GOING THE CSA ROUTE

So, you want to eat healthy, but you really don’t have time to hit the farmers market or visit a farm where you can pick your own produce. Sounds like you’re the perfect candidate for joining a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) alliance.

A CSA is a group of members coming together to support a local farmer, who in turn, produces food for them. The CSA movement has taken off across the country since the mid-1980s. Members (also known as subscribers) pay a fee, typically by the season, and then a weekly amount for their box or basket of produce, which they pick up, or, if offered, have delivered.

“I like to cook, and I’m always looking for good fresh veggies in season,” says Janet Pepin, a member of the Farm to Fare CSA at Crones’

Cradle Conserve. “I get to be very inventive because you never know what’s going to be in the basket. I’ll often make a frittata or egg salad from the fresh eggs. Anyone who’s interested in good, healthy eating needs to be a CSA member.”

“We’ve been doing our CSA for nearly 20 years and can handle up to 50 shares/families. We also provide for a number of restaurants and caterers,” says Baldwin.

Their Farm to Fare membership is $50 for a 13-week season, and each week’s basket is $25. There are typically five to six vegetables, fresh herbs and six to 12 eggs, along with two recipes that include items in the basket. A weekly newsletter is included and offers additional information about the produce. Baskets can be picked up at the farm, and there are specific days when they can be picked up in Ocala and Gainesville.

If you go to Crones’ Cradle Conserve, be sure to stop in at their Country Store (open daily 9am-3pm) where you’ll find honey, jams, jellies, chutneys, farmbaked breads and more produce and herbs. They also offer locally raised, grass-fed beef and locally made goat cheese and even goat cheese cheesecake (sweet, creamy, delicious, and no, it doesn’t taste like goat cheese!).

To find more CSAs in North Central Florida, visit freshfromflorida.com and type “CSA” into the search bar.