To us, a Community Supported Agriculture program is a two-way street. Our subscribers support the farm directly, and to show our appreciation for our most loyal members, we’ve started a new Soul Food Farm Golden Chicken gratitude program. For every $500 members spend on the farm, or every 10 pickups they make — we know your time is money, too — we’ll slip a bottle of Terra Sole olive oil from the farm into your next order gratis and starting in the spring, when egg laying resumes at full strength, a dozen eggs.

We’ve already got five members of that elite little club to thank, starting this Wednesday. Cara E, Jennifer D., Mark H, Karen R., and Ingun S. — your support is much appreciated, and vital to the farm’s survival!

Patterson and Kinch to Team Up for Epic Bocuse d’Or Dinner

In December, the Bocuse d’Or USA Foundation announced the 12 semi-finalists for the next team to rep America at the so-called Culinary Olympics. To help raise funds to support the cause, Daniel Patterson—who was invited by Daniel Boulud and Thomas Keller to be on the Bocuse council—will be teaming up with fellow Michelin two-star chef David Kinch for a special one-night dinner engagement extravaganza at Coi. Epic? Yes. The pricetag is steep ($195) but then again, it could be the meal of a lifetime (or maybe an early Valentine’s Day treat). The dinner takes place on Monday, February 8, and reservations—which should go quickly—can be made via Coi at 415-393-9000.

The menu, which will have the two chefs alternating courses:

The chefs have some surprises in store, including several amuse bouches, an intermezzo course, and mignardises. Following are the main courses:Assorted Shellfish with Radish and Apple, Seawater (Kinch)

Beet and Goat Cheese Tart (broken, inverted) (Patterson)
rye, dill

Steelhead Trout with Onion and Marrow “Tears,” Chervil Cream (Kinch)

Winter, Pastoral (Patterson)
young carrots roasted on a bed of hay, radish powder, shaved pecorino

Crispy Chicken and Egg Confit, a Roasted Chicken “Dashi,” Black Truffles (Kinch)

Steamed Chicken Breast (Patterson)
wild mushroom porridge, brown butter, wood sorrel

It’s Almost It (Corbett)
chocolate, oatmeal, orange

To emphasize the Foundation’s commitment to sustainability and great American products, a different American heritage breed will be chosen each year. This year’s dinner series celebrates American heritage breed poultry. Patterson and Kinch’s menu will feature poultry from Soul Food Farm.

We’re honored to be chosen for this dinner.

From the review:

Named after the chef’s grandmother, it is a family effort. Perello’s father helped her with the walls and the wood finishing. Her mother sewed the big-buttoned cushions that soften your seat, and worked on the aprons worn by the staff. They are made of a rough-hewn fabric that I mistook for burlap – it’s actually brushed silk.

Perello’s “modern California” cuisine is the same: sounds like burlap, tastes like silk. Chew on applewood-smoked bacon beignets to start, or chickpea fritters with Meyer lemon aioli. Then, for your appetiser, pick the unusual, eggy semolina gnocchi with duck confit. I used to think I hated gnocchi; now I realise that I just hated any gnocchi not made by Melissa Perello

For your main course you should order the beef. Alternatively, you could do what my companions did on both visits and order the Soul Food Farm chicken with savoury bread pudding. They practically licked their plates clean. Now we all understand how Perello earned a Michelin star for Fifth Floor, her previous restaurant.

I’ve eaten at Frances. It really is that good! We hope you’ll all go check it out too!

• Monday Jan 25: Chez Panisse is having a special Soul Food-themed dinner downstairs featuring the chicken and cured olives that Eric did just for this, plus an egg dish and maybe some of the wild bay leaves and lemons from Pleasants Valley Road. Make a reservation
• Saturday, Feb. 20: Alexis is doing a meet-the-farmer day at the Prather Meat Co. shop in the Ferry Building, to talk about the farm and whatever else people want to chat with a farmer about. Stop by and say hi! We’ll update this with the times as soon as we know them.
• Tuesday, Feb. 23: Special event at 18 Reasons on keeping chickens in an urban sitting. Special guests: a couple of live Soul Food Farm chickens. Ticketing not yet posted, but check http://www.18reasons.org/

Alexis had a terrific long interview air in December with KCBS Food Editor Narsai David. He talked to her about the fire, the dismal economics (but joyous rewards!) of raising pastured poultry, and much more. You can listen to it via the Pastured Polutry and Eggs link here or download the MP3.

For two weeks each December, bloggers from all over the world offer a delectable array of food-related items for this multi-blog charity raffle. Last year, organizers raised $62,806 to help the UN World Food Programme feed the hungry. This year, the raffle supports a new initiative at the WFP, called Purchase for Progress (P4P), which enables smallholder and low-income farmers to supply food to WFP’s global operation.

