by Megan Winfrey

When it comes to food trends, I'm usually ready to see them fade. But this one can hang around forever, and I'll be doing my part to make sure it does. If you haven't heard of sweet potato toast yet, you will, and it will change your life! This is the perfect breakfast or snack for gluten free folks, or those looking to eliminate carbs. It is incredibly versatile - anything that you'd put on regular toast will work - including but not limited to peanut butter and jelly, strawberries and nutella, fried eggs and fresh greens, shredded pork and cheese, even avocado and lime. It is incredibly light and healthy, but also filling, keeping me satisfied and sharp all the way to lunch. Get ready to fly through those sweet potatoes, because sweet potato toast is sure to become the new family favorite!

Sweet Potato Toast with Avocado & Pea Tendrils

• 1 large sweet potato, sliced 1/4" thick
• 1/2 an avocado, sliced
• 1/4 cup pea tendrils
• Sprinkle of salt
• Sprinkle of cumin
• Squeeze of fresh lime juice
• Drops of hot sauce

Wash the sweet potato well and peel if desired, or leave the skin on. When slicing, be careful not to slice too thick or too thin. Too thin will get crispy, and too thick will take much longer to cook.

Place two sliced sweet potatoes into the slots of your toaster, set the temperature as high as it will go, and start toasting. Depending on your toaster, it may take up to 6 rounds to fully cook the sweet potatoes - mine took 4, but it's pretty new. You want the sweet potatoes to be tender throughout, with some burn marks for added flavor. Next, add your toppings! I started with sliced avocado, a dusting of cumin and salt, a few pea tendrils, and finished off with a squeeze of lime and a few drops of Valentina's (my favorite hot sauce).

I'd love to hear how you all top your sweet potato toast! Leave your recipes in the comments below.

Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Can you believe it? If you are feeling a little overwhelmed with the quickly approaching holiday season and need some help gathering the fixin's for your family feast this year, look no further! The crew at Dai Due has curated a mouth-watering selection of meats (and pie crusts!) for you choose from. On top of that, they are offering a colorful JBG produce bundle that will brighten up your plate and satiate your palate. Take a peek at the menu here.

JBG produce bundle, get yours from Dai Due today! Photo by Scott David Gordon.

The change from fall to winter means another sweet treat for our CSA members - 'tis the season for winter citrus! Every year, JBG partners with our good friends at G&S Groves in McAllen, TX to bring you certified organic oranges and grapefruit delivered to your home and community. David Strohmeyer is a really impressive farmer and never fails to deliver on sweet Texas citrus. We'll carry these beauties as long as they are in season (through Spring). Citrus is available for delivery to farmers markets or with your CSA box for only $12 for a 10 lb bag! Find more details about the Bulk Citrus sale here. Get your orders in this weekend to start enjoying fresh squeezed orange juice as early as next week! Hang tight for grapefruit--it will be a few more weeks before they are ready. If you order grapefruit now, your orders will be rescheduled when the harvest arrives.

Citrus beauties. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

"The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings" -Masanobu Fukuoka

With the deluge of rain this week, our fields have been quite the mud-pit. When the fields are wet, we try to keep the tractors off of them as much as possible in order to prevent soil compaction. We have one last big wave of plants to get in the ground before the first frost, so we couldn't wait around for the fields to dry. Planting by hand is pretty slow going - we're using a stick to poke holes in the ground (see below). So far this week the team has planted around 21,000 plants by hand. Safe to say we're all hoping for a dry, sunny weekend so we can be back on the tractor on Monday.** A big ole happy birthday to our fearless leader, Brenton Johnson, this week! His birthdate falls on Election Day, so Tuesday was eventful to say the least. We also visited the Texas Farmers Market at Mueller last Sunday to catch up with the crew and see the veggie experts at work.

**farm updates from Charlotte McClure!

Sagan and Adams at work. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Market spread. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Satsuma orange. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Brenton distributing his Satsuma bounty. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Market scene. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Farm mornings. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Bok choy - bird's eye view. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Farm colors. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Kohlrabi. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Transplanting old school. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Transplanting by hand. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Chucha. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Growing. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Cilantro. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Take off. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Pea tendrils. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Montana mendin' vehicles. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Drying out. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

When national politics leave us scratching our head, it's helpful to take a closer look at the amazing community that we've cultivated around our CSA. Thus begins the inaugural CSA Member Spotlight! We hope that this series will highlight the diverse nature and composition of this community, and how each member integrates the CSA into their varied lifestyles. This week, the multi-talented and charismatic troubadour, Elizabeth McQueen, cleared out a little time in her busy schedule for us to interview and capture her and her husband, Dave, in their space.

Elizabeth McQueen. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

How long have you been a CSA member? We’ve been members for a long time… at least 5 years? Probably longer than that, but I’ve known Brenton since I was in my 20s. He and Beth used to come see me play at the Carousel Lounge.

