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Farmland, Food, and Livable Communities

By the time you get your box of good this week, I will have left Seattle, arrived in Lexington, Kentucky and spoken at the American Farmland Trust’s national conference, and gotten back to the farm, just in time to move into our new packing facility this weekend. My session at the conference was titled, From the Field: A Farmer’s Perspective on Soil, Nutrition and the Importance of America’s Farmland.

I must have been “sleep deprived” at the moment I accepted their invitation to come and share. Truth be told, I agonized over this decision for quite a while, because I knew that it would be happening during harvest and our move to the new building. This would make my trip to Kentucky more of sprint than a leisurely stroll. Nevertheless, since I am very passionate about the need to “preserve” America’s farmland for future generations, the opportunity of having access to policy makers, conservation organizations and natural resource planners to share about farming, meant I had to say, “Yes!”

I love the title for the conference: Farmland, Food and Livable Communities. It says it all: no farmland, no food, no communities. Cities and farms have always been associated together. Neither is able to survive without the other, because we have to eat to live and city folk, they have to eat as well.

Ah…but therein lies the rub. With refrigeration, diesel and airplanes, the farms can be moved further from the cities, which means the cities will eventually lose their connection to the farms and where their food comes from. As the farms move further and further away, so does the quality of the food. We accepted farms 100 miles away, then 200 miles away, then in the next state, country and before you know it, Chinese apples are on the shelf. I am not excited about that progression, and I am certainly not excited about losing any more farmland to development.

That is why I went to Kentucky—to invest in the folks who make their living trying to preserve farmland and other natural resource lands. I wanted to encourage them to press on, plow ahead, and not grow weary in well doing. Their work is important, it is important now and for generations to come.

Thank you for sending me to Kentucky. Because of your support of our farm and our box of good, I had a platform from which to speak!

 

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Know Your Produce: Collard Greens

Collard greens are part of the cruciferous vegetable family, which also includes kale, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, rutabaga and turnips. These nutrition powerhouses pack in lots of nutrients for a little amount of calories. If you are trying to eat healthier, cruciferous vegetables like collard greens should be at the very top of your grocery list. Collard greens are a great source of Vitamins A and K, as well as folate, manganese, and calcium.

Store: Loosely wrap greens in slightly damp paper towels, then place in a plastic bag and refrigerate for up to 4 days. Wash just before using.

Prep: Hold each leaf by the stem. With the other hand, zip the leafy part off the stem. Discard the stems. (Chard stems may be cooked.) Cut the leaves into strips. Swirl the greens in a salad spinner filled with water. Lift out the basket; discard the water. Repeat until no dirt remains.

Use: Sauté tip: Heat oil in a large skillet. Add as many greens to the skillet as will fit, season with salt and pepper, and cook, tossing frequently. As the greens wilt, add more greens to the skillet. Cook until tender.

Note: dark leafy greens pair very will with savory items such as garlic, onions, and bacon (traditionally, they were paired with ham hocks or pig jowels), and balance out well when served with a dollop of coconut oil or a cultured whole milk dairy, such as sour cream or crème fraîche (or even butter) – saturated fat helps the body assimilate the fat-soluble vitamins, calcium, and minerals contained in the greens.

 

For more extensive information on Collard Greens, check out this article on Mercola.com

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Pumpkins for Pateros

I love my Klesick Family Farm community. What a resource it is! I am not a writer by trade and feel far more comfortable one-on-one or one-on-250, than I do at the computer. Once a week, I get a “nudge” from Jim reminding me that he needs me to write a newsletter for the following week. One would think that after 17 years of writing newsletters I wouldn’t need those reminders. Thankfully, I usually have something I am “ruminating” on! This week, I surprised Jim with a newsletter before he even asked!

Last week, I wrote about our community initiatives and I was struggling with a paragraph that wasn’t working for the newsletter. So I posted it on FB and was blessed to have a few professionals tighten it up. It still didn’t quite fit the topic for last week, but it does this week! The new improved paragraph in question is below. Drum roll please!!!!!

“We grow and deliver only healthy food – grown and nourished with compost, cover crops and minerals to help produce the healthiest food possible. We all have to eat, so why not eat something that does more than tantalize your taste buds and expand your waist line? Why not eat something that actually feeds and nourishes your body?”

That says it all. That is what Klesick Family Farm is all about. From farm to table, you can trust us to only deliver what will nourish your families and do it in a way that is sustainable. So, a hearty “Thank you” to my FB editors!

As a result of all that compost, cover crops and minerals, I have a lot of oversized sugar pie and Cinderella pumpkins and turbin squashes this year. I really do try and grow them to be a little smaller, but those two crops loved all the “groceries” we fed them this summer! And they just won’t fit in our boxes of good.

