Blog

We welcomed these baby plants to the farm a couple of weeks ago.

Any idea what kind of plant they are?

They are tomatoes!

They are the first group of greenhouse tomatoes that we will begin harvesting late April.  We grow cherry tomatoes and regular slicing tomatoes.

These tomatoes are the start of the 2023 season.  So excited! :

Make sure to follow the farm on facebook or instagram to watch these tomatoes grow!  They are one of our favorite crops to grow and I take a lot of pictures and videos of them.

From our family to yours we want to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Let’s work together to help those in need this Christmas with the feed the need bag program!

I heard of this idea in a podcast I was listening to before Thanksgiving and loved it.  A great way to work together and be a blessing to the community!

We invite you to purchase a Feed the Need Bag for $10 and give the bag to someone you know who could use it before Christmas.

We challenge you to hand deliver the bag to a specific person. Have a conversation and be an encouragement to them this season!

The Feed the Need bag includes:
– 5lbs of potatoes
– 3lbs of carrots
– 2 leeks
– 1 pie pumpkins
– 1 stalk of brussel sprouts

**A $20 value! **

Pick up locations:

Market at the Farm: Saturday, December 17 | 8am – 5pm.
Market at the Farm: Wednesday, December 21 | 8am – 6pm.
Kalamazoo Farmers Market: Saturday, December 17 | 8am – 12pm.
Muskegon Farmers Market: Saturday, December 17 | 8am – 12pm.

Sign up for your bag HERE.

Thank you so much for helping with this project!  We can’t wait to hear how it goes.

Merry Christmas!

Lindsey

I wanted to share this holiday pie recipe with you just in time for Christmas.

This recipe was recommended by a fellow farmer, and it is one of our favorites!

Nantucket Pie

Place 2 1/2 cup cranberries in the bottom of a buttered deep pie dish.
Sprinkle 1/2 cup sugar over the berries.

Beat Together:

• 3/4 cup melted butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup flour
• 2 beaten eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla

Pour butter, sugar flour, eggs and vanilla over cranberries and bake for 30 – 40 minutes at 375 degrees.

Pick up some fresh cranberries at the markets this week and give it a try.

Enjoy!

We wanted to let you know about our annual customer appreciation sale happening this Saturday!

Purchase 6 produce baskets, get one free!

This is a perfect way to stock up for your Thanksgiving meals.

Here is where you can find us this Saturday:

Muskegon Farmers Market:  8am – 1pm.
Kalamazoo Farmers Market:  7am – 2pm.
Market at the Farm: 8am – 5pm.

This is what we have planned for you:

All kinds of potatoes, fall squash, fresh cranberries, apples, carrots, beets, parsnips, turnips, celery root, radishes, salad mix, spinach, kale, leek, swiss chard, onions, sweet potatoes, brussel sprouts, cabbage & broccoli.

Thank you so much for all of the support that you have shown to us this past year.  We are thankful for each and every one of you.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is right around the corner.

Have you thought about the menu yet?  We have all kinds of veggies available to make those side dishes awesome, but what about dessert?

We have that covered too!  Make a pumpkin pie out of a real pumpkin.

Sound complicated?

It’s not!  It’s easy, fun and tastes amazing.

Here is how we make our pumpkin pie:

1. Stop by the farm or market and pick up a pie pumpkin.

2. Cut the pumpkin in half and clean out.  Make sure to save the seeds.

3. Place in a baking dish, down with a little water in the bottom.  Bake at 350 degrees for 90 minutes.

4. Next, make the seeds!  Coat them with olive oil and seasoning salt.  I bake them in the air fryer for about 20 minutes at 370 degrees.

5. Seeds are done!  Enjoy this healthy snack!

6. Once the pumpkin is done, let it cool.  Remove the skin from the pumpkin.  It should slide right off

7. You can mash or use the blender to get the pumpkin to the consistency that you like.  We like it smooth and so I put it in the blender.

8. Use the pumpkin for your pie and place the rest in freezer bags! I cooked 2 pumpkins and got enough for 5 pies.

Next, it’s time for the pie!  Here is our favorite pumpkin pie recipe:

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1 c. brown sugar
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• ½ tsp. ginger
• ¼ tsp. nutmeg
• ½ tsp. salt
• 2 c. cooked mashed pumpkin
• 12 oz can evaporated milk
• 1 unbaked pie shell

Directions:

Beat eggs until frothy.  Add remaining filling ingredients in order; beat just until blended.  Pour into pie shell.  Bake at 425 degrees for 15 minutes.  Reduce to 350 degrees and bake 45 minutes longer or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Let us know how your pie turns out.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Local food is available YEAR ROUND!!

Yes, that is right.

We are deep into fall, well on the way to winter.

Most people think that local food is done, but that is not true!

Here are all the ways you can enjoy local food this winter:

Farmers Markets: 

• Muskegon Farmers Market:  Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday until Thanksgiving.  Every Saturday, December – April.
• Kalamazoo Farmers Market:  Saturdays until December 17.  Location details for December – April will be coming soon!

Market at the Farm:

• 5888 120th Ave, Holland.  Open Monday – Friday, 8am – 6pm & Saturday, 8am – 5pm.
• All kinds of local food available at the farm.  Produce, dairy, meats, bread & so much more!

