Mid-Summer 2010 Newsletter

Watermelon mango salsa with marinated grilled chicken tenders 
Brie and pecan quesadillas with pineapple apricot salsa 
Bruschetta with garden fresh tomato salsa, spinach and homemade ricotta 
Grilled angel food cake with blueberry, raspberry, blackberry and strawberry salsa

I was in and out during the class Saturday, but tried to be there each time there was something to eat.  I was really impressed with the homemade ricotta cheese and how easy it appeared to make.  Hands down, my favorite was the angle food cake grilled on the barbecue grill and the salsa that had every fresh berry available.  The blueberries, blackberries, raspberries and strawberries with whatever sauce they were mixed with was heavenly. 
The August cooking class has been rescheduled to August 17.  Too Hot to Cook is a popular summer class with a different menu each year.   School has not yet started, the family is restless, and who wants to be stuck in the kitchen over a hot stove.  So to avoid being disappointed, please reserve early for this popular class.

Fresh Mozzarella, Prosciutto, Basil & Parsley Pesto Tomato Sandwich 
Chicken, Roasted Pepper and zipper pea hummus on pita bread 
Smoked salmon avocado spring rolls 
Blackberry sorbet in chocolate wafer cups

September normally has a class later in the month after things cool off a bit, but this year Chef Eva has a different idea.  What about a real old fashioned Labor Day picnic as the theme for a cooking class.  Picnic Fare for Labor Day is perfect for couples wanting to get away for a part of the holiday weekend and do something different.  This menu offers a lot of opportunity to learn to make new dishes and traditional ones differently.  Set aside Saturday September 4th as a day to have fun and eat well.

Watermelon salad with mint lime dressing 
Chili spiked grilled corn with cotija cheese 
Burgers with spicy mayonnaise, chipotle ketchup, sautéed mushrooms and caramelized onions 
Beer braised hot dogs with sauerkraut 
Roasted peach crumble with Greek yogurt ice cream 
Burgers will be Greer Farm USDA inspected Grass-finished beef