But I have an idea to make good use of these over-achieving pumpkins and turbins – I am calling it “Pumpkins for Pateros!” Here is how it works: For every Pateros fire relief donation of $10 or more that we receive between now and the end of November, Klesick Family Farm will send you a beautiful, super nutritious sugar pie pumpkin, Cinderella pumpkin or turbin squash as a thank you!

What do you think? I get to move some over-achieving squash and together we can help our neighbors in Eastern Washington rebuild? Sounds like a win-win! To make a donation, please visit our website and select the Giving category on our Products page or give our office a call!

 

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Community

At Klesick Family Farm, we are defined by our community because we are a local family farm, a local family business and a local family. We are also defined by our commitment to quality, customer service and our service to our community. Where we live is more defined by geography, but for us, customer service, quality and how we invest our lives are choices we get to make every day.

It is the same with our donation programs or, if you will, our “box of good” initiatives. We have three ongoing initiatives in which we ask you to partner with us: Food Banks, Water Wells and Healing through Nutrition. We believe these also define us, and we would want them to define us. Because we are committed to good food, we are also committed to helping our neighbors in need get t his good food. Your partnership with us expands the message and access to good food and its impact locally and internationally.

Food Banks: We are currently delivering high quality fruits and vegetables to nine different food banks in our community. For every $26 food bank box you donate, Klesick matches it by 25%. Year-to-date, together we have donated 562 boxes of good. Many of you donate boxes on a regular basis and this makes a huge difference. However, we believe that even more good is possible. So, if helping the less fortunate in need is a passion for you, you can autopilot your impact by choosing to purchase a food bank box for delivery in Anacortes, Edmonds, Everett, Lake Stevens, Marysville, Monroe, Oak Harbor and Stanwood.

Water Wells: Crossway International is our international initiative with orphanages and a water well drilling focus in Africa. Dean Chollars is a dear friend of ours and has donated his life to improving the lives of some of the poorest in the world. Your support of our farm business helps us help the poorest with fresh water.

Healing through Nutrition: This is an opportunity where you can contribute money toward customers fighting cancer or heart disease. Your funds allow us to offer these customers a discount on their orders, making healthy food more easily accessable to them in their fight. As a family and a farm we believe that good food is a big part of the solution and cure for these type diseases.

Lastly, we also try and support communities in the throes of a natural disaster. Currently, we are supporting an effort to help the Pateros/Brewster communities rebuild after the summer fires.

My family and business motto, when it comes to helping is: Always pray, decide whether to give money, time or both, and then do it.

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Hello Autumn!

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I really love fall, the changing colors of nature, the pretty color of pumpkins, the subtle flavor of squash, the smell of bonfires and coffee, yes…coffee!

It is time to slow down, cozy up and enjoy the comforts of home. However, I like to keep busy, so I recently decided that if I can make something at home, without much effort, I will. This new mantra has applied to many areas of my life. If it looks feasible, I’ll try homemade anything. I’ve found myself saying, “Why didn’t I try this before?” Other times, I have been humbled by the work that goes into something that I once took for granted.

So far, I have successfully accomplished homemade bread, pasta, nut butters and milks, baby blankets and flavored coffees. I have learned that macaroon cookies are worth every penny at the store ($3 a cookie), my mom’s caramels require patience and undivided attention and empanada dough can be overworked.

Another surprise has been my new affection for coffee. I was never a huge fan of this beverage, but I have to admit that I used to spend my “bucks” at a national coffee franchise because it was convenient, cool and trendy. However, I never really enjoyed the beverage itself—to me it always tasted like bitter hot water. But, after adding lots of sugar, cream and artificial flavoring, the result became acceptable.

Recently, I was curious if I could make a pumpkin spice latte at home. I did some research and came across a nice natural recipe for home. So, for the past few weeks, I get up early in the morning, brew some organic coffee, get spices and fall flavors out of the kitchen cabinets, and like a mad scientist, I determine what the invention of the day will be: Pumpkin Spice, Cinnamon, Dulce de Leche? (I share the pumpkin spice latte recipe on back.)

Sara Balcazar-Greene (aka. Peruvian Chick)
Peruvian Food Ambassador
peruvianchick.com
instagram.com/peruvianchick
facebook.com/theperuvianchick

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Fiber

I have been chewing on fiber for the entire summer; literally grazing my way through the season on tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, raspberries, apples, plums, carrots, etc. But fiber is hard to come by in the American diet. The primary reason that it is so hard to come by is because Americans process it out of most of our food. And since fiber is only found in fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and grains, most Americans are not getting even close to the recommended 20-30 grams a day, simply because most Americans don’t eat enough fruits and vegetables.

