Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Another scorcher of a week down in the books! We planted fall peppers, cucumbers, kale, summer squash, and daikon radishes. We are readying the soil for fall, and seeded beets and carrots. See you at markets this weekend!

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Recipe by Mackenzie Smith

The plan was to make some fourteen dishes to feature in our tomato supper with JBG a few months ago, but my pup got sick and had to be taken to the ER the day of, all while I was supposed to be prepping for the meal. Hours of prep time were lost as I was thinking more about my dog than I was about dinner. Those fourteen dishes quickly turned into about 8. Frazzled, I showed up to Van’s house with plenty of the ingredients for the dishes I opted not to make, and set out to finish the dishes that I knew I could pull off in time. On the “cutting room floor” of the larger list was a tomato, avocado and cucumber salad served atop a swoosh of labne, a riff on Cheryl Sternman Rule’s delicious recipe from her book, Yogurt Culture. I had the labne, but the cucumbers were sitting pretty in my refrigerator back home.

Photo by Rick Cortez.

I had made Short Stack Editions' tomato vinaigrette the night before, so when Ada asked what she could do to help, I told her to cut up the tomato and peaches and put them in a bowl together (7 other dishes on the backburner, Nadia’s cocktails flowing freely and dear friends showing up every 10 minutes). I tossed them in the vinaigrette, schmeared one of Van’s beautiful old platters with a giant serving-spoonful of labne, and covered it with the tomato peach mixture before sprinkling with a handful of basil, parsley and mint.

My plan for this dish was to use Short Stack’s recipe for tomato & peach salad with tomato vinaigrette in their big book, but that recipe says to “arrange the tomatoes and peaches in a single, interspersed layer. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the fruit.” Ha, single layer? Drizzle? I guess I lost those instructions somewhere on that cutting room floor. This was a pile of summer’s most precious gems, macerated in a perfect dressing and swooshed around with tangy labne and a hunk of sourdough from Easy Tiger. Both takes on this salad will taste like Summer on a plate, so long as you buy the ingredients at their peak.

• 2 pounds of mixed heirloom tomatoes, slices crosswise, ½ inch thick
• 3 ripe peaches, pitted and sliced into ¼-inch-thick wedges
• ½ cup Tomato Vinaigrette
• 12 medium basil leaves, torn
• 1-2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon chopped mint
• Course sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 3/4 cup of labne (plain greek yogurt works just as well here)

Photo by Rick Cortez.

Short Stack Editions Tomato Vinaigrette (double this recipe and use in on your summer produce all week! It is so good!)

• ½ cup diced ripe tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon chopped garlic
• 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• Pinch red pepper flakes
• ¼ cup + 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a bowl, combine all the ingredients and let them sit for an hour. Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor and process until smooth.

Mix tomatoes, peaches and vinaigrette together. On a large platter, spread the labne with the back of a big spoon so the middle of the platter is empty, leaving a tiny wall of labne to receive the salad. Spoon the salad on the platter and top with herbs. Serve with crusty sourdough.

Photo by Rick Cortez.

CSA Box Contents Week of July 24th

You might be wondering how it's possible for us to continue our roll through these sweat-soaked, sun-laden dog days of summer... so this week, we wanted to shed some light on how we slightly alter our practices so that we can farm year-round! A lot of farms will shut down during July and August because of the extreme and scorching conditions, but here at JBG, we keep truckin’ along through the depths of summertime. Let’s just say farming is not for the faint of heart. There are a handful of procedures that we adhere to in order that our employees and veggies can stay as cool as possible.

Sunrise. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

One of the things that really helps is starting at daybreak. Imagine everyone rolling into the dewey and pitchblack farm, headlights on, and preparing for daily tasks in the cool morning air. We usually have the tractors running by 6 AM and are wrapping up work for the day promptly after lunch. This schedule allows us to circumvent being out in the fields during the hottest part of the day. This week alone the temperatures have been at sustained 100+! Sun protection is of utmost importance as well, lots of wide brimmed hats and long-sleeves. When rainfall is sparse, dust abounds at the farm; thus, bandanas are necessary and greatly useful. Hydration is key along with a constant supply of electrolyte packs (plus, that highly coveted ice machine at the farm to really cool things down), but what has really kept everyone going this year are the melon breaks. A Hergotz favorite is watermelon with a sprinkle of tajin. You should try it!

