Intern Spotlight: Meet Veni! ☀️

It’s been a busy summer, and we wouldn’t be able to do it all without the helping hands around the farm and in the store!

We’ve been fortunate to have Veni here with us as an intern this season. She found her way to Acorn Acres all the way from LA through her aunt Joanna, one of our beloved store managers.

During her time here she has been a huge help—adding her artistic eye to our signage, stocking and cleaning the store when we need it most, and assisting with harvests at the farm. She brings a positive, energetic attitude that always brightens our day! 🎨☀️

She headed back home for school and we already miss her exuberant presence around here. Thanks for all of your help this summer, Veni!

And guess what? 🍑 Our partner farms are harvesting fresh peaches daily—we’ll have a mixed variety of Jerry’s peaches from Living Earth Farms arriving Wednesday, and Susan peaches from Earth First Farms on Thursday.

Come stock up on these delicious beauties while you can!

📍362 Indian Boundary Rd, Chesterton, IN
• Wednesday 10am-5pm
• Thursday 10am-5pm
• Friday 10am-5:30pm
• Saturday 10am-4:30pm

Produce

As our gardens continue to grow, it occasionally becomes possible to harvest some produce in bulk. If interested, please give us a day advance to harvest extra! We can offer bulk prices, at the time of your pre-order and we will use the following emoji to designate whether bulk options are available: 🤩. This week’s local, fresh harvest includes:

  • Asian Pears – fresh and delicious as ever! 🤩

  • Beans—Green (fancy French and many other varieties will be coming in this week throughout the week so, if pre-ordering bulk, please let us know what you prefer, we’re likely harvesting it!) 🤩

  • Beets—red with tops 🤩

  • Blackberries (frozen)

  • Blueberries (frozen – and fresh option by Thursday!)

  • Broccoli – another nice harvest this week! 

  • Cabbage (Red and Green)

  • Cantaloupe — incredibly sweet and plenty this week!

  • Carrots

  • Cherry Tomatoes – mixed varieties and yellow (all are ultra sweet and flavorful, great for a special snack, salad, or adding to your sauces) 🤩

  • Cucumbers – many varieties including those special pickles you enjoy all fall and winter, now is the time to pre-order for bulk canning, all varieties are coming in fast! 🤩

  • Eggplant – planning for special guests who’ve traveled the world and always seem to have tried everything? Get a little bit of garlic, olive oil, lemon juice, tahini, and smoke roast these amazing eggplants (preferably over a fire) to blend for Baba Ghanoush, you’ll surprise anyone with sophisticated tastebuds! Enjoy with our cucumbers, sweet peppers, cracker options, or toast up some of Joe’s sourdough! 🤩

  • Garlic

  • Herbs — many great varieties of fresh basil (green or purple), celery, cilantro, mint, Greek and Italian oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme, and plenty of dried options available!

  • Heirloom Tomatoes – several varieties

  • Horseradish upon request 

  • Kale

  • Kohlrabi

  • Lettuce (mixed leaf and head)

  • Mulberries (frozen – may have some fresh this week too!)

  • Mushrooms—dried (shiitake) and marinated (porcini and mixed varieties) this week

  • Okra

  • Onions—sweet baking onions!

  • Peaches (fresh) — We hope to have plenty this week with multiple varieties (Susan, Red Haven, Belle of Georgia, and more)!

  • Peppers—sweet banana, green/red/yellow, and snack peppers as well as hot jalapeños, poblanos, shishitos, and others 🤩

  • Plums (frozen) – no more fresh this year sadly! But these frozen plums are amazing, you won’t want to miss them!

  • Potatoes (Blues, Kennebec, and Red Nolan) 🤩

  • Raspberries (frozen)

  • Shallots

  • Strawberries (frozen)

  • Sweet Corn—another great harvest this week!

  • Swiss Chard

  • Turnips 🤩

  • Watermelon—several varieties, summer refreshing and sweet!

  • Zucchini (Green and Striped varieties) 🤩

As always, our produce is GMO-free and grown without synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides — and we make sure it stays that way, even for crops that are tricky to grow naturally!

Dairy & Eggs

This week’s options include:

  • Grass-fed, organic, non-homogenized, low heat pasteurized milk (A1/A2 this week), butter, buttermilk, cheese (cottage cheese, Parmigiano Reggiano, and GGC sharp cheddar), kefir (vanilla), and yogurt (plain). Note: the 16 oz whipping cream was discontinued. We will only have the option to carry the 24 oz afterwards and would prefer pre-orders 3 weeks prior to ensure we avoid any waste. We do not have whipping cream this week.

  • Chicken and Duck eggs this week! Our eggs are hand harvested and cleaned. Our chickens are raised on not simply organic but also a soy free grain mix along with their free range diet. There really is nothing like the consistency and flavor of these delectable treats from heritage breeds . . . we bring out the connoisseurs!

