This red barn at Buena Tierra Farm was first constructed on rented land in Hallettsville, TX. When Steve and Carey moved ten years ago, the landlord declined to buy the barn, so they numbered each board, carefully disassembled it, and reconstructed it on their own 100-acre farm near Fredonia, TX.

From the Farmer’s Perspective:

A couple weeks ago, I had the pleasure of visiting Buena Tierra Farm in Fredonia, Texas.  Buena Tierra is owned and operated by Steve Kramer and Carey Burkett, and I was really impressed with their farm.  I was also struck by their way of life and how they put their values into action.  Many people talk about living “simply” and using less.  Instead of just talking about it, Steve, Carey, and their son are actually doing it.  I was so amazed by their place that I couldn’t stop taking pictures and now want to share them with you.  Buena Tierra truly is an exceptional place.

Steve has a lot of old, heavy duty farming equipment that he has been able to customize for different tasks. The most expensive piece of equipment he's ever purchased was a $7,000 Massey Ferguson tractor. He's legendary among local farmers for his ability to find good used equipment at bargain prices.

Steve is the only farmer I know who has a combine (pictured above) so he can save his own certified organic grain seeds for home baking use or for next year's cover crop.

One of the most exciting things I learned at Buena Tierra was about their cover cropping systems. In the center of this photo is a row of cereal rye grass, and on each side are three rows of Austrian winter peas. Once Spring comes, the peas are incorporated into the soil, and the rye is left standing as a wind break. Crops such as cucumbers can then get an earlier and protected start.

Their greenhouse is heated by a wood-burning heater. The firebox is surrounded by a water jacket. Once the fire heats the water, it is circulated by the small pump in the photo. The plants are placed on the tables and heat is provided to them by the large black pipes under the tables that radiate heat from the circulating water. JBG was inspired by this and is installing a similar hot-water heating system for our greenhouse this winter.

Steve Kramer, right, talks to Skip Connett of Green Gate farms about his greenhouse and farm.

Checking out Buena Tierra from the observation deck. Some neighbors questioned why this was constructed. Once we were at the top looking over the farm, though, the reason became clear.

The view of Buena Tierra from the tower says it all. In the center hay field, construction is underway on the foundation for a large wind turbine to power the farm.

Steve and Carey built their house themselves using materials from a house that was slated to be torn down. It has no hallways; instead, each room opens onto the porch. This makes the rooms easier to ventilate (there's no AC anywhere on the farm, except for the vegetable coolers). The only room that's heated is the living room/kitchen, and it's heated by a wood stove. The hot water in the house is also heated by wood. To get from one room to another in the house, you have to walk out onto the porch, and this intentionally leads to a greater sense of connection with the outside environment.

Once inside Steve and Carey's house, we were surprised by the cellar that was hidden by the rocking chair and rug in the left of the photo. It includes lots of canned and pickled goods, root vegetables, and stable items such as flour,sugar, and whole grains. It even has shelves dedicated for aging and storing homemade wine! The cellar serves a dual purpose as it can also be a storm shelter. The wood stove is pictured in the right of the photo.

Wine and canned/pickled vegetables fill the cellar shelves.

A bottle of Bunea Tierra's Mustang grape wine.

Even their toys are handmade. Ada Johnson plays with a train set.

Buena Tierra grows loofah squash to use as natural scrub sponges.

The fancy farm lawn mower

Currently, Buena Tierra is building a community kitchen and bath house for farm workers made out of native stone. The mortar is made out of simple mixture of Portland cement and the beautiful red sand from the vegetable fields.

The farm fruit orchard includes peaches, blackberries, grapes, apples, pears...

Barbado sheep at Buena Tierra

A mobile chicken coop at the farm. Beth Johnson said these were the best eggs she'd had all year.

Guinea hens are located near the house and serve as guard dogs, warning of anyone's arrival.

They even have an old-fashioned dinner bell to let the field crew know that dinner is ready.

1) Farm News

* JBG is now accepting CSA Members
* Week of November 29th CSA Box Photo & Contents List
* The Whole Story by Mario Bravo: Peche
* Nitty Gritty: Get To Know Your Farmer: Urban Patchwork

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

* Citrus Sale Begins
* Great Gift Ideas from JBG
* JBG Hats Available for Pre-order
* Gleaning at Green Gate Farms, Saturday, Dec. 4
* Slow Food Austin Slow Session: Masa Mojo, Dec. 12

3) Recipes by Dish a Licious

*in the DISH kitchen: Get Down with Raw Food

Photo by Scott David Gordon

1) Farm News

JBG is now accepting CSA Members!

Help us spread the word! Click here to join.

Week of November 29th CSA Box Contents

Week of November 29th CSA Box Contents

Rainbow Chard
Carrots
Broccoli
Spinach
Scallions
Salad Turnips
Baby Bok Choy
Radishes
Kohlrabi
Sweet Potatoes

Salad at Peche. Photo by Mario Bravo

The Whole Story by Mario Bravo

Peche

208 West 4th Street Austin, Texas 78701
Mon – Fri  4pm-late!
Sat & Sun – 5pm-late!
Happy Hour
M – F 4pm-6pm
all day Sunday
all day Monday

I grew up on 25 acres with a large garden that we often ate from.  Friends from school were used to having their pantries stocked with the likes of Chips Ahoy cookies and Fruit Roll Ups.  They would come over and ask with bewilderment, “How do you ever eat anything here?  All you have is ingredients.”  My family cooked from scratch.  That is why, when I found out that the staff at Peche make their own mayonnaise and ketchup, I knew they weren’t messing around.

It takes great skill as a chef to create a menu, perfect it, and do it consistently.  I think it takes another level of creativity and talent to create a new menu every day and nail it the way executive chef Jason Dodge did the night I ate at Peche.  There is a good chance that many of the fantastic dishes that I describe below will not be on the menu when you go, surely replaced by equally amazing creations.

The drinks range from $8 to $15.  I’m not usually in the business of buying drinks at that price, but if I do, they better impress me, like Vince’s reaction to an expensive milkshake at Jackrabbit Slim’s in the movie Pulp Fiction.  Peche’s drinks really impressed me.  They make their own house bitters and infused simple syrups at the bar.  They don’t use sweet and sour, and most juices are made in house with a crusher type juicer.

When we asked what their most popular drink was, Rob kindly let us know that he was more interested in asking us the appropriate questions to conclude what our favorite drinks would be.   Rob also tells stories that connect you with the drinks.  He is a bit of a historian when it comes to prohibition, bartenders, and the history of particular cocktails… including the first drink to be called a cocktail.  It all added to the experience for me, and I can see why Peche won best bar staff in the 2011 best of Austin reader’s poll. (Tip- they have all day happy hour on Sundays and Mondays.)

The rye whiskey with sweet vermouth, house bitters, and fig foam was superb.  I was a little hesitant. I don’t like to pollute a good whiskey with anything you could add to it in a cocktail, but the way that the sweet fig foam paired to finish with the whiskey was something I could never have imagined.  The Cucumber Gimlet was outstanding.

Peche offers a local farm salad made with raw butternut squash sliced thin with a peeler.  I had just a taste.  I’ve never had raw butternut squash, and the flavor was surprisingly similar to watermelon.  I recommend trying it.

Our salad consisted of mixed greens, roasted beets, walnuts, bleu cheese, speck (a smoked prosciutto), and is finished with a vinegar reduction dressing.  Beets just seem to go remarkably well with greens and a strong-flavored, soft cheese.  Jason’s version was a salad after my own heart, being very similar to a recipe given to me by a JBG farmer’s market customer, which has been my favorite salad at home for close to a year now.  Jason took it to the next level by adding the speck and reducing the vinegar dressing.  I can only hope he serves some version of it the next time I go.

I believe they often keep a risotto dish on the menu at Peche.  The night we ate there, it was large gulf shrimp and PEI mussels with risotto.  That was the creamiest risotto I’ve ever had, made with SarVecchio parmesan and diced kohlrabi.  The risotto itself is made from scratch, and if you are a risotto person, you have to try it.

