Farm Update- 6/19/2015

<h1><strong>FCF News:</strong></h1> <p> </p> <p><span style="color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.5px; orphans: auto; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; display: inline !important; float: none; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">We really do LOVE visitors and showing people our farm. And we would encourage you to come by and see where your food comes from and make the connection.  We also love helping others who are starting this journey called farming as well. But all life has to be balanced so we are now limiting our farm tours to once per week on a first come first served basis. So the way this looks is the first one to schedule for the week is the one who sets the time and then any additional folks will be given the opportunity to join us at the set time. So if you are passing thru on a road trip do several things to make sure this works out:  First check with GPS or google maps to see how long it takes to get here.  Second, schedule a time with us at least 1 week in advance but 2 weeks would even be better to make sure you get your desired tour time since they are limited to only one per week.  Plan to arrive early as I will be scheduling others to join us and I will start on time. The tour will last up to 2 hours but if you want to do less we can customize or drop off those who want to go one hour and continue on with those who want to see it ALL. Tours start at the scheduled time so if you set an appointment with us and are 5 minutes late you might miss out.   Our next scheduled tour is </span><span class="aBn" data-term="goog_712592187" style="border-bottom-width: 1px; border-bottom-style: dashed; border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0; color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.5px; orphans: auto; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">1:30</span></span><span style="color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.5px; orphans: auto; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; display: inline !important; float: none; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> on June 25</span><sup style="color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.5px; orphans: auto; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">th</sup><span style="color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.5px; orphans: auto; text-align: left; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; display: inline !important; float: none; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">.  Check the website for future times or email us and set a time for yourself.</span></p>

Farm Report - 5/22/15

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="mcnTextBlock" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" width="100%"> <tbody class="mcnTextBlockOuter"> <tr> <td class="mcnTextBlockInner" valign="top"> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="mcnTextContentContainer" width="600"> <tbody> <tr> <td class="mcnTextContent" style="padding: 9px 18px; color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;" valign="top"> <h1 class="null" style="font-size: 40px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-family: Helvetica; font-weight: bold; line-height: 50px; padding: 0px; letter-spacing: -1px; color: rgb(96, 96, 96) !important;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">Be THE Change!</span></h1> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="mcnTextBlock" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" width="100%"> <tbody class="mcnTextBlockOuter"> <tr> <td class="mcnTextBlockInner" valign="top"> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="mcnTextContentContainer" width="600"> <tbody> <tr> <td class="mcnTextContent" style="padding: 9px 18px; color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;" valign="top">I had a conversation with a few people, a while ago, and they were complaining about the deplorable working conditions on the local large dairy farms.  One person was saying how sad it is that these illegal workers live in shacks on these farms while another was saying how many of the babies born to these workers die because of the high nitrate levels from the manure run off getting into the drinking water.  So I asked these fine folks where they buy the milk that they drink and of course they said, “At the grocery store”.   I asked them why they support Monsanto and the very things they are complaining about.  The dots were getting connected.  Wake up folks!   If you shop at Wal-mart you may be supporting slave labor.  Both of these folks were grossly overweight and I had to think how nice it was to, as Gandhi said, “BE the change you want to see in the world!” It is easy to point the finger and complain but harder to take full responsibility and grow up. The 2 links below will enhance your ability to grow up.<br /> <a href="http://thetruthaboutcancer.com/survivor-story-elaine-gibson/" style="color: rgb(109, 198, 221); text-decoration: underline; word-wrap: break-word;">http://thetruthaboutcancer.com/survivor-story-elaine-gibson/</a> ok if you are in a hurry just go to 12 minutes in on this!!  AWESOME STUFF!!<br /> <a href="http://www.eatwild.com/healthbenefits.htm" style="color: rgb(109, 198, 221); text-decoration: underline; word-wrap: break-word;">http://www.eatwild.com/healthbenefits.htm</a>  take at least 5 minutes here and read about CLA and their awesome cancer fighting properties.</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table>

