Today marks the inaugural blog of the season for our regular guest blogger, Heidi Nawrocki. Those of you who have been following along at home for the last year or two will remember Heidi. For those that don’t Heidi is a long-time supporter and customer of the Market who also keeps a blog called The House on the Hill (http://houseonthehillwv.blogspot.com/). Her blog chronicles her adventures as a wife and mother of two small children whose family is also “getting back to the land”. Check it out!

Mother Nature seems to have missed the memo that it's Independence Day weekend! While the rain is welcome and the crops are thriving, we need some sunshine! Regardless of the weather, grilling season is in full swing and the Farmers Market is the best place to pick up all you need for your summer cookout.

Grass-fed beef can be a fantastic addition to your cookout spread, but there are some things to keep in mind while cooking. Grass-fed beef is different than its grocery store, grain fed counterparts and requires a little different cooking. When you cook it for the first time, you might think that it's dry (I'm guilty here!). But, as I've learned, it doesn't have to be! If you allow your meat to be exposed to high temperatures for a longer period of time, the muscle fibers start to contract. What does this mean for you? The juice is consequently squeezed out of the meat, making it dry. Once the meat reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees, the meat will most assuredly start to dry out...and fast. So, the take away message is: LOWER THE HEAT.

Grass-fed beef tends to have a deeper flavor profile. Much like free range eggs tend to have more flavor than their caged counterparts, so does grass-fed beef. This deeper flavor tends to come from the environment in which the beef is raised: pastures full of nutrient dense grasses. It might be tempting to toss a load of seasoning on the meat, but when cooked correctly, there is a ton of flavor. So, go light on the spice!

In order to cook the meat correctly, be sure to know what cut of meat you are getting. Different cuts require different cooking. One way to look at this (and please don't laugh) – get down on all fours and walk around like a cow would. As you are crawling around, take notice of what parts of you are doing more work. You probably feel your shoulders, arms, chest, and belly area doing quite a bit of work. The cow is very similar. These cuts of meat (stew beef, brisket, short ribs, chuck roasts, and ground beef) are generally regarded as tougher cuts of meats. These areas do the most work in moving the cow around and therefore have more connective tissue. These cuts can't be haphazardly thrown on a flaming hot grill. They are best cooked using a moist heat to break down the connective tissue.

Ok, so where are the cuts you can grill (over lower heat, remember!)? As you continue walking around your yard on all fours and have attracted a crowd of neighborhood teenagers snapping pictures of you to share on Facebook, take notice of what parts of you aren't doing much work. The middle part of your body, up and down your back, isn't doing much. And this is where the best cuts for grilling reside. Some of the most tender cuts reside here and include filet mignon, tenderloin roasts, NY strip steaks, Porterhouse, and T-bone steaks.

So, go out and grab yourself some grass-fed beef at the market. Keep these tips in mind: lower the heat, go easy on the spice, and be sure to get the best cut for your style of cooking. Be sure to pick up some zucchini and summer squash to throw on the grill with the beef. Cut it in strips length wise, instead of coins, and you can get some pretty superb grill marks and flavor! Also grab some tomatoes and cucumbers for a refreshing summer salad. Or just stop by and get some ice cream and cupcakes and call it good. Happy Independence Day!

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Thanks, Heidi!

Fresh from a well-received gig at last week’s Festivall in Charleston, Rus Reppert returns to the Music Tent today. Rus also played at Bluegrass Kitchen while he was in Charleston. If you’re looking for a hip place that serves farm-to-table food in Charleston you can’t do any better than Bluegrass Kitchen in the East End. And, like the Market, they support local musicians!

A few weeks back you may remember our guest blogger, Athena Freedlander, writing about the Market’s new endeavor for kids, the POP (Power Of Produce) club. Well, let me tell you, it is going like gangbusters. So far this season we’ve had kids planting fruit and vegetable seeds for take-home, voting for their favorite vegetables, and last week, the kids helped make a soup. Each kid got to add his or her favorite vegetable to the pot which was then transported to Morgantown restaurant, Tin 202 (Note: Athena is a manager there). The chefs at Tin 202 added their special spices, seasonings, and stock and, Voila, a wonderful, hearty soup was enjoyed by the restaurant’s employees at their Sunday staff meal.

If all this sounds like something you would like your child to participate in please be sure to stop by the yellow POP tent in the middle of the Market today, say hello to Athena, and have your child sign a POP Passport. In so doing your child will get two POP tokens that can be spent at any of the Market’s produce vendors to buy their favorite vegetable or maybe one they haven’t tried before. Each Sunday thereafter they can stop by the POP tent, get their Passport stamped, and get two more POP tokens. So far we have close to 175 kids signed up and the program is starting to get state-wide recognition.

Until next week, Stay Fresh!

The Bridgeport Farmers Market Association is the seven member all volunteer board of directors that governs the Bridgeport Farmers Market. It is supported by a wonderful group of community volunteers who help in the setup and maintenance of the market. For more information on the Farmers Market or to see how you can help please e-mail us at bridgeportfarmersmarket@yahoo.com or, better yet, LIKE us on Facebook and follow us on both Twitter and Instagram. You can also check out the Market’s own YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/BridgeportFarmersMkt or for more BFM video content you can now go to http://vimeo.com/bridgeportfarmersmarket/videos