1) Farm News

JBG is now accepting CSA Members!

Help us spread the word! Click here to join.

Week of July 19th CSA Box Contents

Okra
Sweet & Hot Peppers
Cucumber
Basil
Parsley or Chard
Onions
Mixed Summer Squash
Beets
Garlic
Eggplant
Winter Squash
Potatoes

The Wholesale Perspective

by Leslie Lilly

La Condesa
400A West 2nd Street.
Austin, TX 78701

More often than not American consumers are incapable of tracking the food they eat to its’  production source.  This is unfortunate because the story of how your food gets from the farmer’s field to your plate in a restaurant describes the hard work, partnerships, and love of food that goes into that process.  This week I will tell you a story about La Condesa, one of Austin’s critically acclaimed restaurants, which serves exciting and creative contemporary Mexican cuisine.  La Condesa has shown consistent commitment to locally sourced organic produce by working with JBG to turn our fresh veggies into some of the most delicious dishes in Austin.

Every week, we receive vegetable orders from our wholesale partners which we then harvest and deliver.  Just like clockwork, we received a phone call on Monday from La Condesa’s Assistant Executive Chef, Jessica Peterson, placing an order for a variety of veggies used in their weekly specials.  With order in hand, we contacted our Field Manager Vicente Castillo and asked for his crew to harvest the items on our list.  Vicente and his crew, as usual, brought us beautiful vegetables for La Condesa’s order, and Tuesday morning we packaged the produce and delivered it downtown (a mere 10 miles from the farm).  Tuesday evening I had the privilege of eating those very same vegetables  and it was truly delicious.

Thanks to the creative genius of Executive Chef Rene Ortiz and Pastry Chef Laura Sawicki, we ate six lovely and tasty dishes that feature JBG produce. The experience was made better by the hip, bohemian interior which provides an unique dining experience.  We started off with a watermelon martini cocktail which was wonderfully fresh and sweet, using  locally grown watermelons.  The first dish we tried featured our eggplant in an amazing orange-eggplant marmalade topped with corned duck gizzard and garnished with cilantro.  Then we started working our way through La Condesa’s  Especiales Del Día.  To start, we had the Chili Japonés (Japanese peppers) which were grill-blackened shishito peppers from JBG, in a garlic epazote oil with lime and queso cotija.  Following the shisitos, we had the Ceviche de Callos, buttery Maine diver scallops juxtaposed with flavorful habanero-carrot puree, using JBG carrots, and topped with crispy garlic and crispy basil.  To cleanse our palettes, we moved on to the Ensalada de Melón, made from JBG’s cantaloupe and honeydew melons with preserved yuzu, yogurt, toasted pumpkin seeds, tajin, and Pure Luck feta.  For our main course we had the signature vegetarian dish, a chili relleno in a spicy tomato broth, stuffed with JBG’s butternut squash, quinoa, corn and manchego, and topped with pumpkin pesto salsa.  La Condesa’s creative twist on the traditional chili relleno is absolutely delicious.  To wrap things up we had an amazingly diverse and unique beet and coconut desert featuring JBG beets.  The dish was composed of a scoop of coconut sherbet atop chocolate crunchy crumbles and paired with super moist sponge beet cake and a chocolate mouse surrounded by compressed beets, crispy ginger, and smoked hazelnuts.  An incredible experience to say the least.

Home Birth on JBG Farm

World, meet Wesley James Mattern!

As the proud father, I’d like to introduce everyone to our first child, born on July 13th in the old farm house on JBG’s Hergotz farm.

Grit and I are happy beyond words to have had a safe, fast and beautiful home birth. After a long, ten-day wait from the due date, labor eventually began and the progressed quickly. In the end the birth experience went just as we had wanted: in our home, surrounded by family and able midwives.

Grit labored heroically for just 3.5 hours and gave birth naturally and did not require interventions. I believe her good health, physical & mental strength and a diet rich in JBG’s hearty vegetables (!) played to her advantage.

I assisted with the birth and “caught” caught Wesley as he came into this world. Upon being born we laid him on Grit’s chest and for a few moments didn’t yet know his sex. It was an interesting moment. I would have been completely happy with a girl, but that he’s a boy warms a special place in my heart.

The Nitty Gritty will be taking a few weeks off of newsletter article writing to focus on our new family.

We’ll be back in August!

Steven & Grit

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

Slow Money & JBG Long-Term Subscription Opportunity

Now that JBG has purchased the 146 acres adjacent to our River Road farm, help us get this land ready for farming by purchasing a long-term CSA subscription at a discounted price.  Preparing this land for farming will be a costly venture.  For example, we will need to dig another well and install irrigation.  By signing up for one of these long-term subscriptions, you can help JBG and lock in a lower price of $28.85/box for the term of the subscription.  We have included the details below.  If you would like to sign up or for more information, please email us at farm@jbgorganic.com.

1 year weekly:  $1500 (52 pickups in a fixed 12 month period)
1 year bi-weekly:  $750 (26 pickups in a fixed 12 month period)

2 year weekly:  $3000 (104 pickups in a fixed 24 month period)
2 year bi-weekly: $1500 (52 pickups in a fixed 24 month period)

3 year weekly:  $4500 (156 pickups in a fixed 36 month period)
3 year bi-weekly: $2250 (78 pickups in a fixed 36 month period)

4 year weekly:  $6000 (208 pickups in a fixed 48 month period)
4 year bi-weekly: $3000 (104 pickups in a fixed 48 month period)

5 year weekly:  $7500 (260 pickups in a fixed 60 month period)
5 year bi-weekly:  $3750 (130 pickups in a fixed 60 month period)

Note: Prices are for community pickup subscriptions.   Please add $5 per pickup for Home Delivery.  Subscriptions must be completed in the given fixed period and cannot be extended beyond this.

3) Recipes, by Melissa Vance, JBG CSA Member

Glazed Acorn Squash with Spicy Onions and Currants

1 acorn squash
Olive oil
3 tablespoons butter
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon paprika
Pinch cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons dried currants
2-3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Kosher salt and black pepper

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut the squash in half and scoop out seeds. Cut each half into several lengthwise slices.

Combine squash and a generous drizzle of oil in a bowl and toss to coat. Season with salt and black pepper.  Place on a baking sheet and roast until browned and tender when pierced with a fork, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until softened.  Deglaze the pan with the sherry vinegar and reduce completely.

Add garlic, paprika, cayenne pepper, currants, and honey, and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are glazed.  Stir in red wine vinegar, and season with salt and black pepper. Serve the squash hot, coated with sauce.

Three Cheese Scalloped Potatoes

1/3 cup shredded gruyere cheese
1/3 cup shredded young gouda or butterkase cheese
2 tablespoons butter
2 pounds potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/8 inch thick
Kosher salt and black pepper
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Combine the gruyere and gouda in a bowl.

Butter a large casserole dish.  Add half of the potatoes, spreading them out. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, half of the shredded cheese blend, and half the cream.  Arrange the remaining potatoes on top. Sprinkle with more salt and pepper.  Pour the remaining cream over the potatoes.

Sprinkle the potatoes with the parmesan and the remaining shredded cheese. Bake until golden, about 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are fork tender. Let rest 5 minutes before serving.