Hello

Part of the concept of being a Fresh Forker is to recognize the value in "zero waste." I'm not talking about some trendy craze - I'm talking about a thriving type of subsistence learned over generations on the family farm. While chicken backs and ham hocks may not seem like steak and chops, the utility and value they have in the kitchen is often recognized by chefs. Look at the menus the next time you go out for a fine meal. Where does the stock for the pan sauce come from or the gel used in setting a pate or terrine? Flavor, nutrients, and the finishing touch often come from some of these "lesser" cuts of meat.

See below for some tutorials and recipes for this week's bag. My plea is that you don't put the bones or hock in your freezer. Thaw it and start cooking this week (many of these recipes/projects are great for weekends when you can keep the stock pot simmering all day!).

Other Notable Items in This Newsletter
Valentine's Day Sugar Cookies. The frosted sugar cookie is back! We have a limited number of 4-packs available. Each pack is a hefty 16 oz portion - these are large cookies with lots of frosting.
Super Bowl Bundle. Cheesy, spicy, and dip-able. Celebrate with tasty game day snacks.
Valentine's Day Cookies
Valentine Cookies
It's been a while since we have had the frosted sugar cookies. These delicious cookies are made with organic flour from Stutzmans, butter from Minerva, and organic sugar.

The American buttercream frosting is colored with natural dyes like beet, blueberry, and lilac powders (flavorless). No artificial colors!

Cookies are sold by a 4 pack, 16 oz per package. $9 per pack.
Marinated Beef Roasts
Marinated Beef Roasts
These sold out instantly last week, so we made 40 more yesterday. Give them a try!

One of the most satisfying meals is a perfectly braised beef roast. Well, we took one step out of it for you. The red wine marinade.

We took our grassfed beef chuck roasts and vacuum sealed them in a red wine marinade with mirepoix for a classic french presentation.

Ingredients include: grassfed beef, red wine, madeira, port, red wine vinegar, oil, carrots, onion, celery, bay, herbs, salt and pepper.

INSTRUCTIONS: Remove from bag, reserve marinade and strain through fine mesh sieve. Pat the roast dry, season with salt and pepper. Sear roast in a hot skillet with oil. In a small to medium sized skillet, reduce marinade by half. Then, pour marinade back over roast and add at least as much or more stock (water would work here too if you do not have stock). Braise in oven proof pan, 275 degrees covered, until tender approx. 3 hrs. Remove beef from pan, let cool some. Separate meat from bone and sinew. Reduce cooking liquid for pan sauce or gravy.  
Sale Items



Chevre & Cream Cheese

A2A2 Guernsey Milk Cream Cheese: $4.50

Goat Chevre (plain) - $5.50

Mackenzie Creamery Chevre - all flavors $5.50

Manhattan Cherry
Cognac Fig
Sweet Fire (Raspberry Habanero)
Just In!
Kuhweid Creamery

Dean operates the smallest creamery we work with. His cheeses are available when they are ready - ready is when they are the quality and the product that he wants to sell.

This week they are ready. We have the full selection of Kuhweid Cheeses, made from organic, grass grazed (hay right now) Jersey cow milk.

Alpsturn: An "appenzeller" style cheese, dense with occasional "swiss style" holes. This cheese has a slight acidic ting to balance the creaminess of the firm flesh. The rind has been washed with white wine and nutmeg, adding a balanced earthiness note.

Luscious Raclette: A "raclette" style cheese intended for melting, either on a sandwich or to do fondue and dip pickles, potatoes, and fruit in.

Sunshine Swiss Style: Sunshine cheese from Kuhweid Creamery is a swiss style cheese (but not like the log with big holes in it)! Perfect for melting or adding to a cheese plate or salad. Slices great and melts on reuben or roast beef sandwich.

Karrie Brie: A traditional bloomy rind cheese made exclusively from Jersey cow milk. Soft and buttery on the inside with a mild edible rind.

Super Bowl Party Pack
Super Bowl Bundle
Dip & Wing Essentials

Recipe Here for Chorizo Cheese Dip

Recipe here for Easy Chicken Wings

Includes: $35 (save $5)
Spicy Beef/Pork Chorizo (1#)
Grassfed Smoked Cheddar Cheese (8 oz)
Candied Jalapenos (16 oz)
Chicken Wings (2# bag, ~12 ct)
Corn Chips (1 bag)

*find in the "Bundles" category
Recipes
Chef Parker Teaches Stock

Parker makes it no secret that the success of his restaurant career rests on the shoulders of a carefully managed stockpot. Parker knows that the flavor is in the bones; and if you can boil water, you can make stock.

Here is a written tutorial: Rich Winter Stock

The same procedure described in Parker's recipe can apply to any bones, including chicken bones or a ham hock.

Click the image on the left for a video from this past year's Thanksgiving Beer Dinner production.
Winter Green Bean Veloute (green bean soup)

Chef Parker helped us find a great application for the frozen green beans. Frozen beans will never cook like a fresh bean; however, the flavor and nutrients are there. Try this soup recipe for an easy and satisfying solution.

Bavarian Ham Hock
Here is a recipe that utilizes a lot of items in this week's bag or probably in your fridge, including cabbage.

Consider substituting any of the root veggies. For example, use turnip or rutabaga in place of celeriac or parsley root.


Basic Ham Stock / Broth

Add water to a pot. Add enough water to cover the ham hock. Bring water to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for hours, until the meat starts to fall off of the bone. Chill overnight. Skim the fat from the top the next day. You can either keep in a stock pot in the fridge for about a week, or warm it up to a liquid state again and put into containers that can be frozen. You now have stock ready to use once you're ready to make soup or cook with it.

You can use the ham stock to cook dried beans in. I have also use the ham stock as a base for a soup with roasted sweet potatoes (cubed), carrots (diced), onion (diced) and chorizo. The most time consuming part is making the stock -- I like to keep a handful of quarts available in the freezer so I can easily thaw and throw together a pot of soup.
Bag Contents
OMNIVORE

Cabbage (*from the root cellar)
Sweet Potatoes
Pinto Beans
Apples
Grape Cider
Frozen Green Beans
Ham Hock
Hot Dogs
Chicken Backs
VEGETARIAN

Cabbage (*from the root cellar)
Sweet Potatoes
Pinto Beans
Apples
Grape Cider
Frozen Green Beans
Cheese
Tagliatelle Pasta
Eggs
*From the root cellar* This week's cabbage has been stored in the root cellar since new year's. It was left in the field as long as it could be for the best flavor and storage. As we get into the cold winter days and less "fresh" produce, we are grateful for "cold storage crops" like this cabbage that can be harvested late in the season and enjoyed this time of year.
CARNIVORE