Cooking, Animal Keeping, NSA, and more!

We're excited to announce our 2010 Winter class schedule. Over the last year I've received many requests for classes, and nothing makes me happier than sharing my love of homesteading-type stuff others.

The cooking classes will teach from-scratch methods for making simple, wholesome dishes using "real food." We'll offer fun, hand-on classes in backyard chicken and goat keeping. There's also a gardening class geared toward making the most of your home garden.

The crown jewel of our winter class schedule is the NSA (Neighborhood Supported Agriculture) workshop I'll be co-teaching with Kipp Nash of Community Roots. This workshop is for anyone who is interested in starting their own NSA program. Both Kipp and I would be thrilled to see NSA spread through all of the neighborhoods in our area!

Without further ado, here is the class schedule. You can click on each individual date to read a full class description and/or register for the class, or you can view the complete calendar here.

Cooking

Simple From Scratch

Menu: No-Knead Multigrain Bread; Homemade Mozzarella; Roasted Beet Salad with Garlic, Green Beans and Sour Cream Horseradish Dressing; Vegetable Barley Soup; Apple Dumplings with Ice Cream and Homemade Caramel Sauce

Sunday, January 10th at 6:00

Tuesday, February 23rd at 6:00

Friday, March 26th at 6:00

Cost = $50 (includes recipes)

Seasonal Soups and Breads

Menu: Creamy Onion Soup with Brandy and Caramelized Apples; Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Brown Butter and Creme Fraiche, Portuguese White Bean and Kale Stew, Challah Bread, Cheddar Cheese and Buttermilk Biscuits, Fig and Almond Dessert Bread

Tuesday, January 26th at 6:00

Friday, February 12th at 6:00

Sunday, March 7th at 6:00

Cost = $50 (includes recipes)

Simple Indian

Menu: Golden Mung Dal with Winter Squash, Saag with Homemade Paneer, Coconut Curry Roasted Vegetables, Cabbage Koftas with Spicy Sauce, Grilled Naan Bread with Fennel Seed, Kheer with Almonds and Dates

Friday, January 22nd at 6:00

Sunday, February 7th at 6:00

Tuesday, March 16th at 6:00

Cost = $50 (includes recipes)

Animal Care

Backyard Chicken Keeping

Hands-on introduction, including: choosing the perfect chickens, chick care, housing and fencing, feeding, common chicken challenges, all about the eggs, financial considerations, livestock permitting process

Saturday, January 23rd at 1:00

Sunday, March 14th at 1:00

Cost = $25 (includes instructional handouts)

Backyard Goat Keeping

Hands-on introduction, including: choosing the perfect goats, housing and fencing, feeding, medical care, common goat challenges, all about the milk, financial considerations, livestock permitting process

Saturday, February 20th at 1:00

Cost = $25 (includes instructional handouts)

Gardening

Neighborhood Supported Agriculture (NSA) Workshop - with Kipp Nash

Intended for those interested in starting an NSA program, including: community land resources, organizing workers, planning and planting, distribution, marketing, financial, zoning rules and liability issues

Sunday, January 31st at 10:00

Cost = $80

Getting the Most Out of Your Home Garden

Maximizing the production of your garden space, including: creating a master plan, soil preparation, seed starting, companion planting, succession planting, spacing, organic pest and disease management, preserving techniques

Saturday, February 27th at 1:00

Sunday, March 28th at 1:00

Cost = $30