Where's the Beef?

Months ago I wrote an entry about range fed beef. I had read about it's glories. I had made a trip to Whole Foods to take a peek. I had been scared to death when I saw the price tag - yikes! So, like any determined woman I started to scheme.

I know beef comes from cows and cows come from farms. I know I live in Alabama, which is covered with farms, many of which have cattle. It seemed as though there had to be a way to get closer to the farm without getting quite so far from my budget.

Through the power of Google - wa la! There is! The secret is Boutwell Farms. The first of their products I tried was a traditional roast. I did exactly what I do with all of the other roasts in our lives - stick it in the crock pot. It came out beautifully tender, literally falling apart. It actually came on the bone, which startled my children who gathered round to stare. One of them said, "it has a bone", to which I responded, "it came from a cow. Cows have bones." Bone or no bone everyone ate it - including my two year old, who's not big on meat.

I've since tried several cuts of steak and have some beautiful flank steak in a marinade for tonight. Their pricies are reasonsable. They come to the Valleydale Farmers Market every other week and make regular deliveries all over the state. Check out their website and let me know if you would be interested in shareing a quarter cow!