I'm incredibly thankful to live on a farm at this time. I've never liked crowded spaces and am quite worried for those who live in large cities, who don't have much access to clean safe housing, food and air, and for the many people who are paycheck to paycheck and will be negatively impacted by job loss. We have an abundance of chores to keep ourselves busy, and food stores on hand to ensure we won't go hungry. Much of my social network is ...Read More
Child Slave Labor: The Darkside of Valentine’s Day
In the United States, Valentine's Day is synonymous with giant heart-shaped boxes packed with irresistible chocolate. But what if Americans were more aware that the chocolate they savor this holiday was a product of child slave labor? Recently, 137 children between the ages of six and 17 working in the cocoa industry were rescued in a series of raids in the African town of Aboisso. Twelve traffickers were arrested as part of the incident. ...Read More
Why Fake Burgers Make No Sense
The silicon valley tech scene loves to deny basic rules of nature: You can't make something out of nothing. Life requires death. Energy comes from the sun and is recycled here on Earth. Humans need to eat real food. [Tweet "Fake burgers are NOT REAL FOOD!"] With investments of over $250 millions of dollars, the fake-meat burger company Impossible Foods just ran into some hot water with the FDA. It turns out their bleeding burger hasn't been ...Read More
Italian Braised Lamb Shoulder Chops
This is a true homestead comfort dish. Shoulder chops are an inexpensive cut of lamb, and they’re full of flavor. But they’re also bony and pretty fatty, and folks often have a hard time figuring out how to cook them. I used to sear them in a pan, but the fat would shrink around the meat, making the whole piece distorted and difficult to eat. Braising it, however, takes this cut to a whole new level. With the toppings I suggest here, this is like ...Read More
Easy Weeknight Instant Pot Stew
One of my absolute favorite kitchen gadgets is my Instant Pot. Do you have one yet? It has changed my life! You can get home from work, decide you want stew, and then actually eat it for dinner! You can also make a TON of food that you can use for lunches or dinner the next night. I'm not great at planning out menus and starting a crockpot early in the morning, so my Instant Pot has really saved my life. I make homemade stock in no time, veggie ...Read More
