HAPPY TO BE HOME

A hearty THANK YOU to Viki Richter and everyone who helped keep the Market running in my absence. Many of you know that my sisters and I took our Mom to a place she’d dreamed of visiting all her life – Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. She had always wanted to visit Green Gables Heritage Place which inspired the setting for L.M. Montgomery to create her beloved tale of a red-haired orphan, Anne of Green Gables.

We saw and experienced so much on this trip – too much to share in one newsletter so I hope nobody minds a little bit here and there in the weeks ahead. For the moment suffice to say that late September/early October is the BEST time to visit these sweet Canadian neighbors. Everyone we come in contact with was welcoming, kind and helpful. We hit the “sweet spot” right after tourist season, right after the leaves started changing (so there was lots of color!), and right before EVERYTHING tourism related shut down till next year.

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

We have the best Growers in the Wiregrass! Please learn more about them on our Grower Page.

AVALON FARMS: Why yes, we are still farming. LOL Shall we say it’s been “interesting times" as in the Chinese proverb kind of way.
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Thank you to all you brave souls trying the persimmons last week. That crunchy sweetness is so surprising. They will be available for several weeks. Remember they will continue to ripen on your counter.
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This week we have new listings of: salad turnips (both white and red), braising greens, parsley, basil, watermelon radishes, and possibly regular turnips, chard and kale.
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The broccoli and cabbage are looking good. They have several weeks to go. Sugar snap peas are running up their new trellis. Assorted beets are wondering how they wound up in South Alabama. : )
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Anyone interested in stewing hens? Seems like it’s time to repurpose some of the older girls. Love broth made with a flavorful hen. Holidays are coming!
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Also for the holidays, now offering chopped pecans. The stories these giant trees could tell…all us grandkids were always getting in trouble for climbing them.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello Market Friends!
It was so nice to push past names on an invoice and see some friendly faces. We appreciate the support of the community and of our fellow vendors! Shout out to Roslyn for her hard work with organizing this ongoing event!

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD FARM: How exciting it was to welcome all the new faces to day 2 of The Fall Farmers Market today! Thank you for helping to grow our family! We were also very thankful to see so many returning! It warms our hearts to see that so many of you are enjoying what we have to offer. Our family works hard to provide you the very best of what we have. We appreciate being able to provide a local, fresh, clean food option.

With cooler temperatures (we hope) and cold and flu season coming up how many of you are thinking about some wonderful bone broth, chicken soup or homemade stock? Well we have a load of chicken feet available just for you. Yes, I said chicken feet! Now before you get all grossed out let me tell you just a few things about chicken feet.

I remember being a little girl and watching my great grandmother eat chicken feet. She would actually boil hers low and slow, suck the meat off the bone, and either drink the broth or save it for later. This was her staple and if you ever enjoyed a home cooked meal with her well, she used this stock for everything. Now this woman who lived to be 105, was hardly ever sick. Really, if old age didn’t catch up with her she would be running around here telling all of us what to do!

Recently, many have been introduced to bone broth and all the health properties from it. Chicken feet is one of the best ways you can take advantage of your very own broth. It contains loads of collagen. One benefit of collagen is that it reduces inflammation. Chicken feet also contains protein, calcium, and so many other minerals that our bodies need. So we have it right here waiting on you to try.

Please don’t take our word for it, ask your Great Grandma, Google it, or just buy some. We would love to know what you think.

MARY’S PEEPS:Sorry but this week I am taking off to go get a very special lady in my life, my Mother who lives in south Georgia.  She will be spending some time with me this winter, so she is ready to come back for a visit. I appreciate all the customers who have been so very nice to try my products, and I will be back ready for orders the next week. My Mom loves to help me especially making my Pepper Jellies, so I am getting a bit low so that will be one of our projects when she comes. Heck she’s only 93 going on 35 she thinks, but she still loves to help me in the kitchen, who do you think I get it from.  So see you next order week, which will be our next tent market.  Thank you so much for your kindness.  Mary Dale Peeples—Mary’s Peeps, and Mary Bees. 

MAYIM FARMS: Thank you so much to everyone who has come by the booth and said hello the past Saturday markets and have supported us through the market weekly. Carole and I are truly blessed by your support!
Mayim Farm is your farm, you are our family, our joy.
It is our highest calling…to give.
We live to give!