Seared dayboat scallops at Peche. Photo by Mario Bravo

Next we had the seared dayboat scallops with JBG escarole, pancetta, cipolline, chili flakes, and garlic.  It is glazed with white wine and a splash of sherry, and then finished with granny smith apple slices, fried sage, and olive oil.  The large scallops were cooked to perfection, and the whole dish came together well.  It was one of those plates where you try to get a small bite of each ingredient in your mouth all at once.
I was unfamiliar with cipollines.  Jason explained to me that they are like a mild, sweet onion, but are actually the underground bulb of a Grape Hyacinth, or Muscari flower.  Most people think that it is an onion, and I just discovered that you have to go past the first page of results on a Google search to confirm that it isn’t.

The game hen under a brick was a meal large enough for two, but once you taste it, you may want it all for yourself.  They split the hen on the backside, spread it open, and press it flat under a weight to hold it close to the grill.  It was served with roasted JBG carrots and turnips, and an arugula chimichurri.  I personally don’t peel my carrots, but Jason let me know that ours are so tender that he peels them with the back side of the knife. The chicken was so good that I’m still not sure that I heard Jason right when he told me that all he put on it was olive oil, salt, and pepper.  I think it was the best chicken I’ve ever had.

Game hen at Peche. Photo by Mario Bravo

The only thing that I have left out is that Peche is Austin’s first absinthe bar.  I’m not going to write about it, because I don’t think I can do it justice.  I’ll just tell you that I trust the personalities that are the Peche bartenders to guide you through absinthe history and mixology to do absinthe justice and let you make up your own mind on the recently re-legalized drink.

In every way my experience at Peche was wonderful.  The shocking thing was that all the food was prepared in one of the smallest commercial kitchens I’ve ever seen in my life.  It’s about the size of a food truck kitchen.  Well done, team Peche.

Get To Know Your Farmer: Urban Patchwork

On the surface, Crestview appears like any other Central Austin neighborhood – streets, houses, lawns. But its backyard gardens harbor a hidden farm, aptly named Urban Patchwork. The concept is straightforward, yet so far the only of its kind: A neighborhood community combines its very own resources to produce its very own food.

Behind this idea stands a young woman with a big smile, tons of energy and an enthusiasm that is quiet contagious. “Where more than 80% of the US population lives, less than one percent of our food is produced,” says Paige. With a background in cultural studies and urban planning as well as a deep connection to nature, Paige felt inspired to bring food production back to where people live. She founded Urban Patchwork in 2009 as a non-profit organization. But this is not only about producing food. Through food she intends to bring a food culture back to the communities as well.  Along the way, Urban Patchwork contributes to solving issues of food security and access.

The woman behind Urban Patchwork, Paige Hill

Urban Patchwork Farm currently entails fourteen garden plots in peoples’ private back- and front yards located in two Austin neighborhoods, Crestview and Cherrywood. They provide edibles for 40 families living in those communities. Members choose their level of involvement and sign up as a donor member, chicken host, land host, CSA subscription member, workshare member or coordinator member.

Besides growing food for their neighborhood CSA, the gardens provide welcome ground for experimentation. Paige, for example, is currently growing several varieties of peanuts to determine their suitability for the Central Texas climate. Bubbly compost tea is brewing in a converted bathtub behind her house. I shuttered as she eagerly dug through the smelly gruel-like content of a converted 5 gallon bucket to show Slow Food Austin visitors her soldier fly larvae growing operation. The larvae of the black soldier fly aid in decomposition and serve as deluxe chicken food. The smellier the bucket content, the more inviting it is to the fly to lay her eggs in it. Inspired to grow food with very few inputs and little water-use, neighborhood “farmer” Joe built an aquaponic setup that combines growing fish and veggies with fish food as the only input. A particular successful experiment was his wicking bed. A specially designed water reservoir is built under the veggie bed that keeps deeper soil levels most, but the top soil dry, thus minimizing water loss through evaporation. The plants in this bed looked lush and healthy.

Urban Patchwork Farm Plot

Food education plays an essential role in reintroducing food culture to neighborhood communities. Urban Patchwork offers workshops on all kind of topics but especially focuses on food in disguise as ornamentals or even weeds – both are already growing plentiful in the neighborhoods. Slow Food Austin visitors to Urban Patchworks’ gardens were served a vodka drink mixed with prickly pear syrup and got to take home a jar of prickly pear and wild plum jam. Paige demonstrated toasting youpon holly leaves for a delicious tea, the local alternative to green tea. Lambsquarter is grown and used as an alternative summer green, so is purslane.

The Crestview and Cherrywood neighborhoods were chosen as pilot projects because community members had already experience working together. The grand idea however, is to expand the concept to all Austin neighborhoods. Paiges’ vision is that every neighborhood in Austin has its own farm and weekly farm stand run and supported by neighbors who live within walking/biking distance of where their food is grown. Bringing a less homogeneous community together seems to me the ultimate test of Urban Patchworks’ concept. If anybody can do that, however, I am convinced Paige is the one.

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

Organic Rio Red Grapefruit from G&S Groves. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Citrus Sale Begins

JBG is again hosting its annual bulk citrus sale. Organic oranges and grapefruit are available for purchase at a cost of $10 per 10 lb bag. These delicious oranges and grapefruit are grown in the Rio Grande Valley by G & S Groves, a certified organic grower in McAllen, Texas.   Deliveries will begin the week of November 15th and continue through the end of February.  To order, please click here or go to our website at jbgorganic.com.

Oranges from G&S Groves. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Great Holiday Gift Ideas from JBG

Give these great-looking certificates (and the gift of organic produce!) to friends, neighbors, and family.

JBG Gift Subscription designed by Ryan Rhodes

JBG Market Bucks designed by Ryan Rhodes

Farmers Market Bucks: Give your friends “bucks” to spend at our booth at any one of the farmers markets we attend.  This now includes the Triangle and Round Rock Farmers Markets on Wednesdays, the Downtown Austin, Barton Creek, Sunset Valley, Cedar Park, Burnet Road, Callahan’s and Lakeline markets on Saturday, and the HOPE market on Sunday. These “bucks” are available for purchase in $20 increments.

CSA Gift Subscriptions: Give a CSA subscription for (4) pickups or more. Each CSA gift subscription comes with a sign-up form so the recipient can choose their start date and the most convenient pickup location.

When you purchase a gift subscription or market bucks, you can choose to have it mailed to you or to the recipient directly.  If you choose to have us mail it, we can include a personal message from you.  To purchase Farmers Market Bucks or a JBG CSA Gift Certificate, please click here or call the office at 512-386-5273.

T-shirts and Tote Bags make great gifts, too.  To order, click here.

JBG hats designed by Ryan Rhodes

JBG Hats Available for Pre-Order

Pre-order your JBG hat and support the farm in style!  Hats are $12.00 each, and we plan to ship them out in December.  To pre-order, click here.

Broccoli grows at JBG. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Green Gate Farms, Austin – Gleaning After the Harvest

Sunday December 4, 1-3 p.m.

This kid-friendly workshop explores the concept of gleaning, which is the ancient practice of collecting and donating leftover crops to charity. Help glean at this historic, intown farm while teaching your children the importance of community with Green Gate Farms founders Erin Flynn and Skip Connett. Workshop begins with farm tour (suitable for all ages) featuring hands-on time with rare breed piglets, goats, chickens; exploring 109-year-old barn and hayloft; and tasting wild field greens and cultivated varieties.

Tour tickets are $15 (purchase at http://slowfoodandGreenGate.eventbee.com or click here) ; bring coolers to purchase your own certified organic vegetables, meats, and eggs.