This year’s campaign runs December 14 to 25, and every $10 you donate earns you one virtual raffle ticket for the item of your choice. (To learn more, head over to Chez Pim to see the entire list of goodies and check out her Menu for Hope page.)

The Married …with dinner duo came up with the idea to offer the following item:

Bid Item UW02: Locavore Starter Kit
Many readers tell us that they’d love to eat more local foods, but they don’t know where to start. So we’re making it simple with a Locavore Starter Kit: A trial membership to the Soul Food Farm chicken-and-egg CSA (or another CSA of your choice* if you live outside the Bay Area) and a farmer’s market tour with breakfast and local treats.

1. Soul Food Farm and Married …with Dinner are offering a $100 CSA credit toward the winner’s choice of whole chickens, eggs, olive oil, and other farm-fresh goodies. Pick up your winnings all at once, or spread it over multiple pickups: It’s up to you how to spend your CSA credit (subject to the usual order terms).
2. Plus, Soul Food Farm farmer Alexis Koefoed offers a personal tour of Soul Food Farm for the winner and up to 3 guests at a mutually agreeable time in 2010.
3. Bloggers Anita & Cameron will also include a personalized tour of the San Francisco Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, complete with breakfast or lunch for two, to help our winner find all the great foods they need to make the leap to la vida locavore.
4. And if that’s not enough, they’ll also bring along a bag full of local treats and homemade goodies for you to take home after your walk-around. The bag will include some of our own preserves, and an assortment of treats from local folks — including a bag of brown rice and a jar of almond butter from Massa Organics.

Visit Married …with dinner’s Menu for Hope page to see more details and learn how to bid on this package and dozens of other fabulous options.

And Anita & Cameron, thanks for being so awesome.

Alexis and Eric in front of their house. (David La Spina photo for the New York Times Magazine)

Chirstine Muhlke’s profile of Soul Food Farm for the New York Times Magazine just came out this past Sunday, on Thanksgiving weekend. Titled “Field Report: Learning about Community Supported Agriculture the Hard Way,” it focuses on the dismal economics of a small farm like Soul Food, and how something like a comparatively minor fire can almost kill a farm.

From the consumer’s point of view, Soul Food Farm looks as if it’s raking it in: eggs cost up to $8 a dozen, and meat retails at about $6.50 a pound. Outsiders aren’t afraid to voice their opinion. After the fire, an online detractor wrote that the farm should have more than enough cash to rebuild.

If people think that farmers are driving home from the market in BMWs, Koefoed said, “they should go visit the farmer and see how hard they’re actually working.” Even before she laid off two of her three employees after Eric lost his civil-engineering job, the mother of three was rising at dawn and working late to tend to her 8,000 birds, which roost in houses dotted around the scrubby land. Until she bought an egg-washer last year, she cleaned 1,800 a day.

Soul Food Farm operates on razor-thin margins. To bring in extra money, Koefoed is concocting a lavender-products business with a neighbor; plans for a cooking school are in the works; and she began a pilot project in which others raise her meat birds on their land. In October, she started a C.S.A., or community-supported agriculture program, selling her produce to people who might not be able to afford it in restaurants. Cutting out the middleman means she’ll get all of the much-needed proceeds. “This romantic vision of the poor farmer needs to be thrown out!” she said emphatically. “It’s not romantic to be poor. It’s a struggle.”

Naturally, Koefoed would like to struggle less. She’d also like to see the day when people realize that cheap food is a lie, and values have shifted enough so that those who pay $8 for a six-pack of beer or thousands for a plasma TV won’t “gripe about paying $8 for a dozen eggs.” Those dollars go back into the community, she said, not to some corporation raising robo-chicks. “This should really matter, because it’s going into your mouth and fueling your capacity to get through the day,” she said. “Food is the bottom line: we all need to eat every day. Then ultimately aren’t farmers the most important resource we have in this country?”

The article has goosed CSA sign-ups, so quite a few readers seem to agree with her. So did Andrew Simmons, in a warm post over at the SF Weekly blog.

I am no chef by any means, but a chef did teach me to roast chickens this way and it does make for pretty foolproof crispy skin and not-overdone flesh.

