"K" is for Kale, (farm menu ideas)!

Good Tuesday morning, and welcome back to, The Land Man Weekly! Today and in the tradition of weekly introductions of interesting Land topics, we add to our glossary of land terms, "K is for Kale".

Kale, or leaf cabbage, belongs to a group of cabbage cultivars grown for their edible leaves, although some are used as ornamentals. Kale plants have green or purple leaves, and the central leaves do not form a head

One of the fascinating things about the farm to table food movement is the introduction of food stuffs and food ingredients, which may be non-traditional in many areas of the country.

In a spring garden photo above (top of page), the space required to grow enough produce for 2-3 people for a season, is surprisingly modest. Tall and sturdy, no climb fences are required in our area to keep deer out, and to dissuade bears from helping themselves. My Cousins, based on years of canning and vegetable garden plantings. decide on our family farm, which favorite foodstuffs to plant each year. Kale is an interesting example of such a food, which is rising in popularity in restaurants, menus and home dinner tables.

Creative recipes exude from Farm to Table chefs and dinner menus everywhere. In my opinion, it is one more reason, which makes rural and country living such a viable and desirable living option.

Fresh food which is grown with our own hand, the hand of friends and the hands of children can and should be produced organically, sustainably and where the chef is certain of the fresh food origin, cleanliness and peaks of flavor and nutrient value.

Eating farm sourced foods just feels right to me. and gives a sense of what people call increased "food security".

In small scale garden production or as a commercial AG vegetable crop, Kale happens to be a very productive vegetable choice. Most of us have eaten a Kale salad or two, and prepared just right they are delicious.

More creative ideas include using Kale as a significant food ingredient in farm to table recipes, which creativity has few limits! The Land Man must be hungry as I write this as the following ideas caught my eye, and offer them as soon to be tried recipes on my table!

I am salivating at a Kale & Shiitake Fried Rice recipe, might even toss in some fresh seafood, spiced pork or chicken. On a more basic night, perhaps Buttermilk Macaroni & cheese and baby Kale for the kids, grandkids and me!

A winter hearty option might be to try a home cured pork and wild venison Sausage, Skillet with sautéed kale and herb crusted potatoes... yum!

Kale is low in calories and contains several important nutrients, including vitamin K, vitamin C, and manganese. Kale is a popular vegetable and a member of the cabbage family. It is a cruciferous vegetable and is closely related to cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, collard greens, and Brussels sprouts.

There are many different types of kale. The leaves can be green or purple, and have either a smooth or curly shape. The most common type of kale is called curly kale or Scots kale, which has green and curly leaves with a hard, fibrous stem.

Seriously ok, to skip read over this paragraph below, if ya already know how good Kale is for you, or just maybe you wont eat your vegetables anyway... Lol

Many powerful antioxidants are found in kale, including quercetin and kaempferol, which have numerous beneficial effects on health. Kale is a good source of vitamin C, an antioxidant that aids in the synthesis of collagen and has many important roles in the body. Kale contains substances that bind bile acids and lower cholesterol levels in the body. Steamed kale is particularly effective. Vitamin K is an important nutrient that is involved in blood clotting. A single cup of kale contains nearly 70% of the DV for vitamin K. Kale contains substances that have been shown to help fight cancer in test-tube and animal studies, but human evidence is mixed. Kale is very high in beta-carotene, an antioxidant that is converted to vitamin A. Kale is high in lutein and zeaxanthin, two nutrients that have been linked to a reduced risk of macular degeneration and cataracts.

Trumpets Please!

So the grown ups, were correct all along... We should eat our vegetables...

Weight Loss- As a nutrient-dense, low calorie food, kale makes an excellent addition to a weight loss diet. Enough about Kale and healthy eating, for a while..., I promise.

My final words...As Americans, we have the freedom and right to live anywhere in our country, be it urban, suburban, rural, remote, or very remote (off grid-self sufficient)...

In the past, I must say, I have not been a big fan of Kale..., however as they say, even old dogs, can learn new tricks..., my research and most recent tastings of culinary kale offerings, has me excited to explore this foodstuff with the coming growing seasons!

