Cooking with Kids: Fun and Nourishing Recipes Using Farm Fresh Ingredients

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January 27, 2024

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There's something magical about cooking with your kids. Not only does it teach them essential life skills, but it also provides a great opportunity for bonding. In this blog post, we'll share some fun and easy recipes that you can prepare with your little ones using farm-fresh ingredients from Triple E Farm. Our recipes are inspired by traditional cooking, Weston A. Price principles and approach to nutrition and health

1. Mini Beef Meatballs

Our first recipe is a simple yet delicious dish that kids will love - Mini Beef Meatballs. Not only will they love eating it they will love helping get their hands dirty and rolling the meatballs along side of you. The beef used in this recipe comes straight from our farm, ensuring high quality and taste.

Ingredients:

1 lb Triple E Farm ground beef
1 egg from Triple E Farm
1/2 cup of sourdough breadcrumbs
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup of grated cheese from Triple E Farm
Instructions:
Mix all ingredients in a bowl.
Form small meatballs and place them on a baking sheet.
Bake at 375°F for 20-25 minutes or until cooked through.

2. Cheesy Scrambled Eggs

Up next, we've got a breakfast classic - Cheesy Scrambled Eggs. It's a great way to fuel up for the day, chock full of protein from our fresh-from-the-farm eggs and cheese. The kiddos love this because they get to stir the eggs in the pan until they're just right!

Ingredients:

4 Triple E Farm eggs
1/4 cup of milk
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup of grated cheese from Triple E Farm
Butter to taste
Instructions:
Beat the eggs and milk together in a bowl.
Pour the mixture into a non-stick frying pan over medium heat.
Stir gently until the eggs start to set.
Sprinkle the cheese over the eggs and continue to stir until fully cooked.

3. Hearty Chicken and Vegetable Soup

Our last recipe is a super cozy Chicken and Vegetable Soup that's just right for those cold days. We use our own farm-raised chicken and a bunch of fresh veggies. It's a hit with kids, especially when they get to help chop up the veggies and throw them in the pot. To top it off, read 'Stone Soup' together and bam! You've got a fun new family tradition

Ingredients:

1 Triple E Farm chicken, cut into pieces
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
1 onion, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
Fresh herbs (parsley, thyme, rosemary)
Butter to taste

Instructions:

Place the chicken pieces in a large pot and cover with water.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the chicken is cooked through.

Remove the chicken from the pot and let it cool. Once cooled, remove the meat from the bones.

Return the chicken meat to the pot, add the chopped vegetables and herbs, and simmer until the vegetables are tender.

These recipes are not only delicious but also nutritious, adhering to the principles of traditional cooking, Weston A. Price nutrition. They provide an excellent way to introduce your kids to the joy of cooking and the importance of eating fresh, locally sourced food. So why not roll up your sleeves, gather your little helpers, and start cooking these fantastic recipes using Triple E Farm's fresh ingredients? Enjoy!

Regenerative can mean something different to every farm. Here are our 5 principles.

