Growing up on my family's farm in Pennsylvania, I never would have pictured the life I live at Willow Haven farm. As a kid I spent summers in our large family garden we called, “The Truck Patch”. I helped mom every summer, picking beans, weeding, and cutting fruit and vegetables for the hundreds of jars of canned and frozen produce we put up. Now I spend less time out in the field and more time in the kitchen doing the same preserving for my own farm family. Farmer Reuben values my many hours doing much of the behind the scenes marketing, writing emails to cultivate customers and capturing the farm story each week. I'm always learning along the way in my quest to improve the farm experience for each of our current and future farm members in our 500+ member, year-round customized farm box delivery program. Reading our stories will connect you with your food in a way you never experienced before. Someday soon you will want to fit local food into your life and we'll be here to help you.
"I hope he's not a psychopath!" + New Healing Bone Broth Recipe
Hi Reader!
Grubby looked like any old Pennsylvania dutch guy sitting by a campfire in the woods that chilly November night.
The steaming cauldron that he was stirring and was full of bones from our five pastured pigs.
You'd never know he was a successful corporate trainer during the week.
Reuben and I drove to Grubby's backwoods cabin in remote area of the Poconos to learn how to butcher our own pigs in his immaculate home butcher room stocked with all the fancy tools.
As we drove through the winding wooded roads for more than hour, Reuben commented that he sure hoped we weren't following the directions of a psychopath luring us to his hideaway.
It was worth the "risk"!
There's more to the story so continue reading here:
| Making Bone Broth in the Woods |
You'll see in the blog post a traditional process for making bone broth, the benefits of bone broth and NEW RECIPE for Making Bone Broth with Any Bones!
This week's farm video is my explanation of how the scrapple you grew up eating was meant to be a SUPERFOOD!
Traditional homestead scrapple was
- family raised pork, outdoors in the sunshine
- naturally fed from what the land produced and scraps from the table
- a multigenerational family experience
- slow cooked bone broth over a fire
- included organ meat for added nutrition
| Read Here |
As Always...
We support your desire to have a good, healthy way of life and food on your table that supports that goal.
We'll keep farming for you!
Reuben and Tessa DeMaster
Willow Haven Farm
P.S. The Farm store is open on Saturday to help you stock up on eggs, milk, cheese, vegetables, natural cleaners, home remedies and more.
Open this weekend!
Market Hours:
Saturday: 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Be Inspired by Your Farm Community!
Come to the Farm!
One way kids learn about life is by fostering chicks from the farm.
You can find out about the Foster a Chick Experience and get on our waiting list HERE.
Thinking of unsubscribing? CSA members need to stay connected to our emails but you can limit them to just vital information about your membership by clicking here.
Tessa DeMaster
Growing up on my family's farm in Pennsylvania, I never would have pictured the life I live at Willow Haven farm. As a kid I spent summers in our large family garden we called, “The Truck Patch”. I helped mom every summer, picking beans, weeding, and cutting fruit and vegetables for the hundreds of jars of canned and frozen produce we put up. Now I spend less time out in the field and more time in the kitchen doing the same preserving for my own farm family. Farmer Reuben values my many hours doing much of the behind the scenes marketing, writing emails to cultivate customers and capturing the farm story each week. I'm always learning along the way in my quest to improve the farm experience for each of our current and future farm members in our 500+ member, year-round customized farm box delivery program. Reading our stories will connect you with your food in a way you never experienced before. Someday soon you will want to fit local food into your life and we'll be here to help you.
Reader, We were out shoveling the parking lot with the kids while mugs of real hot chocolate, chai lattes made with whole milk, and cappuccinos Reuben insists are “perfection” (he learned in Sicily) waited inside. Between sips, the kids wandered the store—feasting their eyes on new artisan pieces and tasting infused honeys as they debated what to buy for a special friend. It was one of those moments that reminded me why we love this season so much. That’s the feeling behind our Holiday Sip &...
Hi there, Reader, When was the last time you slowed down long enough to taste where your food comes from? Saturdays’s forecast is perfect—crisp air, sunshine, and the smell of pizza baking in our brick oven. 🍕☀️And for one more day only, we’re opening the gates and firing up the oven. Join us this Saturday, October 18, from 12–5 PM for the Lehigh County Open Gate Farm Tour at Willow Haven Farm in New Tripoli. You’ll walk through the same fields that grew your vegetables this season, meet the...
Reader, Every day Farmer Reuben meets someone new who’s just discovering our General Store. They come in for sourdough, a hot lunch, or a fresh pastry — and their eyes light up when they realize they’ve finally found a place that doesn’t compromise on clean, local food. That moment matters. Because Willow Haven General Store isn’t meant to be just another shop. We’re building a place where families can eat without second-guessing labels… where neighbors gather around coffee and conversation…...