Editor’s Note: Be sure to check out Mayim Farm’s newest product – Anti Inflammatory Dash!

FOOTNOTES

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

GOOD THINGS AHEAD!

Sooooo. . . . Next Saturday, October 14, is the 2nd of our FALL FARMER’S MARKETS! If you missed the last one there’s plenty of time to get in on the fun and the fabulous food! Honestly, I think all of our vendors were surprised at the numbers of guests who had no idea that FRESH, LOCAL, SUSTAINABLE and YEAR ROUND growers serve the Wiregrass. If you are one of the sweet people who have created a new customer account we welcome you!

Next Saturday we are privileged to hear the other half of Mayim Farm’s dynamic duo, Carole Lolley. She will be teaching on the benefits and preparation of FERMENTED FOODS at 9:30 am. Following Carole at 11:00 am Katherine Flippo Johnson will be teaching about WATER KEFIR. Both of these classes cover vital information that is crucial to reclaiming and maintaining good gut health. Bring a chair and a note pad because you’ll want to remember everything you hear!

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

We have the best Growers in the Wiregrass! Please learn more about them on our Grower Page.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: What a beautiful turn out we had last Saturday at the market. We shared a table with Hawkins Homestead Farm and our families both enjoyed reaching out to the community! As we have gotten to know some of you from California to Australia, we thought it a good idea to tell you a little more about us:
Bain Home Gardens really is a family effort. Mr. Bain Home Gardener is our finance officer, caring for expenses but also giving well thought out feedback on setup and execution of Bain Home Garden affairs. Then we have our Associate Jarod who is much of the muscle of the operation. Jarod is currently studying Plant & Science Technology in his senior year of high school and readily applies his learning to our home garden. His responsibilities are tilling and preparing soil for planting, watering, fertilizing and other random things that may come up. Next we have Thai, our Junior Associate whose job covers anything from weeding to planting. She is the creative mind behind the operation and usually helps design bed set up as well. I, well I organize it all! As a result, I dabble in everything Bain Home Gardens has to do to bring the community quality produce. Some may say that is the most challenging job of all!
As the Fall Food Festival continues, please feel free to just come by our table and introduce yourself to us. We are here to get to know you & we love talking to people! See you soon!

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD FARM: Yay! Finally Autumn has arrived. I have always enjoyed the changing of seasons but Autumn has a special place in my heart. Growing up in the North, we actually had all 4 seasons so beginning in late August or Early September the leaves would began to change and it was a beautiful sight to see. Plus the cooler weather definitely helped. What do all of you like about fall? I would love to hear about it.

All of a sudden, we have lots of our organic poinsettia peppers turning red, so since we try not to waste anything around here I have been making hot sauce. Once I get it perfected, I hope that all of you will try it out. I plan to have it for the 2nd day of our Fall Farmers Market. Of course we will be out there with our fresh organic chicken, free range eggs, and some organic produce for you as well. We really enjoyed the first Fall Market and look forward to this one coming up on October 14th. Hope to see you there!

RICHTER FARMS: Welcome Autumn! Great news we will have pork restocked and NEW we will also have GOAT available! The chickens have been molting so eggs will be scarce but will list when available. I am also rendering lard so look for that to be restocked. I noticed that those pecan pie muffins are popular as is the ranch dressing mix. Thank you for being such wonderful customers and friends. I always look forward to seeing you each week! I will be marking some items 20% off for Columbus Day!

FOOTNOTES

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

TODAY WAS THE DAY!

THANK YOU to everyone who came out to Dothan Nurseries this morning! We were a bit hesitant about the weather as it was quite warm while setting everything up for the Fall Farmer’s Market early this morning, and about the time we finished those wonderful breezes started . . . BLISS! It made a wonderful day absolutely perfect!

If you missed this event take heart that there are three more! The dates are October 14, October 28 and November 11. We hope you’ll plan to visit at least one! Between perfect weather, perfect people (at least this Market Manager thinks all the vendors and customers are perfect), and the perfect beauty of Dothan Nurseries, you can’t ask for a better fall experience. Please be sure to note that while the farmers are busy in their tents, there will be great classes going on in the Market Pickup area as well.

