EclecticCook.com » Everything Else

The Good Egg Project – Farm to Table Tour

Karen — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 04:29:57 +0000

With two kidlets, a full time job, dust bunnies to vanquish and this blog thing that needs my attention every so often, I don’t get out much. And so I was schoolgirl-giddy when I was offered the chance to head to sunny Phoenix, Arizona to take part in the first ever Farm to Table Blogger Tour, presented by the good people at the American Egg Board as part of the the Good Egg Project. I’m sure you all remember the people who brought you the Incredible Edible Egg?

And so in early March, nine bloggers from around the country descended on Phoenix, Arizona, armed with cameras, laptops and a burning desire to spend a few precious days footloose and kid-free.

The cast of characters from left to right: Clint Hickman, Jeffrey Saad, Anne-Marie from This Mama Cooks!, Anitra from The Mama Zone, Laurie from Doublebugs, Shanda from The Parents with Style, Tonia from All America Mommy, Marla from Family Fresh Cooking, Kristina from MOMFormation, Ann from Healthy Tasty Chow, and in the egg chair is Thomas Schoaf, the Mayor of Litchfield Park, Arizona.

But wait, there’s more! Also attending the event was Jeffrey Saad, National Spokesperson for the American Egg Board, restaurateur, and the runner up on season 5 of The Next Food Network Star. He’s also handsome well-spoken, and makes running shoes look hot.

Let’s not forget the delightful Howard Helmer, Guinness world record holder as the world’s fastest omelet maker, American Egg Board spokesman for over 40 years, and expert charmer extraordinaire.

Last but not least, Clint Hickman, Bill Hickman, Sharman Hickman and matriarch Gertie Hickman, collectively known as Hickman’s Family Farms granted us the unique opportunity to see the inner workings of a large scale egg farm. Do you hear bells ringing? Is your memory jogged? What you may be recalling is the episode on Dirty Jobs which featured the Hickman’s Family Farms. Curious? Catch the full video here, just scroll down to see the clip.

As you can see, we got all gussied up for the occasion. Nothing says class like white paper lab coats and blue booties, baybee! At the center left is nutritionist Mary Lee Chin who not only kept us company at the farm but also gave us an eye-opening lecture on egg nutrition.

Did you know:

Next to mother’s milk, eggs are one of the highest quality proteins available, providing us with all 9 essential amino acids.
Eating a good breakfast has been shown to help kids get better grades and higher test scores.
An adult can enjoy an egg a day without significantly impacting their risk of heart disease.
Eggs are an excellent source of choline, a nutrient essential to developing fetuses and infants.

For those of us living in the bigger cities, Clint Hickman was kind enough to show us what a chicken looks like with it’s feather’s still on and not shrink-wrapped.

Eggs-actly what I said.

Quick! Can you spot the bloggers? I’ll give you a hint: They are wearing hairnets, white coats, and have digital image recording devices permanently grafted to their fingers.

Anitra flips out! Actually we all flipped out. Everyone got to flip an egg, and most even ended up back in the pan.

What’s that? You want more? Well you’re in luck! Farm to Table Tour – The Complete Collection is available for your viewing pleasure on The Eclectic Cook’s Flickr Photostream

Oh! There is one more picture I need to show you.

Flowers. And Green grass. In early March. I can’t begin to describe how delightful it was to see flowers and green grass, especially after the long, cold and crappy winter we all just slogged our way through. This was a picture that inspired a recipe. Stay tuned over the next few days for: How to Make The Perfect Omelet – Omelet with Fresh Herbs, Goat Cheese and Edible Flowers. I threw in all of the tips and tricks that I learned from watching the best of the best, the omelet king, Howard Helmer. I have proof. The very last picture here features me, Howard and my omelet creation. See if you can guess who’s who. I’ll give you a hint: I’m not the one that’s yellow, covered in garnish, and sitting on a plate. And just in case you already know how to make the perfect omelet and aren’t too fond of goat cheese, did I mention the Giveaway?

I’d also like to send out a big heartfelt thank you and even a few squishy hugs to Erika and Serena, for finding me at the airport, for making us feel so welcome, and for reminding me (in case I got sunstroke and forgot) that I had to get back on a plane and home to my family.

Finally, I’d like to leave you with a few thoughts.

