Last weekend we had the pleasure of spending 3 full days at Fazenda Alegre – the 500 hectare (1,250 acre) organic/biodynamic farm owned by Heinz and Elisabeth. We spent the weekend with Heinz, Elisabeth and Dorothea (Elisabeth’s niece visiting from Austria), their 9+ dogs, and 6+ cats. It was such a wonderful weekend that when I posed the “what was your favorite part” question to myself I couldn’t answer . . . bike riding, walking the dogs around the 20 hectare (50 acre) lake, learning about all the trees they’ve planted, horseback riding through the coffee trees that are currently blooming and beautiful, watering the plants in the garden, spending time with dogs and cats, or eating Elisabeth’s incredibly delicious farm-to-table organic meals.

Here’s a little series we took after biking to this gigantic rock near their property:

To sum it up, they were some of the healthiest few days we’ve had in Brazil. Fresh air, outdoor exercise, good conversations, delicious and fresh organic food, and soup for dinner. Dinner with Elisabeth is usually soup, typically served with excellent organic or homemade bread. The soups are homemade, fresh and delicious. I love the concept of having soup for dinner. It’s light, delicious and full of nutrition (when done right, of course). My favorite was Elisabeth’s roasted tomato soup.  In fact, it belongs on the list of my favorite soups of all time.

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Here are a few menus from the weekend:

Breakfast was a wonderful spread of:

-      Thin slices of organic bread
-      Homemade ricotta cheese
-      Blue cheese
-      Avocado
-      Radishes, cucumbers, and carrots from the garden
-      Papaya, pomelos (grapefruit) from the garden
-      Diced chives

Lunch (all products of the farm):

-      Veal w/ gravy
-      Black rice
-      Vegetable mix  from the garden
-      Salad
-      Sobremesa (dessert) – homemade strawberry yogurt with white strawberries from the garden

Dinner (soup, of course):

-      Roasted tomato soup made with mushrooms and served with a pile of diced up parsley in the bowl.
-      A display of Brazilian cheeses with apple slices, nuts and grapes
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