Harvest

written by

posted on

June 25, 2024

The weather here in the Valley has been pretty warm as of late; but with warmer weather comes harvesting.

What is your favorite vegetable to harvest?

Lately, I have been getting a fair amount of broccoli and zucchini. While I don't mind harvesting broccoli, lettuce and zucchini are more fun.

Something about those bright green, luscious leaves (and maybe the fact that I love salads) makes harvesting lettuce a very pleasant task.

And zucchini? Well, it's just pure potential. With one simple twist, loaves of zucchini bread, cheesy zucchini casseroles, or crispy zucchini rounds are all a possibility. And time fails for all the other wonderful things you can do with this versatile vegetable (zucchini brownies, anyone?). Personally, I don't mind it in scrambled eggs either!

Something that has impressed me this first growing season at Polyface is just how quickly our vegetables have matured. It seems like overnight my zucchini plants took off and developed fruit. The same goes for broccoli, carrots, cucumbers, and cilantro.

While in the beginning stages of their life plants and seeds usually need more attention, I have found that just before a harvest they are quite self-sufficient.

I think this relates well to life.

Have you been caught by surprise with the fruit of your choices? Are the actions you have taken over the course of months and even years finally bearing a harvest?

Personally, I wish only the good things would bear fruit in my life. But often I am surprised by the not-so-pleasant things that I reap (only to recall that my priorities and actions did not align with my desired path).

On the other hand, how delightful it is when you see the good return of things you have sown and cultivated in the past. Sometimes those things take us by surprise!! The neighbor you have consistently said "hi" to every morning (with no response on their part) is now engaging in a conversation. That debt you have been chipping away at by saying "no" to non-essential items and luxuries is finally about to be paid off. The land you have been faithfully stewarding is now ready to support more animals. Maybe it is a win in the home, garden, gym, workplace, or church but you are seeing your efforts being rewarded with good fruit.

I hope that, as we head into the heat of summer, your personal, relational, and vocational harvests will delightfully surprise you!

- Melissa

Why Choose Fermented Foods?

My grandparents on my father’s side used to make sauerkraut in wooden barrels in the basement. My mother’s side made cheese and salami. I could smell these concoctions throughout the entire house. Fermenting is part of your national heritage, no matter your family’s country of origin. Alongside nourishing grass-fed/grass-finished pastured meats like Polyface raises, every person should include real fermented foods into their diet. This method of food preservation goes back farther than most realize, reconnecting us with ancient traditions, long before the refrigerator-freezer was invented. Every culture consumed something fermented every day. Here are the reasons why I like fermented foods. Fermentation preserves food without using high pressure, high heat, or chemicals, so it both conserves and increases them. The nutritional value of fermented foods lies mostly in the pro-biotic bacteria that are present, and byproducts of their digestion. The bacteria’s digestive “waste” is a collection of vitamins, enzymes, and co-factors needed for every system of the body. These include: Vitamins B1, B6, B12, C, and K2 Superoxide dismutase (SOD, an antioxidant) GTF chromium (assists sugar metabolism) Glutathione (a potent detoxifier) Phospholipids (cell membrane building blocks) Digestive enzymes Beta 1,2 glucans (present in shiitake mushrooms; modulates immune system) Fermentation neutralizes or eliminates these: Phytic acid (present in seeds, nuts, beans, legumes) Enzyme inhibitors (also present in seeds, nuts, beans, legumes) Nitrites Prussic acid (hydrogen cyanide) Oxalic acid (binds minerals) Nitrosamines (known carcinogen) Glucosides Probiotics and enzymes in whey neutralize phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors, allowing your digestion to access the nutrients in the food. Enzymes are proteins. Proteins are delicate molecules with very complex structure and shape. The structure of the enzyme gives it its function. Without structure and form, the enzyme will not do its job of catalyzing biochemical reactions. Without enzymes, biochemical reactions would cease. Enzymes are denatured (unraveled or broken down) by high pressure, high heat, acidic conditions, toxic chemicals, and electrical disturbances. Once denatured, they lose their form and shape, therefore they lose their function. Unlike canning and commercial processing, fermenting occurs at atmospheric pressure and room temperature, encouraging beneficial bacteria to thrive. Temperatures above 117 degrees Fahrenheit denature enzymes and kill probiotic bacteria. If you wonder what 117 degrees feels like, it’s the temperature at which you cannot touch an object with your bare hands and hold it for a few seconds. If it’s hot, but you can still touch and hold it in your hand and not pull away, it’s under 117 degrees. This innate protection mechanism (i.e., reflex) prevents your own protein (i.e., skin on your finger) from being denatured. It’s also a good indicator of when your food is hot enough to kill probiotics and denature enzymes. For best results, fermented foods must be eaten raw, never hot or cooked. Fermented foods are safe and protective against pathogens. USDA scientist Roger McFeeters, who oversees a fermentation laboratory, says, “The lactobacilli can number a billion per gram of tissue at the height of fermentation. The bad bacteria can't compete." According to McFeeters, lacto-fermentation has caused no known food-borne illness. "As far as we know, it's been going on for thousands of years. It's perfectly safe.” The sauerkraut that my grandparents made had a layer of raw pork chops embedded in the salted cabbage. When the sauerkraut was done, you could safely eat the pork chops raw! They were pre-digested by the bacteria, and “cooked" by the organic acids in the kraut. Probiotics prevented pathogens from establishing. None of us ever got food poisoning. My grandmother lived to be 100. Fermented foods have anti-carcinogenic properties. They normalize blood pressure and heart rate, help to break down fat in the liver, and maintain healthy systemic pH. And they are quite tasty. In the supermarket, look for fermented foods in the refrigerated section, not on the shelf with canned foods. Shelf-stable canned foods were subjected to high temperatures. The probiotics and enzymes have been denatured. Look for “live cultures” or “live probiotics” on the label. Eat something lacto-fermented every day, like your ancestors did. Just a tablespoon or two of sauerkraut or an ounce or two of cheese is enough to have the desired effect. Choose a salad dressing made with raw apple cider vinegar, or a tablespoon of a fermented condiment such as ketchup, mustard, or mayonnaise. Try a fermented beverage, like kombucha, beet kvass, or ginger ale. (Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon has some great recipes for all of these.) The original condiments were digestive aids. They’re easy to make. Try it. May you be deeply nourished! Susan

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Harvest

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