?" I hope so. I don't have the book, and haven't done much past a google search on this topic, but I think I probably have a decent idea of what is clean and what isn't. At least, I hope so, as I think you can't get any cleaner and more fresh than this!
I know I'm lucky. I'm fortunate to have this fresh meat, produce, etc. at my fingertips, but it's not that hard to find someone somewhere who can help you to eat this way. Believe me, I'm no foodie, nor am I anything but a person who wants to eat well myself, have my kids eat nutritiously, to have all of us live a long healthy life, all the while having food taste good.
So do I need a book to eat clean? Probably not. I'm sure I'm not doing it exactly the way it's probably prescribed, but my point is I'm no food rocket scientist, and if I didn't have my own beef and own produce, I would have to search a little harder. However, my quest for you, dear readers, is HUNT(not literally, figuratively). Gather. Look around. Ask questions. To quote John Belushi in The Blues Brothers, "Bring me your children (actually I think it was sell me your children, but that freaks me out.)." Find a beef producer you know, or even one who you don't, and enjoy a hamburger from them before you proclaim that you hate red meat.
If all else fails, call me. Joe claims he can turn any vegetarian into a carnivore with one of his ribeyes.
I dare you.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Hot or Cold?
I'm staring down a bacon cheeseburger.
No, it's not some weird craving...it's a good idea gone bad, no, strike that: gone cold.
You see, we've actually started working ground and planting TODAY, and although the world has a lot going on that is way more urgent than a cold bacon cheeseburger (you know, Osama, levees being blown up, and general malaise), around here, what's for dinner is crucial.
During the planting and harvest seasons, I am truly shown what a poor excuse for a farm wife I am. My husband is not demanding in any way in regards to food, he just wants to eat when he's home, or on the road, or in the tractor, around dinner time. He wants Nutty Bars (even though they were OUT of them at the store the other day...failed AGAIN!!). However, shouldn't I, after nearly three years in this biz, have some idea of what to make him, when, and how to get it to him if he's not around? However, my husband, growing up as a farm kid around some pretty amazing farm women, has high expectations. It's his genetics. It's what he knows. For example, his grandma once ordered pizza from the wrong place, but still drove the extra 30-40 minutes to get it, just so that the guys could have it in the field. Who does that? I would have canceled the order and given them Tombstone at 10:00 when they came in!
But I digress, back to the cheeseburger. My girls and I had a great day. It was gorgeous outside, and if there were ever a day that I were not driven crazy by writing all the things I did today on my Facebook status bar, today would have been the day. Anyway, we rewarded ourselves with a trip to B's Drive Inn (the local burger and ice cream joint). I was so excited to have an outing, plus the opportunity not to cook, and the possibility of giving Joe a hot meal at 6:00, I forgot that he was NOT in the field anywhere near B's, but rather is the chemical and seed deliverer today.
Blast!
So, his cheeseburger sits in our fridge. It's 9:00, the kids are in bed, and I'm alone with my thoughts of how I have failed once again Farmwifery 101.
However, life not cease due to a cold cheeseburger. It will be reheated, with a smile. Planting will ensue tomorrow. We will continue on at this pace as long as we can, with the hopes that some day, some how, I'll figure out how to feed three kids, myself, the dog, and a husband, all at different times of the evening.
No, it's not some weird craving...it's a good idea gone bad, no, strike that: gone cold.
You see, we've actually started working ground and planting TODAY, and although the world has a lot going on that is way more urgent than a cold bacon cheeseburger (you know, Osama, levees being blown up, and general malaise), around here, what's for dinner is crucial.
During the planting and harvest seasons, I am truly shown what a poor excuse for a farm wife I am. My husband is not demanding in any way in regards to food, he just wants to eat when he's home, or on the road, or in the tractor, around dinner time. He wants Nutty Bars (even though they were OUT of them at the store the other day...failed AGAIN!!). However, shouldn't I, after nearly three years in this biz, have some idea of what to make him, when, and how to get it to him if he's not around? However, my husband, growing up as a farm kid around some pretty amazing farm women, has high expectations. It's his genetics. It's what he knows. For example, his grandma once ordered pizza from the wrong place, but still drove the extra 30-40 minutes to get it, just so that the guys could have it in the field. Who does that? I would have canceled the order and given them Tombstone at 10:00 when they came in!
But I digress, back to the cheeseburger. My girls and I had a great day. It was gorgeous outside, and if there were ever a day that I were not driven crazy by writing all the things I did today on my Facebook status bar, today would have been the day. Anyway, we rewarded ourselves with a trip to B's Drive Inn (the local burger and ice cream joint). I was so excited to have an outing, plus the opportunity not to cook, and the possibility of giving Joe a hot meal at 6:00, I forgot that he was NOT in the field anywhere near B's, but rather is the chemical and seed deliverer today.
Blast!
So, his cheeseburger sits in our fridge. It's 9:00, the kids are in bed, and I'm alone with my thoughts of how I have failed once again Farmwifery 101.
However, life not cease due to a cold cheeseburger. It will be reheated, with a smile. Planting will ensue tomorrow. We will continue on at this pace as long as we can, with the hopes that some day, some how, I'll figure out how to feed three kids, myself, the dog, and a husband, all at different times of the evening.
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