csa

Looking out the window, it doesn’t feel like spring is coming anytime soon. But farmers across Michigan are looking ahead to warmer months, planning crops, and buying seeds. Sooner or later, spring will be here. Now’s the time to join a CSA so you can get just-picked, farm-fresh local fruit and veggies for the entire growing season. 

What’s a CSA?

Community supported agriculture is basically a subscription to a local farm’s harvest. You purchase a share and in return, you get a basket of fruit, veggies, and herbs at regular intervals during the harvest season. Usually, this is about once a week. Some CSAs provide extra shares such as flowers.

It’ll be my third season as a CSA member, and I absolutely love it. Here are some of my favorite things about being part of a CSA.

CSA Benefits

• Supporting Local: You’re supporting a local farmer and their family. Every week when I pick up my share, I get to talk to the person growing my vegetables. It’s so personal and I love that – you really feel like you’re part of a bigger network. Plus, supporting your local food ecosystem is good for the planet.
• Quality: The quality is AMAZING. Things last so much longer than from the grocery store. This is because they’re picked literally the day or just hours before you get them. On the other hand, groceries from the store can sit on a delivery truck or shelves for days or weeks. One time, I forgot about a bag of arugula that I picked up from my CSA. When I found it in my fridge two weeks later, it looked just like it did when I got it. 
• Trying New Things: You get to try all kinds of new things. I got to discover the joy of bok choy charred on the grill, something I had never made before I got it in my CSA basket. I made awesome kimchi for the first time with some Chinese cabbage that I never would have bought at the store. It’s really fun to experiment with new foods. 
• Seasonal Variety: It’s so cool to watch your baskets change with the seasons. From greens, herbs, and root veggies in the spring to heirloom tomatoes in the summer to delicata squash in the fall, every week your basket reflects the best of Michigan’s seasons. 

Local Options

The CSA I have chosen is called Sunset Harvest Farm, and I could not recommend them enough. You can buy a half share (which is the perfect size for me and my husband) or a full share if you’re feeding a bigger family. You can also add on a flower share. I’m really looking forward to having fresh flowers on my table every week. I asked Sunset Harvest’s farmer, John Denis, why he thinks CSAs are a benefit to the community. Here’s what he said: 

“There are so many benefits to joining a CSA! Produce picked that day or the day before has much better flavor and texture than anything in the stores. Small local farms can also introduce you to many varieties of fruits and vegetables you’ve never had before or weren’t aware were native to the state you live in. Most CSAs are small farms using small scale equipment. Between that and selling locally, there is much less pollution being created.”

John Denis, Sunset Harvest farm

If you live near Belleville, Westland, or Dearborn, I’d highly recommend Sunset Harvest (they do pick-ups in these three locations). If you’re in a different area of the state, here’s a great guide to other CSAs in Metro Detroit and here’s one that covers other areas of Michigan. Finally, here’s a great site where you can search by location. 

It’s so important to know where your food comes from. Joining a CSA allows you to support a member of your community, reduce your environmental impact, and really embrace your state’s local and seasonal produce.

Trendy food is nothing new. We all remember the kale craze. I know acai is a thing, even if I have no idea how to pronounce it. And a certain TikTok video has made it hard to find feta at the store lately. But recently I’ve been reading a lot about a trend that I hope is here to stay – ancient grains.

What are ancient grains?

The term “ancient grains” is a bit of a misnomer, since common wheat flour has been around just as long as these more specialized grains. But wheat has evolved quite a bit, whereas some of these other grains have largely stayed the same. I like the idea of baking with spelt that looks and tastes exactly the same as the kind our ancestors ate. 

There are some ancient grains that everyone has heard of, like barley and quinoa. But others – buckwheat, teff, and einkorn – to name a few, are less common (although a Michigan company makes an AWESOME granola out of teff). 

I’m interested in learning more about how to cook and bake with these grains, as well as where I can find them right here in Michigan.

Why ancient grains?

I’m definitely sold on the idea of ancient grains. Here are the main reasons why. 

1. They’re good for you. AP flour is a baking workhorse, but it’s not the most nutritionally dense food. On the other hand, many ancient grains are packed with good-for-you ingredients like fiber and magnesium. Plus, many are grown on smaller farms that use fewer pesticides and chemicals. 
2. They’re good for the environment. Speaking of local farms, the benefit of buying ancient grains is that you can often get them direct from a farmer near you, making a smaller environmental impact. As their name implies, they have been around for a LONG time. They are hearty and sustainable, and they nourish and replenish the soil in which they grow. 
3. They’re good for local farmers. Again, buying local and buying direct from farmers not only benefits you and the environment, it benefits the farmers who grow our food. Just like CSAs, finding a local grower supports your community’s food ecosystem and the people who make that ecosystem work. 
4. They add complexity to your cooking. Even subbing out a bit of AP flour with, say, buckwheat flour adds a depth and richness that really stands out. It’s fun to experiment with ingredients, and ancient grains provide endless opportunities for creative cooking. 

Overall, buying and using ancient grains is a win-win-win-win – good for you, good for the planet, good for local farmers, and good for the people who get to try your creative new recipes!

Michigan’s Offerings

We know the benefits of finding local producers of these grains. So where do we find them? I’ve rounded up a few sellers below. If you know of others, please share them in the comments! 

• By the Pound: An Ann Arbor speciality bulk store that sells ancient grains. 
• Maiden Mills: Based in Holland, they sell Michigan-grown flours and grains. 
• Westwind Milling: This Swartz Creek farm sells a variety of flours milled from ancient grains, and even offers a CSA. 
• Zingerman’s Bakehouse – This is a great source for all kinds of speciality ingredients, including a variety of ancient grain flours. 

We’ve gotten our hands on some buckwheat and rye flours and have been playing around in the kitchen. Very soon, we’ll be sharing some recipes. Stay tuned for Chelsea’s chocolate rye muffins, my date and walnut buckwheat muffins, and Sister Pie’s to-die-for buckwheat chocolate chip cookies. 

What are your favorite ancient grains? What are your favorite recipes that use them? Let us know in the comments!