In our neck of West Virginia, we're the only farm that claims to be regenerative. Why are we the only regenerative farm in a 50 mile radius? Well, my first thought is that the life of a farmer isn't easy. My second thought is that farmers simply aren't paid like they used to be. Most people nowadays view farming as a side gig instead of a career. They want it to be easy, and trucking in outside fertilizer and spraying and overgrazing sure are easy... at least in the short term. Not me and my brother Phil. We want to take it back to the olden days when you could support your family 100% through farming. To make a living with farming, you 100% need your land and animals to be healthy and productive. Since I want to work with nature (instead of against it), this means regenerative farming. Although we're the only ones in our area, we're thankfully not alone in the movement overall. Allen Willians from Understanding Ag and the Soil Health Academy says that they're consulting on 35 million acres in the US and 55 million acres globally. Wow! There’s more and more interest and more and more land being converted every year. Wow and thank goodness!! But any movement sometimes comes with an unfortunate downside. In the natural food world, the term "regenerative" has sadly become somewhat overused (dare I say greenwashed). So, to make what Triple E does super clear for you, I'm going to outline what regenerative means to us right now. Here are Triple E's 5 principles of regenerative farming: ----- Principle #1: We practice adaptive, rotational grazing. Rotational grazing means that your animals move to fresh, new pasture often. It's kinda like it used to be when herds of bison or deer moved from area to area. After the animals are done eating down a pasture, we allow the land ample time to regrow. We let our pasture rest 40 days at minimum. When the animals move on, the new manure on top naturally fertilizes the land. The roots to spread and naturally til the soil (without mechanical tilling). The microbiology in the soil does its thing. And the plants take and fix back nutrients into the soil. We don't overgraze. We have about 20 cows to an acre. We use moveable fences to move the cows at minimum 1x per day (this also keeps the cows fuller - every time you move a cow they eat more). We practice adaptive grazing, which means we don't operate on a strict and set schedule. If grass it growing, they need less pasture. If it’s a drought, then they need a bigger space to graze. In the spring, they need less space because of the fresh growth. If the weather is in our favor, we sometimes move the cows 2-3x per day! Principle #2: We keep cows outside, even in the winter. This can be a contested issue when it comes to animal welfare. Some people think it's too cold and cows need winter jackets. But, in my experience, cows don't feel cold until it's below 20F. So why not have the cows out in the fresh air an sunshine all year? That's what we do. They typically have access to indoors, but they rarely use it. In the warmer months, they're eating lots of fresh pasture. In the colder months or drought, we give them dry pasture (AKA hay). With pigs, we do the same thing. But birds are a different story. They won't like it if it's too cold. So, we don't grow broilers in the colder months. And the laying hens are given inside space in the winter. Principle #3: We don't use sprays. No crazy chemicals here! That's right. We don't spray anything on our pastures... even certified organic ones. So no worry about chemicals on our land! We do have our soil tested every so often. If the ratios of minerals are off, we'll have a special blend mixed for where it's needed. This is far from synthetic fertilizers many farms spread everywhere every year. They're simply ground rocks spread strategically and only where it's needed. This helps us get the soil where it needs to be for better growth immediately. As the years of regenerative farming go on, less and less minerals are needed, since nature is naturally balancing itself. Principle #4: We let nature do its thing. Nature loves to be in balance. If humans were to disappear, nature would overtake everything, just like in those post-apocalyptic movies with vines growing on skyscrapers. We follow nature's lead. Nature always tries to cover bare soil. A lot of people try to tear up the land and seed specific plants in. But is that necessary? Nature will let many things grow back. We almost always keep the soil covered and rarely til, only when absolutely necessary or for a specific purpose. Nature always try to stay in balance. For example, if a field is deficient in calcium, you'll likely see more Canadian thistle growing. This is because it pulls calcium and makes it more available in the soil. Or, another example is that pigweed appears when there's a nitrogen imbalance, because it helps balance the nitrogen levels. We respect nature a lot. Principle #5: Diversity is everything to us. We focus on the farm as a whole, not on individual little problems. We encourage many plants and insects and animals to thrive in our pastures. For example, a weed is a plant that you don't want growing somewhere. To us, we don't have really any weeds. Because, as described in the previous principle, every plant has a purpose, whether for the soil or as a food or as a breeding area for beneficial insects. As another example, when a farm uses a pesticide, they’re targeting a very specific pest. But for every one of those "pesky" plants, there’s 1700 beneficial insects that thrive with and around it. And we need those insects for the health of everything else. We choose to focus on increasing beneficial insects instead of killing the handful of potentially harmful ones. We choose to focus on resilience, not destruction. ----- To sum it up, regenerative farming means that we're naturally improving everything year after year. The soil improves --> the plants get healthier and bigger --> the animals get healthier and grow better and fertilize better --> the food becomes more nutrient-dense for you. It's all an amazing natural cycle of health. When we farm naturally, we grow wellness. And want to know one more amazing fact? When you eat regeneratively-farmed, nutrient-dense food, you actually want to eat less. That's because your body is getting more nourishment from each bite when compared to conventional food. No empty calories. Wow! Thank you so so much for your support with our regenerative vision! We sure wouldn't be able to keep going without you eating the food we grow.

Coming Soon: Raw Dairy Pet Food!

Get ready to wag those tails and purr with delight because we're introducing something truly special - 100% Grass-Fed Raw Dairy Pet Food! What makes our raw dairy pet food stand out?...

Coming Soon - Low PUFA Pork, Corn, and Soy Free!

At Triple E Farm, we're thrilled to announce an upcoming addition to our product lineup: Low PUFA Pork that's both corn and soy-free! You might be wondering, what's all the fuss about? Well, let us fill you in on why we've made this switch and why it matters for you. Why the Switch to Corn and Soy-Free?...

Cooking with Kids: Fun and Nourishing Recipes Using Farm Fresh Ingredients

1. Mini Beef Meatballs

2. Cheesy Scrambled Eggs

3. Hearty Chicken and Vegetable Soup

More from the blog

Regenerative can mean something different to every farm. Here are our 5 principles.

Coming Soon: Raw Dairy Pet Food!

Coming Soon - Low PUFA Pork, Corn, and Soy Free!

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