The October and November classes adapt to the change of weather and season.  October 9th is a Fall Fest with Winter Squashes, October 23rd is more basic; Prepping for Winter with Savory Stocks and Healthy Breads.  November is seasonal themed, Getting Ready for Holiday Gatherings. Private classes can be scheduled most any day or time for groups of friends.
All of Chef Eva's Farm to Fork classes are unique.  make your reservations early and come to class with an appetite, a desire to participate, laugh and have fun. 
Jam, Syrup and All Things Savory
This berry season Chef Eva has kept the burners hot in her kitchen.  She is offering the very best of our berries and fruit canned so you can enjoy it later or give to a friend as a gift.  It has been hard to keep up with the demand.  Depending on availability, she is making blueberry jam, blueberry syrup, blackberry jam, peach-blueberry jam, chipotle - blueberry sauce and fig preserves with lemon and blueberry pie filling.  The chipotle sauces are great poured over a block of cream cheese and served with crackers, or used to baste chicken or baby back ribs on the barbecue. The blueberry syrup makes breakfast waffles or pancakes extra special.   Craving blueberry pie or cobbler with a large clump of ice cream on top?  Our whole fresh blueberries for fillings are perfect and easy to use. 12 ounce jars of syrup or jam are  $8, 8 ounce jars of chipotle sauce or jam are $5 and quart jars of blueberry pie filling are $10.
Greer Farm Beef
We appreciate the many of you that have re-ordered a split quarter of half of our grass finished beef, or are a new customer.  There are a lot of options available to those that do not want to purchase beef raised in a feed lot, but we feel that our breed of cattle, our production system and our standard of care for our cattle make our beef just a little bit different and a lot better. 
Our forage plan for this season has worked so far and our cattle are doing well on the new forages we planted.  Our grasses have been supplemented with clover and legumes so our cattle get a high quality of healthy forage.  We also used a blend of minerals based on soil analysis to help us grow more of the right kind of forage.  We have found that KMag is an important mineral to sustain grass growth.  Unlike ranches that buy hay from other farms or sell hay, our hay is harvested and consumed on our ranch.  In the cycle of things, the minerals we put on the land never leave us but the cattle redistribute it naturally.  We will start our mid summer hay operation in a few days. 
Our annual objective is to have enough hay baled to feed our cattle all winter and have an additional year of hay in reserve in the barns.  Some ranches just let the cattle eat the dead standing grasses after frost and supplement with little to no hay.  We feel stock pile grazing does not provide the nutrition needed for cattle and especially for cows with baby calves.  This year we will cut every pasture we have because of the threat of army worms.  It is better to have the hay baled than lose the grass. Last year we lost all of our grass in late September when it was at its prime to army worms.  Cutting a meadow when worms are moving will sometimes cause them to march around your farm for the next one down the road.  We prefer to not use chemical sprays to kill them and then have our cattle eat this grass. 
The beef steers we are preparing for fall harvest are looking good.  They are presently at our home place where we have some very good mixed grasses and acres of newly planted red river crab grass.  They are looking fat and happy here.  Especially inviting to them is their access to a lake where they take a swim in every afternoon. 
We still have some cuts of beef available at the farm, but steaks are out of stock.  We will have more in the fall.  By the second week of August we will have a good stock of our famous lean and tasty ground beef.  If you wish to place an order for a split quarter or half, we would appreciate receiving your deposit of $200 by August 15.  This will allow us to finish the steers properly on our own grasses and the alfalfa we bring in from northern Missouri to supplement our forages. Complete information our beef program is on our website.
Free Range Beef Veal: Are You Interested?
From time to time we invite your comment or an expression of interest in a new product off the farm.  It appears that enough of you will purchase free range pork that we are moving forward on this project (slowly).  There was little interest in a CSA style beef arrangement where you committed to purchase a split quarter, we store the frozen, packaged beef and you take deliver over a set period of time.  This reduces your up front cost to monthly payments and you are taking only a small portion of the beef each month. It was good idea that did not fly.
A local farmer has a dairy and we have discussed offering free range beef veal..  This would help him out during a depressed milk price cycle using female calves and bull calves that do not fit into the herd plan. Calf veal is the tenderest of all beef products and if you go to a high end grocery store, meat market or restaurant you are amazed at its cost.  We believe that we can raise calves on pasture, naturally, and offer a superior veal product at a fair price.
At the current time, these calves are sold at auction at a very young age.  One can only assume that they will not be taken care of on some large factory farm in the same manner as they are on a smaller farm.  Our concept is to keep them on the farm where they were born,  drinking mama cow milk several times a day, eating all the fresh grass they want and having companionship with other calves until they are ready for harvest.  These calves will be raised with tender loving care, hand bottle feeding, no hormones, no antibiotics and especially no calf crates that have been common and continue to be on factory farms.  We want to raise calves free range near their mothers. I have read a lot of terrible stories about the veal industry and was put off to the point I would never buy it.  I think our idea is a way to obtain veal raised naturally.
As with our other beef, this veal will be USDA inspected.  If you own a restaurant or meat market, this veal can be resold.  Not everyone will be interested in veal or may not have even tried it, but if you are, please send us an email (put beef veal in the subject line).  We will get back to you with more details once we see there is enough interest to do this.  We need 4-8 parties interested to make it practical. 
Free Range Animals
I get questions occasionally about what "free range" means in regard to how we raise our animals.  Born Free USA says Free Range or Cage free is an open subject without real criteria.  "No government laws or standards regulate the use of terms such as “free-range” and “free-roaming” on egg cartons. For eggs, these or similar labels generally mean that hens are un-caged yet confined indoors in crowded sheds. For animals raised for meat, the U.S. Department of Agriculture stipulates that free-range chickens must have “access to the outdoors” and free-range cows and sheep must be “grass fed and live on a range.” No other criteria — such as the size of the “range,” the amount of space individual animals must have, or animal care and handling — are required." 
You will have no doubt if you visit our farm and see all or our animals totally free range.  Everything is able to run free within the confines of fenced pastures and paddocks.  Our chickens have almost an acre of green grass to lounge in. but in the heat of the day they have a barn to retreat to and there they lay their eggs.  The only time they are confined is the first few weeks after they are born in the brooder and that is for their protection.  Before year end, we still have hope of having an egg trailer house in a 9 acre meadow for the chickens.  Our goats, sheep and cattle are pasture raised.  The only thing that has held us back in raising pork is the time needed to clear brush and build fence in an open area that will give pastured pigs access to acres of open ground. 
The next time you buy a meat product or eggs, take a look at the package and determine if the place it came from used sustainable, free range standards.  It does make a difference in the quality and taste of the product. 
Lakeside Cabins
We have had a very busy year with lakeside log cabin rentals and many of you have returned for one or more visit.  Some weekend rentals remain in August and weekdays are more available.  The fall is booking up now for those that prefer cooler weather, the change of season and our east Texas colorful fall foliage. 
Since Daingerfield State park closed for renovation, our cabins and the farm are attractive options for those that enjoyed this park for so many years.  It will remain closed until late February 2011.
This summer we refurbished our sand beach and added paddle boards to our inventory of water craft that can be rented.  If you have never been on a paddle board, it is not too late to start.  They bring a whole new dimension to fun on the water and are a great way to work out.
We are still offering 10% off for a four day stay any Sunday through Thursday until the end of August. We did this to give families a chance to have a more economical farm stay before Labor Day.  Most of our costs are fixed and the only variables are cleaning, washing linens and electricity.  We have maintained the same prices since we started renting the cabins three years ago.  Occasionally, we offer a discount like this one, but for the most part, it is not profitable for us to discount our prices.  I know this offends some that expect us to offer week day or off season deals, but we offer what we feel is a superior experience in a place difficult to replicate.  We hope that you feel you have received value for what you paid to stay on our farm. 
 If you desire a nice place to unwind, our farm is that place.
This and That
There is so much that goes on at the farm that we can never cover it in a newsletter.  We try to keep our farm blogs up to date on current activity, post photos and share other items we feel are interesting.  Check out Farmers Don't Blog when you have time.
From Our House to Yours
We are here because you are supporting our family farm.  We never loose sight of that and strive to meet all your needs when you visit us.
Have a great summer, come pick berries before they are gone, attend a cooking class, rent a log cabin or just stop by for a glass of iced tea.  We are always (for better of worse) here.
All the best,
Sid, Eva and all of us at the farm