Fennel grows at JBG. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Slow Food Austin Slow Session: Masa Mojo

Date: Monday December 12th 2011, 7 pm – 9 pm
Location: The Natural Epicurean Academy, 1700 S. Lamar Blvd. Suite #316, Austin, TX 78704
RSVP: anneh@slowfoodaustin.org

Join us as Hector Gonzalez, outstanding Interior Mexican cook and instructor, teaches us the fine art of masa preparation. The session will cover the culinary history of masa and tortillas; the different types of corn available in Austin and which are the best for tortilla making. Hector will also demonstrate:

• How to nixtamalize the corn and grind it using both old methods and new ones
• The basic method for making tortillas with different corns (yellow, white, blue)
• How to make other Mexican specialties using masa.

The Natural Epicurean Culinary Academy will be providing house salsa and guacamole to accompany the masa dishes made and the session will end with a raffle to give away of some of the materials used during the class.  For more information or to sign up, click here or go to http://slowfoodaustin.org/2011/11/21/slow-session-masa-mojo-12122011/.

3) Recipes by Dish a Licious

Get Down with Raw Food

by Louis Singh | photos by Matthew C. Wright | dishalicious.com

This week, Sabine shows us how to get down with raw food!

Now, we’re not here to advocate one diet or another.  Eating should be satisfying and never a guilt trip.  But make good decisions.  Use common sense.  Listen to and respect your body.

We are here to show you some really cool cooking techniques, and raw food has a lot of them.

We’re making “Cheesy” Kale Chips.  I really didn’t want to use the quotes, but it really is cheesy, sans cheese.  You’ll see.

Get some kale, like this Dino kale from JBG.

Strip the leaves off and tear them into chip-sized pieces.

Wash them in a bowl of water, letting the dirt settle to the bottom.  Lift the leaves out, shake off excess water and place them on some paper towels to dry.

In raw food, cashew is king.  Lots of good fats, lots of good flavor, tons of nutrients.

Soak 2 cups of raw cashews in water for 6 hours to plump them up and make them easy to puree.  Drain and place into a blender.

Sweet red peppers will add flavor and provide some liquid to help puree the cashews.  We use 5 Carmen peppers from JBG, de-stemmed and cut into pieces, followed by about ¼ cup of fresh lemon juice.  Acid always brightens flavors.  We also add about 1 teaspoon of sea salt.

Bring in the “cheese”.  Nutritional yeast.  Doesn’t sound all that delicious, but actually salty and cheesy, in a good way.  And of course, it’s good for you!  Add about 2 tablespoons.

And now, we blend.  You might need to work it a little.  If it’s too thick to blend, add a bit of water till it gets moving.

Taste the cashew cheese and make sure it’s delicious.  Season if needed, then get ready to mix.

Pour enough on to coat the leaves well.

Toss, toss, toss.  Normally these go into the dehydrator to dry overnight below 118°.  But we’re impatient, so we broke the rules.  We baked ours in the oven at 300°.  Just be sure to spread them out in single layers to they can crisp.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until crispy & crunchy and devour.  Dip them in the leftover cashew cheese, or crack them on top of salads, or just eat them up.

These were the only ones that made it to a plate.

The rest were ransacked right off the sheet trays because they are just that good.  “Like kale Doritos!” as one of our friends put it.

Even Jude put down his pizza to get in on the excitement.  Kids choosing kale over pizza??  Now that is a bold testament to the power of cooking.

Now, get cooking!

Any cooking quandaries you’d like us to tackle?  Let us know at info@dishalicious.com

Morning harvest. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Happy Thanksgiving from the Johnson family. Photo by Scott David Gordon

From the Farmer’s Perspective:

With the days getting shorter, it seems like we have to get more done in fewer hours.  Despite this seasonal time crunch, we will all be taking the day off on Thursday to celebrate the holiday.  I would like to thank everyone again for being a part of the JBG community – may you have a wonderful Thanksgiving.  You will notice that the newsletter is a little shorter due to the holiday, but we’ve packed it with pictures taken this week by Scott David Gordon that really capture the vibrant colors of our growing crops.  Who knows – maybe some of the vegetables photographed here will end up on your plate this Thanksgiving!

Rainbow chard stems. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Spinach. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Cauliflower. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Lettuces. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Broussel Sprouts begin to grow. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Another shade of Rainbow Chard. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Fennel. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Red Mustard Leaf. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Cabbage. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Kale. Photo by Scott David Gordon

1) Farm News

* Important Website/Ordering Updates
* JBG is now accepting CSA Members
* Week of November 22nd CSA Box Photo & Contents List

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

* Citrus Sale Begins
* Great Gift Ideas from JBG
* JBG Hats Available for Pre-order

3) Recipes

* Sweet Potato Pot Pie

Mizuna. Photo by Scott David Gordon

1) Farm News

Important Website/Ordering Updates

We have been working on improving our CSA subscription sign-up process, and we have just launched a new sign-up and database system that we think you will find more user-friendly.  With this new system, you will be able to do the following:

*Choose a payment frequency that works best for you, including a pay-as-you go option of  one pickup at a time for weekly or bi-weekly subscriptions
*Sign up for a long-term subscription online for a 10% discount
*Sign up for a 10-pickup subscription online for a 5% discount
*Sign-up for office or home delivery online
*Add eggs or coffee to all or single pickups; eggs can now be ordered in quantities  greater than one dozen
*Create your own password to log into your account and adjust schedule when needed

With this new system, all members will automatically be put on auto renewal at the subscription frequency they choose.  If a member decides that they do not want to renew, however, auto renewal can be canceled at any time.  Given this feature, we will no longer be emailing end-of-subscription notices.  We hope that you will find these changes make our online ordering system even better.  Please email us at farm@jbgorganic.com or call the office at 512-386-5273 if you have any questions about the changes.  Also, as always, we welcome any feedback as we are always striving to improve.

Cilantro. Photo by Scott David Gordon

JBG is now accepting CSA Members!

Help us spread the word! Click here to join.

Week of November 22nd CSA Box Contents

Week of November 22nd CSA Box Contents

Radishes
Parsley
Salad Mix
Spinach
Salad Turnips
Carrots
Scallions
Kale
Kohlrabi
Sweet Potatoes
Oranges and Grapefruit
Broccoli/Cauliflower/Cabbage

Cabbage. Photo by Scott David Gordon

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

G&S Groves Ruby Red Grapefruit arrives at JBG. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Citrus Sale Begins

JBG is again hosting its annual bulk citrus sale. Organic oranges and grapefruit are available for purchase at a cost of $10 per 10 lb bag. These delicious oranges and grapefruit are grown in the Rio Grande Valley by G & S Groves, a certified organic grower in McAllen, Texas.   Deliveries will begin the week of November 15th and continue through the end of February.  To order, please click here or go to our website at jbgorganic.com.

Oranges from G&S Groves. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Great Holiday Gift Ideas from JBG

Give these great-looking certificates (and the gift of organic produce!) to friends, neighbors, and family.

JBG Gift Subscription designed by Ryan Rhodes

JBG Market Bucks designed by Ryan Rhodes

Farmers Market Bucks: Give your friends “bucks” to spend at our booth at any one of the farmers markets we attend.  This now includes the Triangle and Round Rock Farmers Markets on Wednesdays, the Downtown Austin, Barton Creek, Sunset Valley, Cedar Park, Burnet Road, Callahan’s and Lakeline markets on Saturday, and the HOPE market on Sunday. These “bucks” are available for purchase in $20 increments.

CSA Gift Subscriptions: Give a CSA subscription for (4) pickups or more. Each CSA gift subscription comes with a sign-up form so the recipient can choose their start date and the most convenient pickup location.

When you purchase a gift subscription or market bucks, you can choose to have it mailed to you or to the recipient directly.  If you choose to have us mail it, we can include a personal message from you.  To purchase Farmers Market Bucks or a JBG CSA Gift Certificate, please click here or call the office at 512-386-5273.

T-shirts and Tote Bags make great gifts, too.  To order, click here.

JBG hats designed by Ryan Rhodes

JBG Hats Available for Pre-Order

Pre-order your JBG hat and support the farm in style!  Hats are $12.00 each, and we plan to ship them out in December.  To pre-order, click here.

