Gibralter Farms

05/17/2023

Lunch today is brought to you by Bacon!

If you are cravin' some bacon, make sure to check out the Pork Bundle on our website

05/14/2023

Our farm is made possible by mothers. The dairy cows give birth to begin their lactation and provide milk for the calves and for us. The sows and gilts give birth to the piglets to begin the circle of life anew. Our own mothers, Bev and Karin, continue to support us in too many ways, large and small, to count on one day of the year.

But, as they say, it takes a village. We are also blessed with aunts, siblings, cousins, dear family friends, and community mother figures. And, of course, learning to parent our own two daughters is a constant journey. Our hearts are full on this Mother's Day.

To those for whom this day is not as happy, be gentle with yourselves. To those who have a mother figure to honor, Happy Mother's Day ❤️

05/13/2023

The backyard chickens are taking advantage of a break in the rain to do some foraging 🌱

05/12/2023

You made it to Friday evening! Take a well-deserved break 💚

05/11/2023

This is one of our family's favorite meals.

Check out the recipe here:
https://gibralterfarms.com/bacon-cheesy-pasta/
.. and then get some of our delicious bacon!

05/10/2023

May you be as excited for your afternoon as the weaned calves were to get on pasture for the first time this spring!

05/09/2023

The Marsh Marigolds are in bloom!

The south fork of the Iowa River runs through the middle of our farm, creating marshy ground and wetland areas. Some of this land can be used for pasture, but most has been left for nature.

This has allowed these bright yellow flowers to proliferate; the bright pops of color mean spring is truly here.

Do you have Marsh Marigolds near you?

05/08/2023

Why our Premium Grilling Bundle is the perfect Mother's Day gift:

Mother's Day is this Sunday, and this year you can get the woman that brought you and/or your children into the world a unique and delicious gift.

With Steaks, Pork Chops, Bratwursts, and Hamburgers, the Premium Grilling Bundle can be a way to show your appreciation over a number of meals, giving her the opportunity to sit back and relax while you show off your grilling skills.

With our naturally flavorful meat, she will feel like royalty being fed some of the highest quality meat around.

Order yours today and we will ship it to your door!
https://gibralterfarms.com/product/premium-grilling-bundle/

05/05/2023

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

05/04/2023

Sometimes I get to be Farmer Sarah (photo 1). Sometimes I get to be Delivery Sarah (photo 2). Yesterday I got to be both.

Truly my favorite part of direct marketing our beef and pork has been meeting customers and handing them a bag full of our products. I find out more about them, they ask questions about us and our family and our farm, and isn’t that the kind of connection we’re all looking for with our food? What a privilege this is.

A huge thank you to everyone we’ve been able to connect with so far, especially Tom and Bicka and Melissa for making my day yesterday 💚 I look forward to meeting so many more of you!

05/02/2023

The steers are so entertained by the piglets 😂 Really, we all are 🐽💚

04/30/2023

By far my favorite picture of the spring. Our 3-year-old wants to go visit the piglets in the pasture every day, and John always helps her pet one 💕

We’re so blessed to be able to share livestock and nature with our kids. May you enjoy your blessings today!

04/29/2023

This handsome boy is a new arrival from our friends at Lost Lake Farm (). He’s settling in well 💚

Farmers Market season is coming fast; if you’ll be in Ames or Des Moines, Lost Lake cheese should be on your to-buy list 🧀 They are also taking orders for whey-fed pork for a limited time ⏱



[ID: two images of adorable young calf, white with lots of red spots, giving the camera side-eye in image one and smelling the camera in image two.]

04/28/2023

4 Tips for Great Handmade Hamburger Patties

#1 Firmly pack the ground beef into a patty the diameter and thickness desired. Prior to placing in pan or on grill, use your thumbs to dimple down the center of the patty. As it cooks, the meat will expand more in the center than the edges. Dimpling the middle will give you a flat hamburger patty rather than a domed one.

#2 Put your patties onto a hot pan or grill. Get a good sear to add more flavor to your hamburger. In a pan, add a small amount of fat (we like butter, olive, or avocado oil) to help with getting a good sear.

#3 Add salt to the surface of the patty after you've seared it. Adding salt to the uncooked surface will draw moisture out of the meat, leaving your burger less juicy. The moisture also interferes with getting a good sear.

#4 Start with high quality meat with its own naturally great flavor. You can add a lot of seasonings to try and get more flavor into your burger, but no added seasoning is as good as a lightly salted burger with its own inherent great taste.

Get some of our great tasting ground beef through our website. And for something a little different, try some of our ground pork to make pork burgers. You can get both in our Meal Maker Bundle!

Order by Monday at noon, and we will have it shipped to your door next week!

04/25/2023

The oldest spring litters are enjoying the sunshine! Frolicking piglets are my favorite sign of spring. At last count, 21 litters born and I think waiting on four more.

04/24/2023

While the Iowa weather cannot decide what it wants to do, warmer weather will be here soon (we can all hope!)