Photos . . . what follows is a small smattering of the day’s offerings, fun, beauty and opportunity. There were MANY more great products than are shown, and many more vendors. Please know there will be much variety in the Markets to follow both in what is available to purchase and the classes offered. More photos will be shared on our Facebook page in the days ahead.

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

We have the best Growers in the Wiregrass! Please learn more about them on our Grower Page.

HORTONS FARM: This is the week! Many of you know that I won’t just be out of town in a few days, I will be out of the country! My sisters and I all dote on my Mom (who LOVES the Market and enjoys visiting when she can) and we are taking her to Prince Edward Island in Nova Scotia where she has always wanted to visit. This will the be trip of a lifetime for her and we are so happy and blessed to be able to all do this together. Thanks for all the kind words and well wishes we have received and I hope to have more culinary adventures to share on our return!

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello market friends! What an exciting day we had getting to know the Wiregrass community as well as meeting more growers at the kick off of the Fall Food Festival! Hawkins Homestead Farm and Bain Home Gardens shared a tent and table today and had way more fun than we planned! {Picture collage}  If you missed this week, you still have three more opportunities to visit with us on October 14th or 28th and November 11th.  Your smiling faces are welcome to visit on all dates!

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD FARM: Wow! Thank all of you so much for coming out to see us today at the Fall Farmers Market. We very much enjoyed meeting everyone and it’s nice to see the community come out and support their local growers!

RICHTER FARMS We will be restocking our pork in a few weeks as we took hogs to the butcher this week. We also took a goat and expect to have a limited quantity of that as well. Thanks for your understanding as our inventory is often at the mercy of the butcher’s schedule!

FOOTNOTES

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

GREETINGS FROM ORLANDO

If you made an order last week you know that Viki and Kathy handled Market Pickup in my absence on Friday. THANK YOU to both you ladies! We are blessed indeed to have capable and sweet helpers who can handle the job when duty and new grandbabies call me elsewhere. I am relishing the time with Finnigan Maccuill, Soren Keats and their parents.

Any time you visit out of your area hopefully you pick up some culinary experience, information or knowledge you didn’t possess beforehand. Such has been the case here.

This was breakfast the first day. One of the servings has an over easy egg underneath the avocado, and the other does not. They were both DELICIOUS! I had never heard of Avocado Toast but a quick Pinterest search turned up many variations. This simple version is made with regular bread, mashed avocado with lemon juice, and topped with smoked salmon. The CONCEPT however, can be adapted to be gluten free, vegan, and/or both.

Another new experience for me was . . . don’t roll your eyes . . . kombucha. Seriously! I’ve made my own for years and had never experienced any store bought commercial brands. One of the things I took down on this trip was a mother scoby, a gallon of sweet tea and dispensor to help the kids set up their own continuous brew system. It seems that after developing a taste for it at my house they realized how much they were spending . . . you know the rest.

So it was with a bit of hesitation I opened a dark brown bottle of coconut lime kombucha with a cute label, listened to the gas escaped and took a sip. . . . it wasn’t bad! The blueberry mint that my daughter shared wasn’t bad either . . . but to be honest, I like mine better. Neither were as tart or as sweet as I make it (using stevia) and I’ve got to figure out whether the flavors were naturally or artifically added.

All that being said, don’t be surprised if you see some new flavors added to our market page and we promise, ours will always be made with real ingredients!

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

We have the best Growers in the Wiregrass! Please learn more about them on our Grower Page.

AVALON FARMS: Thank God it’s finally Fall! Too bad no one told the weather. I felt like a complete idiot planting broccoli and cabbage transplants almost a month ago in 90 plus degree weather. Now they are a foot tall and going strong. Trying some new things like beets, watermelon radishes, brussel sprouts and Portuguese kale. It should be interesting. Also have some fall sugar snap peas started just for all you lovely people that loved them so much in the spring.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello market friends! As of Friday it is officially fall. So exciting! I know it’s hard to believe but it is true. Fall is our second favorite time of the year here at Bain Home Gardens. It has a close second to spring.  What we love about fall is the watching the leaves change & feeling the cool breeze in the air, a stark contrast to the summer!  Where we live, we often are privileged to observe mass exoduses of birds heading further south for the winter. This year the Hummingbirds paid a visit.