So, as I have been farming this summer, I have been thinking about fiber and how that if Americans just tried to eat the recommended dietary fiber from unprocessed whole fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds (not bran muffins), it would radically change our nation’s health profile. If getting enough fiber became our goal, we would accomplish so much more because whole fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and grains provide all the other nutrients that are good for our bodies and ultimately our health.

There’s no shortage of research showing how fiber may boost your health. Following are a few of the top potential benefits associated with eating fiber, from an article titled The Health Benefits of Fiber (excerpted from www.mercola.com):

  • Blood sugar control: Soluble fiber may help to slow your body’s breakdown of carbohydrates and the absorption of sugar, helping with blood sugar control.
  • Heart health: An inverse association has been found between fiber intake and heart attack, and research shows that those eating a high-fiber diet have a 40 percent lower risk of heart disease.
  • Stroke: Researchers have found that for every seven-grams more fiber you consume on a daily basis, your stroke risk is decreased by 7 percent.
  • Weight loss and management: Fiber supplements have been shown to enhance weight loss among obese people, likely because fiber increases feelings of fullness.
  • Skin health: Fiber, particularly psyllium husk, may help move yeast and fungus out of your body, preventing them from being excreted through your skin where they could trigger acne or rashes.
  • Diverticulitis: Dietary fiber (especially insoluble) may reduce your risk of diverticulitis – an inflammation of polyps in your intestine – by 40 percent.
  • Hemorrhoids: A high-fiber diet may lower your risk of hemorrhoids.
  • Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS): Fiber may provide some relief from IBS.
  • Gallstones and kidney stones: A high-fiber diet may reduce the risk of gallstones and kidney stones, likely because of its ability to help regulate blood sugar.

As your fiber faming farmer, I am convinced that if we ate the daily RDAs for fiber, we would be healthier and happier. Eating enough fiber is no small task, and taking a fiber supplement pill doesn’t accomplish the same as eating an apple because where you get that fiber is also important. I am more and more convinced that eating more organically grown whole fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds will go a long way towards living a vibrant life.

 

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Wish You had been Here

It was a normal work day here in the office at KFF, as we were getting ready for the next day’s deliveries, when a visitor knocked at our door. When she introduced herself as Marlene Smith, we knew immediately who she was. Marlene is from Pateros, WA, one of the communities in eastern Washington so affected by the devastating forest fires, and is married to Phil Smith, who pastors the Pateros Community Church. That’s the church KFF is partnering with to bring needed funds to the people of Pateros as they rebuild after this recent disaster. Marlene was visiting with her mother who lives here in Warm Beach less than a mile from our office! What a small world. Marlene came by to express her deep appreciation to all of you who are contributing to our Methow Valley Fire Relief Fund.

What stories Marlene had to tell. The Smiths had lost their own home in the fire, but the church, which was right next door, was saved. A young volunteer fighter arrived on the scene and thanks to her efforts and those of three other volunteer fire fighters, they were able to save the church, which sustained some minor damage but still stands. One of those fire fighters happened to be our “own” Bruce Henne, from Earth Conscious Organics (ECO) in Brewster, WA—the  people who grow your apples, pluots and cherries. Gratefully, ECO’s orchards were spared in the fire, even though the fire came to the very edge of their apple orchards. We also heard how one of the people in Pateros purchased the old grocery store in town and turned it over to the people coordinating fire relief efforts, so there would be a place for people to come and get help.

As we talked, I told Marlene about a phone call we had from a person who receives deliveries from us. When she heard that we were organizing fire relief efforts, she just had to call. She grew up in Pateros and went to Pateros High School. She was so thankful that funds were being sent to help the people of this community recover from the fire. She too adds her thanks to all of you who are helping.

Connections. That’s what amazes me. The very people we are trying to help way over in Pateros have family just down the road from our office! Bruce Henne, whom we have known for years and talk to every week, was directly involved in fighting the fires there. One of the people we deliver to every week grew up in Pateros. We’re not just sending money to who knows whom and to who knows where. We can put faces to the people we are helping. We’re connected. They’re real people with real needs.

I wish you could have been here to talk with Marlene yourselves. You would have seen the gratitude and appreciation she has for your generosity. You also would have felt the connection. The Smiths have lived in Pateros for nine years now and have come to love and care for the people there. They know the community and its needs first hand. We can be assured that the money being sent there is being put to good use.

