AgriMissouri

Friday Fixin's

Once again, I was thinking about grilling this afternoon so today's post is a marinade. It is from one of our new members, US Wellness Meats. Their goal is to provide superior quality, grass-fed beef as part of our overall goal of improving family nutrition, rural communities and the environment. We welcome them to AgriMissouri!

Simple Marinade
1/4 cup of soy sauce
1/2 cup of water
1 tbs. brown sugar
1/2 garlic clove
1/2 tsp. of ginger

Mix ingredients. Add meat and turn occasionally for best results. Marinade 6 hours in refrigerator. Broil or grill.

Penske Team Enjoys Missouri Products

I have to admit that my husband and I are racing fans, primarily NASCAR but we watch Indy cars too. So, when I read Shatto Milk Company's monthly newsletter this morning and saw the update below, I was excited and decided to share.

Team Penske Enjoys Shatto Milk and Butter

In April I had the opportunity to attend the annual Indy Car Race at the Kansas Speedway. Upon attending I was provided the opportunity to visit the Penske Team Tent. Much to my amazement I learned that Team Penske enjoy Shatto Milk Company products when they are in town.

I was honored to meet the Team’s culinary group who specifically talked about how they enjoy our farm fresh products and are sure to pick up our milk and butter when they are in town for consumption as well as cooking.

Shatto Milk Company is located in Osborn, Mo., north of Kansas City. They milk their own cows and sell their milk in glass bottles to grocery stores in the Kansas City area. Farm tours are also available so you can see the milk bottling process taking place.

Episode 16: The Great Outdoors

Hunting or fishing is a great way to enjoy the Missouri outdoors -- but only if you have a place to do it. This week, Julie Harker talks to Charles Pease about his business in southern Missouri, which offers hunters and anglers a place to get away from it all.

Download audio (MP3, 3 megabytes)

Interesting St. Louis Food Blog

I hope everyone had a great Mother's Day. I got to spend some time with my mom so it was really enjoyable.

Speaking of enjoyable, yesterday I ran across a really cool, local food blog. It's called St. Louis Eats and Drinks with Joe and Ann Pollack. They are very experienced food writers in the St. Louis area and their blog is filled with everything from a review of Stone Hill Winery's Norton Tasting, opinions of restaurants, food history, locations of St. Louis farmers' markets to recipes. It is very interesting. Their blog is a great food resource for the St. Louis area.

Friday Fixin's

Monday is our May Birthday celebration here in the office. That got me to thinking...what can I bring for a snack? So I went in search of a good recipe from an AgriMissouri member. I found Western's Bar-B-Qued Meatballs from Western's Smokehouse in Greentop, Mo.

Western's is a great family owned business in northeast Missouri. They offer custom processing as well as catering. If you're driving up Highway 63 to Iowa, you can't miss Western's. Stop in and say Hi.

Western's Bar-B-Qued Meatballs

3 lb. Western's Ground Beef
1 - 12 oz. can evaporated milk
2 eggs
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup cracker crumbs
1/2 tsp. garlic
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. chili powder

Sauce:
2 cups catsup
1.2 tsp. liquid smoke
1/4 cup onion
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Directions: To make meatballs, combine all ingredients (mixture will be soft) and shape into walnut-size balls. To make sauce, combine all ingredients and stir until sugar is dissolved. Place meatballs in 13" x 9" x 2" baking pan. Pour on the sauce. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Yields 80 meatballs.

The great thing about a recipe is that it's a road map, if I run out of time Sunday night, I may substitute one of our great Missouri BBQ sauces for the sauce. We'll see what happens. : )

Mothers Day Gifts from Missouri

How many of you are like me and have not gotten your mom her well-deserved Mother's Day gift yet? Well now my mom knows that her eldest is a last minute shopper but I am thinking about it.

One of the things I love about Mother's Day is the time of year it falls...spring! It provides so many different options for gift giving. Think about it, you can give flowers, hanging baskets, Missouri food products (although don't ask mom to cook for you on Sunday, very tacky) or take mom out to one of our many great wineries or local restaurants.

I love giving flowers. Below is a list of AgriMissouri members who operate nurseries or sell flowers and plants. Most can give you assistance on what to pick for mom.

