The Wisdoms fit the popular stereotype of honest, down-to-earth country people who work hard for long hours and bend over backwards to leave their customers happy. But raising poultry to sell directly to shoppers through local Colorado venues is decidedly unconventional. "We're the only ones in Colorado doing what we're doing," Cindy says.

            The overwhelming majority of the nation's poultry production is concentrated on large, corporately-controlled, confinement farms mostly in Oklahoma, Arkansas, the Southeast and the Mid-Atlantic states. There, production practices and profits are dictated by a handful of huge multinational corporations including the world's largest international food suppliers.

            The Wisdoms are miles from those crowded chicken houses in more ways than one. They've started selling the same home-raised poultry they are glad to serve at their own table.

            "My family has a lot of allergies, and my mom couldn't eat any of the meat you buy in the regular grocery store," Cindy says. "We've always raised chickens just for our own family's use and custom processed them at a local locker. And we've always eaten all natural beef that we raised ourselves. I think most farmers are conscious about where their food comes from."

            Foods that come direct from the farmer, while increasingly popular, represent a new approach for the Wisdoms, who have raised wheat and sheep in the past and sold their farm production through auctions and grain elevators. With Colorado's severe drought and changes in the farm economy, the couple was eventually forced to find new business opportunities to stay on the remote land they love.

            To create a new future, they looked back to the past. "The big chicken house was already here," Jay says. "My dad built it in the 1950s. That's what I did everyday after school — gathered eggs. Then, we turned it into a lambing shed."

            Now the barn is back to housing chickens. The Wisdoms pick up their birds as day-old chicks at a small local hatchery, then spend about eight weeks growing them to maturity and process them in a USDA-inspected plant on the farm. During their lives, the birds have access to the outdoors and about 20 times as much space as they would have in a large modern confinement facility. In addition, they eat a natural grain diet free of artificial hormones or antibiotics.

            The processing procedure is another way the Wisdoms differentiate what they produce from most modern poultry suppliers.

            "If you buy a chicken at Wal-Mart, there's 10-12 percent added solution," Jay says. "We got away from that. Also, industry standards say if you keep a chicken beneath 28 degrees, you can call it 'fresh.' We freeze our birds immediately after we process them at a temperature of about 10 degrees below zero."

            The family relies heavily on manual labor with very little mechanization. They process birds three days a week, an undertaking that lasts from early dawn until late afternoon.

            Despite the hard work, the couple says they enjoy the appreciation they get from customers, the independence of working for themselves and the many opportunities they have to work together as a family. Jay's parents Don and Ida Mae lend a hand with construction projects and processing day.

            On a quiet evening at the Wisdom farm, the stillness is almost deafening. "Our goal now is to survive financially long enough to get our kids graduated from high school," Jay says, as the last streaks of sun fade and a huge ocean of stars emerges overhead. "We work together. We play together. We have fun. And we love where we live."

           Ranch Foods Direct and local California-style drive-in Classics Hamburgers are collaborating to host a Military Appreciation Day on Wednesday, November 17, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. A military ID entitles all enlisted personnel to a free double cheeseburger combo meal at any of the three Classics locations: North Academy at Flintridge, Austin Bluffs at Templeton Gap, and South Nevada at Ramona.

           “My mother always taught me to be thankful… and then to back it up with action,” says Don Gordon, owner of Classics. “After 9/11, I really thought we’d see several other terrorist attacks on our soil, but our military has done an excellent job in keeping us safe, and I am really thankful for that.” 

           “This is a small way of showing our deep appreciation to those men and women who risk everything to defend us,” said Mike Callicrate, owner of Ranch Foods Direct.

           Classics serves burgers from Ranch Foods Direct exclusively.

           Gordon predicted his stores would distribute as many as 1,000 free meals.

           “We hope to make Military Appreciation Day a tradition for years to come,” he added. “At Classics, we feel Veteran’s Day should be a very special day for all of our military personnel.”

"We like the fact that the meat is natural and hormone free. We have been extremely pleased with the quality of the meat we have purchased this last year and a half."-- Ken and Pam Craft

            Enchanted is probably an apt term to describe a partnership of two women committed to nurturing loving combinations. They've introduced jalapeno pepper to kalamata olives and mingled garlic with artichoke and lemon juice. Sun-dried tomatoes and pinenuts have also been coaxed into some interesting teamwork. These fresh, refrigerated concoctions are dips made just over the mountains in Pagosa as a wholesome alternative to ordinary dips.

            With special care, they’re made from scratch with a blend of natural seeds, oils and juices, and are free of the artificial preservatives used in highly processed modern foods to extend shelf-life. Enchanting concept? Sounds that way to me.

PREPARE AND SERVE FOOD FOR THE SPIRIT

"Bring a loving awareness to each step of the preparation, from shopping to serving to eating and te after-meal clean-up. Do your best not to allow any distractions to divert your focus, attention and intention. As important, do not be time-urgent when you practice bringing a prayerful consciousness to food. When you're rushing, your thoughts are elsewhere. And if you're not 'in the moment,' the food will not receive the appropriate energy. Remember, intention, love or gratitude, and awareness, are key concepts for imbuing food with spiritual energy."

