Did you know that 1 in 4 people in Austin are or have been food insecure, or lacking dependable access to sufficient amounts of economical and nutritious food? That's 25% of our Austin community! Can you believe it? Depending on the area, up to even 40% of people do not have easy access to fresh and affordable food, and in neighborhoods where busy thoroughfares inundate the cityscape and sidewalks are lacking, folks who do not have vehicular access risk their lives daily to purchase groceries to feed their family. Despite sounding abysmal, there's a lot that we can all do to help, and if you are a part of the CSA community, have you thought about sharing the harvest this holiday season?

SafePlace. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

If your family is headed out of town for the holidays, or if you're trying to avoid an overflowing fridge, we hope you will consider donating your CSA share to The Settlement Home or SafePlace. With the produce received from JBG, the Settlement Home provides nutritious meals and teaches the girls it serves how to cook. Thanks to the weekly deliveries from JBG, SafePlace is able to stock it's pantry with fresh organic vegetables (instead of canned goods) for the women and children living in their shelter. Your donated share helps feed children, young adults, and families in Texas with histories of trauma, abuse and neglect. Donating your share is easy and helps secure nutrition for these folks in need. Just email us (farm@jbgorganic.com) with the dates you would like to donate your share(s), and we'll do the rest! Need your vegetables for your holiday meal but still want to help those in need? Sponsoring a share is easy, too. Find more information about that program here.

Photo courtesy of Music, Tech & Food

Speaking of local warriors toiling against food insecurity... Ever heard of Music, Tech, and Food? This new nonprofit in town seeks to bring two thriving Austin communities together, Music and Tech, to promote hunger awareness, and via ticket sales to regularly scheduled music events, donate farm-fresh food to local shelters and pantries. Pretty cool, eh? Read more about it here and get involved!

Lola. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Ever spotted the "Cool Bus" rolling through town? Did you know that JBG donates food to help Lola Stephens-Bell, also known as the Nubian Queen, feed over 1000 free meals to the hungry each week? In a town like Austin where new restaurant pops up every week, her kitchen, Nubian Queen Lola's Cajun Soul Food, stands apart from the rest. Not only does she cook up some mighty delicious soul food, but she's serving it up with a side of food justice. Read more about this amazing lady here.

Want to learn more about food insecurity in Austin? We recommend listening to KUT's TSI's Feeding Austin's Hungry (listed as no. 5). 

**major contributions by Nellie Stephenson

The beginning of a new month means another highly-anticipated installment of our First Friday Staff Picks! We love sharing events, adventures, and side projects that inspire and excite us (food-related or not) with our community. Check out our JBG staff-curated list of favorites below!



Lena: I'm really excited to see Tig Notaro at the Paramount on the 27th! Her comedic timing is incredible. I highly recommend the beautiful Netflix documentary about her legendary 2012 standup set following her breast cancer diagnosis, hospitalization, and loss of her mother. See the trailer here.

Travis: I had a cronut for the first time the other day from Voodoo Doughnuts and methinks I heard the god Zeus chuckling from on high. Oh man, so delicious. Croissants mixed with doughnuts are thumbs up all the way.

 

#vampireteeth #glazeddoughnuts #doughnuts #voodoodoughnut #voodoodoughnuts #themagicisinthehole #goodthingscomeinpinkboxes #happyhalloween #halloween

A photo posted by Voodoo Doughnut (@voodoodoughnut) on Oct 28, 2016 at 3:03pm PDT

In regards to do-not-miss events, Gogol Bordello - the gypsy punk band, is coming to Stubb's on the 11th. Those shows always turn into a giant communal dance party. Oh, and Red Fang at the Mohawk on the 25th. This is my favorite band. They just released a new album. They're bearded heavy metal at its best. Be there!

Kenny: Sound on Sound Fest aka Fun Fun Fun 2.0!! It always falls a day after my birthday, so it makes for a nice blowout banana-pants weekend. Ready to fire up the crockpot for some collards and every other winter veg I deem stew-able.

In my non-farm time I'm hacking away at a few custom guitar builds for friends. My recent trip to Chicago/Nashville with an old friend to see Bill Burr tape his new special at the Ryman Auditorium was AMAZING. The whole trip was a big chaotic adventure not unlike Planes, Trains, & Automobiles meaning everything went wrong but ended up going right. Both cities were incredible; the food, the drink, the people... and look for that sweet red, white, & blue Capital Feed hat floating around the crowd when it comes out on Netflix.

