Itty Bitty Micro Farm

10/06/2026

🍝 Tonight's Dinner: Easy Pasta, Farm Fresh Flavor & A Little Microgreen Boost

Made a beautiful pasta plate for dinner tonight, and this one came together quick and easy without sacrificing flavor.

I started by sautéing garlic from Mueller Family Farm in some Spartan Valley Olive Oil.
Then I tossed in a handful of spoon tomatoes and a bunch of herbs from the Chaos Garden.
🌿🍅

I added a can of chicken breast and let everything cook together for a few minutes so the chicken could pick up all those flavors.

Then came the shortcut that makes weeknight dinners so much easier.

I opened a jar of premade pasta sauce, brought it up to a simmer, then turned off the heat and stirred in about two packs of chopped broccoli microgreens.

I like chopping my microgreens before adding them to meals. It makes them easier to incorporate into the dish, easier to chew, and you get a little bit of those fresh greens in every bite.

Over a plate of spaghetti and topped with another little handful of fresh broccoli microgreens...

Dinner is served! 🍝🌱

This is one of my favorite things about growing microgreens. They don't have to be the whole meal. Sometimes they're just the easiest way to take something you're already making and add fresh greens right where you are.

And honestly... look at that plate. 😍

Need home delivery of microgreens?
Check out The Farms of Illinois!

09/18/2026

Wow! How has it been an entire Market Season already?!?

Stop by and say👋 hi 👋 to Mike one last time this year at The LMH Market

I (Jess) will be Downtown in Springfield at the Old Capitol Farmers Market presented by HSHS St. John's

Note: We won't be at the market Next Saturday during the Old Route 66 Car Show, so stock up! (Or you can Always find us in stores)
🌱🍿🌱🍿🌱🍿🌱

GRAB YOUR MARKET BAG!

We have one more Market Saturday! 💚❤️🧡 Tomorrow, Saturday, September 19, is our FINAL MARKET OF THE 2026 SEASON, and we’ve got plenty happening to make our last Market a good one!

TOMORROW’S VENDORS:
Pit from the Prairie
Aunt B’s Sweet Treats
Elation Bath & Body
Itty Bitty Micro Farm
Triple I Garden Shop and Ioerger Family Farms
WAR FOOD FARM
Thehealthycrumb
Elkhart Hill Vineyard
MKS Livestock
Steamship Bee Company
Brooks' Kountry Honey

💳 TRIPLE SNAP MATCHING
This Saturday is Triple SNAP! Use $10 in SNAP/LINK benefits and receive $30 in Market matching, giving you $40 to spend on the freshest food in Logan County!

💉 GET YOUR FLU SHOT AT THE MARKET
The Logan County Department of Public Health will be here offering flu vaccinations. No appointment necessary! Bring your photo ID and insurance card.

🎨 FREE FACE PAINTING
Holly from WAR FOOD FARM will be here helping us celebrate the final Market with free face painting!

🍎 Come grab your Market favorites, visit with your favorite vendors, take advantage of Triple SNAP matching, and enjoy one last Saturday at the LMH Market!

📅 Tomorrow, September 19
⏰ 8 AM–NOON
📍 Logan County Fairgrounds

We can’t wait to see you for our FINAL MARKET OF THE SEASON! 🌻❤️

09/12/2026

🚨 TOMORROW IS MARKET DAY! 🚨

We’ve got a full morning of shopping, fun and activities planned at The LMH Market! 🎉

Here’s what you can look forward to:

🧪 Children's Museum of Illinois Mobile Museum — hands-on exhibits for the kids
🧘‍♀️ FREE Pilates at 11 AM with Imago Dei Pilates Studio — every participant receives $5 in market tokens
🎈 FREE bounce house
🧺 Basket Giveaway

And, of course, we’ll have a great lineup of vendors ready for you:
Brew 66 Coffee
Elation Bath & Body
Itty Bitty Micro Farm
Triple I Garden Shop and Ioerger Family Farms
WAR FOOD FARM
MKS Livestock
Missy's Sweet Shoppe
Steamship Bee Company
Brooks' Kountry Honey

Community Booths:
Heartland Community College Lincoln
COPE Ministry
University of Illinois Extension - Logan, Menard & Sangamon

See you tomorrow at The LMH Market! ☀

09/12/2026

Tonight's dinner 🥩🥔🌱
Some nights you just have to let the local food do the talking!

Tonight's dinner started with lollipop pork chops from the always wonderful Leslie at Turaski Family Farms. I pan seared them in Spartan Valley Olive Oil, seasoned them with sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, and just a sprinkle of smoked paprika. Then I let them simmer in a simple cream sauce until they were tender and full of flavor.

