Good Eatin'

The Nebraska Food Co-op has been operating for a little over a year, and I’m so glad to have found it. This is my first foray into a food co-op and so far so wonderful.

The Co-op encompasses everything I’ve been wanting: local food produced by local farmers; hormone-, pesticide-, and herbicide-free food; and the opportunity to develop a relationship with the farmers I buy from.

I have gone to local Farmer’s Markets, but I have to get there really early to get the good stuff. Since getting there early means 8:00 on a Saturday morning, I don’t get there very often. Plus, the markets are only from May until August or September. I do like being able to walk around and look at the food, but the largest market, which is downtown, is starting to turn into everything but farm products. Not that I mind the Greek food booth selling baklava or the home-made salsa, but I’d like to fill my basket (yes, I take a basket) with food I can go home and cook.

Once a month, the Co-op posts the Product List for customers. At my leisure, I can read through all the offerings with detailed descriptions about the food and a link to information about the farm. Then the ordering window opens, and I place my order online. Then I pick it up, come home, and cook!

It’s still a little early for the vegetables and there’s not an abundance of those anyway from Nebraska farms, being a beef-centric kind of state, but what I got was great. For my first order, I got some raw unfiltered honey, free-range eggs (which were beautiful, pic below), Chevre cheese (goat’s milk), and skirt steak. So, for dinner, we had a frittata with Chevre and toast, spread with butter and honey. I think I’ll marinate the steak tomorrow then make fajitas. Or maybe I’ll sprinkle it with Italian seasonings, grill it, slice it thinly, and layer it on toasted baguette slices with tomatoes and some more of that creamy cheese. I just don’t know yet.



I can’t wait to see what they’ll have next month!