Farm Report - 6/5/15

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="mcnTextBlock" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" width="100%"> <tbody class="mcnTextBlockOuter"> <tr> <td class="mcnTextBlockInner" valign="top"> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="mcnTextContentContainer" width="600"> <tbody> <tr> <td class="mcnTextContent" style="padding: 9px 18px; color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;" valign="top"> <h1 class="null" style="font-size: 40px; margin-bottom: 0px; font-family: Helvetica; font-weight: bold; line-height: 50px; padding: 0px; letter-spacing: -1px; color: rgb(96, 96, 96) !important;">Dairy News</h1> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="mcnTextBlock" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: medium; line-height: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" width="100%"> <tbody class="mcnTextBlockOuter"> <tr> <td class="mcnTextBlockInner" valign="top"> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="mcnTextContentContainer" width="600"> <tbody> <tr> <td class="mcnTextContent" style="padding: 9px 18px; color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;" valign="top">We just sent off 25 more DNA samples to see how many A-2 cows we now have.  We are excited about this but last time, out of 25 tested we only had 6 A-2, about 35% just like the book, Devil in the Milk, purports.  All goats and sheep produce A-2 milk so technically we already offer A-2 milk in 2 forms but very expensive.  Our goal is to eventually offer A-2 cow milk and we have been breeding A-2 into our herd for 8 years now. To read more about this subject we thought you might like to read the article we wrote on this almost a year ago:    “<em>Recently we have had several questions come to us Re: the type of breed we use for our milking cows.  In fact one time a gal called and her only inquiry was,  “do you milk Jersey cows?”.   When Alicia responded that we do indeed milk Jerseys along with Devons and that we are actually moving toward a Devon herd she quickly became disinterested and hung up!   It has seemed lately that more and more customers are interested in milk from purely Jersey cows and we think it may have to do with A1/A2 beta casein.  A1 is the milk protein that is harder, overall for people to digest and has been linked to serious illnesses such as:  heart disease, autism, type 1 diabetes, etc..   Milk that contains the A2 beta casein has no such ills attached to it and, according to research, is better assimilated by humans.  As more and more people find out about this the more people want the A2 milk.  We found on one very successful blog that is based out of Tampa, FL, a video Re: A1/A2 beta casein.  </em></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table>

Farm Report- 05/10/15

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px; line-height: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" width="100%"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="margin: 0px;" valign="top"> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="600"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="font-family: Helvetica; margin: 0px; padding: 9px 18px; color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;" valign="top"> <h1 style="margin-bottom: 0px; padding: 0px; font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 40px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 50px; letter-spacing: -1px; color: rgb(96, 96, 96) !important;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">It was so nice to meet you!</span></h1> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="color: rgb(34, 34, 34); font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px; line-height: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" width="100%"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="margin: 0px;" valign="top"> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="600"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="font-family: Helvetica; margin: 0px; padding: 9px 18px; color: rgb(96, 96, 96); font-size: 15px; line-height: 22.5px;" valign="top">The weather at Full Circle Farm was awesome for our Customer Appreciation Day, it only rained a tiny bit, not enough to make you seek cover. BUT because there were local tornado warnings and rain in both Jax AND Tally, many people did not come so we had only half as many folks as we hoped for.  It was a windy, somewhat overcast day but that made the heat wane quite a bit.  Overall it was a successful day for us, a time to get to meet several customers that we had not met before and to reconnect with those that we had.  It was also a time to connect those who came, to the land and animals that their food comes from and for us, that is priceless.  We look forward to doing something like it again in the future.  Our children had a HUGE time playing with all the kids and at the end of the day were beaming with pleasure. That is icing on the cake for a parent and it really made the day for us.  Lily was VERY nervous about showing her goat operation but was especially proud of how that went and ready to do it again when we had 10 kids from a school in Gainesville come camping for 2 nights this week.  We again had a wonderful time, played kick ball till we dropped and then ate ice cream till we were full.  Our new low carb ice cream really focuses on the incredible cream it is made of and hardly gives you a sugar buzz at all, for you low carb folks, you may have just found your favorite brand and the healthiest, too!  </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table>

Bacon Wrapped Pork Medallions

<p>Ingredients: </p> <ul> <li>8 slices bacon</li> <li>1 tablespoon garlic powder</li> <li>1 teaspoon seasoned salt</li> <li>1 teaspoon dried basil</li> <li>1 teaspoon dried oregano</li> <li>2 pounds pork tenderloin</li> <li>2 tablespoons butter</li> <li>2 tablespoons olive oil</li> </ul>

Farm Report- 4/24/15

<p>We have decided to hand crank some ice cream for sale as a way to use up some extra cream here. We will serve a basic flavor of vanilla at our customer appreciation day then sell it as a beginning flavor for $15 a quart and $10 a pint.  One challenge with homemade ice cream is that it does not have antifreeze in it so that it wants to thaw on the delivery truck so we are not sure how much ice cream we will sell to you all in Tampa or beyond but maybe we will let you decide on that. The ingredients in our ice cream are:  cream, milk, eggs, vanilla, Maple Syrup and Himalayan salt.  If you have a good low carb recipe we will try it and I hope to offer that soon.  I am with Joel Salatin who says he will “Take his dairy in the form of ice cream any day”.  He also says he is very picky how he eats it.   He has to be alone or with someone.<br /> <br /> Organic Blueberries. We have a friend here locally who has 2 acres of Blueberries and they have zero chemicals used in their production,  $7 a lb for the very best in beautiful ripe berries. He is too small to get certified organic but could and in fact is way beyond organic. He uses guineas to debug them and weeds by hand. He will soon have pear and plum olive oil as well, we are excited about these organic crops and will have blueberries here for sampling on Saturday.</p>