Meat Availability

This week’s options (while supplies last) include:

  • Beef Prime Steaks: NY Strip, Sirloin tip, Tri-tip! We will be re-stocking with more prime steaks by mid-month!

  • Beef Savory Roasts, Steaks & Ribs: Brisket (plenty large enough for smoking), Chuck Arm and Rump Roasts. Flat Iron, Mock Tenderloin, Cubed (tenderized), and Round (top, bottom, eye, and full) steaks!

  • Beef Grill Options: Ground Beef—approx. 85% lean and Ground Chuck—approx. 89% lean. Beef Patties—approx. 85% lean (3 or 4 pk)! We're also carrying The Brooklyn Hot Dog Company dogs: All Beef or Beef & Pork! Buy two or more packages for a 10% discount (see our boxes on our pre-order form)!

  • Beef Stew & Organ Meat Options: Stew Meat (limited supply), Soup bones and Organ Meats, including cheeks, heart, kidney, liver, and more!

  • Chicken (frozen options): Whole, Cut-ups (breast—boneless / skinless, thighs, leg quarters, and drums—a 10% discount if you buy 2 pkgs or more of leg quarters and drums on special--$4.99/lb while supplies last!!). We also have Ground Chicken and Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage! And, chicken organ meat (including: backs, necks, feet, liver, and gizzard)!

  • Duck (frozen): Whole only

  • Lamb: 

    • Ground Lamb (15% off while supplies last!)

    • Lamb Patties (4/pkg)

    • Lamb Chops: loin, rib, shoulder, and sirloin

    • Lamb Shanks

    • Lamb Stew Meat

    • Lamb Soup Bones, and organ meats

  • Pork: Italian (Hot or Sweet) Sausage Large Links! Breakfast sausages: Real Vermonter’s Maple and Mild Breakfast Small Links! All from our pannage raised pork and organically sourced spice blends (featuring the Teeny Tiny Spice Co). Note: have you tried our pork patties? They come plain or with salt & pepper. You can also get them in a convenient 3-pack or 4-pack. They’re in our box specials—buy 2 or more and get them 10% off. This a real find!

    • Pork Chops (thick or thin / boneless or bone-in), Pork Steaks, Spareribs and more! Other cuts: Back Fat for making your own lard! And Pork Neck Bones for that favorite Pasta Sauce flavor. 

    • Pork Roasts: Like pulled pork? We have both the Pork Butt and the Picnic Roasts fresh frozen (about 2.5 to >8 lbs each). If you want to add another layer to your slow cooks, try our smoked hams with our unique, natural smoke cure with real fruit pectin rather than celery salt used in the natural blend.

    • Smoked jowl bacon and bacon ends, smoked pork chops, ham roasts & steaks, and  ham hocks for your special meals!! Or, for a smokey sausage, try our bacon cooked in your skillet or toaster oven with any of the sausage for that delicious flavor that comes with smoked sausage.

  • Rabbit: Whole

  • Turkey: Whole, Cut-ups including Breasts (boneless/skin on and bone-in/skin on, drums, wings), ground, and backs for amazing soup stock available. And turkey organ meats (gizzard and liver in approximate 1 lb packages)! Turkey drums or wings—buy 2 or more and get them 10% off!

Read more about how we raise our grass-fed beef, pastured poultry, pastured pork, and grass-fed lamb.

Fresh Features

Exciting things in store this week, while supplies last!!

  • Beca Imports: Lots of new pasta, Arke’ EVOO, Riso Carnaroli Gran Riserva, marinated olives, artichokes,  and more!

  • Bona Furtuna: Enjoy more amazing, ancient grain pasta options, taralli, marinated pasta sauces, and more!

  • Foods Alive: healthy, organic foods with lots of savory flavor! We carry their salad dressings with high omega-3, cold-pressed seed oils, sprouted crisps, sustainably sourced nuts and dried berries, unfortified nutritional yeasts, and more!

  • Joe's Bread: Fresh, Artisanal Sourdough Bread Daily! Wednesday and Friday specialty options available too!

  • Equal Exchange: Try many organic coffee options, including their newly branded “Everyday”! We have a wide selection and love to talk about our favorites!

  • Pure Indian Foods: Try an array of thoughtfully sourced, organic spices (including curry blends), Kitchari with mung bean (yellow or green), aged Himalayan Basmati rice,  cultured ghee, vegan Worcestershire sauce, or mango puree, you won’t be disappointed!

  • Teeny Tiny Spices: (organic tin collection with recipes and featured in our pork sausage)! Enjoy the spice of life in each amazing variety, a different recipe with every tin, and a trip to whatever region of the world you’ve been wanting to go, without leaving your kitchen! And, if you haven’t tasted these spices in our pork sausages, you’re missing out.

Sarah Highlen