Route 52 Farm Trail

There's a lot going on at Waterberry right now. We're excitedly getting ready for the first weekend of the Route 52 Farm Trail! The Route 52 farm trail is a a collaboration between several small family owned farms in our area. Each of the farms on the trail has a strong commitment to environmentally friendly, sustainable farming practices. All of the farms on the trail will be open to the public every Saturday in June and July from 8am-2pm. Our goal is to bring our customers the freshest, highest quality food possible. Waterberry will be selling lettuce, tomatoes, herbs, potted plants and flowers, fresh baked good, fresh eggs etc... All of our produce is grown without the use of herbicides or pesticides. If you live in the Wiregrass area, make plans to hit the Route 52 farm trail and visit all the participating farms. Get Real Food on Route 52!

Like us at facebook.com/52trail

Canning Classes

The best way to eat locally all year is to can, preserve, or freeze fresh foods while they are in season. We are now offering canning classes to help you preserve a bit summer all year round. 

Sign up to join us May 22 or 24 to learn to make and can strawberry jam. We will be teaching the old fashion method of making jam and preserves without pectin. We will walk you through the basics of boiling water bath canning. Class will include information on food safety, best canning practices, trouble shooting when something goes wrong, recommendations on how to store your newly canned goods and much more.

In this class you will learn to make Strawberry Jam, go home with a jar of jam, as well as printout of the recipe and lots of new knowledge! Hurry and sign up before the classes fill up.

Class info:

Tuesday May 22 10am - 12 Making Strawberry Jam

Cost $25.00 per person

Class sizes are limited to 10 

Thursday May 24 10am - 12 Making Strawberry Jam

Cost $25.00 per person

Class sizes are limited to 10 

Classes will be held at Waterberry Farm in Slocomb.

Call 334-886-2454 or email me at paulahennig@msn.com to reserve your spot. Be sure to "like" us on Facebook to keep up with what's happening at the farm. 

Herb Can Caddy

We have these herb caddies for sale at the farm. The caddies are 6 painted cans that are attached to the wooden handle. The cans are filled with 4 herbs plants and 2 flowers. These little caddies make the perfect patio kitchen garden. They are just $15.00! Call to pick one up today!

Mint Iced Tea

This is the tea that was on our Easter menu. Sweet tea has been called the table wine of the South, well we've upped that table wine a notch with this mint tea. It's so refreshing and delicious but be warned this tea is ADDICTIVE! Enjoy...but don't say you weren't warned!

Mint Iced Tea

Method:

Bring one quart of cold water just to a boil (not a rolling boil, just before). Remove from heat. 
Add tea bags ( I used 2 of the family size Luzianne Tea bags)
Let steep for about 10 minutes.
meanwhile bring another quart of water to a boil.
Add a large handful on fresh mint to the water remove from heat and cover pot, if using an open pot.
Allow mint to steep for 10-15 minutes.
Pour tea into a large pitcher. Add steeped mint poured through a sieve into the tea. This just catches the mint and keeps you from having to fish it out of the pitcher!
Add a about quarter of a can of lemonade and a about quarter of a can of orange juice concentrate to the mint tea
Stir in 3/4 cup of sugar (it seems like a lot but it really does take a good bit of sugar) Taste, add more sugar if you think it needs it.
Chill and serve over lots of ice!

Easter

The Menu:

Spiral Ham

Mom's Potato Salad

Roasted Asparagus

Old Fashion Baked Beans

Deviled Eggs

Rosemary Foccacia

Dinner Rolls

Sour Cream Cheesecake topped with cherries

Strawberry Roulade

Mint Tea

Easter is one of our favorite holidays here at Waterberry Farm. Usually the whole family gathers at the farm to celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord. This year unfortunately, for various reasons, not everyone could make it to the farm for Easter. In spite of missing the ones who didn't make it home, we had a great day. The weather was lovely so we set up a table on the porch and ate outside. It was a gorgeous day to sit on the porch, sip mint iced tea, talk, and watch the squirrels chase each other from tree to tree. 

Our Easter menu is pretty much the same from year to year. One item we always include are these old fashioned baked beans. These are a family favorite. This is a very old recipe from the Mennonite side of the family. These beans are nothing like traditional baked beans from a can. For starters they are made with lima beans. Once you've had these baked beans they may become a part of your Easter menu too!

Old-Fashioned Baked Beans

2 cans large lima beans (or 2 cups dried lima beans soaked overnight and cooked until tender)

1/2 cup yellow onion, diced

1/2 cup green bell pepper, diced

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon dried mustard

1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes

salt and pepper

4 slices bacon

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Drain the lima beans but reserve the liquid. In a large shallow baking dish, combine the beans, onions, bell pepper, brown sugar, dried mustard, and diced tomatoes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Lay the strips of bacon in rows across the top of the beans. Bake the beans for at least 2 hours. Checking periodically. If the beans start to look a little dry, pour a little of the reserved liquid from the beans over the top. You may not need to add any of the liquid to the beans. Only add it if the beans begin to look dry they've finished baking. Let the cooked beans cool a bit before serving, about 10 minutes.

Here are just a few more pictures...to make you drool!

Yes, this did taste as good as it looks!

What's new at Waterberry...

With Spring just days away, I wanted to show what's been going on around here for the past few months. One of our green houses got a new cover. The cover was ripped off in a storm last year. Replacing it is quite a process! Lots of hands an NO wind are required.

The new cover ready to go!

A ball tied in the plastic with a rope. The ball is tossed over the top to someone on the other side. That's how we get the cover over the top!

Everyone grabs a ropes and pulls until the cover is in place.

 We picked a sunny day in early February to get the job done. It felt like a calm day but as we started putting the new cover on a light wind made the job quite a bit more difficult, but in the end we got the job done!

Ready for a new growing season!

A rainy day in Autumn

Here area few pictures from a rainy Autumn day on the farm. Fall is a beautiful time of the year!