Time to sign up with a CSA for seasonal local food

The first day of spring might be seven weeks away, but if you want to support local farmers and enjoy a weekly share of their produce during the warmer seasons, you should sign up now for a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program.

As the Washington Post's Leigh Lambert notes in "Where to Sign Up for a CSA," these programs can be pick-up or delivery and work like so: You pay an annual or seasonal membership fee and then each week you receive a box of produce -- a share of the harvest -- for a certain number of weeks. Usually you have to go pick up the share.

Farms and farmer's markets run these programs. I can highly recommend the CSA provided by Norman's Farm Market. We started it last fall and enjoyed all of the produce, especially the things that were knew to us, such as tiny eggplants of all different colors; orange and purple cauliflowers; and baby bok choy, which we had never cooked before.

If you've never done a CSA, try it out -- you'll be amazed at the bounty of our local farms! Click the Post article link above for a list of local CSAs. To find more farms and farmer's markets near you, try the Local Harvest site.

In winter, some farmer's markets keep going

I've been a bit slow to post this, so my apologies. A few weeks ago the WaPost had a story about winter farmer's markets ("Hot stuff, out in the cold") -- and they mentioned maybe 10 or 12 of them. I was surprised there are so many.

The farm market I did a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) half-share with last fall, Norman's Farm Market, is providing a winter CSA of meat, eggs and cheese, but I don't think they have a stand open in winter.

The Post has a great interactive map of year-round farmer's markets. Also, NBC4's Wendy Rieger did a Quick Bites video spot, in which the Post's food editor, Joe Yonan, explains what kinds of items you can find at farmer's markets in winter.

Have you gone to a market this winter? What did you think? Post a comment here!

More young folks working on local farms

For some, it's not enough to buy local food -- they want to help grow it.

The Post Magazine had a great article Sunday ("Growing Season") about the swell of young adults who are working on local farms, either for a season or year-round. Some plan to rent land and give farming a go on their own. Three 20-something friends who have been working at Wheatland Vegetable Farms in Loudoun County even have a blog about their experience at iheartnature.com.

Farming is hard work; your 20s are probably the best time to try it, because you're young and strong. I've thought about volunteering on a farm for a day or a week or two, but I'm not sure about a whole season or year. I would be interested to see how much work goes into farming organically versus non-organically. For now, I'm content to buy a half-share of a CSA and enjoy the fruits (and vegetables) of our local farmers' labors.

What do you think? Would you work on a farm or are you happy to just buy the local produce?

Founding Farmers restaurant rocks!

We ate at Founding Farmers last night down on Pennsylvania Ave. What a great restaurant -- awesome food (the Plank Salmon -- yes it's sustainable -- is out of this world), plus great desserts, the best of which may be the homemade doughnuts.

Founding Farmers is a Green Certified restaurant housed in a LEED Gold-rated facility. They use food from family-owned farms, fisheries and ranches. They focus on sustainable food, including some organic beer and wine.

It's not inexpensive and you'll want to make reservations or allow an hour or so wait before getting a table. But it's definitely worth it!

(Watch a video from USNews & World Report covering more of the environmentally friendly practices at Founding Farmers.)

Report from the MoCo Farm Tour

Peaches and blackberries are in season here in Montgomery County. I was vaguely aware my county had peaches, but who knew we grew blackberries, too?

I discovered some great new places last Sunday, when my wife, mother and I participated in the Montgomery County Farm Tour and Harvest Sale. We visited Poolesville's Homestead Farm, 230 acres that have been farmed by the Allnutt family since 1763. It's a picturesque place in the county's agricultural reserve. You could pick your own blackberries and peaches; we didn't -- it was too hot.

We bought some of the fruit and some sweet corn and green peppers. Then we visited Lewis Orchards farm market, and then ended at the Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard, which has some nice wines, I must say. Check it out if you're ever near Sugarloaf Mountain.

In Virginia, the local food can come to you

Want fresh local food but can't get to the farmer's market every week? Don't want to subscribe to a Community Supported Agriculture program?

