Day Two

Camping was fantastic but it POURED all night (did it rain here?). Thankfully we stayed dry in our tents. It's a fairly short drive to Lake Shelbyville, and Eagle Creek was peaceful and sparsely populated this weekend. Wolf Creek State Park is across the lake, and on the governor's list to be closed on November 1st. Don't get me started on that topic.

I took along turkey burger, tomatoes, peppers, and corn for my meal - and I was stuffed!! But let me tell you - I had my first epiphany. I'm a fan of turkey burger, and choose it over beef at home and out if possible. I try to buy "the good stuff" at the store. I'd never eaten grass-fed turkey before, though - and it was VERY DIFFERENT. It was delicious and fresh and lean and, well, tasted like TURKEY. The vendor (see below) told me that it was a mix of white and dark meat "to keep it moist," and that it would make a great burger. She was right! I paid $5.50/lb. for the turkey burger, and used maybe a 1/4 per burger. How much do you pay for a 1/4 lb. burger in the drive-thru or at a restaurant? I assure you that it isn't going to taste THIS fresh, and you probably have no idea where it came from.

I bought the turkey burger as well as cornmeal and whole wheat flour from Moore Family Farm. They had a handwritten sign detailing the heartbreaking story of the loss of most of their turkey herd - the birds were killed by a wild predator (paraphrasing here). They lost most of their crop and this has devastated their supply and of course their business. I was glad that at my tiniest level, I was able to personally help someone by purchasing their stuff. Shopping locally...yet another benefit for everyone.

Here's a little bit about the Moore Family Farm:

The Moore's family farm is located near Watseka, Illinois. Jim and Diann Moore and their two teenage sons own and operate their nearly 100 year old farm. The Moore's raise seasonal grassfed beef, lamb, goat and pasture-raised pork, chicken, and turkeys, and farm fresh brown eggs.

No animal is confined to a conventional building. Jim and his sons mix all of the feed for the animals on the farm, providing a nutritional, drug-free diet for each species. The poultry raised on the farm is purchased and delivered as day-old birds from hatcheries. All of the other animals are raised on the family farm from conception to processing age.