JBG Sweet Potatoes at market. Photo by Scott David Gordon

3) Recipes

Sweet Potato Pot Pie Recipe from 101cookbooks.com

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium white or yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 1/2 to 3 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/4-inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon salt (plus more to taste)
1 tablespoon adobo sauce from a can of chipotle chilies (or more to taste)
1 cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen
2 cups cold whole or low-fat milk
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 box puff pastry dough (allow 20 to 30 minutes to thaw)
1 egg white

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large pot over medium-high heat, add the oil, onion, garlic, sweet potato and salt. Saute, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Stir in the adobo sauce and corn.

In a small bowl, combine the milk and cornstarch, then pour the mixture into the sweet potato pot. Leave the heat at medium-high for a few minutes to bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and cook until the filling starts to thicken, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and season with more salt to taste. Pour the filling into small ovenproof bowls, each three quarters full.

Cut a piece of puff pastry dough to fit over each bowl, with some overlap. Place the dough on the bowls and fold over the edge of the dish. Brush the dough lightly with egg white (this creates a golden crust).

Using a fork, poke a few holes in the top of each pie to allow steam to escape, and bake until the crusts are tall and deeply golden, about 15 minutes. Tip: Bake the potpies on a baking sheet lined with foil in case some of the filling bubbles over.

Serves 4 as a main course.

Full field. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Fields after Monday's rain. Photo by Scott David Gordon

From the Farmer’s Perspective:

Last week, I was interviewed by Ellen Kanner for her Meatless Monday column in the Huffington Post (to read the full article, click here).  One of her questions to me was, “What are you thankful for?”  I told her I was most grateful for my wife, Beth, and my kids, Lila, Drew, Ada, and Jimmy.  I also am also very thankful for the staff at JBG and feel fortunate to work with such a great group of people everyday.  I really feel blessed to be doing a job that I love.   I would like to thank everyone who is part of the JBG community – I literally couldn’t do it without you.  One of the best things about the coming Thanksgiving holiday is that it makes me stop and think about all of the good things (and people!) in my life.  I have a lot to be thankful for.

Thanksgiving CSA Schedule

JBG will be closed Thanksgiving Day; consequently, Thursday deliveries will be rescheduled for Tuesday, November 22th (same pickup times, same locations — just a different day).  All other pickup days and times that week will remain the same.  However, if you would like to pickup your share early to have for holiday cooking, you can reschedule for one of our Tuesday or Wednesday locations by emailing or calling the office.

Ordering an Extra Box and/or Eggs for Holiday Cooking: Need additional produce or eggs for your holiday meal? Order an additional box and/or eggs by emailing or calling the office at 512-386-5273.

Donate Your Box Over the Holidays: We recognize that many people go out of town over the holidays to visit family and friends, and you may be considering canceling your box for the week of Thanksgiving. If you need to cancel your Thanksgiving CSA pickup, we understand. However, to save the farm a big financial hit over the holidays and to help provide food for those in need, please consider donating your share to the Salvation Army, or having a friend pick up your share for you. This way, you can keep supporting the farm, while sharing fresh, organic vegetables with others.   To donate your box, please send us an email at farm@jbgorganic.com or call the office at 512-386-5273.

Just-harvested carrots. Photo by Scott David Gordon

1) Farm News

* Important Website/Ordering Updates
* JBG is now accepting CSA Members
* Week of November 15th CSA Box Photo & Contents List
* The Whole Story: Pickling with Kate Payne
* Nitty Gritty: Press Release

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

* Citrus Sale Begins
* Great Gift Ideas from JBG
* JBG Hats Available for Pre-order

3) Recipes

* New Blog for CSA Subscribers: CSA for Three
* in the DISH kitchen:  Blanching vs. Roasting

Workshares lend a hand. Photo by Scott David Gordon

1) Farm News

Important Website/Ordering Updates

We have been working on improving our CSA subscription sign-up process, and we have just launched a new sign-up and database system that we think you will find more user-friendly.  With this new system, you will be able to do the following:

*Choose a payment frequency that works best for you, including a pay-as-you go option of one pickup at a time for weekly or bi-weekly subscriptions
*Sign up for a long-term subscription online for a 10% discount
*Sign up for a 10-pickup subscription online for a 5% discount
*Sign-up for office or home delivery online
*Add eggs or coffee to all or single pickups; eggs can now be ordered in quantities greater than one dozen
*Create your own password to log into your account and adjust schedule when needed

With this new system, all members will automatically be put on auto renewal at the subscription frequency they choose.  If a member decides that they do not want to renew, however, auto renewal can be canceled at any time.  Given this feature, we will no longer be emailing end-of-subscription notices.  We hope that you will find these changes make our online ordering system even better.  Please email us at farm@jbgorganic.com or call the office at 512-386-5273 if you have any questions about the changes.  Also, as always, we welcome any feedback as we are always striving to improve.

JBG is now accepting CSA Members!

Help us spread the word! Click here to join.

Week of November 15th CSA Box Contents

Week of November 15th CSA Box Contents

Spinach
Beets
Carrots
Salad Mix
Scallions
Collard Greens
Sweet Potatoes
Kohlrabi
Oranges and Grapefruit
Farm Choice: Broccoli/Cauliflower/Cabbage

Pickling with Kate Payne

Kate Payne is one of my favorite hip girls, so goes the title of her most recent book The Hip Girl’s Guide to Homemaking, a collection of tips, tricks, and bits of wisdom for the modern, self-sufficient homemaker.  Kate is super cute, awesomely domestic, and one heck of a pickling queen and last week JBG sponsored Kate’s most recent pickling class, where students had the chance to learn the basic methods of pickling.  As a few of you who were in attendance already know, students got to make and take home jars of dilly beans, dilled baby carrots and some even used all the veggies for a pickled jardiniere.  All of these yummy vegetables came straight from the fields of JBG!  We are excited for the next class Kate puts on and we will give you all the details ahead of time so you don’t miss out.  Also, if you want to get your hands on a copy of Kate’s book or simply peruse some of her awesome pickling recipes check out http://hipgirlshome.com.

Kate Paye, author of The Hip Girl's Guide to Homemaking

JBG produce used for pickling by Kate Payne

JBG press release, 11/17/11

The newsletter entry production came to a temporary halt this week as all time was spent on training farm-born Wesley J. Mattern on the future of farming in America. Hours were spent studying organic farming practices as well as reading Wendell Berry’s work. “Berry is a true inspiration”, says Mattern. “I am excited to have him speak in Austin soon.”

Mattern’s first personal research project is dedicated to studying the relationship between mother’s diet and babies’ growth. “How does a mother’s diet high in JBG vegetables affect the quality of her breast milk and thus the growth of her baby?” asks Mattern. Four months into the experiment, Mattern has produced some promising results. With 21 lb and 3 oz. in weight and 27. 5 inches in height, Mattern’s growth rate is above the 95th percentile. “There is still more testing that needs to be done, however so far, the data shows a positive effect of JBG’s farm fresh vegetables on mother’s milk quality and thus baby’s growth rate”, reports Mattern on the status of his experiment.

Young farm researcher Wesley J. Mattern

Wesley J. Mattern: a work in progress

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

Organic Navel Oranges from G&S Groves. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Citrus Sale Begins

JBG is again hosting its annual bulk citrus sale. Organic oranges and grapefruit are available for purchase at a cost of $10 per 10 lb bag. These delicious oranges and grapefruit are grown in the Rio Grande Valley by G & S Groves, a certified organic grower in McAllen, Texas.   Deliveries will begin the week of November 15th and continue through the end of February.  To order, please click here or go to our website at jbgorganic.com.

Organic Rio Red Grapefruit from G&S Groves. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Great Holiday Gift Ideas from JBG

Give these great-looking certificates (and the gift of organic produce!) to friends, neighbors, and family.

JBG Gift Subscription designed by Ryan Rhodes

JBG Market Bucks designed by Ryan Rhodes

Farmers Market Bucks: Give your friends “bucks” to spend at our booth at any one of the farmers markets we attend.  This now includes the Triangle and Round Rock Farmers Markets on Wednesdays, the Downtown Austin, Barton Creek, Sunset Valley, Cedar Park, Burnet Road, Callahan’s and Lakeline markets on Saturday, and the HOPE market on Sunday. These “bucks” are available for purchase in $20 increments.

