Canter Hill
Farm
WHY WE GROW
We grow because we care what we eat. We care even more what our children eat. And we think you care, too. We founded Canter Hill Farm in 2008 with the goal of growing our own food so that we knew exactly what was (and what wasn't) in it. We didn't set out to start a business - we had two full-time careers of our own. But then we started talking to people who read the books that we did and cared as much as we did - and we decided to try to grow for them, too. That's how it all began....
WHERE WE ARE
2138 Valley Hill Road
Malvern, PA 19355
We are open on Fridays from 12 - 4.
Email: canterhillfarm@yahoo.com
Phone: 610.827.1594
(For a quick response, email is best!)
HOW TO BUY
SCHEDULE
Bryn Mawr:
Every Saturday from
9 am - 1 pm
Location: Parking lot of the Bryn Mawr Train Station (Lancaster Avenue & Bryn Mawr Avenue)
Chestnut Hill:
Every Saturday
9 am - noon until Christmas
Location: in front of the Mermaid Inn.
Kennett Square:
Get on our "Kennett Dropoff List" by sending us an email
Media:
Email to get on the "Media dropoff" email list. I'll alert you when I'm coming to Media and we can meet up for a pickup.
Farm:
Farm hours are
Friday from 12 - 4 pm (or request an appt.)
STEAK on SALE
What did you get dad?
I read an article that over HALF of father’s day gifts are grilling related, so what better to pair with your culinary tools than the perfect, meaty, healthy and TASTY steak?
Round out that Father’s Day gift with a SALE on steaks this week – with even MORE savings if you order ahead:
SAVE $1 / lb on any of the steaks listed below this weekend
OR
SAVE $2 / lb on those same steaks IF you pre-order or come to the farm
STEAKS:
Delmonico (Ribeye)
NY Strip
Porterhouse
Flank
Skirt
Flat Iron
Sirloin
PERFECT PRODUCE:
STRAWBERRIES: The bountiful strawberry season is coming to an end, with the high-producing varieties slowing down in the heat. We have ever-bearing varieties that will continue to produce through the summer – but they are neither as prolific nor as big, so grab the last of the berries this week to make strawberry syrup (simple syrup simmered with diced strawberries, and then poured through a sieve) for the easiest summer drink ever.
RECIPE: If you’ve never made simple syrup – it’s simple (ha!). Mix equal parts water and granulated sugar – like 1 cup of each – in a sauce pan and bring it to a boil and stir occasionally. You’re just trying to get the sugar to dissolve. To make strawberry simple syrup, I add 1 to 1.5 cups of roughly chopped strawberries to the simmering liquid from the beginning, and once it boils, I simply pour the liquid through my mesh strainer so that it keeps the strawberry flavor and leaves the berries behind. There are fancier ways (that make the syrup more red or with a richer strawberry flavor), but they step up substantially in time and effort, so this recipe typically wins the day. In the summer, start a drink with ¼ cup of this syrup and top with champagne, sparkling white wine or vodka and tonic, and you’ve turned a simple drink into a fancy one! (This simple syrup will “keep” in your fridge well into the fall).
GREEN ONIONS AND GARLIC SCAPES: As cool weather crops, you’ll want to grab these this weekend, and we have the PERFECT recipe to use them!
Asian Rice Noodles with Green Onions and Garlic Scapes:
Cook 1 pack of Pad Thai Rice Noodles by boiling them in water until they are the softness you prefer. Set aside.
Sauté 1 full bunch of chopped green onions (you can use the green parts too – chop all the way until they stop being crunchy) and chopped garlic scapes in 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of butter. Add a dash of red chili flakes if you like a little more zest (I added 2 tsp, and they were NOT spicy at all – the kids loved them) and 1 Tbsp of grated fresh ginger (I didn’t have this, so I added 1 tsp of ground ginger, and it tasted great) and 4 cloves of minced garlic and sauté. The smell is heavenly. When soft, add ¼ reduced-sodium soy sauce to this mix, and stir it around. THIS is the sauce you’re putting your cooked rice noodles into. I just dumped them into this pan and used tongs to move them around to get the sauce and sauté mixed in. That’s it. Super easy, super tasty, super fast.