This fall holds even more wonder and excitement for us. Fall is the perfect time to refresh or even start a garden for the first time. This is true for several reasons:
1. Cool weather means less weeding.
2. Cool weather crops tend to be less labor intensive.
3. Cooler temperatures mean you will water a little less and save money on your water bill!
So if you have had it in the wheelhouse of your mind to start a small garden, NOW IS THE TIME! Here at Bain Home Gardens we think everyone should experience the joy of picking food from your own yard or pot at least once. So over the next few weeks we will be doing some myth busters in regards to small home gardens. Look out for our “Myth Buster Series” starting next week! We will share our experiences with you from our massive fails to our surprising successes! It is our sincere desire to help you also grow sustainable produce for your families. Just think, if we all did a little how much this market would blossom & how that would help our community!

Thanks to all who supported our fledgling business this week. You give us hope that this thing is really possible. Till next week, we will be in the garden working on next week’s haul…from our family to yours.

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD FARM: We are very excited to add 2 new baby chicks to our flock! One of our broody mamas abandoned her eggs but our 7 month old girl hung in there and was rewarded for her hard work. They came at exactly 21 days on September 16th.

With the upcoming Market day, we are excited to meet everyone in person. We plan to have our fresh organic chicken and eggs on hand with a few surprises. We hope all of you will come out and take advantage of buying direct which means NO SALES TAX on items produced from the farm.

We hope to see you there!

FOOTNOTES

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

SAINT ANDREWS SOAP COMPANY

“Saint Andrew’s Soap Company was created in the heart of downtown Dothan in 2013 inside Saint Andrews Market. The market was started to gather a collection of local businesses and sellers and the soaps and lotions fit perfectly with the concept. What started as a “trial” turned into a flying off the shelf product that soon became a top seller and a favorite among locals and tourist wanting to bring back a Dothan gift item. 

In 2015, Saint Andrews Market had to close due to a roofing disaster and is still in the process of trying to renovate and reopen. The Saint Andrew’s Soap Company products are now sold at Kitty Couture Boutique and the Market Dothan. Try them! You will be sure to love them. 

The soaps are made using natural products and some are even good with helping with certain skin issues. Thanks for supporting our small business. ”

FOOTNOTES

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

What to Do?

Since we are facing something different this week we thought it might be a good idea to inform everyone as early as possible about Market closing this week. I don’t think any of us have ever faced anything quite like this storm, for that matter, the Wiregrass and the rest of the southeast US! On Friday the plan was to open as normal and operate as usual should Irma go east, and cancel should Irma go west . . . toward us.

Now that we know we will experience her fury Market at Dothan is NOT open for orders this week. We hate the inconvenience we know it will cause for many and hope to resume orders as usual on Sept. 16.

Stay safe. Do what the authorities advise, and we look forward to seeing you the following week.

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

We have the best Growers in the Wiregrass! Please learn more about them on our Grower Page

AVALON FARMS: It’s a beautiful day and we are working hard on the never ending list of farm chores, along with battening down the hatches in preparation for Irma.

Do what you can to prepare.
Use common sense.
People are what’s important.
Ultimately, it’s in God’s hands.
God loves you.
We think you’re ok too.
See you on the other side.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello Market friends! We are so happy to be here. This week presented a reality check for our family. We were involved in a car accident. A driver ran the light and completely removed the front end of our van! It was scary. Besides the standard whiplash related injuries all passengers are ok. We were so thankful to have our lives as spoil. How appropriate! Things are just things. We can replace them. However we cannot replace lives! We must all remember this in the upcoming days. Please be safe in your travels and as you prepare your homes, farms, and gardens for the upcoming storm. We pray that everyone will come out safe. We will be doing our best to prepare our home garden for the storm. We will be applying some of the tips provided in the link below. Hopefully you will find it as useful as we did.

http://okaloosa.ifas.ufl.edu/lng/preparing-your-plants-for-a-storm/

Well wishes from our family to yours!