Thanks to all of you who are contributing. Any of you can still do so by either going online (select “Giving” on our products page) or by contacting our office to either make a one-time contribution or make a recurring one. Together we can make a difference.

Mike Lama

KFF Customer Care

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The Kick

This time of year is the best! I love fall. Fall is when farmers, well at least fresh market farmers, are in that part of the race where you start your “kick” to finish the race well. By now most of us have been harvesting all summer and are tired. The summer harvesting is what pays the bills (e.g., weeding, fertilizer, seed, and labor), but now we are heading toward fall.

Every farmer I know has a bead on what the fall will look like in July. We can tell if the crops need water, weeding or some feeding, and based on these observations, reasonable expectations can be drawn. Nevertheless, getting the crops out of the field and into your boxes has a lot of variables in play. For the most part, however, farmers know how the fall is shaping up in July!

After getting through my son’s August wedding, I am turning my attention to the winter squash and potato crops. All summer I have been eyeing those delicatas, carnival, acorn, turbin, two kinds of sugar pie pumpkins and few cindarellas. I love growing squash. We plant it by the handful and harvest it by the truckload. All squash have an amazing yield and a diversity of flavors and cooking methods: baked, pureed, roasted, steamed, soups and pies. Hmm! Hmm! A few more weeks and we will be picking the first squash of the season.

Potatoes are a close second. This year we have four varieties: one yellow, two reds and a purple. Every year I am always surprised by the amount of potatoes under the “hills.” I know I planted them, but it just seems like a miracle every year. The kiddos and I head out and pull up a couple plants and there they are—big beautiful potatoes! The ritual just brings a smile to my face every time we do it. And now that I have a grandson, the tradition gets to continue!

Lastly, we are “harvesting” a new packing and processing facility in the City of Stanwood. It has been in the works for over a year, but it looks like we will be moving to the new facility in October.

Between the wedding and the building, plus all the farming, the final leg of this year’s race (aka, farm season) will surely require a little R&R. I just might need the whole winter to recover. Oops…got caught day dreaming! Back to work—there is still a lot to do before then!

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Freezing the Summer

The Klesick family has been in full freezing mode for the last few weeks and will probably continue here for the next few as well. Years ago, canners (those people who canned fruits and vegetables) would put up lots of jars for the winter food supply.  People canned meats, veggies, fruit and sauces when the items were plentiful and in season. The canners, for the most part, are a very small component of food buyers today. I know that a few of you still exist, so you can relate when I say that I can barely find a freestone peach to can anymore. Pickles have bucked that trend, however, and are still made every year, but most other canning items have fallen on “hard times.”

Ironically, the practice of canning has declined with our prosperity, stable electricity to run refrigerators and freezers, and a plethora of fruits and vegetables widely available all the time. Except for opening a can of black beans, I hardly even remember using a can opener—and we don’t even own an electric one—but when I was growing up it was the main kitchen gadget. I Still remember watching that can go round and round!

Today the Klesick family freezes and freezes and freezes. We freeze lots of berries, mangos, nectarines, peaches and grapes. The freezer has replaced the shelves of cans! It is not a perfect system – when the power goes out we NEVER open the freezers, and if it looks like it is going to be an extended outage we will fire up the generators.

The Klesick’s cannot be the only family in the off-season that enjoys a splash of summer on pancakes, or in hot cereal, or as a frozen treat. Joelle and I enjoy a green smoothie every morning and those frozen berries with fresh greens transport your taste buds right back to those “chin dripping” juicy peaches and nectarines of summer.

So, from now till the end of August, Klesick Family Farm is running a “Freezing the Summer” special! Check out the offerings in your email inbox, on Facebook and our website, and order a case or two of local summer goodness for your next delivery and start looking forward to winter

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Know Your Produce: New Potatoes

New potatoes are freshly harvested young, or small, potatoes. They have paper-thin skins and lots of moisture inside, and they tend to be sweeter than older potatoes (in much the same way that freshly picked corn is so much sweeter than cobs that have been sitting around for a few days). New potatoes are pure perfection in potato salads or simply boiled with a bit of butter and a few chopped herbs. Skins that are starting to flake away from the potato are fine – that’s the price of such youth and delicacy! New potatoes are freshly harvested and a bit of dirt just shows that they really are new potatoes and not just small potatoes.

Store: Because they have such thin skins and high moisture levels, new potatoes don’t keep as well as more mature potatoes. Keep them in a paper bag or loosely wrapped plastic in the fridge and use new potatoes within a few days of buying.

Don’t fall prey to the temptation to wash new potatoes before storing them. That bit of dirt clinging to their skins will actually help keep them fresh and any water on the outside will hasten bruising and softening.