And that will mean it will be time to fire up the grill!

This year, get yourself great meat packed with natural flavor

Our Premium Grilling Bundle includes T-bone and Ribeye Steaks, Pork Chops, Brats, and Hamburger Patties!

Check it out here: https://gibralterfarms.com/product/premium-grilling-bundle/

04/23/2023

Happy Sunday!

A unique little bird joined John around the calves hay bale the other day.

With some help, we identified it as a juvenile Virginia Rail, a secretive freshwater marsh bird that migrates to and through this area.

04/22/2023

High-quality pork can provide one of the best eating experiences you will ever have.

A favorite ingredient in a lot of high-end restaurants, pork can work with a lot of different flavors and the best pork will also have its own deep and rich flavor.

Our pork has made its way into many delicious meals in both high-end restaurants and homes across the country through Niman Ranch.

We are excited to now be able to offer our pork directly to you.

Included in our Meal Maker, Grilling, GF Pork, and Deluxe Pork bundles, you can purchase our pork here: https://gibralterfarms.com/shop/

04/22/2023

Happy Earth Day!

Being on a farm allows us frequent opportunities to experience the beauty and wonder of life on this planet. Something that is worth celebrating and, perhaps more importantly, holding space for thought on how we interact with this place that we all call home.

For the last century and beyond, we have looked for ways to use the earth to provide a living for us as humans. We have cut down forests, extracted oil, and looked to tame biology with technology. This has given us many advancements in society and standards of living along with an expansion to 8 billion humans on this planet. But, it has come at a cost to earth's other living and breathing systems, endangering species and playing havoc with climate.

For us to continue to live and thrive for centuries into the future, we need a shift in mindset from using the Earth to living within its natural cycles, nurturing life and fostering Mother Earth's ecosystems. Regenerating and stewarding life will be imperative for our future on this planet.

This will require great change in how we go about life. All great change starts with small steps and individuals making different choices. Here are three things that you can start with:

1. Use a little less. Every time you see something you want, pause to ask the question, whether you actually need it, or if something could be reused, repurposed, or recycled to meet the desire. We have gotten used to a linear system where things are produced from extracted resources, used up, and thrown away. We need to mimic nature and continually recycle and repurpose the things we use in our lives.

2. There are around 11.9 billion acres of farm and ranch land on this planet, or roughly 1.5 acres per human. This means that the food you eat impacts a little over a football fields worth of land. Take responsibility for this land by finding food from farmers and companies that put care for the land and animals as a top priority.

3. Spend a little more time in nature. Take a walk, start a garden, or just sit on a bench and take time to appreciate nature.

Our common home is a wonderful and beautiful place to be loved and cared for. On this 54th Earth Day, we hope you are inspired to find your own ways to care a little more for our Earth.

04/21/2023

Want to receive some of our top-quality beef and pork?

Now you can have it delivered to your door. Shipping is now available for all of our beef and pork bundles!

04/18/2023

What meal do you love to eat and wish you could cook at home?

04/16/2023

Happy Sunday!
We had a couple extras in the sow farrowing pasture

04/15/2023

Morning walkabout 💚

04/13/2023

"A river seems a magic thing. A magic, moving, living part of the very earth itself." - Laura Gilpin

04/12/2023

Pictured is the small seed mix in the front of our grain drill. We are planting oats along with forages that will make up our hay fields.

For decades, we have planted a diverse mix for our hay. This mix includes alfalfa, medium red clover, ladino clover, alsike clover, and timothy. Along with the oats (and spring wheat) in the back of the drill is also perennial ryegrass and brome grass.

This diverse mix allows the opportunity for a variety of niches to be filled. Different conditions in location, soils, season, and weather will favor different plants.

With a mix of species, we give nature the opportunity to grow a plant, whatever the circumstances. Recent research also shows that diverse mixes are more resilient and support a healthier soil microbiome.

The diverse mix also gives our cattle a wider variety of plants to consume when they eat the hay and graze the fields. This lets them better fill their nutritional needs and contributes to a richer more complex flavor in the beef.

As humans, we like to focus in on doing one thing well. But, when working with nature, it is beneficial to work more holistically and assist with the creation of diverse and resilient systems that, in the end, support the well-being of us all.

04/07/2023

What we mean by 'Food You Can Love'
(Part 4 of 4)

Farming is the transformation of nature into the food and products needed by the community. We have started marketing meat to increase the connection between our farm and community. And with that connection, we not only want to be your source of beef and pork, but also help you transform our meat into delicious meals.

In our hectic lives, getting home cooked meals on the table can be a challenge. We are here for you with recipes, cooking tips, and time saving methods to get meals on the table that will warm your family’s bellies and hearts.

So when you cook with our meat, know that we are here to share our love for great food with you.

When we say ‘Food You Can Love’, it is because we know the care for the land, the love for the animals, and desire to share the love with our community that has gone into producing this food for you.