Holly: Happy Hour! Odd Duck is the best in town and Swine Time is fun too (at Barley Swine). Also love the Lenoir wine garden happy hour. Upcoming new beer releases from Jester King... Stoked on green onions and dandelion greens right meow (Laura is, too!), making wintry stews with grass-fed lamb from Mick Family Farms, and excited to plan a farm to table Thanksgiving feast! Also, really diggin' Westworld on HBO.

 

throwback to these #grassfed lamb ribs that I stewed low and slow in my tagine with ras al hanout, sweet potatoes, mushrooms, sweet peppers, turnips, kohlrabi, honey-fermented elephant garlic (3-week), dandelion greens, lemongrass stock, and caramelized onion broth (both #homemade) • served with mustard micro greens and spaghetti squash and dandelion greens baked with eggs and milk ? spaghetti squash, sweet potatoes, dandelions, garlic, turnips, kohlrabi, peppers were #jbgorganic • mushrooms were @kitchenpride • lamb was from #mickfamilyfarms • eggs from @coyotecreekranch • milk from @millkingmilk • microgreens from @joesorganics • recipe #ontheblog

A photo posted by food & photography • texas (@hollypostler) on Oct 20, 2016 at 2:52pm PDT

Ada: Early morning, pre-work, walks in the back 20 acres at Hergotz. There are some winding mazes and paths carved out of then towering cover crops, and tons of wildlife to see. My dog spooked out a huge buck earlier this week. Other sightings include jack rabbits, cotton tails, fox, skunk, and all kinda birds including some Kestrels and Warblers. If you get out there extra early, the whole thing is blanketed in sparkly spider webs.

Crock pots. I know I'm late to this game, but damn. Until recently, I held crock pots in contempt because I thought they could only produce unhealthy meals, reminiscent of pig slop. But I was so wrong. Coming home to a simmering pot of beans or vegetable stew is just wonderful. Can't wait for the oncoming deluge of root crops to throw in there.

My vet(s). Shoutout to Corner Vet, who not only provided compassionate, professional, and thorough care, but who also provided cold Lone Star (in a koozie) at the end of a long day.

Tracy: My son Obi Scott Whitehead will turn 1 this month! He started taking his first walks/runs around the house last month.

Daniel: I took some recent trips to Chicago and Santa Fe. Chicago I visited my brother, his wife and their new baby (my first niece!). In Santa Fe, I went fly fishing and hiking and enjoyed some mountain time and (kinda) cooler weather. I'm also digging Westworld on HBO and all the pumpkin beer.

Heydon: Lumiere Tintype. His images are beautiful, haunting, and will last you a lifetime. My parents came into town recently and got a portrait done (see below). Do yourself a favor... go grab a drink at the nonpareil east-side French Brasserie, Justine's, and have the immensely talented Adrian take a picture of you or someone you love ASAP (he parks his photo-trailer right next door).

 

a birthday well spent for the old man. here's to another trip around the sun, pops! 

A photo posted by heydon (@heydopotato) on Oct 21, 2016 at 1:27pm PDT

Cake by Tomorrow's Parties ATX... Kelly Dugan makes the most savory and delectable sweets you could ask for. She baked a carrot cake for my father's birthday that had the entire table swooning, and my mom, who does not have a sweet tooth in the least, asking for another slice. And finally, one-of-a-kind jewelry by Suelo Jewels. Allison Smoler makes the most beautiful, customized pieces of jewelry... peruse her line here.

Speaking of jewels, this gem of a video from Antiques Roadshow always makes me smile.

**farm notes from Charlotte McClure

Cheers to week 44! Leeks and garlic are in the ground, along with our last successions of red kale, collards, cabbage and broccoli. It somehow still feels like popsicle weather even though it's November, hopefully this rain brings a much needed cold front! Our very pretty and peppery golden radishes (Zlata variety) are up! Temo discovered the first major leak in the farm's irrigation system, and has been working ceaselessly to fix it. See some photos of that massive project being remedied below.

Kohlrabi. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Roxy overseeing some tune-ups. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Napa cabbage. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Close-up! Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Cabbage. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Bell pepper. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Irrigation leak getting remedied. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Irrigation work. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Peppers just hangin'. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Green beans. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Sunflowers! Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Broccoli bounty. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Growin'. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Sweet 'taters. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Sorting green beans. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

CSA Box Contents Week of Oct 31st

by Megan Winfrey

Hope everyone had a spook-tacularly fun Halloween! I sure did. It was my darling daughter's second Halloween but her first to participate in, so it was extra special for my family. We went as Morticia, Gomez, and Pubert Addams (you know, the baby from the second film who is always escaping certain death just in the knick of time) and it was everything I ever dreamed of and more! I figured I should live out these costume dreams before she's old enough to have her own ideas. What really put the cherry on top of a perfect holiday weekend was coming home to leftovers of this week's recipe. It makes enough to freeze some for later in the season or to have leftovers for days, which is just so nice during this busy, busy time of the year. Let the holiday season begin!