Farm Update- 4/10/15

<p><b>Customer Appreciation Day:</b></p> <p>Don't miss out!  Good food, fellowship and a day of meeting the people that produce your food! Customer Appreciation Day will be held on <span data-term="goog_151459065" tabindex="0">Saturday, April 25th</span> starting at<span data-term="goog_151459066" tabindex="0">1pm</span>.  Check out our invite at: <a href="http://mailchimp.us1.list-manage.com/track/click?u=724abd6613b28376f02f2a9b0&id=752c26105d&e=ee43596401" target="_blank">http://www.evite.com/<wbr />event/<wbr />0029GOPXXHSYAEN3MEPEYX7AYSVA4E</a><wbr /> for full details.  If you are interested in attending please RSVP directly on <a href="http://mailchimp.us1.list-manage.com/track/click?u=724abd6613b28376f02f2a9b0&id=78ce335f3d&e=ee43596401" target="_blank">evite.com</a> or reply to <a href="mailto:angelabowen@gmail.com" target="_blank">angelabowen@gmail.com</a>. We sent out an official invitation via email which may have went to your spam so if you didn't receive it and would like one please let us know. <br />  <br /> Also, we are looking for people who may be interested in doing face painting, caricature drawing,etc. during the event for compensation.  If you are interested, please let us know.  </p>

Split Pea Soup

<p>​Serves 8</p> <p>2lbs organic, dry split peas, soaked for 7 hours or overnight in water with 2 tsps baking soda*; rinsed and drained.</p> <p>1lb smoked bacon ends/chunks or smoked ham hock</p> <p>1 large onion, chopped</p> <p>2-3 cloves garlic, minced</p> <p>2-3 carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped</p> <p>Several sprigs fresh thyme or 2 tsp dry</p> <p>4-6 cups pork broth</p> <p>Salt and pepper to taste</p>

Farm Update- 3/27

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody> <tr> <td> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="600"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="line-height:22.5px;"> <h1>Customer Appreciation Day</h1> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"> <tbody> <tr> <td> <table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="600"> <tbody> <tr> <td style="line-height:22.5px;">As we mentioned in our previous newsletter,Customer <wbr />Appreciation Day will be held on Saturday, April 25th starting at <span data-term="goog_58726582" tabindex="0">1pm</span>.  Check out our invite at: <a href="http://mailchimp.us1.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=724abd6613b28376f02f2a9b0&id=d9bdecc1ff&e=ee43596401" target="_blank">http://www.evite.com/<wbr />event/<wbr />0029GOPXXHSYAEN3MEPEYX7AYSVA4E</a><wbr /> for full details.  If you are interested in attending please RSVP directly on <a href="http://mailchimp.us1.list-manage.com/track/click?u=724abd6613b28376f02f2a9b0&id=c4d9d1f30e&e=ee43596401" target="_blank">evite.com</a> or reply to <a href="mailto:angelabowen@gmail.com" target="_blank">angelabowen@gmail.com</a>. We sent out an official invitation via email which may have went to your spam so if you didn't receive it and would like one please let us know. <br />  <br /> Also, we are looking for people who may be interested in doing face painting, caricature drawing,etc. during the event for compensation.  If you are interested, please let us know.  </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table>

Carolina Style BBQ

<p>Ingredients:</p> 1 quart water<br> 1 cup vinegar<br> 1 large onion<br> 1/4 tsp pepper<br> 4 bay leaves<br> 1 tablespoon salt<br> 10 peppercorns<br> Boston Butt, Ham or Shoulder Pork Roast<br></p>

Low & Slow Chipotle-Maple Beef

<p>Ingredients:</p> 3 chiles plus 3 T. sauce from 1 can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (I substituted 2 dries chipotle peppers)<br> 1 cup pineapple juice<br> 1/2 cup maple syrup<br> 3 T. tomato paste<br> 2 tsp. salt<br> 1 tsp. pepper<br> 6 lb. boneless chuck roast, cut in 8 pieces (I have used bone in also)<p>

Customer Appreciation Day

<p><b>When:</b> April 25th (1PM)</p> <p><b>Where:</b> Full Circle Farm - 20997 174th Street Live Oak FL 32060</p> <p><b>Details:</b> Join us for Customer Appreciation Day at Full Circle Farm. Below is a high level schedule for the event. We will be inviting all farmers that we work with as well as all restaurants that serve our products. Also, we will be asking various supported vendors to setup booths to share information on their products/services. This is a great opportunity to really see first hand where your food comes from and enjoy time with friends.</p> <p>Check out our <a href="http://www.evite.com/event/0029GOPXXHSYAEN3MEPEYX7AYSVA4E">invite</a> for full details and to RSVP.</p> <p> </p>