– from "Feeding the Body Nourishing the Soul," by Deborah Kensten

            Beef roasts are hearty, magnificent and easy to prepare. Kindra, Ranch Foods Direct retail manager, says she likes to poke slivered garlic into her roast, sprinkle it liberally with black pepper, sear it in oil and add a bay leaf while it cooks. Plant manager Val recommends adding a can of coca cola to make it extra moist and add an extra dash of zing. I prefer to cover a crockpot roast with fresh fall herbs, especially sage and tarragon (along with garlic and onion) and add fresh mushrooms, carrots and potatoes while it slow-cooks. The variations are abundant, but always and invariably as the soft, succulent meat falls away from the bone and sinks into its own dense juices, the rich aroma of a slow-cooked meal pervades and warms the house. What better companionship for a long winter evening?

            If you want more specific instructions on how to make a garlic-infused pot roast, here's a detailed recipe.

• 1 boneless beef chuck roast (about 3 lbs.)
• 10 garlic cloves, peeled and cut in half lengthwise
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2/3 cup water

Using the tip of a sharp paring knife, make 20 evenly spaced small slits about 1 1/2 inches deep all over the pot roast. Using your fingers, insert the garlic cloves as deep into the meat as possible. Season the roast on all sides with the salt and pepper. Wash hands well before continuing.

Heat a Dutch oven over high heat. Add the oil, and, when hot, use a meat fork to add the roast. Use oven mitts or pot holders and be careful here! The pan and oil will be very hot and the meat will really sizzle when you add it. Sear the meat on all sides until very well browned, about 4 to 6 minutes per side. Don't be afraid to let the roast get very brown — this is where a lot of the flavor comes from. When the roast is evenly browned on all sides, carefully add the water and cover the pot.

Reduce the heat to low/medium-low and cook the roast until it is very tender, about 3 to 3 1/2 hours, turning it 2 or 3 times during cooking. Check occasionally to make sure there is always a little liquid on the bottom of the pan. If necessary, add more water.

When the roast is very tender, carefully transfer to a serving platter with a meat fork. Slice or pull meat apart into serving pieces and serve with the pan juices drizzled over the top.

It's the most wonderful time of the year... for gifts and good cheer!
Ranch Foods has an infinite
array of gift ideas

"...We love flattery even though we are not deceived by it, because it shows that
we are of importance enough to be courted." — Ralph Waldo Emerson

            Great steaks make great friends — and great neighbors. They also make great gifts. For the hard-to-buy-for man on your list who seems to have everything, consider sharing the hearty pleasures of a divine steak. For the woman who loves to cook, the fine ingredients at Ranch Foods Direct make the possibilities almost endless.

            Name your price. A variety of meat bundles are also available to accommodate any budget.

            How about a steak and seafood combination? Add chocolates from local gourmet candy-maker Patsy's Originals. Mix and match to your heart's content. Many combinations are attractively boxed and easily gift-wrapped to make your holiday shopping less stressful and more fun.

RANCH FOODS DIRECT HOLIDAY SPECIAL

SURF AND TURF: 2- 6 oz. filets and 2 lobster tails. $49.99
Other gift packages of beef bundles, filets, strip steaks
and bison samplings are also being offered.

A hot gift for the kitchen

            FOR STEAK-lovers, convenience seekers or the single person on your list:
Consider a gift of the Flavor-Wave Oven, a convenient, space-saving grill that uses infrared heat to take a steak from freezer to plate in about 20 minutes. Now frozen steaks and burgers are a convenience item! Designed to cook items evenly from the inside out, it also works well for flank steaks, roasts, whole chickens, baking potatoes and myriad other foods. Clean-up is a snap. Cooking instructions and recipes are included. Be sure to ask if you'd like a cooking demonstration at the store.

            When doing your gift buying, don't forget your pet. After all, your animal companion lavishes you with unconditional love and gets as excited as a child about the prospect of a present! Ranch Foods natural pet foods come in ground beef or bones.

            Please include Ranch Foods in your holiday gift shopping this year. Food makes a wonderful gift. Spread good health while you spread good cheer.

• Ingredients:
  2 teaspoons olive oil
• 2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 medium onions, vertically sliced
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups water
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 cup sun-dried tomato halves, cut into strips
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Braised Beef with
Sun-dried Tomatoes

Directions:
Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add beef; cook 4 minutes, browning on all sides. Add sliced onion, cook for 7 minutes or until onion softens, stirring occasionally. Add minced garlic and cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Stir in flour. Cook 2 minutes, stirring often.

"Quality attention is the greatest gift
we have to give to others and ourselves."

– Alice Aspen March

This newsletter is published by Candace Krebs, Free-lance Writer/
Communications Specialist. She writes about agriculture, food
and spirituality. Contact her at candacejk@aol.com