CSA Gift Subscriptions: Give a CSA subscription for (4) pickups or more. Each CSA gift subscription comes with a sign-up form so the recipient can choose their start date and the most convenient pickup location.

When you purchase a gift subscription or market bucks, you can choose to have it mailed to you or to the recipient directly.  If you choose to have us mail it, we can include a personal message from you.  To purchase Farmers Market Bucks or a JBG CSA Gift Certificate, please click here or call the office at 512-386-5273.

T-shirts and Tote Bags make great gifts, too.  To order, click here.

JBG t-shirts make great gifts

JBG Hats Available for Pre-Order

Pre-order your JBG hat and support the farm in style!  Hats are $12.00 each, and we plan to ship them out in December.  To pre-order, click here.

JBG hats designed by Ryan Rhodes

3. Recipes

New Blog for CSA Subscribers: CSA for Three

Ever wondered what to do with all of the vegetables in your CSA share?  Check out this blog that was started by two JBG CSA members, Michelann Quimby and Tiffany Braymen.  Here’s how Michelann describes the site, “We have started a cooking blog specifically aimed at CSA subscribers. We share our tips and tricks and recipe adaptations for using all the good CSA box bounty!”  To visit the site, please go to www.csaforthree.com or click here.

Broccoli on the packing line for CSA boxes. Photo by Scott David Gordon

in the DISH kitchen… by Dish a Licious

Every week, we get together with friends to cook.  Some friends want us to show them things, some friends want to show us things.  The important thing is we all learn some things that inspire us to cook again.  We hope you learn something, too.

This week, Ryan conquers blanching & roasting!

Often we meet people like Ryan who love to eat veggies but really aren’t sure how to prepare them.  “I’ve got all these veggies, and I need some good recipes, “ they’ll say.

We could give you a hundred recipes, and you’d have a hundred dishes.  Or, we could teach you the cooking techniques happening in those recipes, and you’d have a million dishes.  Learn to fish, right?

Here are two handy techniques to cook just about any vegetable: blanching and roasting.  Wet-heat and dry-heat cooking.  You can see the outcomes above: roasted veggies on top, blanched veggies on bottom.

Each have they’re own uses and advantages, and each produce different flavors.  We’ll show you how to get there.

First…we blanch!

Ok first, we cheers.  Then we blanch.

Blanching is simply cooking vegetables briefly in boiling water, then plunging them into ice cold water (an “ice bath”) to stop the cooking process.

Why blanch?  Three reasons.

1.)   Color:  It makes veggies prettier.  Particularly green ones.  When you blanch, light-absorbing gasses that are trapped between cell walls in the plant suddenly expand and release, which allows us to see the chlorophyll more clearly.  Thus, the veggie appears greener.  Ice-bathing, or “shocking”, the veggie halts cooking immediately and locks this color in place.  Then you can sauté, stir-fry veggies and they’ll stay beautiful and vibrant green.

2.)   Texture:  Blanching gets rid of the chewy bitterness of raw veggies, making them crisp, tender & palatable.

3.)    Storage:  If you want to freeze your veggies, blanching is a must.  The quick-cooking breaks down enzymes in the veggie that can cause loss of flavor, color and vitamins over time.

Here’s how:

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.  A lot of water is important, because temperature is important.  You want the water to stay as hot as possible when the veggies go in, and the more water you have, the easier it is for the water to come back to a boil because of all the retained heat.  When your water is up (boiling), season it with good salt.  This is your chance to season the veggies, and since they’ll only be in briefly, you’ll want your water fairly salty.  We usually add about a half cup of kosher salt per gallon of water.  It should taste like the sea.  If you’ve never tasted sea, google it.

Prep your veggies.  Trim stems off green beans, peel carrots, cut broccoli into florets, make the veggies look nice.  This is a great time to prepare your ice bath, too.  Fill a bowl with lots of  ice and water.  The colder the better.

Place your veggies into the boiling water and give them a stir.  Cook for about 1-3 minutes, stirring occasionally until crisp tender.  Just pull one out every so often and taste for doneness.

As soon as they’re tasty, plunge them into the ice bath and stir until cold.  Remove them and let them drain on a paper towel or in a colander.  Done.

Simmering root veggies is just as easy, with a slightly different technique.  Since root vegetables are bigger and denser than green beans, broccoli and similar vegetables, you should start them in cold water and bring them up to a boil, instead of dropping them into boiling water.

This way, the inside has a chance to come up to temperature and cook evenly with the outside of it.  If you dropped a turnip, beet, potato or any dense vegetable into already-boiling water, the outside would cook quickly while the center remains raw.  When’s it done?  When you can easily slide a pairing knife in and out, and it doesn’t stick, it’s done.

Now that you have prepped veggies, a quick meal is always near.  Sauté green beans in a little butter or olive oil, finish with lemon zest, chopped thyme & minced garlic.  Stir-fry broccoli with toasted sesame seeds, sliced chiles, fried shallots & soy sauce.    Or, store them in the fridge for up to 2 days, in the freezer for 2 weeks.

Roasting

Roasting vegetables is so easy and delicious, it’s surprising more people don’t do it at home.  It’s a dry-heat cooking technique, which relies on the radiant heat of your enclosed oven and some kind of fat (oil) to coat the veggies.

Why roast?

1.)   It’s easy.  Just toss the veggies in oil, salt and pepper and into the oven till they’re done.  That’s it.

2.)    It’s tasty.  Unlike blanching, roasting drives moisture out of the vegetable, concentrating its flavor.  It also caramelizes, or browns your veggies, which are actually complex chemical reactions that end in deliciousness.

3.)   It’s easy.  Did we say that?  It only takes one pan so clean up is a breeze.

Here’s how:

Pre-heat the oven to 375°.

Prep your veggies.  Trim stems off green beans, cut broccoli into florets, wash carrots (no need to peel if you’re using JBG’s nice baby carrots), peel and cut turnips into quarters.  Dress them up.

Place them on sheet tray (covering in foil for easier clean-up), and drizzle them with a little oil.  We’re using olive oil, but you can use any kind of fat.  Season them with salt & pepper, and toss to coat.

Pop them in the oven and let it rip.  Peek on them every 5-6 minutes and pull them out when they’re tender.

Roasting beets is a little different.  You can peel & cut them into wedges for roasting, but they’re so packed with sugar that they tend to caramelize and burn very quickly.  So we roast them in their own skin.

Just season them with a little oil, salt & pepper, and wrap them tightly in aluminum foil.  Roast them until they pass the knife test from above.

And that’s it.  Now that you know the technique, play with it.  Experiment with different flavors.  Toss roasted carrots in a lemon vinaigrette with fresh dill.  Finish broccoli with shaved parmesan more cracked pepper.    Or eat them as is, and it will still rule.

Cheers to blanching!  Salud for roasting!

Now, get cooking.

Questions? Suggestions? Comments? Let us know at info@dishalicious.com.

Full fall fields. Photo by Scott David Gordon

River Road rows. Photo by Scott David Gordon

From the Farmer’s Perspective:

I wish I could say that the title of this newsletter didn’t have a literal meaning, but, unfortunately, this time, it really does.  A few weeks ago when I was driving out to River Road, I saw trucks from the City of Austin’s Hornsby Bend waste treatment plant dumping truckloads of biosolids onto the farm next to JBG.   After talking with the landowner, I found out that Hornsby Bend gave him the biosolids for free and also delivered and spread that material.  From my observation, it appears that the City of Austin applied around 100 truckloads of biosolids to this farmland.  Seeing this really upset me because applying biosolids can make land unusable for food production for years.  Given the shrinking availability of farmland in the area and the region’s increasing population, the City and the County should not be endorsing a policy that harms what little farmland remains.