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD FARM: With all the natural disasters happening around the world today we want to take time to acknowledge those who have lost loved ones, homes, farms, animals, whatever was important to them. We pray for those families and also for those affected by the upcoming storms. As our lives continue on here, we feel it’s important to empathize with the struggles other have, pray that God helps them to endure, and be thankful for what we have. We have friends and family in the Florida area who are under mandatory evacuation, so this hits close to us. We choose to use our public voice, to raise awareness and to try to help others. We encourage everyone to do what they can. Please stay safe wherever you may be.

Back on our Homestead, we are trying something new. TWO of our chickens decided to go broody at the same time! They want to be mamas and so their laying stops and they sit on eggs day by day, keeping them warm, and waiting on them to hatch. This is why we are listing fewer eggs on the market as some of you may have noticed.

Since these girls won’t be laying anyway, we decided to mark some eggs from 8/26 for hatching! The girls have each been moved to their own brooding pens and now we just wait. With these two birds, we have had 3 go broody so far this year. One of them is only 7 months old! The first hen went before the rooster was active so we had to help her. She may have sat in there forever otherwise!

We have at least 7 different types of hens (probably more) but our roosters are mostly Copper Marans (except one). Below you will see a picture of our main one. His name is Mr. Rooster….yes we could’ve come up with something better but every single rooster we’ve named ended up in the RRC (rooster rehabilitation center) also known as the crockpot so he will just have a label.

It takes about 21 days for the chicks to hatch out so here’s hoping they’re all hens! We will keep you posted.

HORTONS FARM: Since we now know what to expect of the next few days Saturday and Sunday here are being spent in preparedness mode. The Mr. will take care of things like making sure the generator works, checking stuff on the roof, moving equipment, etc. I get the rest: 1. Make sure the animals have plenty of food and water and are secured (wait . . . we do that every day!!). 2. Fill water jugs. 3. Secure the bee hives. For those who have seen photos of my Leaning Tower of Beeza, it will lean no more after today. It would probably go over with the first gust of wind leaving hundreds of bees homeless, confused and angry. Small bees are no match for big winds, but that don’t mean they don’t have an opinion about it. 4. Check supply of paper plates and charcoal. 5. Get everything off the outside porches. 6. Do the laundry since we don’t know how long we could be without power. Of course we’ll meet with the Lord Sunday morning where I’m sure there will be special prayer for those in harms way. We’ll be praying for all of you too.

As a small public service announcement, check out Zello. It is an internet based app that allows your smart phone to work like a walkie talkie if cell towers go down. I was impressed with the quality of communication using it and our family has a plan in place to stay in touch the next few days.

RICHTER FARMS PORK: I will be out of town this week. FYI I am bringing in a hog Sept 27 hopefully having pork available mid Oct. If you have a cut you would like to purchase please let me know.  I am also going to have goat available, raised the same as all of our other livestock, non-gmo feed and on pasture! Egg production is down due to the girls molting, once they get their new feathers it will be a few months to get egg production up (they want to look their best you know!) . I have a few spring hatched hens that I expect to start laying soon so should have some eggs through the late fall early winter months. Hope everyone stays safe through Irma’s march across the South!

FOOTNOTES

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

WELCOME BAIN HOME GARDENS

“Once upon a time my husband and I both watched our mothers work hard cultivating our home gardens.  As a kid you never fully appreciate the value of home grown vegetables. We are proud to say we do now! Much like our parents we are trying hard to instill the value of home gardening into our children.  It is a challenge well worth the work! Our home has been transformed. Checking the mail now includes a stroll our past honeydew melon patch, greetings from butterflies and the occasional bumblebee.  The most pleasant feeling of peace has resulted all from getting our hands dirty! Our garden has brought us nice yields of which we are excited to share with the community. We are very excited meet you, learn from you and grow with you towards sustainable, organic, pesticide free produce for our Market at Dothan community. Stay tuned…”

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

COMING SOON . . .

The countdown is on! Five weeks from today Market at Dothan and Dothan Nurseries will host the city’s first ever Fall Farmer’s Market and Fall Food Festival. This event will occur every two weeks ending on Veterans Day, November 11. We plan to do something special that day to commemorate the occasion . . but that announcement has to wait.

This won’t be your typical Farmer’s Market! As a SUSTAINABLE Market our growers do not use GMO’s, chemical fertilizers, herbicides or pesticides in the growth of their products. In other words, this is a HEALTHY market!