What an interesting point in our world's history, where technology and societal changes are providing work and living options and opportunities which are truly unique.

Remote working which became popular and out of necessity during the Covid-19 Pandemic, is now growing out of workforce choice. Gone are the days, where employers provided the majority of American's work security and employer provided retirement programs and incentives to remain, in a single profession, or with a single employer and employer work location...

Without such employer-employee physical and financial commitments, the opportunity to work and live remotely, is alive and well. Telecommunications advances have revolutionized our personal ability to perform work remotely, by providing high speed internet and near flawless telecommunications. Even in the most remote places in the world... Elon Musk's Starlink, satellite phone and internet system provides, data at unheard of speeds, just a couple years ago. The current beta version, will be replaced, of course, with next generation, Starlight, satellite based telecommunications and high speed video and data.

With the proper computer/laptop tools and access to the high speed information superhighway, remote work opportunities include, engineering, architecture, science, biology, medicine, business systems, accounting, legal services, IT, sales, digital media, marketing, customer relations, project managers, remote chat support, remote schooling, senior services, medical billing, attorney advisor, data engineer, social worker, data entry, business strategy & development, AD campaign manager, account managers, field service engineer, Medicare benefits advisor, executive training, customer support specialists, human resources specialist, developer/programmers, supply chain procurement, medical school, talent acquisition, business executive, patient services representative, primary care manager, outpatient radiology analysis, general education teacher, remote accountant, quality assurance engineer, finance director, aircraft mechanic, sustainability analyst, project coordinator, intensive care coordinator, web developer. field service engineer, grants management specialist,

As a 20+ year specialist in Land sales, I have chosen, at this time of life, rural and country living. I enjoy the many, many personal, family and community benefits of country living. As introduced above, participating in small ways in my food productions and sourcing gives me comfort and a sense of connection to our earth and to the land.

With scientific data, now well supporting the sustainability of protein production, which results from "grazing livestock production" models, I believe a partial return to agrarian ways of life are on our local and world horizon.

It turns out, much to my agreement and personal validation (throughout my life) that ranchers, are (in general and with few exceptions) amazing stewards of our land and earth.

Grazing animals, as part of our complex environments, increase the sequestering of carbon at an amazing and methodical rate. That is scientific fact.

Wildfire reduction, is greatly reduced, by the managed grazing of wild and domestic ruminant species, who are uniquely designed by our creator, to thrive on grasses, shrubs, tree foliage, etc., which humans cannot digest or utilize without high energy conversion to edible plant by-products.

A huge misconception exists, that living in the county, buying a farm, buying a ranch, or perhaps leasing (one of the above) is cost prohibitive, in all parts of our country.

As a Land specialist for over 20 years, I can assure any reader and interested party, that high cost land, ranches and farms do exist in any state, and especially here in California (my current home state). It is also true, even in California, that a Land Specialist, can locate available land parcels. farms, ranches which are priced and valued, within the reach of the many.

Urban homes, have set historical hi prices, year after year, providing existing urban and suburban home owners, tremendous buying power, if willing to live remotely, to work remotely, to consider a new way of life for you and the people you most care about.

My Real Estate Land Team and I are positioned in California and within states across the country to work together, networking with our unique eXp Commercial and eXp Realty toolboxes, to locate your ideal farm, country ranch, vineyard, orchard or lifestyle property. Please give us a call today and we can get you started! (805) 680-9415, it will be my please to take your call and to help you get pointed in the right direction or to assist you personally myself.

I have enjoyed visiting with you and communicating these thoughts today. If you want more information, please reach out and we can start or resume your journey towards country living, agriculture or farm living and lifestyles! If you have friends or family, who may have similar interests, please forward this newsletter, encourage them to "connect" with me on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram or of course, by direct email ([email protected]).

Thank you kindly, and I hope you enjoyed another edition of, "The Land Man Weekly".

All my best, Brad Berch (The eXp Commercial Land Man)

DRE# 01244576 "Under All Is The Land"