While the pork chops rested, I tossed some steamed red potatoes from my wonderful Old Capitol Farmers Market neighbors, Gregory's Orchard, right into that same sauce. They soaked up all those good pan juices and helped thicken everything up.

And then there's the salad!
Half a package of Itty Bitty Micro Farm Brassica Blend made an easy, fresh side. I had planned on adding some peppers and tomatoes from Mueller's Family Farm, but apparently I've already eaten all of those. 😂

Thankfully, the 'chaos garden' in the backyard is still doing its thing and putting out these beautiful little spoon tomatoes!

So tonight's plate was basically a little tour of the farms and gardens around us.
Local pork.
Local potatoes.
Local microgreens.
Backyard tomatoes.
Local olive oil
And a whole lot of good food!

Honestly, this is one of my favorite things about eating this way. You don't have to make dinner complicated when you start with really good ingredients.

And yes... microgreens absolutely belong next to a pork chop and potatoes. 🌱



Pan seared lollipop pork chops with a creamy sauce, local red potatoes, and a fresh Brassica Blend microgreen salad topped with backyard spoon tomatoes. A delicious farm to table dinner featuring locally grown ingredients from Illinois farmers.

09/01/2026

08/08/2026

The ultimate busy-night dinner hack that’s ACTUALLY backed by science! 🍝👇 (And yes, that’s a paper bowl because dishes are not happening the night before a farmer's market! 🤫)

If you know me, you know I’m all about cooking smarter, not harder.
One way I do that: I batch-cook our pasta, portion it out into glass containers, and keep it in the fridge for quick, stress-free meal assembly later in the week.

But here is the best part: science says leftover pasta is actually better for you than freshly cooked pasta! 🤯

When you cook pasta and let it cool completely in the fridge, the starch turns into "resistant starch," which acts more like fiber.

When you reheat it, that structure stays intact, cutting your blood sugar spike by up to 40-50% while feeding your good gut bacteria. 🔬

✨Dinner tonight took under 10 minutes to pull together: Diced tomatoes, canned chicken breast, Fresh minced garlic, Himalayan salt, fresh black pepper & an excessive amount of Italian Seasoning heated just a couple minutes to meld the flavors.

⚠️ Crucial final step: Kill the heat before adding the greens! We don’t want to overcook our sensitive little microgreens and destroy those vibrant nutrients. 🥦

🥬Once the heat was off, I tossed in a couple handfuls of Broccoli & Kale microgreens and a healthy bunch of chiffonade fresh basil leaves.

The residual warmth wilts them perfectly without losing the crunch, the color, or the health benefits.

Fast, packed with protein and micronutrients, and optimized for steady energy.

😋Do you eat your leftovers or skip them? And more importantly... are you team paper plate on busy nights? Let me know below! 👇

07/29/2026

Dinner doesn't have to be complicated to be healthy. 🌱

Tonight's dinner came together with ingredients from several local businesses I had the chance to visit during today's delivery route.

🥗 Broccoli & Kale Microgreens (I Always Grow Extra for our family!)

🥒 Fresh cucumber from Gregory's Orchard (My awesome neighbors at the Old Capitol Farmers Market presented by HSHS St. John's)

🫑 Sweet pepper from Mueller's Family Farm (Fellow The Farms of Illinois farmer & Farmers Market Friends)

🍗 Rotisserie chicken breast from Harvest Market - Springfield that I picked up while delivering fresh microgreens and popcorn to them this afternoon.

✨ Finished with Braggs Apple C***r Vinaigrette for a simple, tangy dressing that pulled everything together.

One of my favorite parts of what we do is working with incredible local businesses, then bringing those same fresh ingredients home to our own table.

Simple. Fresh. Local. Nutritious.

What local ingredients have you added to your dinner lately? 🌱

06/13/2026

Friday night fast dinner, but make it microgreens. 🥡🌱

It has been a busy day getting everything ready for tomorrow’s farmers markets, and cooking a full dinner was not happening tonight.

So, Panda Express family meal it is!

I added a simple side salad of our Brassica Blend Microgreens and drizzled it with a little teriyaki sauce. It took less than a minute, added a fresh crunch to the plate, and made a quick takeout dinner feel a little more balanced.

Microgreens do not have to be complicated. Sometimes the easiest way to eat more greens is to simply add a handful to whatever is already on the menu.

What is your favorite way to add microgreens to a quick meal?