Chef Gaynol

For the Love of Goats

2013-03-06T17:22:03-08:00

How can you not love this face?

Or this one?

Here's the deal, Coyote Farm Creamery on Bainbridge Island has launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for their small goat dairy. They were ready to open last fall but encountered some major problems, including a fire that destroyed their equipment.

So can you help? Can you kick in a couple of bucks to get this business up and running? Read more details below and remember with Kickstarter it's all or nothing. They have until March 14, 2013 to raise $32,000. And as of today they are almost there! So don't be shy, jump on over to Kickstarter and make a donation.

I thank you and the goats thank you!

For the love of goats and small farms help us bring our Grade A raw goat milk to market.

Launched: Feb 12, 2013
Funding ends: Mar 14, 2013

For the Love of Goats

There are a lot of great reasons to open a small goat dairy: Goats, as dairy producers, have a substantially lower environmental impact than cows. In a small farm you can produce quantities of healthy milk and milk products without growth hormones or routine antibiotics. Small farms and dairies play an important role in developing and strengthening sustainable local economies. And then there's the love of soft, warm, affectionate animals.

We're Andrew and Wesley Barclay, two brothers who've been caring for goats for most of our lives. When we were looking for the perfect land and community to share our vision of a small Grade A raw milk goat dairy, we were lucky to meet Mira, Bayla, and their parents; Julie and David at Coyote Farm. We needed a home base for our herd, and Coyote Farm was hoping for goats. There are a growing number of farms here, but not enough goat dairies to serve the growing demand for fresh goat milk. We started Coyote Farm Creamery on Bainbridge Island for a lot of reasons, but mostly because we love goats. Their intelligence, individual personalities, robust health, and zest for life makes it a joy to be their stewards.

We were on target to open our dairy this past fall. Unfortunately we have encountered some major obstacles already. Last fall we had a fire in our equipment shed and lost all of our milking supplies, a brand new milking machine and so much more. Even though Coyote Farm has been around for many years and has many different out buildings that are functional and useable after the fire it was brought to our attention that some of these buildings need to be updated to meet certain requirements from the city.This creates more costs that we weren't planning on. It is because of these obstacles that we have come to Kickstarter. As you know, with Kickstarter it is all or nothing. If we do not meet our goal, we get nothing and will need to pack up our goats and move back to Utah. We will not be able to continue our dream of bringing a Grade A raw goat dairy to Kitsap County.

Beef Stew

2013-01-05T12:05:01-08:00

It's that time of year again! I'm freezing my ass off and my body craves hearty filling meals to help me combat the cold. And what's better than beef stew on a cold evening? I'll tell you what's better, beef stew made with locally raised beef. We're very lucky here on Bainbridge to have Heydey Farm raising eggs, meat, dairy and produce. I've picked up both a beef and a pork variety pack and been really happy with the quality of the products.

For this recipe, I used a lot of leftover vegetables that were taking up space in the refrigerator, so use what you have on hand and feel free to make substitutions. The inspiration for this recipe is here.

Beef Stew Download Beef Stew One Page Printable Recipe

1 1/2 pounds beef stew meat cut into 2 inch pieces (preferably from Heydey Farms)

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1 28oz can diced tomatoes

1 red onion, diced

4 celery stalks, diced

2 carrots, sliced into thin coins

2 russet potatoes, diced into 2 inch chunks

8 oz bag frozen peas, thawed

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. In a large heavy pot season the beef with salt and pepper and toss with flour. Stir in the tomatoes, onions and 5 cups of water. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and transfer to the oven. Cook one hour and then stir in the celery, carrots and potatoes. Cook about an hour more until the beef and vegetables are tender. Remove from the oven and stir in the peas. Check the seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed.

And there you have it! Add some rolls and possibly a green salad and you've got a meal fit for a cold winter's night.

Happy Holidays

2012-12-25T12:48:35-08:00

Happy Holidays from my home to yours! I wish you wonderful meals and a year filled with joy.

ClearlyFresh Bags

2011-11-08T15:05:06-08:00

The romaine lettuce in the photo above is 15 days old. Before we went on vacation, I threw a whole head of romaine into a ClearlyFresh bag and left it to fend for itself. When I returned, I washed and chopped the lettuce so it would be ready to go for sandwiches and salads. I'm amazed that this romaine is over two weeks old and it still tastes as good as the day I bought it.

I've been testing ClearlyFresh bags for a couple of months now and they absolutely extend the life of fruits and vegetables. The good folks over at ClearlyFresh sent me a sample pack and I've been impressed with how much longer produce lasts when it's stored in these bags.

As produce ripens it releases carbon dioxide gas. The key to successful produce storage involves letting out the carbon dioxide but not letting in too much oxygen. You want your produce to breathe, but it doesn't need to have enough oxygen to run a marathon (that would only accelerate the journey to slimy and unusable.) The ClearlyFresh bags use a BreatheWay membrane that regulates this gas exchange and allows just enough oxygen in so your produce can stay fresh.

These bags come ten to a package and run about $4. You can order them here. I think these bags will come in really handy during the holiday season. You can pick up your fresh produce the week before and stay out of the grocery store the week of Thanksgiving/Christmas/Hanukkah/Solstice. Cheers!

Royal Rose Radicchio

2011-08-18T16:39:31-07:00

The nice folks at Royal Rose Radicchio sent me a ton of radicchio to try out. Radicchio is actually one of my favorite lettuces in salads and this gave me the chance to try it in some summer recipes. The radicchio pictured above is Radicchio di Chioggia. It's the most widely available variety and is especially prized for it's vibrant maroon color and sharp, intense flavor.

The first thing I did was try radicchio on the grill. This is super simple to do. I simply chopped up the heads, added salt and pepper and tossed the radicchio in a little olive oil. A word to the wise, radicchio doesn't really need a lot of salt so use a light hand. Then it was into the grill basket and on to the fire.

This took about four minutes and we had this beautiful grilled side dish to accompany our steaks.

Next up I tried the Radicchio di Treviso. This comes from the Italian region of Veneto. It reminds me of romaine lettuce or a huge Belgian endive. Treviso has a milder taste but still imparts the bitter flavor radicchio is known for.

It was one of those nights when I was running around the house like a crazy person. I wasn't expecting my designated eater home in time for dinner so my big plan was a bagel on the couch while I watched Dr. Who. That all came to a screeching halt when he walked in. What to fix, what to fix?? I went rummaging through the pantry and came up with some dried spaghetti and found some bacon in the freezer. Okay, we were in business, I had some parmesan cheese hanging out in the frig but what could I use for a vegetable?? Ah ha! Radicchio to the rescue! I shredded up my two remaining heads and started the pasta boiling. I sauted the bacon and added the cut up radicchio to the pan.

Less than 15 minutes latter we had this gourgeous pasta. I'm sorry about the picture, next time I decide to shoot pasta in an orange bowl, someone shoot me. Uggh....icky color combination. Regardless of how the picture is, the pasta was delicious. the radicchio added just the right amount of bitter to cut through the richness of the bacon and the cheese.

So the next time you're in the store pick up a head or two of Royal Rose Radicchio and be sure to check their website for recipes and tips. Enjoy!