Fall harvest is upon us and keeping us hopping. We have combines running to swath millet, pickup millet, cut corn, and we are planting wheat right now. It certainly takes the whole family to get all the work done this time of year. It won't be too much longer and we will have milo ready to come out of the fields also.

This is always a wonderful time of year when we get to see the fruits of our labor. Summers as a farmers wife can be very busy, difficult, and lonely. Don't get me wrong, I love my life and my family and wouldn't trade them for anything! Summers keep everyone moving in different directions. I am busy traveling with flour, taking care of kids, and helping where ever needed on the farm. Our guys are working long hours tending to fields, equipment repairs, attending meetings, and wheat harvest. When fall comes the hours get longer, but it means a break is in sight. We know family time is only a few short months away and we have something to look forward too.

I was so glad to be able to go to La Junta this past weekend for Early Settlers. It was a beautiful day and I loved meeting new people and getting to see old friends and catch up. If you missed us I sent stock with my family at Collins Family Farms so, if you need flour or meat give them a call. 

I am gearing up for a busy October with two shows at the Altered Reality Event Center in Colorado Springs the first and third weekend. We hope to see some familiar faces there. If you are in need of tickets to the shows I have some to give out and will do so on a first come first serve basis. Just send me a message with your mailing address and how many you need and I will get them out.
Blessings,
​Jennifer

A lot of exciting things are happening in the family and on the farm. I know if there are any other farmers reading they know the relief and excitement that comes with wheat harvest being complete. I also wanted to let you know that my dad, Jim Collins, and my husband, Chris Stum, are here to help you with your grain marketing needs. Check them out at collinscommoditiesllc.com and trinitygrains.com. 

The International Millet Symposium is coming to Fort Collins August 8th-12th. You have until July 30th to get registered for this amazing event that has come to our country and better yet, our neck of the woods. It is also not to late to help sponsor the symposium. If you are interested in attending or sponsoring I encourage you to go here to learn more or you can copy and paste https://go.unl.edu/millet2018 into your address bar.

As I mentioned earlier, wheat harvest is over and now we watch and pray our fall crops through until harvest. That doesn't mean the hard work is over, that is a long way from the truth. Our days are long and our nights are short making sure our crops have the best conditions we can provide and the equipment is ready to go or keep going depending on its job.

Due to the high cost of getting to and being at markets we had to drop our Bennett market and the Pikes Peak Farmers Market. It was not a decision that was made easily. We will miss seeing all of you, but we hope that we can still see you in Canon City or that you will take advantage of ordering from the website. We will also continue to come to holiday shows and events in the area so keep an eye on our calendar and right here on the blog for those announcements.

There are so many more recipes out there for millet than what I create and post here. I have created a Pinterest board for CJ Milling where I pin recipes and other information from around the web. I encourage you to follow the board to find more delicious ways to use your millet!
Blessings!
​Jennifer
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We are so excited for market season to be back. We have picked up two new markets this year. In addition to the Pikes Peak Farmers Market at Bancroft Park, we will be at Veteran’s Park in Canon City and the Muegge House in Bennett.

A little about ourselves for our new friends. CJ Milling is a family owned flour milling operation. We only process naturally gluten free grains through our mill. Millet in our community was often leaving not only our area but also the country. There was a lack of market availability. We made it our goal to expand the millet market into the food industry (which is what it was exported for) in the United States by starting within our own state. Most of the grain we mill is grown in our community. 

We enjoy getting to know our customers and being a resource for them. If you have any questions about farming practices or agriculture in general, please do not hesitate to ask. We look forward to seeing you throughout the summer!
Jennifer

​Pikes Peak Farmers Market 
June 9 – October 20

Canon City Farmers Market
June 5, 19
July 3, 17, 31
August 7, 14, 21
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Bennett Community Market
July 7
August 4, 18
September 1, 8

While the milling has slowed down here for the winter, I have been keeping busy and working on some new items for this year. Some of these new items that are in the development process include pancake mix and edible spoons. My goal is to complete the development of these items and have them available for purchase by our first show of the year in April. 
I have also been working on some new marketing stuff and have been traveling the eastern edge of the state speaking to various groups about CJ Milling, LLC and operating under the Colorado Cottage Food Law. I have met some wonderful people at these and hope I was able to help other farmers know that they can take their crops directly to the consumer also. 
AND THE BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!
We are now able to sell products online and ship! I talked to a representative from the state and it has been clarified and we are able to ship products produced under the Colorado Cottage Food Law. Check out our products page for what is currently available and stay tuned for the new items that we are developing.
God Bless!
​Jennifer

Red Fruit Millet Salad
4 cups water
1 cup hulled millet
1/2 cup orange juice
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1 red apple – diced
½ cup chopped pecans
2 tbsp raspberry vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
Salt and Pepper to taste

​Dry toast millet until lightly golden. Add water to millet and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for 30 minutes. Let cool.
Soak cranberries in orange juice for at least 15 minutes. Drain cranberries  and reserve orange juice for vinaigrette. Combine cooled millet, cranberries, apple, and toasted pecans in a bowl.
Wisk together the orange juice, raspberry vinegar, and olive oil. Toss with millet mixture, salt and pepper to taste. Allow to cool in the fridge at least 30 minutes to allow flavors to combine.

We are gearing up for a busy summer! We have signed up to be at the Pikes Peak Farmers Market at Bancroft Park in Old Colorado City every Saturday. We had our first market Saturday and loved getting to see some familiar faces. We hope to see more of you as the summer goes on! If you are looking for anything special or want to place a larger order call or email us and we will have it ready for you at the next market.

Millet planting is in full swing. Everyone on the farm is focusing on getting our crop in the ground. With the amount of spring rains we have had we are hopeful for a good crop this year. There are still many other factor that go into it that will influence our year, but we pray for God's blessing on our growing season and harvest.

Wonderful Millet
1c millet, 5c chopped tomatoes and juice from Progresso Italian tomatoes with basil
1 onion, 1 clove garlic (optional), ¼ c sesame seeds, ¼ c sunflower seeds, ½ tsp. basil
½ tsp oregano,  In a shallow, covered casserole dish, mix together all ingredients. Bake @ 325-350 degrees for 1 ½ hours.                                     Linda Hardesty
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