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Everything gets trickier in terms of keeping quality at a premium during these summer months. Once the produce is harvested, the veggies retain field heat that needs to be removed quickly so that the condition remains high and the vegetables don’t start to decay. Some crops like tomatoes need to be harvested in the early mornings, as it is integral to pluck the fruits while they are still cool from the overnight reprieve; otherwise, it tends to get too hot on the fields for those veggies to continue to thrive. Our harvest trailers have been revolutionary for summertime farming, and in this specific situation, it aids in getting the produce immediately out of the sun post-harvest and underneath a canopy for some shade. It also generally reduces the backbreaking work for our field crew as they can harvest alongside the vehicle since the arms on the vehicle reach out 5 rows wide. All of our post-harvest handling during the summer is very focused on maintaining the cool chain, which simply put means removing field heat and keeping the produce cold to ensure tip-top shape for the customer. Thus, cooler organization is very important so we can get harvest bins into the cold as quickly and efficiently as possible. The coolers are packed to the brim in the summer, and we only pull out exactly what we need so that the veggies can stay cool.

Harvest trailer. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Harvest trailer. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Deliveries are even affected by the change in temperatures. The ceaseless heat can make the tires blow out; so, maintaining delivery vehicle wear and tear helps prevent any scheduled delivery mishaps. It goes without saying, but air conditioning unit maintenance is crucial, too. Speaking of deliveries... CSA members, did you know that if you receive home deliveries and leave a cooler on your front porch, our delivery driver will transfer your veggies directly into the cooler! Also, those who pick up, get to your site early to make sure that those veggies aren’t baking in the box.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

We are in the thick of summer, and despite the stifling heat, we've been planting collards, kale, kohlrabi, bok choy, and dandelion greens. You have to plant the transplants early in the morning so that they don't wilt in the midday scorch, but we have them successfully in the ground and couldn't be more excited. Pigs, raccoons, and deer have been coming after our melons as of late, which has been a catalyst for us to finish the fence around the periphery of the farm. We harvested our first sweet potatoes this week, thanks to our Farm Manager, Becky! This is the earliest we have ever had this crop ready to harvest!

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Recipe by Nadia Tamby

This is a uniquely spiced version of a classic "gin and jam." This cocktail gets a double hit of ginger - the fresh bite from the infused spirit and a more mellow, sweet ginger from the jam. It's a fun drink to make because you can customize it for your friends and family by adjusting the ratios and stirring the jam completely in their drink or not. After you've made the jam, it's a surprisingly simple drink to assemble. Since the simple syrup and jam will keep for a while and you'll already have infused gin on hand, you can recreate this drink pretty easily for a couple weeks afterward, too.

Photo by Rick Cortez.

Ingredients:

• 3 oz ginger and lemongrass-infused gin (slice about 1/4 cup each of ginger root - scrubbed with skin on is fine - and white part of lemongrass stalks and place into gin bottle (1.75L), shake daily until infused to your liking)
• 1 oz fresh lemon juice
• 0.5 -1 oz agave syrup
• 1 teaspoon yellow tomato jam*
• Tiny spoons to serve in drinks

Yellow tomato - ginger jam:

• 1 lb yellow tomatoes, cut into 8 pieces or small chunks
• 1 inch ginger root, peeled and cut into very thin strips
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped in. (Save vanilla bean for another use or throw it in the pot too!)
• 10 whole black peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Jam Instructions:

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil

Reduce heat and simmer until reduced and thick - it will continue to thicken a bit as it cools

Photo by Rick Cortez.

Instructions:

Stir together gin, lemon juice, and agave syrup.

Fill glasses with ice and pour vodka mixture over ice.

Spoon jam into glasses and place on top of ice so you can stir in as much jam as you like. Enjoy!

Photo by Rick Cortez.

CSA Box Contents Week of July 17th