Food Freedom Under Attack in Minnesota

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As I type this, food freedom supporters are gathering in Minnesota at the trial of farmer Alvin Schlangen, co-owner and manager of Freedom Farms Co-op. Watch the short video to hear his story. “Alvin Schlangen, a peaceful Minnesota farmer and founder of Freedom Farms Co-op, connects people with the foods of their choice from local producers. Over the past two years, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture has illegally raided Alvin’s van, warehouse, and farm. The state has now brought 21 charges against Alvin related to food distribution; all are misdemeanor counts. Four of the misdemeanors are in trial [this week]. If convicted, Alvin faces up to a year in jail and hefty fines… just for helping to connect consumers to the producers and foods of their choice.” –Raw Milk Food Freedom Riders

Simple, No-Pound Sauerkraut + I’m on Beyond The Peel TV

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Today, I’m a guest on Beyond The Peel TV, hosted by Joshua and France of the Beyond The Peel blog. Joshua and I talk about my family, my classes, how easy it is to get started with traditional foods, and lots more. Joshua is a great host. No wonder he’s doing an internet TV show — he’s a natural! In this post, I also share the recipe for simple, no-pound sauerkraut which I mentioned in the show.

Fermenting TweetChat + Book Signing Pictures

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You’re invited to a TweetChat about fermentation this coming Thursday (4/19). If you’re wondering what a tweetchat is, read inside this post. Also in this post, pictures from my book signing last Saturday. Thanks to everyone who came. I had a great time. :)

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Fermenting Foods — Available!

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Fermenting Foods

My book, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Fermenting Foods, is out today. You can buy it on amazon. Or if you’d like a signed copy, you can get one through my friend Marci at Amazing Graze Farm Store. We’ll have signed copies in-stock next week, Lord willing. In this post, I share how the book came to be, what’s in the book, my big, big thanks to the people who helped along the way, information on a local book signing, and a newspaper article featuring me and the book. Whew!

On Friendship, Humility, and a Cheese Board

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This may look like an appetizing cheese board now, but let me tell you about the embarrassing conditions under which it began. :)

New to Me: Nutrimill

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Kelli, a reader, posted on my Facebook wall that she wanted to sell her barely-used Nutrimill and Bosch mixer. I snapped up that Nutrimill right quick. (The Bosch with blender is still for sale.) It arrived yesterday and I put it to work grinding hard red berries from Palouse Brand. The bread turned out fantastic. In this post, I share pictures of the whole process and remind you to sign up for our free grain mills webinar on Friday.

Thumbs Up! The Urban Farm Handbook

urban-farm-handbook-cover

Urban farmer Annette Cottrell (from SustainableEats.com) and I have been internet friends for a long time. We have a common kinship in growing, raising, sourcing, and preparing our own foods. So I am really, really thrilled to tell you about her amazing new book. She, with Joshua McNicholls (a Seattle-based journalist with a long-term interest in sustainability and food security), wrote “The Urban Farm Handbook.” And what a handbook it is!

Some Things Don’t Change: Vintage Food Ads

marg

I bumped into a vintage ad for margarine this morning, which led me on a hunt to find more. I was struck by how the processed food industry’s main marketing message seems to be that their foods are natural, have wonderful flavor, and are healthy. *cough cough* Some things don’t change, do they? I picked five of my “favorites” to share with you.

End Times Food — “The Last Pilgrims”

The Last Pilgrims by Michael Bunker

A group of plain people, the Vallenses, live and survive in what was once Central Texas. “The Last Pilgrims” is a good, fun, clean, thought-provoking end-times adventure story. You begin to care for and understand the people. But what I love most is that this story makes survival living and eating seem real to me. If you’re going to buy the book, please wait until February 24, 2012 to participate in the book bomb!