All Seasons Lawn & Garden - Mexico
Crown Greenhouse - Farmington (part of Crown Valley Winery)
Fahr Greenhouses, Inc - Wildwood
Mackey Produce & Maxwell Greenhouse - Mexico
Nolte Hills Nursery - Morrison
Simpson Family Farm - Mtn. Grove
Thies Farm & Greenhouse - St. Louis
Van Till Farm - Rayville
Walk About Acres - Columbia
Farmers' Markets

If you prefer to give AgriMissouri products, search the Buyer's Guide, I'm certain you can find something that mom will love. For those interested in finding restaurants the serve local products, visit the Restaurant page on the AgriMissouri web site. Wineries are popping up all over the state and offer great picnic spots, find one near you on the Missouri Wines site.

Missouri Wine Blog

My friend and, now, fellow blogger, Danene Beedle, is the Missouri Wine Girl for the Missouri Wine and Grape Board. She attends events all over the state promoting Missouri's wonderful wines. Now she's started a blog to keep all of us updated on events and to help us learn more about Missouri wines.

In her first week of blogging, I've learned about the Branson locations of Stone Hill Winery and Mount Pleasant Winery, the Columbia Wine Festival and the Vignoles wine varietal. She's got a fun personality that shines through in the blog so click over and read about Missouri wines.

Flickr photo courtesy of prettywar-stl.

Simpson Fruit Farm & Mtn. Grove Farmers' Market Featured

My colleague and fellow blogger, Lane McConnell, blogged today about her visit to opening day at the Mtn. Grove Farmers' Market and trip to Simpson's Family Farm. I'm excited that it is almost strawberry season and encourage everyone to read Lane's post to learn more about both of these businesses.

Photo courtesy of Lane's visit.

Friday Fixin's

In honor of Cinco de Mayo and to bring more attention to bison meat, today's Friday Fixin's recipe is Bison Mexican Layered Casserole from SayersBrook Bison Ranch's Chef, Kitty Rolens. To learn more about bison, listen to the podcast posted earlier this week.

Bison Mexican Layered Casserole
by Kitty Rolens, SayersBrook Chef, Food Specialist for the Bison Ranch

Ingredients:

• 12 flat corn tortillas
• 1 pkg. taco seasoning mix
• 2 lb. Bison burger
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 1 onion, chopped 1/2 can milk
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 can water
• 1 sm. can chop green chilies
• 1 can mild enchilada sauce
• 2 (8-oz.) pkg. fiesta blend shredded cheese

Preparation:
Brown Bison burger with onion and garlic (salt & pepper to taste). Add taco seasoning and green chilies to Bison burger mixture and then add the enchilada sauce and water to it. Stir well and add about a cup of shredded cheese to the mixture and let it get hot. In a 9 x 12 inch pan (sprayed with non-stick spray) lay 4 of the corn tortillas and spread a layer of the meat mixture over, sprinkle a 1/2 cup of cheese over and then repeat with the tortillas, meat, etc. Mix cream of chicken soup and milk together. Pour over the top of last tortilla layer. Top with remaining cheese. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350°. Remove foil and bake an additional 20 minutes or until cheese is melted and browning. Serves 6-8.

Agritourism...Providing New Adventures

Today I received a forward containing an article from Sauce Magazine that features many of AgriMissouri's agritourism members. The article provides a great overview of the different kinds of agritourism experiences in Missouri but also lists a number of farms at the bottom that you might be interested in visiting.

Below are excerpts from the article, written by Ligaya Figueras, that reference AgriMissouri members, however I think you should read the whole article.

For a 100-percent-hands-on adventure, your best bet is to head to Sycamore Valley Farm Bed and Breakfast in Brunswick, in north central Missouri. Matt and Tina Reichert and their kids can put you to work raising row crops, tending the garden, or helping with the cow and calf grazing operation. You know you want a combine ride, and when planting’s done, drop your overalls, don an apron and git to the kitchen, where Tina Reichert puts up jam, salsa and other canned goods. After you’ve put in a hard day’s work, you’ll fall right to sleep and dream of her homemade bread, asparagus quiche and other breakfast delights you’ll be served come sunup.

Curious city dwellers can visit Baetje Farms in Bloomsdale to see how one of Missouri’s goat cheese producers makes its artisan farmstead cheeses, or feed calves and milk cows by hand with Leroy Shatto and the staff at Shatto Milk Co. Of course, the best part is tasting creamy-rich root-beer milk, banana milk and other flavored milk beverages bottled at the Osborn, Mo., facility.

...Rayville Baking Co., recently began offering monthly classes in the spring featuring traditional farmhouse cuisine. Chef Josh Anthony uses local ingredients and heirloom and organic food from Van Till Farms in Rayville to teach hands-on rustic cooking.