• Rinse and pat dry, including the inside. I like to let my chicken sit out, drying and coming to room temperature for about 20-30 min before cooking
• Preheat oven to 400
• Cut off the head, wings, and feet and put them in a ziploc bag in the freezer for later
• Fork-mash about 2TB softened butter, salt and dried herbs (lavender, rosemary, sage, oregano, all good).
• Massage the chicken all over with the paste
• Heat a cast iron skillet on high on the stove
• Drop the chicken in to brown all over, starting on its sides, then breast etc. Skip the back. A pair of tongs inside cavity will help turn it, or hold it in position for browning
• When skin is just slightly crispy, put pan in hot oven. Sometimes I roast the chicken on a rack in the cast iron pan and put potatoes and carrots around it to roast in the fat, with a little extra olive oil. Yum.
• Roast until when you tip the chicken forward out of the cavity, the juices are no longer bloody. About 25 minutes. You can cut into thigh joint at that point to check for doneness. I personally prefer to cut off thighs and put them back in oven separately if they need more cooking, I hate dry breast meat
• When done remove bird from oven, let rest 5 minutes on a rack over a plate to collect juices. Return cast iron pan to stove top. Deglaze with white wine or stock, scraping pan. Toss in a bit of butter and salt, any juices from chicken resting plate, and stir for chicken gravy.
• Eat what you want off bird, and then pick off the rest to store for salad, chicken sandwiches, tacos etc for the next few days. My husband and I usually manage 3-4 meals off one SFF roast chicken.
• Let the carcass cool off and then toss it in the freezer bag with the head and feet. Roasted carcasses make the best stock — much richer flavor. I collect two or three and then just make a bunch at once.

I sent this out to the CSA email list and immediately got many replies. (From now on, I’m only going to post recipes on the blog so as to keep email traffic to a minimum.)

Haven corrected my technique slightly:

Bonnie’s basic chicken roasting method is terrific. I submit one adjustment: truss the chicken before roasting.
Rationale: according to Michael Ruhlman, trussing a chicken prevents moisture loss, particularly important when you’re roasting a pastured chicken, which of course we SFF CSA members are.
If you don’t truss it, stuff it with half a lemon to produce a similar effect plus the perfume of a lemon.

I often don’t stuff it because it cooks faster that way and I have ot had a problem with dryness. I did forget to mention that after browning it, I do usually stuff half a lemon and some fresh herbs in the cavity and truss it before finishing in the oven.

Meanwhile, Stefan replied:  “I seared my damaged chicken and stewed it with roasted and deglazed root vegetables in plenty of water- it made a divine soup once the meat fell off the bones!” Soul Food CSA member Lisa P wrote that she bought a countertop rotisserie like this one specifically for cooking my pastured chicken. “My chicken cooked in 90 minutes and it came out perfect, I was very pleased.”

from Alix:

You are going to get as many methods as there are cooks, but I like Judy Rodgers’ method (from Zuni Café): she salts it at least one day in advance, pretty liberally, then loosely covers it and refrigerates it. It requires no prior browning before putting it in a hot oven, and you don’t add any fat or truss it (just fold the wings under so the tips don’t burn), so it’s about as simple as simple can be. The details and gorgeous photos are here at this blog post.

Angi said:

I’m new to the CSA, so haven’t actually gotten any chickens yet. But since there’s a discussion on chicken roasting, I thought I’d contribute my recent discovery of an awesome roast chicken recipe. It’s super simple — start with dry chicken, put two lemons which have been pricked all over with holes into the cavity, truss/sew shut, and roast. No extra fat, nothing. And the result is a super moist chicken with fragrant lemon flavors. Yum!  I’ve tried this recipe twice and both times it was a hit. I actually change the recipe by salting overnight (something I learned from making Zuni Cafe’s roast chicken recipe) instead of waiting the 10 minutes for the chicken juices to drain out. And I just use a small paring knife to stab the lemons all over instead of carefully poking little holes in them.

And from Jane F:

Below is a tried and true recipe I’ve been using for a while now. The chicken is cooked similar to a traditional Peking duck and not that complicated. I like this recipe because I seem to always have all the ingredients on hand and always end up w/ an impressive looking & great tasting chicken. If I don’t have mushrooms, thick slices of potatoes works just as well. It’s great that your veggies cooks at the same time w/ lots of tasty sauce (drippings) all in one roasting pan.

Peking-Style Roast Chicken

In his version of the traditional Chinese duck recipe, Jacques Pepin blanches the chicken before roasting. The dip in boiling water eliminates some of the fat and also tightens the skin, which helps it to crisp and brown when it is roasted. Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 (4-pound) chicken, wishbone removed
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco hot pepper sauce
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 12 ounces small button mushrooms
• 1/2 cup water

Instructions:

1. Bring 2 1/2 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Meanwhile, fold the wings of the chicken behind its back, and truss with kitchen twine to help maintain the bird’s tight shape.

2. Lower the chicken, breast down, into the boiling water. Return the water to a boil over high heat. As soon as the water is boiling (in about 3 minutes), reduce the heat to low and simmer the chicken gently for 5 minutes. Drain; place the chicken breast side up on a rack in a roasting pan or large saucepan.

3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Mix the honey, soy sauce, Tabasco, and vinegar together in a small bowl. Brush the chicken on all side with the honey mixture. Roast in the 375-degree oven for 30 minutes.

4. Brush the breast side of the chicken with the honey mixture, then turn the chicken over on the rack and brush its back. Roast, breast side down, for another 30 minutes.

