Pretli Green   Acre Farm
Pretli Green   Acre Farm


You're Not Buying Beef Because You're An Idiot

"Alternative agribusiness, as we stated earlier, was developed in the interest of the farmer rather than the public, so it makes sense that it wholeheartedly chose the Pull Strategy to put consumers at the service of the farmer. Instead of viewing every person as worthy of being fed a sustainable/healthy diet (and as a potential customer), alternative agribusiness simply divides the public into the virtuous people willing and able to pay high prices for food, and the non-virtuous people who aren't willing or, more often, simply aren't able, thereby showcasing its chronic lack of interest in or sympathy for the household economics of regular working families. As is discussed in Appendix B, alternative agribusiness was able to make some headway with consumers anyway owing to artificially-elevated spending power that is rapidly vanishing.

You may recognize this for what it is: plain old luxury marketing appealing to
peoples' desire to be elite. The difference between farm-to-table and, say, Rolls Royce, is a simple matter of honesty: the latter doesn't pretend that an ideal world consisting of a Rolls in every garage is possible or even desirable. Farm-to-table, on the other hand, has the mind-bending task of convincing people that the commodities it produces are, in fact, luxury items. It accomplishes this by a.) proclaiming its vision of an ideal world where everyone's eating hugel-grown carrots and pasture-raised chicken at a 3X price premium, and b.) suggesting this ideal world doesn't exist because most people - but not you - are too stingy to pay the real price of food. Farm-to-table threads a tiny needle of buyer psychology: you're not paying 3X the price of food because the product is 3X better (as is the case with e.g. luxury cars); you're paying it because it costs 3X more to be a part of “the solution;” a better, selfless, and more conscientious person."
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    Cherry Almond Cupcakes
    These fluffy, tender cupcakes have the perfect flavor combination of maraschino cherry and sweet almond flavor! They are perfect for Valentines day or a birthday.

    #AlmondExtract #Butter #CakeFlour #Cherries #EggWhites #Eggs #PowderedSugar #VanillaExtract

    Servings: 12
    Ready in: 50 minutes
    Prep: 30 minutes
    Cook: 20 minutes

    Ingredients:
    1 1/4 cups cake flour
    3/4 tsp baking powder
    1/8 tsp baking soda
    1/4 tsp salt
    18 maraschino cherries , divided
    3/4 cup granulated sugar
    6 Tbsp unsalted butter , at room temperature
    1 large egg , at room temperature*
    1 large egg white , at room temperature
    1/2 tsp almond extract
    1/2 tsp vanilla extract
    1/3 cup buttermilk
    3 Tbsp maraschino cherry juice
    Frosting
    3/4 cup butter , at room temperature (I used 1/2 cup unsalted 1/4 cup salted)
    2 1/4 cups powdered sugar
    1 1/2 - 2 1/2 Tbsp maraschino cherry juice
    1/4 tsp almond extract
    Few drops red food coloring (optional)

    Instructions:
    1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl, whisk together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt for 30 seconds, set aside. Cut 6 maraschino cherries into halves and set aside**.  
    2. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, whip together butter and granulated sugar until pale and fluffy. Mix in egg then add in egg white, almond extract and vanilla extract and blend until combined.  
    3. In liquid measuring cup used to measure buttermilk, combined buttermilk with maraschino cherry juice. With mixer set on low speed, working in three separate batches beginning and ending with flour mixture, add 1/3 of the flour mixture alternating with 1/2 of the buttermilk mixture and mixing just until combined after each addition.  
    4. Divide mixture among 12 paper lined muffin cups, filling each cup about 1/2 full. Place one cherry half in the center of each cupcake (it will sink to the bottom during baking). Bake in preheated oven 17 - 19 minutes until toothpick inserted into center of cupcake comes out clean.  
    5. Run a butter knife around edges to loosen cupcakes (unless yours didn't go to the edges like mine) and allow to cool in muffin tin 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely then pipe or spread Cherry Almond Frosting over tops. Store in an airtight container. Top each cupcake with a maraschino cherry just before serving.
    6. For the frosting: In a mixing bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, whip butter on medium-high speed until very pale and fluffy, about 7 - 8 minutes, occasionally scraping down sides and bottom of the bowl (if you have the beater blade paddle scraper attachment, about 5 minutes).
    7. Add in powdered sugar, 1 1/2 Tbsp maraschino cherry juice and almond extract. Blend on low speed until combined, then add food coloring if desired and additional cherry juice to thin as desired (adding 1 tsp at a time), and increase speed to medium-high and whip until pale and fluffy, about 5 - 6 minutes longer (about 4 minutes with scraper attachment).

    Notes:
    *To bring my eggs to room temperature I usually always just let them rest in a bowl of warm water for 10 minutes.
    **These will later be placed in cupcake batter. If they're small you can use whole ones but make sure you'll have enough to top the cupcakes, you'll need 24 total if using whole cherries.
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      Learn How To Make Your Very Own Backyard Composter In Just A Few Steps

      Growing your own garden can be one of the most relaxing things to do in the warmer parts of the year. Watching plants you've reared from mere seeds sprout from the ground and grow into beautiful, branchy blossoms can be really therapeutic and calming. Not to mention all of the beautiful bouquets you'll be able to pick for centerpieces, or all of the fresh veggies you'll be able to use for salads or fresh sauces!

      The key to a flourishing garden? That would be good soil. Without good soil, even the best gardener won't be able to make anything grow.

      What makes good soil? It has to be fertile. Sure, you could buy fertilizer from the store, but you can't always be too sure what's actually in there. There could be unnatural chemicals that you wouldn't want for your plants. So, why not make your own? By doing this, you'll also save a good chunk of change on expensive packaged fertilizer.

      Making your own fertilizer sounds like it could be really difficult, but it's really just a few steps away. All you have to do is make a compost bin to keep in your backyard!

      Having a compost bin is also a great way of putting to use the nutrients in your food waste instead of tossing them into a landfill.

      Meagen Mackenzie has a cheap, simple DIY composter and instructions that are so easy to follow, you'll wonder why you haven't already been doing this for years! You can check out more tips from Mackenzie on her youtube channel.

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