Two small companies in Virginia will deliver just what you order. Their mission is to connect some Virginia farmers with consumers.

Local Flavor (farmbuyersclub.com) delivers food (meat, produce, honey, jams, locally roasted coffees) from Rappahannock and surrounding counties to Northern Virginia, Fredericksburg, Delaplane and Warrenton. The schedule varies by location, but it appears to amount to every other Thursday.

Another company, On the Gourmet, makes home deliveries within 20 miles of Vienna. There's a minimum $35 order for home delivery; the delivery is free within 5 miles of Vienna, with a $10 charge for 6-20 miles. Deliveries are every other Saturday. On the Gourmet also attends various farmer's markets in Northern Virginia.

The Washington Post wrote about these two businesses in the July 22 Food section.

Have you used one of these services? Tell us about it!

Take up the Buy Local Challenge

You can still participate in Maryland's Buy Local Challenge, which runs through July 26. The Challenge asks you to pledge to "eat at least one thing from a local farm every day during Buy Local Week," which is the last week in July.

Dan's modified challenge: Buy at least one product from a local farm -- at a farmer's market, grocery store, wherever -- during the next four days. We're planning to do the Montgomery County 2009 Farm Tour and Harvest Sale this weekend, July 25-26. It includes 12 farms and, conveniently, the Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard, which is where we'll end up after visiting one or two farms.

Why buy local this week or any other? "Supporting farms promotes fresher air, cleaner water, healthier families, stronger economies, safer food and a greener planet," according to the Buy Local Challenge site. The event is sponsored by the Southern Maryland Agricultural Development Commission.

Virginians, check out Buy Local Virginia for places where you can buy local food. There's also a site promoting Loudoun County farmer's markets: Loudoun Valley Homegrown Markets Association.

Remember, July's a great time to visit a farmer's market, because lots of great produce is being harvested now!

Food Independence Day: Eat local stuff July 4

I saw this a few days ago in the Washington Post, "A Locavore's Fourth: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Really Fresh Produce." The article describes how the group Kitchen Gardeners International has created Food Independence Day, taking place July 4, when participants should try to source the ingredients of holiday meals as locally and sustainably as possible.

Guess this means no hot dogs, unless you live next to the Esskay plant.

It's an interesting concept and could make for some even more interesting meals. As the blog Going Green DC mentioned a few weeks ago, beets were overflowing in at least one farmer's market. Two weekends ago, my wife and I bought kale and spring onions at the Rockville farmer's market (in the jury parking lot).

I know that strawberries are no longer available at some Eastern Shore stands. So would the July 4 menu incude beets, kale and spring onions? What else is hitting farmer's markets these days?

What will you be eating July 4? Let me know by posting a comment below.

Sustainable dining in Northern Virginia

Even though I live in Maryland, I want to cover NoVa and DC, too. So hear's a tidbit for the Virginia audience:

Northern Virginia Magazine recently published a story reviewing five "sustainable" restaurants -- sustainable because they employ seasonal cooking, local ingredients and respect for the environment.

The restaurants range in location from Alexandria to Upperville. One might seem surprising: Chipotle. Yes, this take-out burrito fave brags that 30 percent of its beans are organic, all of its chicken and pork are "naturally raised," and 50 percent of its beef is "naturally raised."

I think naturally-raised means not quite organic, but better than industrial-feedlot grown.

Green restaurants and zero-energy homes in Bethesda

The May/June issue of Bethesda Magazine contains three excellent articles for green-minded folks. One explores the difference between organic, local, sustainable and "green" food and restaurants -- and then provides short reviews of Bethesda restaurants and caterers that feature organic, sustainable and/or local food.

Another article looks at two zero-energy homes and the third story describes a bunch of local farmer's markets (this article is not online).

Interesting Fact: The cafeteria at the National Naval Medical Center is the first -- and only -- green certified eating establishment in the military.

Hard to Swallow: John Murphey, co-designer of the Bethesda Zero house, talking about how the home combines sustainability and affordability -- for a cool $1.7 million. Not affordable for most of us, at least not writers like me.