Our care and management not only benefits the land but translates into flavorful beef and pork. For you to truly love a food, we know it must taste great as well.

And if you have questions or need help, we are here to assist you with transforming our meat into fantastic meals.

We each have the opportunity to make the world a little bit better place, and for us that starts with ‘Food You Can Love’.

Want to taste the difference that comes with 'Food You Can Love'?
Visit our website to learn more about us, shop for the beef bundles that work best for your family, and make sure to sign-up for our weekly emails to get 5% off your first order:
https://gibralterfarms.com/

04/07/2023

We missed National Burrito Day by a day, but we're sure you will still enjoy these shredded beef burritos.

Recipe here: https://gibralterfarms.com/shredded-beef-burritos/

04/06/2023

What we mean by 'Food You Can Love'
(Part 3 of 4)

Farming at its core is stewarding nature. And nature would be missing an important piece without animals.

Our farm would be an incomplete system without animals, and, for that reason, livestock have played a large role in our farm for all of its history.

Instead of selling all of the crops from the farm each year, we feed some to our livestock. The animals concentrate these crops into a nutrient-dense food while also returning fertility and biology to the soil through manure.

We take great reverence for the care of other living creatures. We do our best to not only keep them healthy and thriving, but also allow them to express their natural behaviors.

For our cows, we allow them to graze, routinely moving them to new pastures, mimicking what migrating herds of ruminants have done all over the world for thousands of years.

Our pigs are housed in deep-bedded hoop buildings, open to fresh air at each end, giving them an environment where they can socialize, root, and play similar to their natural home, the forest.

From our cows and pigs to all of the wildlife that are an integral part of our farm, we appreciate the role they play in keeping our farm fertile and bountiful.

So when you purchase meat from our farm, know that it came from animals that were deeply loved and appreciated.

04/05/2023

How Plants Cool the Planet

What we mean by 'Food You Can Love'
(Part 2 of 4)

In farming, the most valuable asset is the land. We have always approached caring for the land with a long-term view, knowing that we want the land to be productive this year and centuries into the future as well.

To that end, we conserve soil by minimizing tillage to limit the potential for erosion. Topsoil benefits no one if it ends up in ditches and waterways.

Soil is much more than a collection of minerals and plant matter. It is the skin of the planet, and just like our skin, it is a complex living system. A healthy soil is a symphony of microbiology, insects, plants, and animals.

So, in addition to soil conservation, we emphasize creating conditions for healthy soils. We rotationally graze our pastures, moving animals from pasture to pasture to let the land rest and recover. We grow perennial forages and cover crops to keep living roots in the soil to help promote soil health.

Nurturing healthy soils can improve water quality, create more nutrient dense foods, and even improve the climate (see video below).

We put our care into the land, knowing in the end, the land is what cares for all of us. When you purchase food from us, it comes from land that was loved.

Climate change is getting pretty scary, but plants can make things better, if we help them help us!Support me on Patreon: https://patreon.com/jimiVisit my we...

04/04/2023

What we mean by 'Food You Can Love'
(Part 1 of 4)

It is no secret that humanity faces a lot of problems, many that can seem overwhelming and unsolvable. But we all have the power to make change and it starts in simple small steps in how we choose to live our lives. We can’t control the actions of others, but we can be an example for others to follow.

Living from a place of love means choosing to live with kindness, compassion, understanding, and a resolve to leave things a little better than we found them. And this is how we approach farming.

So when we say ‘Food You Can Love’, it is because we have put our love into growing and providing this food for you, and in turn we hope it brings a little more love into your life.

04/03/2023

When working on our website, we needed a tagline to describe what we have to offer. We came up with 'Food You Can Love' because we knew you would love the flavor of the food produced from our farm and also appreciate the care that went into raising it.

We thought this tagline deserved a little more explanation. So over the next few days, we will be describing more of what we mean when we say 'Food You Can Love'.

04/02/2023

Happy Sunday!

Hope no one else's calves have decided to ford the river 😀

04/01/2023

Farm Cat Tips For A Great Saturday:

1. Find a sunny spot out of the wind.
2. Stay there.

Happy Caturday!

03/28/2023

When the humans make you a snow fort with a comfy seat, you have to take advantage of it while it lasts

03/27/2023

Iowa Beef

FREE LOCAL BEEF GIVEAWAY!

To celebrate partnering with Over the Moon Farm & Flowers () , we are giving away 5 pounds of ground beef to one lucky winner!

For those in Delaware, Linn, and Johnson counties, simply comment below or place an order prior to Monday April 3 at Noon and we will enter you for a chance to win some of our delicious beef.

Know someone else that would appreciate some free ground beef? Tag them in the comments and we will enter their names in the contest as well

Over the Moon Farm & Flowers is a direct to consumer farm business near Coggon Iowa. Over the Moon produces cut flowers, farm fresh eggs, and high quality, humanely raised meats. The farm does home delivery and services the communities in and around Delaware, Linn, and Johnson County Iowa.