Biosolids being applied to the farm next to JBG. Photo by Brenton Johnson

After witnessing this being dumped and spread, I called the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) to find out about restrictions for organic farming on land to which biosolids have been applied.  Mary Ellen Holliman, Coordinator of Organics, and Richard De Los Santos, Coordinator for Horticulture, Produce and Forestry Marketing, told me that land to which biosolids have been applied cannot be certified organic for 3 years based on Federal law under the National Organic Program.  More importantly, they said that the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) and the State of Texas have very stringent rules for producing crops for human consumption.  Biosolids are grouped into two classes based on hazard level, and depending on the classification, they thought it could be an up to 10 year wait before land applied with biosolids could be brought back into production for food crops.

I am also concerned that the City and County do not adequately enforce the required waiting period for growing food crops once biosolids have been applied.  It isn’t clear how food produced on land to which biosolids have been applied is kept out of the area food system.  In fact, there appears to be very little oversight, and as a farmer, I was even encouraged to use biosolids when I toured the facilities at Hornsby Bend.   At that time, I was offered biosolids for purchase for a fertilizer for my commercial vegetable farm.  I then did some research and found that I could not use this for food production under State and Federal law, and, therefore, did not purchase anything from the plant.  The staff at Hornsby Bend, however, did not tell me any of this despite knowing that I was a vegetable grower.  Instead, I had to do the research myself.

By allowing biosolids to be spread on area farms, the City and Travis County put valuable farmland out of commission for years and endanger the health of their citizens through lax oversight.  Instead, the City and County should adopt a policy that prohibits biosolids from being applied to farmland for food or hay crops.  Since witnessing the dumping of biosolids at the farm next to JBG, I have been trying to get the word out to other growers and the public about the current City and County policy.  I thank you for taking the time to read this, and I will keep you posted on any actions you can take in the future to help change this harmful practice.

Packing Shed & Greenhouse Complex designed by Steven Mattern

On a more positive note, I am excited to report that we have started to build a new packing shed and greenhouse facility over at the River Road fields.  While we are not ready to build the planned larger-scale cold storage facility, this new packing shed and greenhouse complex will be an upgrade from our existing facilities at Hergotz Lane.  The best thing about this change is that we will be able to consolidate to one location.  This means that we won’t have to drive our harvested crops from River Road to Hergotz Lane multiple times a day.   Instead, we will be able to wash and pack our vegetables as soon as they come out of the field, thus ensuring that our produce is even fresher when it gets to you.

River Road greens. Photo by Scott David Gordon

1) Farm News

* JBG is now accepting CSA Members
* Week of November 8th CSA Box Photo & Contents List
* Nitty Gritty: Get To Know Your Farmer: Montesino Ranch
* JBG Hats Now Available for Pre-Order

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

* Slow Food: Montesino Ranch Barn Dance & Urban Patchwork Tour

3) New Feature: In the Kitchen with DISH

River Road Close-up. Photo by Scott David Gordon

1) Farm News

JBG is now accepting CSA Members!

Help us spread the word! Click here to join

Week of November 8th CSA Box Contents

Week of November 8th CSA Box Contents

Carrots
Salad Turnips
Spinach
Kale
Scallions
Lettuce
Baby Bok Choy
Braising Mix
Dill
Sweet Potatoes

Get To Know Your Farmer: Montesino Ranch and Farm

Just forty-five minutes southwest of Austin, tucked into the charming Hill Country landscape is Montesino Ranch and Farm. Surrounded by rolling pastures and hills covered with juniper, cypress, oak, mesquite and cedar trees, the natural beauty of the land immediately draws one in. The tallest hill is called “Montesino” – small mountain, which gave the farm its name. The Blanco River, framed with white limestone, cuts right through the property. In the owner Scott Mitchell the land inspired creativity. The result of his creative energy are tastefully designed and built farm buildings that successfully integrate man-made beauty into the natural one. In farm managers Melody McClary and David Burk it inspired to grow equally beautiful fruits and vegetables.

Pole Barn at Montesino Ranch and Farm

Even though the young couple shares the work in the field now, they came to farming separately. David fell in love with it during a road trip where he worked as a cherry picker in order to finance his way back home. Melody’s farming path emerged after volunteering at a farm. Her first task was to spray fish emulsion, a natural plant fertilizer. That evening she came home and told her mom: “I am tired, my back hurts, I stink like fish and I love it.”

Even though the whole Montesino property appears large, produce is grown on just three acres. However, an impressive amount of food comes from this small area of land. David and Melody feed between 400 to 700 families for 10 months out of the year. Even though they have two tractors, they do most of the work by hand. It takes about one person to maintain an acre and between the couple and two part-time helpers they get the job done.

This year, their fourth at Montesino, has been a rough one. It started with a cold winter, followed by a spring that was too short then came the summer – long, hot and dry. While they were able to grow their usual fair during the hot months, they noticed that their plants reacted differently than usual. The butternut squash, for example, produced many fewer fruits than in previous years. Happily, however, the reduced water in the fruits concentrated the sugars and helped make the crop one of their tastiest ever. Their heat-stressed plants were productive for a shorter length of time, which meant more replanting and thus more investment. But then again the pests were fewer since they couldn’t take the heat either.

Montesino's Farm Managers: David and Melody

Soon after the first fall planting was finished and everything looked promising, a hail storm hit and destroyed most of the young transplants. “As farmers, we are pretty much addicted to the weather channel,” said Melody. “About five different ones,” she added, “which we watch five times a day.” Just days before our Slow Food Farm Tour, the farm experienced their first hard freeze when the temperature dropped down to 21 degrees. This took out the rest of the summer crop of tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. “We are talking about 10,000 casualties,” commented David, light-heartedly in spite of the loss. When someone joked about how often farmers must cry, Melody contemplated for a moment before answering. “I did all my crying for this year already.”

Yet amidst farming’s highs and lows, David and Melody still feel enticed by the challenge. For Melody, farming is a means to personal growth. “As your vegetables grow, you grow with them.”

Being around David and Melody felt refreshing. Even though farming is hard work and involves one’s whole self, mind and body for 24 hours a day, David and Melody keep an openness and light-heartedness about them and their work that I found pleasant. As some of Austin’s younger farmers, they embody the future we need to keep the art of farming alive!

JBG hats designed by Ryan Rhodes

JBG Hats Available for Pre-Order

Pre-order your JBG hat and support the farm in style!  Hats are $12.00 each, and we plan to ship them out in December.  To pre-order, click here.

Broccoli at River Road. Photo by Scott David Gordon

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

Slow Food Austin: Urban Patchwork Tour

When: Sunday, November 13th
Time: 1-3 p.m.
Location: Austin
Ticket Price: $20

On the surface, Crestview is a typical central Austin neighborhood – streets, houses, lawns. But Crestview backyards harbor a hidden farm, aptly named Urban Patchwork (UP), in which neighbors pool their land to raise vegetables and eggs for many families.
Come with Slow Food Austin on a Sunday scavenger hunt to unearth some of UP’s productive produce patches and chicken coops. Farmer Paige Hill will host the event and explain the ground-breaking patchwork concept behind UP.  UP is expanding into other Austin neighborhoods – come see if it’s right for yours. Children are welcome on this fun and educational tour. The ticket price of $20 includes a take-home sample of UP veggies and eggs, and light refreshments. To RSVP and purchase tickets, click here or go to  http://slowfoodandurbanpatchwork.eventbee.com.   Questions? Email Betsy at betsyL@slowfoodaustin.org

Close-up of a broccoli floret. Photo by Scott David Gordon

New Feature: In the Kitchen with DISH

Thank you to Dish a Licious for this great new post!  Check out this first one on how to make pasta.

This week, Matt tackles making pasta, from scratch!

We make pasta just about every week at Dishalicious and Jason is the pasta master.  He drops some knowledge from his 20+ years of cooking experience.