CSA Program:

• Get a box of fresh produce from the farm every week!
• Find out more details HERE.

Local Restaurants:

• Are you a chef?  Let us know if you would like to incorporate local produce into your menus.
• Enjoy a delicious meal at a local restaurant.  Next time you are at the markets ask us about some of the restaurants that we work with.

Wondering how we will be able to have local produce available?  Take a look!

The greenhouses are filling up with all kinds of greens.  Spinach, salad mix, chard, kale, radishes & onions.

We have been harvesting root crops and putting them into cold storage.  We keep them dirty and wash them as need so they stay fresh. All kinds of carrots, beets, potatoes, parsnips, turnips & radishes.

Then there are crops in the field that can take some cold!  Cauliflower, broccoli, brussel sprouts & cabbage.

Thank you so much for supporting your local farm.  We appreciate all of you!

See you soon!

We get a few different questions about the cauliflower this time of year.

“Why is it different colors?”

“Do they taste the same?”

“Do we cook them the same?”

Well, let’s answer all of your cauliflower questions today!

We grow different varieties of cauliflower.  Each color is a different variety.

I don’t notice a big taste difference between the kinds, but some people think the colors are sweeter!

As far as cooking goes, you can cook them the same way you would white cauliflower.  One of my favorite things about these varieties is that they keep their color when you cook them!

We have really been enjoying roasted cauliflower this year.  Here is a delicious roasted cauliflower recipe for you to enjoy.

Alright, plan to stop by the farmers markets or the farm this week and try a new colored cauliflower!

Have a great week!

Lindsey

PS – The Fall Harvest Event is at the farm THIS Saturday, October 22 from 10 am – 2pm.  We would love to see you there!  Farm address is 5888 120th Ave, Holland.  There will be free wagon rides and free games for the family.  We will also have the u-pick pumpkin patch open and all kinds of fun fall snacks.

We are SO EXCITED to announce our Fall Fest happening October 22, 10am – 2pm.

We are planning to have wagon rides in the field, U-Pick pumpkins & all kinds of games for the family!

The farm’s address is 5888 120th Ave, Holland, MI 49424.

RSVP here on our facebook page.

We can’t wait to see you all at the farm!

How to preserve pumpkins and gourds with just three ingredients.

Fall has arrived. It’s time to purchase gourds and pumpkins to decorate your home with.  Use this cleaning method to make sure your pumpkins and gourds last all season.

Ingredients:

• 1-gallon hot water
• 2 tablespoons bleach
• 1 squirt of dish soap

Directions:  Soak gourds/pumpkins for 30 minutes.  After the soak, rinse and let air dry. Make sure to soak pumpkins before carving.

That’s it!  Use this method for your gourds, decorative pumpkins and carving pumpkins.

A few other tips for you:

• Keep your pumpkins and gourds away from sunlight if possible.
• Avoid setting them directly on the pavement.  Try to set them on cardboard, hay or wood.  I have even seen them placed in hanging baskets!

Alright, let the decorating begin!

Here is where you can find all of the fall decor:

• Market at the Farm:  Monday – Friday, 8am – 6pm & Saturday, 8am –  5pm.  Address is 5888 120th Ave, Holland, MI 49424.
• Muskegon Farmers Market:  Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday, 8am – 2pm.

Enjoy the season!

Good evening, friends,

This email is going to be a bit different, but we wanted to share something from our hearts.

This has been one of the hardest weeks of our lives.  Last week Thursday, Doug unexpectedly passed away.

We lost our husband, father and grandfather.

Our teacher, mentor & friend.

He was an incredibly positive and compassionate person.  The stories that have been flooding in the past few days from customers, employees and friends have been amazing. His smile and kindness touched so many people.

Doug appreciated all of the little things in life.  Doug would get so excited to show everyone all the crops growing.  A great looking field of potatoes.  Giant heads of broccoli or a big butternut squash.

Doug was a full speed ahead kind of person.  Full of energy.  An incredibly hard worker. He only stopped at coffee time and he would want everyone to join him.  He loved people. He genuinely loved life and lived it to the fullest.

He had incredible faith.  “Don’t worry so,” he would say.  He trusted God to take care of us, always. One of his favorite verses was Matthew 19:26: “With God all things are possible.”

So, friends, a few reminders and lessons we have learned from one of our favorite farmers:

Kindness matters.  Kindness is something the world desperately needs right now. This was a way of life for Doug.   He proved to us that a smile and kind word can have a huge impact on people’s lives.

Appreciate all of the little things.  Farmers appreciate the little things in life because they know every little thing counts. Every blossom, every honeybee, every earthworm in the dirt, every drop of rain that falls.  Doug knew this. He loved the simple things in life like beautiful produce and a good cup of coffee.

Don’t worry so.  Doug lived this.  It takes incredible faith to put a seed in the ground and believe that it will grow a crop to provide for your family.  He trusted God and did not worry about the future.   “Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”  Matthew 6:34.

We are so grateful for this special man.  He left us an amazing legacy of faith, family and farming.

Thank you all for your support this past week.  The outpouring of love from the community has meant so much to us.  We truly appreciate each & every one of you.

– The Visser Family