You can add ANYTHING to these noodles. I sautéed some broccoli and we topped with grilled pork chops, but skirt steak, shrimp or fish would equally be a delicious accompaniment.
ASPARAGUS, ONIONS, GARLIC & SNAP PEAS – oh my!
While asparagus season is coming to a close (we still have them this week!), Snap Pea season has begun. So versatile, you can add to our rice noodle dish, throw in a stir fry or simply eat them raw and straight (which is my family’s way). Grab them this week because they are another “limited engagement” veggie that slows down when the days get hot!
Grab fresh yellow onions or garlic from our stand this weekend. We only have a few at this point, so come early or come to the farm!
PS: The ostriches JUST laid an egg this morning, so spice up that noodle dish with a little scrambled egg! (Email ahead if you want the egg!)
NEWS FROM THE FARM:
The peacocks are calling. That doesn’t do it justice. If you haven’t visited the farm store and walked around, it’s time to get it on your calendar. We’re planning some fun events this summer to pair with the animal-spotting, but these guys take the cake. Our peacocks are just a little over 1 year old (hatched April, 2024) and they don’t have their full colors yet (that takes 3 years!) But they don’t seem to realize it, as they boldly display their full feathers of…..brown! After keeping them in a large pen to teach them that the farm is home (so they don’t fly away!) we released them to free roam. This hasn’t been without its stress because they are phenomenal fliers and we were sure we lost them that first day. But lo and behold – as the sun set, there they were. They came back to sleep at home.
They now roost in the trees around our house at night and at the FIRST cracks of sunlight, they begin calling to each other – even though they are often roosting on the same darn branch! This last week, the sun must have been working overtime because those cries began around 3:30 am. Right outside my window. When people say: “I’ve always wanted to live on a farm. It’s so peaceful” – this is what I think of!
(Click on the video below to hear their "lovely" cry!)
Remember to send your pre-orders to: canterhillfarm@yahoo.com
FARM (Friday, 12 - 4 pm)
BRYN MAWR (Sat, 9 am - 1 pm) &
CHESTNUT HILL (Sat, 9 am - noon)
Our Mission:
We founded the farm on a simple premise:
Before chemicals, labs and factory farms got involved, God had created a perfect, workable system. We will learn about it, respect it, and we will naturally and successfully be able to be "beyond-organic" in our food supply.
New to farming, we had no pre-conceived ideas about raising animals or vegetables, and sought out farmers across the globe to learn what we did and didn't want to do. We quickly saw that most food systems raising just one type of offering needed external inputs - fertilizers, corn and sadly - sometimes chemicals and antibiotics. That's why we raise a variety of animals. Each has been chosen to serve a function for the others.
Over the last 10 years, we have grown and in addition to our home-base farm in Malvern, we lease 180 acres of grazing land from old family friends in Lancaster County. During the summer, we rotate half of our sheep flock through this land, and most of our steers call this land home. All of the land we graze is 100% free of any chemicals or sprays and we re-plant every other year to manage soil compression, erosion and to preserve a diversity of forage.
Canter Hill's beef and lamb is 100% grass (or hay) feed, and supplemented only with salt licks. We de-worm our sheep flock once annually, after lambing season (at the same time as sheering - typically the first week of June) and do not introduce any other chemicals or antibiotics. We have not experienced the same need to de-worm our steers. We have been migrating our sheep flock from Dorset to Katahdin, and therefore most of our sheep are now 50% or more Katahdin (a hair sheep), because we believe the meat tastes nicer! Our beef is both Black and Lowline Angus. We are shifting towards Lowline Angus which is more tolerant of 100% grass feeding and generally very hardy.
Canter Hill's poultry and pork is either pasture (for poultry) or forage fed (our pigs dig in the forest, and our turkeys also tend to roam!). They are supplemented with organic, soy-free feed. How much feed vs. forage do they consume? It depends on the weather. If it's raining or cold, more feed than forage. On warm days that aren't drenching, almost entirely forage. This is why we raise from March - November.
We STRONGLY encourage you to open your minds to frozen meat. If you're committed to pasture raising, recognize that you can't have fresh meat in the dead of winter, and purchase a great freezer!
We are committed to pasture-raised, antibiotic-free and chemical-free poultry, lamb and produce.