What is your usual plan of action with regard to the veggies? We try to figure out how to use them all. I really love the internet because you can google two random ingredients and come up with something interesting. I looked in the fridge earlier and saw that we had sweet potatoes, bacon, and swiss cheese. I thought surely there’s some kind of savory sweet potato concoction out there, and sure enough there happened to one that uses all those ingredients. It’s heavenly and delicious.

Sweet potato concoction. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

How did you hear about the CSA? Gosh, it’s been so long, I can’t remember… I probably heard about it through the farmer’s market. I remember seeing the Johnson’s Backyard Garden stand (back when it was much smaller) and then realizing that they had a CSA. It just really seemed like a good idea, getting seasonal organic vegetables every week. It makes a lot of sense, you’re getting the vegetables from essentially down the street, and you can meet the actual people who are growing them, AND they can come to your shows! I feel like when we first started doing it, I had to convince you of it [speaking to Dave, her husband]? He was a little skeptical… [Dave: Sometimes it can be a major challenge to get through the box! We get the small box for four people.] It forces you to eat things that you normally wouldn’t eat.

What makes the CSA worth it for you? I think it checks all the boxes. It’s really hard to live, especially with food, the way that you want to live when you live in an American consumer culture, you know? In my mind, I would love to eat local, organic food all the time. What makes it worth it is that it’s actually a very affordable way to live life the way I wish that I could across the board. I wish I could live my life on that scale all the time, but it’s kind of hard and it would be expensive… but Johnson’s is a way to connect to that.

Unpacking her veggies! Photo by Scott David Gordon.

What is your favorite veggie? Does it have to be a veggie? Because I LOVE tomatoes. Tomato season at Johnson’s, or doing the bulk tomato purchase, is one of my favorite things to do. To get all of those tomatoes and just make a big thing of sauce, or roast a bunch of tomatoes and put them in the freezer… it feels good.

What is your favorite recipe? There’s a really great okra recipe that I haven’t made in a long time. Honestly, I never would have made it if it weren’t for getting okra every week from JBG, and being like, “what am I going to do with all this okra?!” Now, we fry it because everyone will eat it, but I have this Indian okra recipe with tomato and ginger. You sauté the okra and purée tomatoes, onions, and ginger together. You cook that in with the okra, and it’s really delicious. Oh, and GRILLED OKRA! We just discovered it the other day. Maybe okra is my favorite vegetable now… I just threw some on the grill because I was wondering what it would taste like, and it’s very good. Grilled vegetables in general are awesome, you can pretty much grill any vegetable and it works.

Elizabeth, on the right, and her husband, Dave, on the left in their home! Photo by Scott David Gordon

What’s the veggie that stumps you the most? Sweet potato greens. I’ve tried to make them palatable, but they are just slimy and bitter and I can’t do it. We don’t have good luck with those little Canary melons either, plus I don’t like melons in the first place... too sweet. [Dave: The other thing is the PLETHORA of beets. We like beets, but we have a hard time keeping up.] Though, we do love grilling with beets... my husband has a really good beet recipe with the orange-y beets. Now that it’s cooling off, it’s perfect grilling weather. Beets are really good grilled.

Any weird run-ins with JBG delivery drivers? The best story is… I knew Scott because he was my CSA delivery driver. I would get the newsletter, and it took me a while to figure out that he was the guy that was making the vegetables look so beautiful. So, one day, all of us were at the Four Seasons for KUTX during SXSW. The kids were, of course, immediately over it, so we were rolling down the hill in the back lawn and sliding under trees to pass the time. Unbeknownst to me, Scott had taken this panoramic shot of us under the trees. It’s this huge image of the back lawn, Town Lake, the trees, and us sitting underneath. It's so beautiful, he had captured this perfect, idyllic, sparkly moment. [Fun fact: It’s framed in their bedroom!]

The photo of E. McQueen and her family under the trees. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Where did you learn to cook… any favorite types of food to cook? I learned to cook growing up because my mom hated cooking. So, we had to learn to cook the meals... I don’t do as much cooking anymore. When I was traveling with Asleep at the Wheel, I cooked a lot more. I’d be on the road and just wanted to cook because I’d be stuck in a hotel room for two weeks. Now that I’m home, I do very simple cooking... but Dave comes home off the road and he does these extravagant meals. The older he gets, the better he gets at cooking, and the more adventurous he is. When we started dating, he was very strict and by the book with his recipes. [Dave: I like to follow the recipes until I know what I’m doing, and she laughs at me!] He comes home ready to cook.

Dave cooking dinner. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Is it hard to keep up a cooking regimen when you are touring? Well, when you are touring, the first day, you eat well, and by the end of the second day, you are eating hamburgers for breakfast and doughnuts for dinner. So, yes, it’s hard to keep up with cooking on the road. I’m sure there are people that can do it though!

What are you cooking now? Well, I didn’t cook it, but today, Dave cooked this sweet potato dish and green beans. I’m looking forward to cooking soups for the winter. We have a bunch of butternut squash that we cubed and froze to make a butternut squash, coconut milk, and lime soup. Especially on a day like today, soups are going to make us feel better. Soups are going to get us through a Trump presidency.