5. Arrange the mushrooms in one layer under the rack in the pan and add the water. Turn the chicken breast side up, brush it with the remaining honey mixture, and roast another 15 minutes.

6. Transfer the chicken to a platter. Pour the accumulated pan juices and the mushrooms in a 4-cup saucepan. Let rest for 2 to 3 minutes, then spoon off as much fat from the surface as possible.

7. Cut the chicken into serving pieces, and serve with the degreased juices and the mushrooms.

*Removing the wishbone prior to cooking makes it easier to carve the breast out for slicing evenly. You can also skip this part if you like.

My favorite comment, however, came from former JoJo chef Curt Clingman:

Alix has it right from the start, ‘You are going to get as many methods as there are cooks”, and that point any cook should remember anytime they are in doubt, there are a bizillion ways to cook a chicken and there are a bizillion things to cook, it’s all good if you start with quality stuff and you wouldn’t be here if you didn’t dig that.

Feel free to leave your favorite recipes (or links to them) in the comments!

I wanted to share some nice feedback we have received, both anonymously and signed.

Over at the Chef2Chef Culinary Portal, an apparent CSA member who goes by “Chef Drea” started out a little skeptical about Soul Food’s prices:

When I heard recently that Soul Food Farms was starting a monthly CSA in San Francisco, where they would provide eggs, chickens and more, I jumped at the opportunity to join. Upon placing my first order last month I was a bit wary as chickens cost $6.50 a pound and eggs $6.50 a dozen. Could I justify buying $25.00 chickens or eggs that cost more than twice those that you buy at the grocery store? When I did the math and realized that breakfast made from a couple of eggs costs about $1.00 (or less than I probably lose down the black hole in my sofa every day) I had no problem with it. It was the pricey chickens that concerned me, though. From an ethical standpoint I felt justified in spending the money. Soul Food Farm chickens are pasture raised, eating grass and bugs as chickens are supposed to and roaming freely on one of the most beautiful landscapes imaginable. Cheesy as it sounds, these chickens seemed happy and they are not pumped up with drugs or hormones, nor crammed into tight, dark spaces like so many factory farmed chickens.

Then, last month, I tasted one of these divine birds for the first time. I wanted to prepare it as simply as possible so as not to mask its natural flavor. I patted it dry, generously seasoned it with salt and pepper and threw it into a hot oven with a skeptical snicker, “OK $25.00 chicken, show me what you’ve got!”

Find out what s/he thought >

Meanwhile, CSA member Jean Weiss wrote this in an email, quoted with his permission:

Hello Alexis & Eric,

I am looking SO forward to picking up my chicken and my eggs from your Farm next week.

I just recently finished reading a book that simply blew my mind. Having been a Food & Beverage professional my entire career (now retired), I was not entirely ignorant regarding Factory Farming and about the huge slaughter-houses and their cruel and disgusting bottom-line driven “efficient” operations. However, after reading “Eating Animals” by Jonathan Safran Foer, I am still in disbelief and in shock. If you have not already read this book, it is a must read. It is unbelievable that we allow it (factory farming/inhumane slaughter operations) to be legal in this country.

It is such a pleasure to know that I have a fabulous alternative to the factory farm one right here in Vacaville (of all places…the fast-food capital of the world and a culinary waste land, or so it seems).

Thank you for providing us with such a “luxury” and at such a reasonable price. But I will confess to you, I would be willing to pay considerably more for the service.

Were it not for dedicated, responsible visionaries of humane meat production like you, I would seriously consider becoming a vegetarian. However, foregoing farm-fresh eggs and beautiful, tasty chicken would be a huge sacrifice for me. Thank you for providing this wholesome food.

Best regards,

Jean Weiss

Alexis was thrilled. She loves emails like this. Here’s what she replied:

Jean,

Thank you for feeling so passionate about where your food comes from. So many people are still unaware of what factory farming entails and I’m sure if they knew, like yourself, they would turn away from ever eating food produced in that manner. Unfortunately for most of the population, food produced in that manner is covered up in a market scheme that is truly powerful and persuasive. Who would imagine, looking at the clean fast-food restaurants, or stylish and cleaver commercials on T.V., what’s really been dished out into people’s mouths.

It’s a perfect example of money driving the sector. And not only is the whole system of how the animals get to your plate completely shocking, but the story of the workers who raised the animals, work in the processing facilities, and are part of the system to dispose of the waste is a whole other story that would overwhelm consumers.

Soul Food Farm is working as hard as we can to be innovative and produce food for the local Bay Area. But, it is by no means easy and we are constantly challenged by keeping up with what the animals need, how to make enough money to survive and continue to make improvements on the farm.

I know there is a middle ground between the industrial method of producing animal protein and the small farm method. I’ll be happy to chat about that if we ever meet.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and I will go and pick up a copy of that book.

Best,
Alexis
Soul Food Farm