The winning Scary Scarecrow sports a carrot mustache. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Scary Scarecrow Winner

Thank you to everyone who participated in our Scary Scarecrow Contest. We had some great entries, but one in particular really stood out.  The winning scarecrow, aptly named Scully Von Grackle, was created by Matt and Stephanie Leach.   They even included the JBG chicken!  Congratulations, Matt and Stephanie, for building such a fantastic (and scary!) scarecrow.

Detail of winning scarecrow's skull. Photo by Scott David Gordon

From the Farmer’s Perspective

We have been planting and seeding like crazy over at River Road.  Our greenhouse manager, Kim Grabosky, has done such a great job growing our transplants that we’ve had to expand to two greenhouses.  In order to keep up with the steady supply of transplants coming out of the greenhouses, our field crew has been spending every weekday preparing beds and transplanting.  This has left little time for direct seeding, so we have had to make up the slack on the weekends.  Usually, I go to the farmers markets on Saturdays, but I haven’t been able to do this for about six weeks now.  Instead, my Saturdays are spent seeding a lot of trial crops.  We recently found a  Texas seed company that has been sending us lots of samples to try in our fields, ad we are running trials on several varieties of cilantro, beets, radishes, parsley, cabbages, Brussels sprouts, herbs, chard, and kale.  Through these trials, we hope to determine what does best in our soil and climate.  Although I really miss the farmers markets, I have to say that I love trying new vegetables.  I started gardening in the first place because I wanted to grow varieties not typically carried by grocery stores.  Now, one of the best things about being a mixed vegetable grower is that I constantly get to try out new produce and then share this with our members.  It’s been great, too, to hear how much local chefs appreciate everything we offer, and this inspires me to diversify even more.  Members will soon experience some of this added variety in our carrot crop which will include rainbow, red, purple, and orange varieties this year.  I look forward to sharing this colorful selection of carrots!

A baby carrot at River Rd. Photo by Scott David Gordon

1) Farm News

* JBG is now accepting CSA Members
* Week of November 1st CSA Box Photo & Contents List
* The Whole Story: Dai Due
* The Nitty Gritty: Consequences of Heat & Drought in Central TX

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

* The Local Connection by Sarah Blackburn
* Pickling 101 hosted by Kate Payne Wed, Nov. 9th
* Slow Food: Montesino Ranch Barn Dance & Urban Patchwork Tour
* Slow Money & JBG Long-Term Subscription Opportunity

3) Recipes

* Roasted Kohlrabi
* Hazelnut & Chard Ravioli Salad Recipe

The Johnson Family poses for a fall picture. Photo by Scott David Gordon

1) Farm News

JBG is now accepting CSA Members!

Help us spread the word! Click here to join

Week of November 1st CSA Box Contents

Week of November 1st CSA Box Contents

Radishes
Broccoli Raab
Salad Mix
Tomatillos
Green Beans
Kohlrabi
Lettuce
Okra
Beets
Rainbow Chard
Onions

Dai Due. Photos by Leslie Lilly

Dai Due Butcher Shop
Saturdays 9am-1pm
SFC Farmers Market Downtown (4th & Guadalupe)

Here at the farm, we think Jesse Griffiths is one cool dude.   He hunts his own wild boar, cans and pickles every vegetable imaginable, and has a great looking beard!  Not to mention that as the owner of Dai Due and charcuterie-extraordinaire, Jesse has been dedicated to the local food movement in a way that inspires people.  Every Saturday at the Downtown Farmers Market, Jesse and his Dai Due crew bring the market goers some truly delicious eats, all of which reflect the seasonality of food in central Texas.  I love it!

A couple weeks ago, Dylan and I got on our bikes for a brisk morning ride to the farmers market and a bite to eat at the Dai Due stand.  The line was already around the narrow corner of 5th and Guadalupe by 9am but, that’s always a good sign indicating you’re about to eat something really tasty.  We filled up on a delicious Pon Haus with a fried duck egg and amazing Chicharrones  Tacos featuring lots of JBG veggies including our cilantro, pickled poblanos and JBG onions.  And of course we ordered (and fought over) the best biscuits, sausage, and gravy in town! No, in the world! Can you tell I’m a fan?  Anyways, we did not go home empty handed.  We also purchased the wild boar bangers and wild boar chorizo for dinner later in the week, and I love impressing my friends with fancy and delicious food items picked up the farmer’s market!  And definitely do not miss the JBG Blue Ballet chutney, Bread and Butter pickles made from JBG cucumbers, and JBG Serrano Hot Sauce, all jarred by the one and only Jesse Griffiths.

Dai Due. Photos by Leslie Lilly

Consequences of the Heat and Drought in Central Texas

When fall finally arrived in this year the collective sigh of relief was nearly audible. According to the National Weather Service, we made it through the hottest summer in US history. As of September 30, Austin recorded 90 days of 100+ temperatures, obliterating the old record of 69 days set in 1925.

But 2011 has been a record year in terms of drought, too. The 12 month period from October 2010 through September 2011 was the driest in Texas’ recorded history since 1895. Moreover, this year turned out to be the driest in a succession of dry years.

While most of us can escape into air conditioning and abandon outdoor activities, it’s different for the farmer.

How did this extreme weather affect Central Texas’ food production? September is generally the month to get cool weather crops into the ground. This year however, it was still extremely hot then. Glenn and Paula from Springdale Farm didn’t know what to make of it and asked neighboring farmer Carol Ann from Boggy Creek for advice. As a farming veteran, she has seen many weird weather situations before and suggested to leave the books behind and simply plant, plant and plant until something takes off. And plants finally did with the big rain a few weeks ago.

Since drought-stressed land can’t support as many animals as normally, ranchers had to reduce their herd sizes and auction off livestock at depressed prices. Supplemental hay and sometimes even water had to be purchased for the ones remaining, according to Judith McGeary from the Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance whose husband is a rancher. These hard decisions ultimately translate to higher prices for local meat.

How hard the wildlife was hit will become evident after the second frost, says farmer Glenn from Springdale Farm. Throughout the summer, the severity of the drought could be judged by the risks wildlife was willing to take to get to food and water sources. Judith McGeary recalls that coyotes would walk up to the only pond that still had water in it to drink even though it was located right next to their ranch house. The coyotes weren’t even interested in the chickens that resided close by, but went straight for the water.

Ask your favorite farmer about his or her story. Empathize with them but more importantly, purchase their food! Although the tell-tale signs of heat and draught may be apparent, it was still grown with the same love, dedication and appreciation for the land and soil. After all, we are all in the same boat stranded on the sandbank and are all desperate to get it back out to sea!

Read more stories about farmer’s experiences with the drought on the SFC blog.

Photo by Scott David Gordon

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

The Local Connection by Sarah Blackburn

It is hard to believe that November is here and that the holidays are just around the corner!  The good news is that fall in Austin is one of the busiest times of year for farmers (and their friends), which means there are several great opportunities in the coming weeks to get involved and learn more about Austin’s amazing local food scene.  Please consider coming out to show your support and appreciation for JBG and friends at these events:

Wednesday, November 2: Nerd Nite.  7:30pm. 501 Studios (5th and Brushy St.)
Nerd Nite is a fantastic monthly speaker series in which knowledgeable folks present on whatever it is they are nerdy about.  This Wednesday is Nerd Nite 29: Foodie Nite.  Come on out and hear from some highly knowledgeable people about some intriguing topics regarding food and farming, including yours truly, Brenton Johnson, who will be giving a talk called “Getting Dirty: A Behind the Scenes Look at Johnson’s Backyard Garden”, in which Brenton will describe and explore some of the intricate systems he has developed and put into place in order to manage the endless list of chores that is year-round vegetable production.  Other talks include “Farming to Facebook: the New Frontier of Food”, by Addie Broyles of Austin American Statesman, and “We Don’t Need No Stinking Sides: A Nerd’s View of Central Texas BBQ,” by Tom Mahnke and Matthew Johnson of KOOP radio 91.7 FM.  Nerd Nite is free and open to all ages.  For more details, please visit http://austin.nerdnite.com/

Thursday, November 3: Jesse Street Eats farmers’ market, 6-9pm, 415 Jesse Street, 78704.
Stop by the inaugural Jesse Street Eats farmers’ market on Thursday evening for some dinner and groceries.  Located just south of Lady Bird Lake in the Jesse Street Eats mobile food park off of Barton Springs and Lamar, this market is a great place for South Austin foodies to pick-up some mid-week groceries!  Other vendors include Countryside Farms and Fatback Boucherie, and four delicious food trailers will offer some delicious meals made from local ingredients.  Jesse Street Eats is BYOB, dog- and kid-friendly, and a great way to spend a beautiful fall evening.  Mention that you heard about it on our blog for a free veggie of your choice from our stand!

