Overwhelming, they said YES! They even said YES knowing that the prices of our pork would increase. 

We got the message and within a few days started our pigs on a 100% organic, non-GMO feed from Reedy Fork Farm. Reedy Fork Farm is the first organic feed mill in NC - located in Elon, NC. (We love supporting other local farms!)

This pig feed is excellent! You can actually tell what the ingredients are. Do you see corn, barley, soy, alfalfa, peas, oats and more? Our pigs love it.

We feel so much better feeding our pigs this feed - it's natural and healthy with no fillers and grown without pesticides or genetically modified crops. Which makes our pigs healthy. Makes sense, huh?

And the pork from these pigs? We're getting rave reviews!

Traci

She pushed and pushed for two hours.

When it was apparent she wasn’t going to be able to give birth on her own, we got her in the corral and pulled the calf out. Boy, was she thankful! Here’s the video of the birth. (Forgive the videography, as I was helping in the birth.)

He’s full of himself! Him kicking up his heels is a regular site in the pasture.

He’s giving Beulah a run for her money!

There really is nothing sweeter than calves frolicking in the pastures. We have smiles on our faces constantly.

Love from the farm,

Traci

 Here is Lula Mae as a baby. You've more recently seen her on our Christmas card. She is a sweetheart and everyone who meets her falls in love instantly.

After discovering her yesterday morning so badly injured, there was never a question in our minds as to whether we should try to save her. We called our vet, loaded her up, and rushed her to Youngsville. After surgery and a day in our vet's care, she is making good progress towards recovery, thank goodness!

We are holding a quilt auction fundraiser to help pay for her care. The full size quilt below was handmade by me, using only the best cotton fabrics and an eco-friendly bamboo batting.

If you would like to bid on the quilt, please email me. Minimum bid is $150. Highest bidder (winner) will be announced this Saturday, March 3.

EDITED: Many of you requested I add a donation site. So, if you'd like to donate money for Lula's care, we would love the help.

Thank you!

Calvin, Traci & Rachel
Lucky 3 Farm

We've all been there.  Staring at the pantry waiting for some kind of sign on what to make for dinner.  You just got home from work and everyone is hungry.  So you call for pizza or end up going out to eat and spending way more than you would if you could have just gotten started immediately on dinner as soon as you walk in the door.  It doesn't have to be this way.  With a little planning on the weekends over your cup of coffee, you can plan your week and save money.  We think we don't have enough money to eat healthy and that local, organic food is too expensive.  Those last minute trips through the drive-thru or restaurant meals with tips are not only costly on your food budget, but are taking a toll on your health.

The benefits of menu planning are many, but most importantly, you are able to buy better food for your family.  You will be less stressed.  Your family will love the meals you serve them.  You can also stretch your budget by incorporating leftovers and food that you have on hand.  There are many, many websites and blogs devoted to menu planning.  My favorite is Cozi. (www.cozi.com)  It has a recipe box feature that you can type in your favorite recipes and then you will always be able to find them instead of rifling through a dozen cookbooks or doing a google search and finding an acceptable alternative.  My favorite feature of Cozi is that you can create a shopping list from your recipes and then either print, email or send it as a text message to your phone.  I love this simply because I can send my husband or son to the store and I won't overspend on things we don't really need but I had to have.

I like to start my weekly plan perusing the fridge, freezer and pantry and writing down what items need to be used up.  I have a meat CSA that I get deliveries once a month of wonderful grass fed beef, pastured pork and poultry and amazing farm fresh eggs from Lucky 3 Farm in Louisburg. (www.lucky3farm.com) I also have a vegetable CSA where I pick up fresh organic vegetables from a farmer in Johnston County, Double T Farms. (www.double-t-farm.com) His crop is varied and includes things I've never made before so we have gotten to try lots of new recipes that include kale, kohlrabi, tatsoi and bok choi.  I need to either use the veggies or chop them up and freeze them, so I try to incorporate them along with my meats and then only have to shop for ingredient items.  We try to use our leftovers for lunches or repurpose them into new meals.  If I'm making tex mex chicken in the crock pot one night, I'll plan to use the leftovers in tacos or quesadillas and tortilla soup.  By stretching out your organic chicken in this way you can really reap the benefits longer.  Try to think of your meat as having a supporting role rather than the star.  Instead of a boring dinner of grilled chicken breast, vegetable and starch, you can use much less meat and more vegetables to make pastas, risottos, stir-frys, etc.

To make things even more simple I will have one crock pot meal, one pasta/rice meal, one seafood, one meat and one soup and sandwich night.  I typically like to use up leftovers in the soup or sandwich (i.e. meatloaf sandwiches).  Its a tradition that we grill out on Saturdays, rain or shine.  Make sure your plan is flexible enough to allow for change.  Just because you are supposed to have tacos one night doesn't mean you can't have fish that night instead.  That is the beauty of planning the week in advance.  You already have everything you need for the whole week.  Once you have your plan for the week, write it on your calendar.  Make sure you look at it in the morning so that you can defrost anything you might need for dinner that night and you'll know exactly what you are having the minute you walk in the door. 

To get you started I've included a crock pot recipe that is just perfect for beef short ribs from Lucky 3 Farm:

Short Ribs with Red Wine and Prunes

From The French Slow Cooker cookbook 

Ingredients

4 pounds bone-in beef short ribs
salt and pepper
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
6 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 teaspoon herbes de Provence
2 bay leaves
1 cup dry red wine
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup chopped pitted prunes
4 cups beef broth
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Preparation

Sprinkle the ribs with salt and pepper to taste. Roll the ribs in the flour and tap off the excess.
In a large heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Cook the ribs in batches, turning them occaisionaly, until browned on all sides, about 20 minutes total. Transfer the browned ribs to a large slow cooker.
Add the onions, carrots, and celery to the skillet and cook, stirring often, until golden, about 15 minutes. Stir in the garlic and herbs and cook for 1 minute more. Add the wine and cook, scraping the bottom of the pan, until the wine comes to a boil. Cook for 1 minute. Stir in the tomato paste, prunes, and broth. Pour the contents of the skillet over the ribs. Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, or until the ribs are tender and the meat is coming away from the bones. Skim off the fat from the surface of the liquid. Stir in the mustard and discard the bay leaves. Taste for seasoning. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and serve with mashed potatoes and broccoli.