There is no dancing around the fact that large scale farming operations of all kinds have born the brunt of scrutiny and criticism over the past few decades for their industrial agricultural procedures, much of it justified, much of it because of practices stemming from the environmentally unfriendly mentality of an era long gone. But the hard truth is that our human population is continually growing and we need to find a way to feed us all. Most people realize that the industrial agricultural practices of past decades are unsustainable for farmers, consumers and for the planet, and a shift towards sustainable agriculture is not only necessary but inevitable. A definition of sustainable agriculture from Wikipedia:

“Sustainable agriculture integrates three main goals: environmental stewardship, farm profitability, and prosperous farming communities….The term sustainable agriculture means an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that will, over the long term:

Satisfy human food and fiber needs
Enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the agricultural economy depends
Make the most efficient use of nonrenewable resources and on-farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls
Sustain the economic viability of farm operations
Enhance the quality of life for farmers and society as a whole.”

As we exit the first decade of the 21st century, we find ourselves in a world with instant access to information, some good, some bad, and some very ugly. Some might argue that this information free-for-all is not in society’s best interest, but I would respond that we are entering an era of informed choices and personal responsibility that can only lead to better decisions. I give a big basketful of credit to Hickman’s Farms in their continuing efforts to embrace the concept of sustainability in their farming practices, to connect directly with their consumers, and to let us all take a look behind the scenes so that we can make those informed choices that are our personal responsibility to the future.

Whoever you are and whatever you think, we can all benefit from this little pearl of wisdom from the Good Egg Project:

Eat good, do good every day.

Starting Herbs from Seed: Bringing Some Spring into February

Karen — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 07:05:53 +0000

It’s been a long, dark, damp and cold winter this year, and I find myself wanting to spend most of my time hibernating in a warm cozy den of blankets, with a hot cup of tea set down close enough to grab without exposing more than an inch of forearm to the cold living room air. It doesn’t help matters that my husband is psychologically allergic to winter and turns into a crotchety get-off-my-lawn old man at the first hint of snow in the air.

A few weekends ago I found myself annoyed by a cold draft of air making its unwelcomed way into my cocoon of pillows, blankets and Battlestar Galactica DVD’s. The source of the draft turned out to be the above mentioned crotchety old man fiddling with my blanket, trying to get my attention. Apparently, he’d had just about enough of this Canadianesque winter and was going to do something about it, and I was going to help him. Even if it killed me. After skillful cajoling, veiled threats, and some seriously unfair blanket theft, I graciously allowed myself to be persuaded to get dressed and venture out into the cold. You see my darling blanket-stealing husband had an epiphany of sorts; since spring was stubbornly refusing to show itself outdoors (I blame the groundhog), we would just have to find a way to bring spring to the indoors.

It was late in the evening, and we had to journey long, and journey far (Walmart). We fought our way through the last-minute Valentine’s Day shoppers, the giant boxes of chocolaty candy and the toppling towers of red and white stuffed animals emblazoned with the word “love” in 15 different languages. When we finally arrived at the blissfully empty island of tranquility that was the gardening section, we loaded up the cart with packets of seeds of every herb we could find. All nine of them. Joy of lazy gardener joys, right next to the seed packets was a display of handy-dandy Jiffy seed starter kits, complete with compressed pellets of Canadian peat moss. Just add water, seeds and presto, insta-garden! We then zipped through the lighting section, picking up a pair of florescent light fixtures and some daylight balanced bulbs. We fought our way back through the now desperate throngs of husbands and boyfriends to the self-checkout isle, paid a surprisingly small amount of money, and escaped with our bounty.

The next day we bought an industrial shelving unit, survived assembling it, and created our indoor greenhouse in an unused corner of our basement. I supposed we could have waited to start the seeds to be sure that they wouldn’t be ready too early to go into the herb pots I usually plant with purchased seedlings every year. But I’m all about instant gratification, and if any of the herbs take off and mature too early to go into the garden, I’m sure I’ll be able to find something creatively culinary to do with them. Can you say fish with baby dill and lemon?

It’s been 2 weeks since our midnight seed escapade, and except for the parsley and rosemary, all of our herbs have sprouted. After much time spent herb watching, I’ve discovered that if I move in real close to the tiny sprouts, close my eyes and breathe in deeply, I can just about smell summer.

And on the bright side, winter is more than half over for most of us south of the 49th parallel. Very soon (and not soon enough), we’ll all be able to pack up the blankets for the summer, throw open the windows and watch our herbs grow in the sunshine.

