From the Farmer’s Perspective

Last week, Jerri Berry, a JBG volunteer from a few years ago, emailed me some photos of the Hergotz farm taken back in 2007 and 2008.  When I looked at these photos, I was amazed to see how much had changed in a relatively short amount of time. Her pictures of the fields also made me realize how much I’ve learned about farming in the last five years!  Jerri wrote a short piece about her experience as a volunteer with JBG, and I’ve included it below.  She certainly captured the enthusiasm I had for farming back then!  What’s great is I am still so excited about it – this is one thing that hasn’t changed at all.  I am amazed by the energy and joy I bring to farming every day.  I feel blessed to work with such a wonderful group of employees and volunteers and to serve a community as great as Austin.  Thank you, Jerri, for this look back at the early days of JBG.

Memories from a Former Workshare by Jerri Berry

Back in the fall of 2007, I went out to the Triangle farmers market to do some shopping.   As I was walking up to the market, a guy ran out to me and said excitedly, “Did you see my picture on the front of this magazine!” I remember laughing at how enthusiastic this guy was and how funny that a total stranger would run up to me at the market.  As it turns out, the guy was Brenton Johnson, the magazine was Edible Austin, and the cover was a picture of Brenton with his daughter Ada.  After chatting a little bit and then buying some vegetables, I headed home to read the article and then did some research online about his new farm called Johnson’s Backyard Garden.  My husband and I had been seriously thinking about starting our own farm, so I took this as a sign that I should commit to a 10-week workshare at JBG to get some experience. L ater that week, I met Brenton at the farm after work (he was still working full time at an outside job then) and he drove me around, showed me the fields, the new tractor, and talked about his farm and future plans.  I met Beth and baby Jim who was only a few weeks old.

At that time, the CSA had 60 members. There was no greenhouse, no cold storage, no office, no washing or packing station, and no employees, except for one full time intern.  There were about 7-8 of us who met on Saturday mornings at 8:00 a.m. to volunteer.  Brenton handed out assignments, and we went to work for about three hours harvesting the vegetables for that day. We used a garden hose and an old bathtub to wash the vegetables and then packed them in boxes that we had laid out in and around the old barn. The CSA shares were delivered in an old truck with vertical pieces of plywood in the bed to make walls.  By the next year, the CSA had grown to over 150 members and things were taking shape to expand the barn and build an office, greenhouse and a washing/packing station. It was then and still is now incredible how fast JBG has grown and how far it has reached into the Austin community.

Now, my husband and I are beginning our own small CSA (Good Roots Garden) in East Texas and I appreciate how much I learned from that experience at JBG. Although we are not in Austin anymore, I am still subscribed to the JBG newsletter and continue to pick up valuable tips we can use such as information on irrigation, greenhouse structures, vegetable varieties, equipment, and so many other details. So I send a huge thank you to Brenton and Beth for their hard work and vision to create JBG, and also for helping two new farmers get started with their own farm.

1) Farm News

* Week of February 22nd CSA Box Photo & Contents List
* The Nitty Gritty: Opening the Box
* JBG Organic Transplant Sale Begins

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

* JBG Hosts Annual Citrus Sale
* Help JBG Bring Fresh Produce to Children in Need

3) Recipes by Dishalicious

* in the DISH kitchen: Gluten-free Coconut Flatbread

1) Farm News

Week of February 22nd CSA Box Contents

Beets
Salad Mix
Scallions
Chard
Spinach
Carrots
Broccoli
Citrus
Mystery Item

JBG Organic Transplant Sale Begins

Prepare your gardens -  our Annual Spring Organic Transplant Sale has begun!  Here’s a list of what we have available now:

* Heirloom Tomato Mix
* Celebrity Tomatoes
* San Marzano Italian Roma Tomatoes
* Cherokee Purple Tomatoes
* Brandywine Red Tomatoes
* Sun Gold Cherry Tomatoes
* Verde Tomatillos
* Sweet Pepper Mix
* Hot Pepper Mix
* Carmen Peppers
* Jalapeno Pepper
* Genovese Basil
* Yukon Gold Potatoes
* Sangre Potatoes
* All Blue Potatoes
* Purple Majesty Potatoes
* Banana Potatoes
* La Ratte Potatoes
* Rose Finn Apple Potatoes
* Red Thumb Potatoes

To place your order, just click here or go to our website at jbgorganic.com and click on the Spring Transplant Sale banner.  CSA members can order transplants online and have them delivered to their pickup sites.  The general community can also order online and schedule a pickup here at the farm.  On Saturday, March 3 from 10am to 1pm, we will host an organic transplant sale at our farm greenhouse at 9515 Hergotz Lane, Austin, TX 78742.  All are invited!  At this on-site sale, we will offer a wider selection of transplants including lettuces, chicories such as dandelion, escarole, endive and radicchio, broccoli, cauliflower, fennel, cabbage, parsley, and chard.  I hope to see you on the 3rd!

