What's better than a delicious meal at your favorite restaurant? A delicious meal at your favorite restaurant starring the freshest local ingredients from central Illinois farmers, that's what! When you dine out for local flavors, you not only get to savor the flavors of Illinois, but you get to show your support for small farmers, sustainable farming, and local businesses. When you buy local, you exercise your power to change our food system and create a world where land, an

I work with amazing colleagues. Not only are they intelligent, interesting, vibrant, beautiful people in their own rights, but they are also whole-heartedly committed to their work. They believe in a world where land is treated as a precious resource, small farmers earn a decent living, and wholesome food is available for all...and they live out that belief every single day. They shop at the farmers market, purchase CSA's, grow their own gardens, manage their own farms. And t

Do you have a logo? Website? Brochure or price list? What about a farm or business newsletter? Would you like to connect more with consumers through social media but don't know how? Do you need help with marketing but you're just not sure where to start? We've got you covered! We are THRILLED to welcome Jacqlyn Rohlfs to the Illinois Stewardship Alliance team this year. Jacqlyn has a background in graphic design, branding, and small-business marketing and will be completi

Imagine a place where locally grown and raised food is on the menu of nearly every restaurant, year-round farmers markets serve all communities in Illinois, vacant lots are transformed into community gardens, and the countryside is dotted with farms of all sizes living in harmony with the environment. If you’re like us, these are visions we share for Illinois. For over 40 years, Illinois Stewardship Alliance has been a pioneer, working to make such visions reality. Our annual

Our (Illinois Stewardship Alliance's) former board president, John Curtis, founder of Barefoot Gardens in Macomb, IL, wrote this touching eulogy for his grandfather. We think it's worth sharing. My grandfather, Alvin John Curtis, was born in Bethel Township of McDonough County, west central Illinois, in 1915. When he was a boy, cars were rare, the combustion engine was a new and unusual thing, and most people still traveled by foot or by carriage or on horseback. When my gran

Join Rolling Meadows Brewery on their farm for a 4 course meal of fresh, locally grown ingredients expertly prepared by Chef Justin Cooper of Cooper's StrEATside Bistro and paired with exceptional beers from Rolling Meadows Brewery. First Course Shaved Red Cabbage, Fennel and Apple salad with crumbled bleu cheese and candied walnuts Second Course Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Herb Croutons Third Course Lincoln's Lager Brined Pork Steak, garlic mashed potatoes and Roasted

What's better than a delicious meal at your favorite restaurant? A delicious meal at your favorite restaurant starring the freshest local ingredients from central Illinois farmers, that's what! When you dine out for local flavors, you not only get to savor the flavors of Illinois, but you get to show your support for small farmers, sustainable farming, and local businesses. When you buy local, you exercise your power to change our food system and create a world where land, an

Fermentation Fun with Chef Greg Christian Wednesday, September 23, 2015 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm Small Axe Market Gardens, Bruns Lane, Springfield IL 62704. $25 per ticket By fermenting the bounty of produce from your garden or the local farmers market, you can extend the life of your vegetables, improve the digestibility and nutritional value and explore new flavors. Fermentation Fun will be lead by Chef Greg Christian and focus on the fermentation of local, seasonal produce. Par

Zucchini is a sneaky plant. If you've got this summer favorite in your garden you know what I'm talking about. One day you've got a beautiful little zucchini with the diameter of a quarter, and the next day you walk outside to check the garden and somehow you've got a zucchini the size of a holiday ham! Not to mention one zucchini plant can produce enough squash to feed a small army. Before summer's out you are swimming in zucchini and you have no idea what to do with it all!