FOOD + FILM + FOCUSED ON GOOD: Friday, November 4, 6-9pm, CTC Gardens, 1102 E. Cesar Chavez.
For their fall fundraiser, Lights. Camera. Help. invites JBG and Austin’s local food community to celebrate the great work of the slow food movement and highlight the pivotal role film is playing in amplifying the sustainable food cause. This cocktail-style event will be held on November 4th from 6 – 9 pm, at the CTC Garden. Top Austin area chefs and food artisans will provide delicious locally sourced food tastings that will pair nicely with local spirits and great wine. The event programming will spotlight local/sustainable food films coupled with insights from local food leaders about those films.  This is sure to be a fun and delicious evening!  Tickets are available for $20 in advance, or $30 day of show.  For more information or to purchase tickets, go to http://bit.ly/FFFoG or visit www.lightscamerahelp.org .

Spinach grows at JBG. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Pickling 101 Pickling 101: Basics of fermented & fresh pickles

Hosted by Kate Payne of The Hip Girl’s Guide to Homemaking

Date: Wednesday, November 9th from 6:30pm to 9:30pm

Pickling is a form of food preservation that has enabled centuries’ worth of people to keep food safe to eat over long periods of time. Beyond pickling as a handy way to store extra produce, pickles also add distinctive flavors to our culinary practices. In this interactive class you’ll learn about both methods of pickling, fresh and fermented pickling.

We’ll start with fresh (vinegar) pickles that you will prepare with spices of your liking. Participants will learn how to seal the jars for room-temperature, shelf storage (in the waterbath canner pot) and learn alternative storage methods, like refrigerator pickling. Jars of sealed, vinegar pickles also make great holiday and hostess gifts; get a jumpstart on your home-preserved gift plan for this holiday season!

In addition to waterbath canning methods and safety basics, you’ll learn the basics of fermentation (brining) as a form of food preservation. Lacto-fermented foods provide numerous health benefits using lactobacillus bacteria to preserve food as opposed to vinegar. We’ll discuss how fermentation works, why it’s safe and how to successfully manage small-scale fermented pickling projects at home.

We will likely be working with okra or peppers for the fresh pickling portion of the class and green tomatoes or pickling cukes for the fermentation portion, but those might change as the seasonal produce in local gardens and markets may vary. Participants will each take home their own personalized jar of fresh pickles.

Pickled snacks and an array of supper food will be served since this workshop spans the dinner hour.  To sign up, click here, or go to http://fallpicklingwithkatepayne.eventbrite.com/.

JBG fields. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Slow Food Austin Presents:

Saturday, 11/5: Montesino Ranch Farm Tour & Barn Dance

Time: 5 p.m.

Ticket Price: $15/ $25

Location: Wimberley, TX

Just forty-five minutes southwest of Austin, tucked into the charming Hill Country, is Montesino Ranch. The natural beauty of rolling pastures, tree-covered hills, and the limestone-bedded Blanco River crossing the farm will immediately draw you in and make the short drive more than worth-while. It inspires farm managers Melody McClary and David Burk to grow equally beautiful fruits and vegetables. “Vegetables will be plentiful this fall,” says Melody. “We will have a good season.”

Join Slow Food Austin for a tour of this gorgeous produce farm and a sample of their produce. The farm tour starts at 5 pm. A $15 ticket is redeemable for a selection of Montesino’s wonderful vegetables. After the farm tour, put on your dancin’ shoes and come on down to their spacious 28 foot pole barn for the dance. The $25 ticket covers both the veggies and entry into the dance.  The live music starts at 7 pm and ends once all the dancers are tired. BYOB. Food will be available to purchase at the dance.  To RSVP and buy tickets, click here or go to http://slowfoodaustinmontesino.eventbee.com.  Tour questions? Email Grit Ramuschkat at email@gritramuschkat.com.

Sunday, 11/13: Urban Patchwork Tour

Time: 1-3 p.m.

Ticket Price: $20

Location: Austin

On the surface, Crestview is a typical central Austin neighborhood – streets, houses, lawns. But Crestview backyards harbor a hidden farm, aptly named Urban Patchwork (UP), in which neighbors pool their land to raise vegetables and eggs for many families.

Come with Slow Food Austin on a Sunday scavenger hunt to unearth some of UP’s productive produce patches and chicken coops. Farmer Paige Hill will host the event and explain the ground-breaking patchwork concept behind UP.  UP is expanding into other Austin neighborhoods – come see if it’s right for yours. Children are welcome on this fun and educational tour. The ticket price of $20 includes a take-home sample of UP veggies and eggs, and light refreshments. To RSVP and purchase tickets, click here or go to  http://slowfoodandurbanpatchwork.eventbee.com.   Questions? Email Betsy at betsyL@slowfoodaustin.org

Photo by Scott David Gordon

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)

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 from Allrecipes.com and 101 Cookbooks

Kohlrabi at River Rd. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Roasted Kohlrabi

from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

* 4 kohlrabi bulbs, peeled
* 1 tablespoon olive oil
* 1 clove garlic, minced
* salt and pepper to taste
* 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
2. Cut the kohlrabi into 1/4 inch thick slices, then cut each of the slices in half. Combine olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Toss kohlrabi slices in the olive oil mixture to coat. Spread kohlrabi in a single layer on a baking sheet.
3. Bake in the preheated oven until browned, 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally in order to brown evenly. Remove from oven and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Return to the oven to allow the Parmesan cheese to brown, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

A sun-lit chard leaf at River Rd. Photo by Scott David Gordon

Hazelnut & Chard Ravioli Salad Recipe

From 101 Cookbooks

Choose a winter flavored ravioli, I used a fresh (but store-bought) sweet onion & red chard ravioli, but I suspect a butternut squash ravioli would be delicious as well. I sometimes precook the raviolis and keep them in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet until I am ready to use them – this helps prevent the raviolis from melding into one another after cooking. I used a butternut squash version of the potato “croutons” shown here. Substitute butternut squash for the potatoes, you can make them a day ahead, but they loose some of their structure overnight. The flavor is still great, but you’ll loose a couple points for eye-appeal. I sometimes do a big batch of the onions and keep them in a jar in the refrigerator to use in recipes like this one.

3/4 lb. raviolis (see headnotes)
2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
fine grain sea salt
2 yellow onions, thinly sliced
1 bunch swiss chard, deveined and cut into 1/2-inch ribbons
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted and chopped
1 cup butternut squash “croutons”
zest of one lemon
1/4 cup chives, minced

Into an extra-large pot of well-salted boiling water add the raviolis. After a few minutes, when the raviolis float and are cooked through, drain them and toss with one tablespoon of the olive oil. This prevents them from sticking together. Set aside.

To caramelize the onions, heat another tablespoon of the olive oil in a large thick-bottomed skillet with a pinch of salt. Cook over high heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions collapse and turn deep brown in color. You can do this ahead of time (or just before serving) – whatever you prefer. Remove from skillet and set aside.

Just before serving heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, again in a big skillet over high heat. Add the raviolis. Stir in the onions, and then the chard. Wait until the chard begins to wilt, then stir in most of the cheese and most of the hazelnuts. Gently fold in the butternut squash and lemon zest. Remove from heat.

Serve on a big platter garnished with chives and remaining hazelnuts and Parmesan.

Serves 6.

Scary Scarecrows line up at JBG. Photo by Scott David Gordon