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What's happening on the farm right now?
I walked around the farm this morning feeling like there was nothing "good" to take pictures of. I'm back at my desk now with so many photos, I don't know which ones to use. I think I'll use them all!
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First, the flowers. They are gorgeous right now, vibrant and abundant and a sure-fire spirit lifter. Our first dahlia is blooming today.
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Then the birds, so many birds this year. The song sparrows are small, brown and skittish but they serenade us all day, every day out in the fields. You can just about see the one sitting on of the top the tithonia.
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and more baby birds! So small, so vulnerable! How can they make it to full grown?
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Our crew is always worth a picture, out there getting it done. Sophia and Scott in the back, and Taylor's in the drivers seat!
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All the winter squash is vinning out, putting on fruit and growing like mad. I think those vines grown 1/2 foot a day right now. Here's a not so little spaghetti squash
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And finally the hazelnuts. Looks like its going to be a bumper crop this year. The catkins for next year's crop are already forming.
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What's available in the store and at market this week?
Tomatoes! Lots of heirloom tomatoes, cherries and red slicers. Quarts of cocktails tomatoes as well. We have our first smattering of peppers, shishitos and spicy jalapenos. We've got cilantro and onions too so it's time to make some pico di gallo! Plenty of lettuce mix and gorgeous red butter lettuce, romaine and green oak leaf. Eggplant (see John's recipe below), three kinds, Japanese, Italian and fairytale. Red onions are back as well as yellow onions. Next week we'll have our first sweet onions. Yellow potatoes, cucumbers, and summer squash. Rainbow Swiss chard. Basil, in the 1/5 lb size and 1 pound size.
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PLEASE NOTE: The River Arts District Farmers Market has MOVED to the Smoky Park Supper Club, 350 Riverside Drive. See map below. The hours are the same, 3pm until 6 pm. The Supper Club is just about 1 mile downstream from our current location and is right on the Wilma Dykeman Greenway. Opening day last week was a great success. Customers and vendors alike enjoyed the shade, the easy parking and the lovely green space. Much, much gratitude to the Smoky Park Supper Club.
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John's Recipe of the Week
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John Loyd is our dear friend, neighbor, CSA worker member and a gourmet Southern cook. His delightful cooking observations and delicious recipe offerings appear here each wee
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”Food for us comes from our relatives, whether they have wings or fins or roots. That is how we consider food. Food has a culture. It has a history. It has a story. It has relationships.” Winona LaDuke
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JAPANESE EGGPLANT – These long, slender fruits can be halved lengthwise and grilled or sliced at an angle and roasted then layered into dishes like lasagna or onto pizza. Good relish is another possibility.
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Last week we diced eggplant and sautéed it with herbs and vegetables and put it on ravioli as the sauce.
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Here’s a recipe for eggplant, zucchini and other things we have at market these days. It is from Greens, a San Francisco restaurant established in 1979. Greens was one of the first top notch vegetarian places to open and became an example for many other later restaurants. It has a legacy of female chefs.
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EGGPLANT AND ZUCCHINI PIZZA WITH BASIL AND CHERRY TOMOATOES
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This is an easy recipe where you can switch the ingredients as you like.
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1 recipe or package of pizza dough
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12 cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
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2 ounces of mozzarella cheese, grated or thinly slices
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2 ounces Fontina cheese, grated
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3 tbsp. basil, finely chopped
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Fresh herbs like thyme and basil, finely chopped
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Preheat your oven to 500f.
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Slice the zucchini and eggplant diagonally into 3 or 4 inch pieces, ¼ inch thick.
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Heat 2 tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet, add the vegetables and toss, and then cook into lightly browned. You’ll want to do this in single layers, and note the zucchini takes a bit longer to cook.
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Drain on paper towels and season with salt and pepper.
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In a bowl dress the tomatoes with oil, the garlic, and salt and pepper. Drain before putting on the pizza.
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Pat out your pizza dough and brush with oil. Start with the mozzarella and Fontina, then the basil. Arrange the vegetables, slices in overlapping layers with the tomatoes in and among them. Finish with more mozzarella and Fontina.
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Cook 8 to 10 minutes and finish with the Parmesan and herbs. Pesto is a finishing option too.
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The tendrils get me every time.
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Your farmers, Vanessa and Alex
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Love the flowers. Honor the vegetables. Let the weeds go!
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- Cheri Huber and Ashwini Narayanan
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