The Fall Food Festival portion of this event consists of two classes each week in our regular Market pickup area. Last week we introduced Greg Lolley and Susan Avello who will be teaching on Sept. 30. Greg’s class that day sets the tone for the rest of the season as he will talk about the Health Differences between Organic Foods and Traditionally Grown Foods. Susan is a personal chef with Lean Bean Chef and will be teaching about Transitioning to a Gluten Free Diet.

Greg will joined by wife Carole on October 14 teaching about Fermented Foods. Following them will be Katherine Johnson (pictured on the far right with one of her cutie pies) who will teach about Water Kefir. Katherine is a health conscious mom of four with extensive experience maintaining her family’s health through nutrition. You will enjoy hearing this delightful lady.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

DOGS AND DOG DAYS

I learned about Dog Days from my Mom when I was a kid. There were three characteristics that I knew till I was an adult and learned more:
1. Dogs were lazy during Dog Days.
2. That’s because that time during ate summer was blasted HOT, and
3. Cuts, scrapes and boo-boos were more likely to become infected.

That’s it! That’s all I knew!

I’m glad to share with you now that there’s more to it. The name came about because the ancient Romans associated the hottest days of summer with Sirius, the “Dog Star." Besides being the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major (Large Dog) it’s the brightest star in the entire night sky! The Romans calculated the dog days of summer to be about July 24 to around August 24. Over time, though, the constellations have drifted somewhat and today, The Old Farmer’s Almanac lists the dog days of summer as July 3 until August 11.

So we may be a bit late in our observance though you can’t tell it by the weather. What we can tell you is that next Friday, August 25, your pooch is WELCOME to visit the Market and Dothan Nurseries. We’ll have treats for them and if you and your pet would like, you can meet Koda, whom Alabama’s newest canine legislation was named after.

Koda is a big gentle soul who LOVES children and will “Scooby Doo” for them. He a big ham, thinks he’s a ladies man (he’s not) and has met our governor. Koda will be with us from 10 am to 11:30 am. The best thing about Koda is that he lives with me and I couldn’t be happier to share him with you.

Ros

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!

WHY EAT SUSTAINABLE

Sustainable eating is about choosing foods that are healthful to our environment AND our bodies. It’s about nourishing ourselves wholly and completely. Providing pleasure but preserving the food system for the future. It leads to healthy, thriving, individuals and communities, as well as a better, more balanced ecosystem.

I am a raving fan of eating sustainable. Not only do I practice it myself, but I provide sustainable, whole ingredients in what I prepare for my clients. Being a part of the Market at Dothan and the local farming community is such a vital part of what I do and who I am as an individual, business owner, and a citizen of the Wiregrass area.

I anxiously look forward to picking up my weekly finds and preparing my recipes for the week both for myself and for my clients. And knowing that I’m not only providing the freshest and best ingredients to my clients but realizing I’m a part of something bigger (the entire process – from the farm to the market – to my kitchen – to my client) is huge!

Here is one of my favorite recipes from items purchased from our growers. I hope you enjoy. And if you make it, find me online and tag me. I’d love to see your photos. You can find me @susanavello on Instagram. Or at Lean Bean Chef on Facebook. Enjoy! And thanks for allowing me to be a part of this wonderful community!

ZUCCHINI RIBBON PASTA (Raw/Gluten-Free/Vegetarian)

Ingredients:
Zucchini (3 – 4 medium)
Pesto (Basil, Parsley, Pine Nuts, EVO, Parmesan)
Grape tomatoes
Sunflower Seeds
Shaved Parmesan

Use a veggie peeler to make the zucchini into ribbons until you get down to the seeds, then use the other side. Discard the seeds. Combine your basil, parsley, pine nuts, EVO, parmesan into the processor and blend. Toss the pesto with the zucchini gently. Add your tomatoes, seeds and parmesan.

Susan Avello is a Personal Chef with Lean Bean Chef Personal Chef Service in the Dothan, AL area, providing Healthy Options in Meal Prep, Meal Planning, Cooking Classes, Dinner Parties, and Education, and specializing in Gluten-free, Paleo, Vegan, Raw and Vegetarian Diets. Leanbeanchef.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!