If this still sounds overwhelming, I offer personal consultations for menu planning and shopping.  Feel free to contact me!

Laura Martin

smartcookienc@gmail.com

919-696-3067

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This delicious concoction comes to us from our Charter CSA Member, Michelle Swanner of Rocky Mount, NC. Doesn’t that look delicious? Here’s the recipe:

1 1/2 tsp. Olive oil
1 1/2 lb. Lucky 3 Farm  beef stew
3 1/2 cups mushrooms, (8oz.) Sliced
2 1/4 cups of sliced olives, undrained
2 cups carrots, sliced
1 1/2 cups onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups celery, sliced
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups water
1 cup dry red wine (duplin's Burgundy)
1/2 tsp. Dried thyme
1 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
1/4 tsp. Black pepper
29 oz. Stewed tomatoes
2 bay leaves
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/4 cup Italian parsley

Heat oil in large dutch oven on medium-high heat. Add beef and cook 5 minutes to brown sides. Remove and set aside. Add mushrooms to dutch oven, then add in the carrots, onions, celery and garlic. Cook 5 minutes.  Return beef back to dutch oven, stir in water, dry red wine, thyme, salt and pepper. Add stewed tomatoes and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, cover and then reduce heat. Simmer for 1 hour, stir in red wine vinegar and sprinkle with parsley.

Serve with or over a starch – like rice or potatoes.

Michelle is not only a talented cook, but she’s a wonderful mother, wife and Hair Dresser Supreme. She owns Polished Plum Studio in Rocky Mount, so look her up if you’re in need of an expert hair cut or color.

Thanks Michelle for sharing your recipe!

Molly enjoyed the warmer weather for sure! Hey look – our pastures are still green! Love that all our hard work at mob grazing is finally starting to pay off.

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Some of our laying hens show off for the camera. The black one in the back is the Silkie, who lays the pastel green eggs you’ll find in our egg cartons. Calvin calls her Fuzzy Feet because she has feathers on her feet. And boy, Fuzzy Feet is very particular about the nest she lays in. It has to be the 3rd one and only the 3rd one. If one of the other hens is in her nest when she’s ready to lay, she will wake up the entire neighborhood with her caterwauling. Funny chicken. Did you know that laying hens lay better in warm weather?

I don’t care how many times I do it, but collecting eggs is the one chore I just can’t wait to do every afternoon! It’s like Christmas or something. I go from nest to nest like a kid counting to see how many we got today. Is that weird?

Ole Red is very well loved. Isn’t she beautiful? Every time kids come visit, they rub Old Red and exclaim “She’s so soft!”

Hope you’re enjoying the sunshine as much as we are!

Traci

Calvin sweet talks Bessie a little before he springs the hat on her – telling her how pretty she is, how fat she is (yep, that’s a compliment to a cow), and what a good girl she is. You know, that’s just a good policy when you’re dealing with a 1300 lb cow. Can’t hurt, heh?

Now for those of you who don’t know cows - That’s NOT a good look in her eye. She wasn’t having any part of it.

That’s as far as the hat was going. Darn it.

Oh well! On to the other animals.

Ol Red was very cooperative, but the hat was just too big for her.

Well that just looks silly on Molly.

Here we go! Jack the sweetie comes through!

And Rachel and Hamlet are just adorable, aren’t they? Awww…our two cutie babies.

But y’all know I have a soft spot for Lula Mae, who makes a magnificent Santa.

Happy Holidays from all the nuts at Lucky 3 Farm!

Traci

If I do say so myself, they’re quite stunning. Here’s what they look like all nicely packaged. They would make an awesome gift, huh?

And here they are in use…

Ever tried wrapping a gift in burlap? Very trendy right now. You can write directly on the front or back of the tags with a fine Sharpie or permanent marker.

I love packaging food treats in mason jars to give as gifts. This wooden tag is stamped on the front with a snowflake and has to/from stamped on the back.

Here is one of the cherry tags paired with a jingle bell on a plain kraft gift bag. Less is more, don’t you think?

Want to purchase some of these wooden gift tags for yourself?

CSA customers can purchase directly as an ADD-ON on our new CSA store. Everyone else can email me at traci@lucky3farm.com with your order and I’ll send a paypal payment request to you.

Wooden Gift Tags – plain. Assortment of 10. $8

Wooden Gift Tags – stamped with snowflake on front, to/from on back. Assortment of $10. $11

Enjoy,

Traci

Remember that turkey nest we found this spring? Some of these are probably the babies from that nest.

We love nature and all her glories. Enjoy!

Traci

(still haven’t seen a covered bridge…)

Rachel got the happy job of giving the dogs marrow bones! Can you say “friend for life!?”

This one won’t win PHOTO OF THE YEAR by any means. I was driving and taking a photo, OK?! This, I believe, is Yates Mill on Lake Wheeler Rd.

My dashboard needs a good wipe…

We finished the day by going to Whispering Oak Vineyard near Lake Royale to pick some grapes. Delicious! And inexpensive. We got a gallon of grapes for $5!

We love our CSA customers and we love seeing you every month! No doubt about it. See you next month – I’ll be bringing my camera again.

Traci