The Leafy Lifestyle

As our little leafy dream becomes more and more a really big reality and the occasional chilling bite in the wind carries the promise of cold weather approaching, so does my need to preserve every last drop of summer... I mean, this has been one hell of a summer! This year preserving the last drops of summer has been to take the flavors of it, and capture them so that we can enjoy them when the unnecessarily, long, winter days become to be a little too much and hopefully, we can share them with you sometime soon!

What's better than having your very own temperature controlled, indoor farm in the middle of January? Feeding your people with home grown local produce from your very own temperature controlled, indoor farm in the middle of January!!!

I tend to put a lot of thought into the food I eat and the food that I prepare at home. It has been my experience anyway, that not just the quality of the meal you are proving, but the quality of product that you use to create said meal, that tends to make all the difference in ones energy levels, thought processes, and just overall feeling of well being. Food is our fuel, it keeps us moving forward and provides our bodies with all of the good things that make us stand a little taller and feel a little stronger or, at the very least, it has the power to. What makes food even better though, is the fact that it is delicious and you can do so many beautiful things with it!

Truth is, by no means am I perfect and by no means are we perfect when it comes to the food we eat on a daily basis. We have days that we just don't want to make dinner, or leave the couch for that matter after a long day where the immediate solution is to order delivery and eat whatever crappy food we decide to "indulge" in that night, I should also mention that I have absolutely no shame in the fact that I love french fries with an ice cold Coke from time to time!

Food is what some would consider, part of my love language. It doesn't matter if I'm cooking it, eating it, or growing it, it is one of my favorite ways to love someone in the most basic of ways. providing something delicious, healthy, and satisfying. Whether it's making a big, fancy meal for a celebration or small gathering of friends or a hot meal for someone you love just to say "I love you" to try and ease their troubles after one too many bad days, Food is something that brings people together. So what better way to share that love with the community by providing the best possible produce to make sure everyone has the opportunity to start their meal with fresh, local produce, all year long,

So with it being the harvest season, I have been spending a lot of extra time in the kitchen. I mean, come one! Can you even blame me? All of the goodies from the garden after a long hot summer... the TOMATOES!!! There is just something about garden tomatoes, am I right right? The perfect reminder of a summer lived especially well! So can you really blame me for wanting to capture all of that deliciousness so when the long cold winter comes I can pull a little sauce, or some fresh salsa out of the freezer and it can be a reminder of the perfect warm summer days, So yesterday I tried my hand at making a traditional red sauce. I glanced around the internet for hours looking for a recipe but I came up empty handed, I found recipes that had hints of something that sounded like something that could maybe become the perfect red sauce but nothing that really tickled my fancy. So i decided to take little bits from recipes I found here and there and combine them with the little bit that I can remember from watching a woman, who makes the best red sauce I have ever had the joy of experiencing, and I made up my own. I have to say, I might just have a new favorite red sauce, not because it is perfect, but because it is a perfect starter sauce I can make it heartier and a little deeper if I simmer it down with a red wine, or I can choose to enhance the freshness with veggies and seasoning if I want to that route.

The further we get into our Leafy Dreams start up, and as we're planting our fist seeds and planning the next chapters that we want to add to help our little dream to grow, the more it is becoming our lifestyle. As I am sure you have heard me say in the past, our goal is to feed people. We hope to always provide the very best produce to our community but our dream is so much bigger than this beautiful little leafy start up of ours. This is the door to our dream. We want a simple life, a little land, to grow our own food and to provide to those who need it most but above all, we just want to feed our people. We want to bring a year round "farm stand" to the des moines area, we want to be able to help our neighbors by sharing what we learn and the food we produce, Our goal is to, someday soon, to make this our entire lifestyle.

So for everyone following along with us, as we take our little leafy dream into our big fat leafy lifestyle, thank you! We are so excited to feed you!

Only about a month left before we are have our very first harvest of leafy greens and herbs!!!

Until then,

Stay Leafy Friends!