WTF is a CSA?

What if you had a garden that grew seasonal vegetables that picked themselves? What if you had chickens that laid and packed their eggs for you? What if your animals butchered themselves for you? They'd be suicidal, I guess, but very conveniently so.

All the stuff I just described is a CSA, short for Community Supported Agriculture. The name says it all, with focus on local and seasonal foods, responsible growing practices, and an involved community looking to improve their health and well-being.

Isn't it a lot like having someone do your shopping? Slow your roll, fancypants! CSAs are not for the pampered and spoiled. The person doing your shopping is Mother Nature, and you get what you get, no bitching allowed.

Depending on the provider, CSAs come in many forms; dairy, meat, produce and combinations. Payment schedules vary, depending on the provider, but it is usually something you can subscribe to, like a wine-of-the-month club but healthier.

This is what a CSA looks like this week (this is actually 2 CSAs). This CSA is from Roots Memphis. 

In each of the bags is the following:

Spring mix for salads

1 head of lettuce

Sprouts

Oregano

1 bunch Russian kale

1 bunch collard greens

Before you are all like "what do I look like, a rabbit," keep in mind that everything is what's in season, so you probably won't get all that lettuce in the hot months. Here I would like to point out that nature intended nutrition to be cyclical and periodized, just like a good training program. If you eat the same things all the time, nutrient deficiencies can happen, and food sensitivities can develop in some cases. Trust me on this, you don't want either.

People sometimes assume that a CSA costs an arm and a leg. Not so, you will actually SAVE money by doing some of your grocery shopping this way, as long as you are not wasteful with what you get. Be sure to pickle or can extra veggies and cure or freeze meats that don't get used.

You can find out more about CSAs by visiting the farmers market (or doing an Internet search, duh). Below are a few links for Memphis CSAs.

http://www.westwindfarms.com/c-56-csas.aspx

http://www.rootsmemphis.org/product/summer-csa/

http://bringitfoodhub.com

http://www.truevinefarms.com/

http://www.whittonfarms.com

http://deltasolfarm.com

http://www.farmatfalconridge.com/market-at-falcon-ridge/csa/

http://farmtruckorganics.com

http://sweetgrassmemphis.com/csa/

Holy Balls Chili

This is a text from my wife.

Here's the recipe:

1 lb. ground beef

1 lb. ground turkey

4 pieces of bacon, chopped

45 oz. black beans, can or hydrated

30 oz. chopped tomatoes with diced chiles (like the kind from a can)

4 small zucchini, chopped

24 oz okra

1/2 onion, chopped

1-1/2 bell peppers, chopped

1 T chili powder

1 T Chesapeake bay spices

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

Brown all the meat, adding spices at the end of browning. Next, set your slow cooker for 8 hours. You know what to do after that.