Weekend "Gatherings"

LFLF was out & about this weekend picking up some local food. Saturday was the first time we've gone into the Beaver County Fruit Company since they've renovated a stone building that formerly housed a restaurant. They have a very good selection of local & regional products. LFLF will be exploring this store and reporting on what local products we find. We picked up a great tasting seedless raspberry jam made by James Gourmet Creations from Saegertown, PA. On Sunday we passed Janoski's and took the opportunity to replenish our supply of potatoes. Janoski's still has plenty of apples from their orchards and we even picked up a tub of their own sauerkraut for dinner.

Spring-House was busy!

We stopped at the Spring-House in Eighty Four today for lunch after dropping our last lambs off at the auction. Lunch was good .... it really is home cooking.

We picked up some baked goods and of course, some of their own Spring-House Farm chocolate milk.

The snow was starting to fly here as we were leaving ....... 3-6 inches on the way.

West Virginia Small Farm Conference!

The 2010 West Virginia Small Farm Conference is just down the road for SW Pennsylvania farmers and market gardeners. How about a day or two away from the farm enjoying the company of fellow farmers' market vendors, getting new ideas, and comparing notes? The West Virginia Extension Service folks do a great job with getting speakers from all around for this conference ........... LFLF hasn't been to this conference since it expanded to cover the livestock end of the business. I've heard good things about the Winter Blues Farmers' Market & it looks like they grossed over $7500 last year. This event is worth at least a day trip! Note that there is a "scholarship" application if you need help to attend.

We'd be remiss ......

LFLF would be remiss if we didn't mention the upcoming
PASA Farming For the Future Conference on February 4-6 in State College, PA. If you're a farmer/grower, farmer wannabe, local foodie, etc., put this conference on your to do list! Check out the sessions in the on-line brochure. The great feature of this conference is that you don't have to pre-register for sessions, just look over the list and go to what interests you! If you miss a session, PASA has all of the sessions recorded and they can be purchased just after the session or later after the conference.

Roadtrip finds local goodies!

We made a trip out to Lehman's Hardware in Kidron, Ohio and picked up a couple of local items. First was a crock from Holmes County Pottery ..... handmade pottery fired in "Ohio's largest wood burning kiln".

We also picked up local meat stix from Streb's in nearby Dalton, Ohio. They also carry larger items like Streb's ham but we didn't have a cooler to carry that home!

Honey From Locals

We picked up some honey at our local grocery store from McCormack Apiaries this week. Honey is a great sweetener for herbal & spiced hot tea at this time of year. We usually see McCormacks at the Beaver & Ambridge Farmers' Markets "in season" and they have a great display.

We've also noticed various "local" honeys at feed stores & at hardware stores around the region.

Next to our honey bear is a winter squash ..... it also tastes good baked with honey or brown sugar, but that's for tomorrow!

Windowsill Garden

Rosemary makes a great windowsill garden plant ... this plant was purchased at the Ambridge Farmers' Market 2 years ago. After 2 summers outside and graduating to a larger pot, it's finally coming into it's own as a Christmas tree! It loves the southern window exposure and even came into bloom last week. Most of the clippings are used in the kitchen, so no more dried leaves for LFLF!