2) Updates, Meetings, and Events

JBG Hosts Annual Citrus Sale

JBG is now 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.  To order, please click here or go to our website at jbgorganic.com.

Help JBG Bring Vegetables to Children in Need

Thanks to the support of CSA members, our program to bring fresh produce to the children at the Settlement Home is off to a great start.  Meg Mattingly, Support Service Coordinator at the Settlement Home, writes:

“The staff and residents here at The Settlement Home have been able to make some new and exciting meals with the assortment of veggies provided each week. Some of the dishes the girls have really enjoyed eating are homemade beet fries, fennel and greens salad, stir fry, kohlrabi mashed potatoes, and, of course, the simple joy of snacking on raw carrots!  Its been a great experience thus far exposing our girls to new vegetables and tasty recipes! We are so appreciative of having the opportunity to expose our girls to local and healthy foods!”

We need your help to keep this great program going! Each week, JBG delivers fresh produce to the Settlement Home for Children, a wonderful local non-profit and residential program that cares for and promotes the healing of abused and neglected children.  With the organic vegetables they receive from JBG, the Settlement Home can provide nutritious meals.

To donate, click here or go to http://www.jbgorganic.com/settlementhome.  Participation at any level is greatly appreciated.

CSA members can also make a one-time contribution when they sign up or renew their CSA membership. Please consider contributing to our partnership with the Settlement Home.  The more who give, the more produce we can provide these children in need.

Many, many thanks to everyone who has already contributed!  You are making this program a success!

3) Recipes by Dishalicious

The Quickest Quick Bread: Gluten-free Coconut Flatbread
by Louis Singh | photos by Matthew C. Wright

This recipe is a triple threat.  Super easy, minimal ingredients, and extremely tasty.  And it’s gluten-free!  So actually, a quadruple threat.  Boom.

You’ll need:

1 cup buckwheat flour (or any flour)
1 ½  cups coconut milk (or any liquid)
¼ cup of cooked quinoa (completely optional)
kosher salt to taste

And that’s it.  Really, all you need is the flour, liquid and a pinch of salt.  The rest is just for flavor kicks.

Here’s how:

Pour one cup of flour and the salt into a bowl.

Add about a cup of coconut milk and whisk.

We’re looking for a loose pancake batter, like a crepe batter.  Slightly runny, but not watery. If it’s too thick, add the rest of the coconut milk.

Now add in some flavor.  We go with about ¼ cup of cooked quinoa.  But you could add toasted sesame seeds, golden raisins, chopped garlic, herbs, spices, whatever you like.  Play with it.

Warm an 8-10” skillet over medium high heat, with about 1/2 -1 tablespoon of olive oil (or any fat) in it, just enough to coat the bottom.  This batch did enough to fill two 9” cast iron pans.  Keep in mind you can make these however thick you would like.  If they’re thicker, they’ll just take a little longer to cook.

When the oil is shimmering and hot, pour half the batter in.  Save the other half for a second batch, or do two pans at time.

The batter should sizzle and bubble around the edges.  Then pop it into a 425° oven for about 10-15 minutes.

When it’s crisp on the bottom, give it a flip.

Back into the oven for 5-10 minutes, until it feels bouncy and firm, and that’s it.

Try it with guacamole, salsa, hummus or any kind of dip.  It’s great on veggie & cheese boards.  Makes great sandwiches.  And awesome with curry (like last week’s Korma post) for a gluten-free alternative to naan.

Now you have the technique, play with the flavors.  Try different flours, different liquids, different flavors to match whatever dish you’re making.  Get cooking!

Any cooking quandaries you’d like us to tackle?  Let us know at DISHALICIOUS.COM

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012 at 9:02 pm and is filed under Newsletters. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.