What You Will Need:

Seeds: Your choice

Containers: Use purchased containers or old plastic cups. Punch holes in the bottom for drainage.*

Plastic tray for drainage basin.*

Potting mix: A soiless potting mix (peat moss) is best.*

Labels: Tape or paper labels are essential for those of us older than 35. Labels are optional for twenty-something’s with a photographic memory.

Plastic Covers: To create a mini-greenhouse, trapping moisture and heat.*

A Light Source: A cheap fluorescent fixture works just fine.

Water

A small fan to circulate air, prevent mold, and strengthen stems (optional)

*Use a fabricated seed starting system, such as Jiffy brand, to make things a little easier on yourself

Plant seeds according to the package directions. Seeds will be planted at different times depending on the time it takes them to mature, and the date you are going to plant them outdoors. Keep the soil moist until germination. Once the seeds sprout, turn on the lighting system and give them 12 to 16 hours of light per day. As the seeds mature, pick out the weaker seedlings, leaving only the strongest in each pot. A few weeks before you transfer outdoors, start leaving the plants outside for a few hours a day. This will “harden” then, and prepare them to survive in the big, bad outdoor world.

Strip Steak and Chimichurri Sauce

Karen — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 02:23:11 +0000

Fall is in the air, or so I’ve been told. In the Northeast, fall makes a spectacular entrance. The days grow short, the nights are crisp, and the maple trees put on a show of color that rivals a Fourth of July fireworks display. Kansas has more cottonwoods than maples, and I’ve missed the loud display of color that always signaled the start of sweater, fuzzy blanket and hot cocoa season. But life has a way of reminding us that there are two sides to every coin.

On the spur of the moment, we went for a random, meandering drive this past weekend, which we do quite often. Some of the best times we have had as a family have been on these spontaneous little day trips to nowhere in particular.

We found ourselves at El Dorado Lake and State Park, about half an hour from Wichita. It was sunny and the perfect kind of warm; not too cold and not too hot.

There was a gentle breeze that smelled fresh and green, and everywhere we looked, Kansas was in bloom. Wild sunflowers of a half dozen varieties covered the landscape with pools of vibrant yellow that stood out against the bright blue sky.

Butterflies were dancing above the flowers, adding sprinkles of orange to the canvas. Grasshoppers were singing, and bees were buzzing all around us, and little living ‘somethings’ hopped out of our way with every step we took. We spent the whole day taking pictures and exploring, soaking in the life that was all around us.

And I found myself on the receiving end one of those unexpected little life lessons; even though I still miss the fall maple forest of Canada, I have my sunflowers and butterflies to remind me that there is color and beauty to be found in all places and in every season.

So while my friends up north are winterizing their cars, raking up leaves and trying to remember where they put the hats and mittens last spring, I’ll be out in my backyard, grilling up steaks and burgers until sometime in November.

Maybe I melt in the triple digit summers, and maybe I don’t see a maple tree in every yard, but two full months of fall weather every year is not too shabby as far as compensation goes. I’d stick out my tongue right now, but I’m waaaaaay to mature for that kind of behavior. Yes indeedy.

The first time I made this, I blended everything in the blender and drizzled in the oil. Tastes great, not very attractive. It’s best to just stir in the oil at the end to keep the gorgeous, vibrant green color of the herbs.

KC strip steaks don’t need any help from a marinade to come out tender and juicy when cooked to a perfect medium rare on the grill. But a little drizzle of Argentinean chimichurri sauce adds a tangy zip that enhances the flavor without drowning out the meaty goodness.

Strip Steak and Chimichurri Sauce

2 lbs KC strip steaks (about 4)
Chimichurri Sauce (recipe follows)

Allow steaks to come to room temperature before grilling. Preheat grill to high. Season steaks generously with salt and pepper. Grill over high heat for 10-12 minutes, turning once, for medium rare. Internal temperature will be 130°F to 135°F. Let rest for 10 minutes before serving. Drizzle with chimichurri sauce and serve with additional sauce on the side.

Chimichurri Sauce

1 1/2 cups fresh, flat-leafed parsley
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp smoked paprika
¼ tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried oregano leaves
1 shallot
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp pepper

Combine all ingredients except the oil in a small food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. Add the olive oil and mix well with a spoon. Can be stored tightly covered in the refrigerator for 1 week.

(Printable Recipe)