Author Archives: Virtual Farmgirl

Here’s what I learned working the 9-11 shift at the Oak Park Farmers Market info tent…it’s a shift that can make you very hungry. I’m guessing that will be true of any of the shifts between 7 a.m. and 1 p.m. All that food going by and folks talking about what they’re going to doContinue reading “30-Minute CSA Meal: Savoy Cabbage & Sugar Snap Pea Stir Fry”

So when I learned I’d be getting my first CSA box and was told to expect parsley, I honestly never thought I’d get that shrubby version that looks so pretty as a decoration on restaurant dishes. You know, the pungent stuff you brush aside? For some reason, every time I see that a very vulgarContinue reading “Parsley & Garlic Scapes = Chimichurri”

I picked up my first CSA box this evening at my King’s Hill Farm pick up site. It’s like Christmas getting to unpack such delightful goodies. I have a few ideas of what to make with it all…but it’ll be a challenge to use every bit. Here’s what our take was this week: Savoy CabbageMiniContinue reading “My CSA Booty”

This is the week! I finally get to pick up my first CSA box on Wednesday. King’s Hill Farm, from Mineral Point, Wis., makes my delivery every other week since I opted for only a half share this week. I want to be sure I’m not going to waste a bunch of food before IContinue reading “It's CSA Week, Time to Break Out the Test Kitchen Apron”

I was looking for something to do with the extra radishes I picked up at the farmers market Saturday. Of course, they taste great in a salad, which is why we bought them. But I was looking for an alternative use. I chose spicy baked radish chips. I’m sorry to say this was not myContinue reading “What to Do With Radishes”

There are givers in this world and there are takers. I’m so grateful to know that we have so many givers in my neighborhood. The two I’m thinking about today are Laura & Andrew Maychruk, who have owned and operated our local hot spot — Buzz Cafe — for more than a decade. I’ve writtenContinue reading “New Community Garden Sprouts in Oak Park”

If you think your 10 dollar co-pay is a pain, don’t miss this radio piece on the crisis in health care for rural farmers and farm workers on NPR’s Weekend Edition. Howard Berkes tabulates the cost of health care for the Wilson family, who operate Seven W Farm in northwestern Iowa. Their major medical insuranceContinue reading “Wow: A $5,700 Deductible for Health Insurance? Better Take Your Vitamins”

Mother Nature conspired against me riding my bike to my first volunteer shift at the OP Farmers Market. I wish I could say that driving made it better. But it only rained harder. And that led to an unprecedented early closure of the market. Just not enough business, though the folks at Sandhill Organics lookedContinue reading “'Caring Carrots' at OP's Farmers Market Redistributes Market Leftovers to Help Needy”

I got a note in one of my local e-mail lists that there’s a new organic CSA accepting applications through the end of June. So, if like us, you missed deadlines to join a CSA, you have a second chance with King’s Hill Farm in Mineral Point, Wis. The note was passed on by theContinue reading “New CSA With Oak Park Deliveries…And Still Selling Shares!”

This story in Culinate about Penelope’s Garden in Portland, Ore., touched me. This unidentified family — after apparently adopting a child who too intimately knew hunger — decided they could make a bigger difference by turning their backyard space into an edible garden. The idea is to donate the produce to an organization that servesContinue reading “Need a Reason to Plant a Garden? How About Ending Starvation”