About the Farm
Pastured Turkeys
These turkeys begin their lives in our heated brooder, protected from the elements. When they are big enough to be safe from predators (hawks, owls, and foxes) we move them out to pasture. There, they have constant access to grass, weeds and insects - and turkeys forage a lot. They actually graze the grass down like sheep would, getting around 50% of their diet from pasture! The balance of the turkeys' diet is custom-mixed non-GMO grain from a local mill. It consists of organically-grown corn, oats, and soybeans (all locally-grown) plus a balanced combination of natural minerals.
We sell ground turkey and all natural smoked turkey breast and turkey legs as part of our meat CSA shares, with the everything share. Whole turkeys are sold by pre-order for Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving Turkeys 2019
Before you go to the ordering page, a few details:
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You will first be directed to create login account to order. This is not a membership in anything other than the holiday store. If you have previously ordered a turkey, ham, or been a CSA member, you will already have login info.
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We are asking for a $35 downpayment to reserve your turkey. The turkeys will all be $5.50/lb. The remainder will be due at delivery, by check, cash, or credit card.
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All turkeys will be delivered fresh, never frozen, in the week leading up to Thanksgiving.
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Farm: Saturday 11/23 9am-noon (or by appointment email anna@northmountainpastures.com)
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Mechanicsburg: Sunday 11/24: 2:30-3:30pm
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Carlisle: Sunday 11/24 4-5pm
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Camp Hill: Monday 11/25 5-6pm
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Harrisburg - Linglestown: Tuesday 11/26: 5-6pm
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Harrisburg - Broad Street Market: Tuesday 11/26: 3:30-6pm
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Hershey: Tuesday 11/26 5-6pm
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Silver Spring, MD: Sunday 11/24: 11am-noon
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Takoma Park, MD: Sunday 11/24: 1-2pm
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Bloomingdale, D.C.: Sunday 11/24 3-4pm
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Reading: Monday 11/25 4-6pm
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These dates and times are also listed on our delivery calendar here with locations and addresses.
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December turkeys will be delivered frozen in the week before Christmas
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Harrisburg - Broad Street Market: Friday 12/20 4-8pm and Saturday 12/21 7am-4pm
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Silver Spring, MD: Saturday 12/21 11am-1pm
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SIZING: It is hard to predict the exact finished dressed weights of the turkeys before butchering day. For that reason, we offer the following range of approximate sizes. Please be aware that the earlier you get to your delivery, the more size options you will have. We will do our best to raise a wide range of sizes to suit all holiday serving needs. You are welcome to email us with special requests that we will accommodate if possible.
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Small - 10-20 lbs
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Medium - 12-22 lbs
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Large - 16-24+ lbs
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Additional Turkey Butchering Options
Spatchcocked just means a butterflied turkey. The reasons for doing this are that it then requires a much shorter cooking time, which means juicier meat. It also potentially allows you to cook at a higher temperature without drying out the meat, which makes for browner skin. People like this method for using a grill, or when they are short on time or oven space.
Our offer to you is that if you'd rather not get out your butcher's apron and knives, we will spatchcock your turkey for you.
Another step that is actually not optional in our opinion, is the brining of the turkey. Either wet or dry brining for 24 hours or more ensures that all of the meat is seasoned well and retains moisture better when cooking. These turkeys are a feast, the center of the holiday, and after all this time and effort to raise them on pasture, we always want to go the extra mile to make sure it's amazing.
Brooks' dry brine technique has never let us down.
Our offer to you is that if you'd rather not mess with salt and raw poultry, we will dry brine your turkey for you.
Our third offer for turkeys this Thanksgiving is that if you'd like to order more than one and plan to save one for later use, we will cut your turkey in half for you and package the halves separately, for easier freezer storage, and for smaller meal portions later.
These are options if you have already ordered your turkey. Cost is $10 for any of the single options.
Option 1: spatchcock $10
Option 2: dry brine $10
Option 3: spatchcock AND dry brine $12
Option 4: halved and bagged $10
Option 5: Halved and bagged with dry brine $12
We will use Brooks' tried and true himalayan sea salt and organic rapadura dry brine. Unfortunately we can't accommodate special recipe requests.
To add one of these preferences to your turkey order, first order a turkey. Then, simply reply to your confirmation email with your choice. We will charge you for the extra butchering service along with your turkey at pickup.
Here's hoping we can help make the preparation of your turkey feast easier and more delicious!
Pastured Pork
We raise a variety of heritage breeds of pigs on pasture, including Tamworth, Yorkshire, Berkshire.. Each of these hog breeds have been selected over centuries for their foraging abilities, which means they are constantly rooting and grazing, looking for their next meal. Tamworths are reddish-brown and Yorkshire are pinkish-white, but both Berkshire and Large Black pigs are black; you can tell the difference by how a Large Black's large floppy ears cover its eyes.
We feed our pigs a mix of nonGMO local grain from a local feed mill. Raising pigs on pasture not only allows the animal to fully express its instincts to root and forage, but it also changes the fatty acid composition of the meat to one that is higher in mono-unsaturated fats, and lower in saturated fats.
We make our popular sausages and other nitrate-free cured meats from our pork. We only use the meat, Himalayan sea salt, and spices to cure the meats. They are salted for a week or two, then transferred to a drying room where they hang for one month up to a year. This process creates new flavors, different for every locale where meats are cured. Traditionally, these meats were cured in winter for consumption throughout the year, with no need for refrigeration. Cured meats are available through our cured meat add-on.
Grassfed Beef
Our beef cattle are Herefords, Devon cross and Angus. The cows are pastured and 100% grass-fed. The grass for the cattle is grown without the use of fertilizers, pesticides or other chemicals. The cattle are raised without hormones or antibiotics. In the winter, beef cattle are fed wrapped grass hay (balage) and non-GMO whole plant green corn chop, allowing for high sugar content and marbling in muscle meats year-round.
Beef will be a mixture of ground, roasts and steaks. Approximately half of all of the beef will be ground (reflecting what comes off the animal). Grass-fed beef tends to be leaner and needs to be cooked a little differently than typical corn-fed beef. See the recipes page for more information.
Questions? We aim for total transparency in our farm operations. Ask us anything!