What’s your favorite kitchen gadget? I actually really like to bake, so one of my favorite kitchen gadgets is the Cuisinart mixer. You can do a lot really quickly with that. I also like a good lemon squeezer. The lemon squeezer is kind of new to me, I never used one growing up. You can get a lot of juice out of a lemon with one of these!

Elizabeth performing at a CSA Potluck past. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

When you aren’t gushing over your CSA share, what do you do? I’m a DJ at KUTX and a producer of the “This Song” Podcast. Actually, the new season starts next Wednesday, Nov. 16! I teach voice for Anthropos Arts… I am also a musician, though, I haven't been playing that much recently. I am co-PTA President at Maplewood Elementary, and I’m a mom. So, yeah, there’s a lot of stuff going on! [Fun fact: she’s played at one of our CSA potlucks before! Shown above.]

If you are stuck on a desert island and can only bring three things, what would you bring along?

• The Harry Potter series
• A guitar to pass the time
• Something to write and draw with… Maybe a lot of paper and some pencils

I feel like that could get you by if food and water are already covered. You’d be entertained, you can make stuff, and you can read Harry Potter series start to finish over and over again.

A big thanks to Elizabeth McQueen and her family for their continued support of the farm! ‘Til next time, folks!

by Megan Winfrey

For as long as I've been cooking, I've been trying to perfect my stir fry recipe. It's such an easy go-to meal and I've made it a million times, but there has always been something lacking. Too dry, not enough flavor, rice too sticky, wrong protein to vegetable ratio...who knew stir fry could be so complicated!? But I'm elated to say, I've finally cracked the code. This stir fry is PERFECT. The two big factors that set it apart are jasmine rice and homemade sauce. I always just bought the bottled stuff, assuming I'd have to make a special trip to the Asian market if I wanted to make my own, but I was so very wrong. You can make an amazing stir fry sauce with pantry staples and a few delicious JBG ingredients. And instead of using plain white or whole wheat rice, I found that jasmine rice doesn't come out sticky and adds it's own incredible flavor to the dish.

Pork & Veggie Lemongrass Stir Fry

• 1 lb. boneless pork chops, cubed
• 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp. fresh ginger, grated
• 2 tbs. soy sauce or Bragg's
• 1 tbs. vegetable oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cups broccoli florets
• 5 carrots, roughly chopped
• 1/2 lb. mushrooms, sliced
• 2 lemongrass stalks, cut into 2" pieces and crushed
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 tbs. corn starch
• 1/4 cup water

In a bowl, mix the cubed pork, red pepper flakes, ginger, and soy sauce. Toss to coat, then let marinate in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add the pork and cook until browned, about 10 minutes. Add the onion and sauté another 5 minutes. Add the garlic, sauté for a minutes more, then add the broth, broccoli, carrots, mushrooms, and lemongrass. Stir to combine and simmer for 30 minutes.

Mix cornstarch and water in a small bowl. Bring everything to a boil and add the cornstarch mixture. Boil for 1 minute, allowing the sauce to thicken.

Serve over prepared jasmine rice. Also great for freezing!

Looking for a way to boost your team's wellness with some local flair? Look no further. We're so local you can smell our compost pile. [Just kidding, our compost pile doesn't smell.] You can find our vegetables in home kitchens and top restaurants all around town, and there's no reason they shouldn't be at your workplace, too.

The reasons to partner with our farm are many, but checkout our Top 5 reasons below. Give Ada or Daniel a shout if you'd like to get your office involved! Healthy and happy employees, guaranteed. farm@jbgorganic or 512-386-5273

1. Holiday Gifts Thinking about holiday gifts for your team? Do something different this year and think local. Organic gifts starting at $22.  Give us a call if you'd like to arrange something special for your crew.

We've got farm-fresh gifts galore. Locavore, look no more.

Skip the ham and gift our veggies, instead.

2. Farm to Work Ramp up your wellness program and get farm-fresh vegetables delivered straight to the office.  Flexible delivery schedules and box sizes so everyone is happy. Or, reward your employees with our Market Bucks.

3. Volunteer Days + Team Builds Get outta the office and head to the farm; bring a picnic, and stay a while. Volunteers are thanked with a bounty of veggies and a better appreciation of where their food comes from.

4. Local and Social Responsibility One in four Austinites are food insecure. Team up with our farm to donate fresh produce to Austin's hungry.  Host a fresh-food drive with our partners Music Tech & Food, or donate directly to our Sponsored Share Program. Want to donate to a charity or school of your choice?  We can do that, too.

5. Health fair? Lunch presentation? Wholesale deliveries? We all know that healthy employees are happy employees, and our vegetables are at the core of any healthy diet. There are an abundance of ways to partner with the farm - what does your office want? If you carrot at all, you'll give us a call and let your work meet our farm.

CSA Box Contents Week of Nov 7th