Cajun 15 Bean & Collard Green Soup

• 1 bag of Hurst's Cajun 15 bean soup mix
• 1 bunch of green onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bunch collard greens, stems removed and sliced into strips
• 2 large or about 12 small tomatoes, rough chopped
• Juice of 1 lemon

Put the beans in a large pot and cover with 8 cups of water. Let sit overnight or for at least 8 hours.

After soaking, drain the beans and cover again with 8 cups of water. Bring beans to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook uncovered for 2 hours.

In a skillet, sauté the garlic until lightly browned, about 2 minutes, then set aside.

When the beans are tender, add the tomatoes, collard greens, green onion, garlic, lemon juice, and the spice packet that came with the beans. Simmer on low for another 30 minutes, add salt and pepper to taste, and serve!

We had ourselves quite the Halloween costume contest this past Friday at the barn. Everyone was in good spirits, tossin' veggies around in their All Hallows' Eve best. Andrew was awarded first place and gift certificates from Contigo & Wheatsville with his awesome and very realistic rendition of the latest Nobel Prize winner, Bob Dylan. Sarah took second (and a gift certificate from Wheatsville, too!) with her brilliant and brightly clad Frida Kahlo, and Travis was presented with a very close third with his riveting Rosie the Riveter. Check out the rest of the costumes below. Have a spooky Halloween, y'all!

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.

Brenton? Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Gypsum? What’s that? Why do we use it?

Seems like farming would be a piece of cake, right? Just plant some seeds in the ground, twiddle our fingers, and wait for the veggies to emerge? Well, there’s a LOT more to it, and believe it or not, it includes chemistry, too! Our use of soil amendments generated lots of interest at the CSA Potluck and Slow Food Austin Farm Tour this past weekend, spurred by the piles of colorless mineral located intermittently around the farm. So slide on your science goggles, folks, and get ready to learn a quick thing or two about this mysterious mineral, gypsum! Steve Diver, an agri-horticultural consultant superstar who has been working alongside us since we made the leap from the Hergotz farm to the 200 acres in Garfield, took some time to chat with us this week and divulge his breadth of horticultural knowledge on the subject.

Gypsum! Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Soils in central Texas are derived from limestone geology, which means they are calcareous (or high in calcium), and are highly alkaline with a pH over 7.5. Therefore, you normally wouldn't add extra calcium, such as agricultural limestone, to these soils. However, a confounding factor is that the irrigation water we use contains a lot of sodium and bicarbonate which upsets the balance of exchangeable cations like calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium. This affects nutrient availability to our vegetable crops. Thus, gypsum, or calcium sulfate, is the perfect soil amendment to address this particular issue. It adds calcium to offset sodium without increasing the soil pH. That's why we take soil tests and add a suite of compost, organic fertilizers, and minerals to our fields every year -- to make sure our crops are well fed and taste good. ***

Gypsum. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Interesting, eh? On top of the aforementioned facts, gypsum is known to improve water filtration, augment soil structure, reduce nutrient runoff, aid in reducing erosion, and improves plant nutrition overall so you can enjoy the most tasty and nutrient-dense vegetables! Whoda thunk? Farming and chemistry go hand in hand sometimes, are you surprised?

Gypsum at work. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

A big thanks to everyone who joined the fun at the CSA Members Potluck and Slow Food Austin Farm Tour this past weekend, especially to our CSA members and Slow Food Austin. Not to mention the delightful fermented beverages from the powerhouse trio of local brew-masters, Jester King, Hops and Grain, and Adelbert’s on Saturday night, and the mouth-watering culinary curation from Snooze Eatery on Sunday morning. We are grateful for everyone’s time and contributions. We had a blast and hope you did, too. Find more photos from the event here!

Potluck night! Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Potluck deliciousness. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Potluck noms. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Potluck farm tour. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Potluck peeps. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

“I just wanted to take a second and thank you sincerely for such a wonderful night. We had a great time on Saturday. My only regret is not having joined the CSA months sooner. Every Tuesday afternoon, Sammy and I sit together on the porch waiting for our delivery. I loved being able to show him where our veggies come from. Brent, you've creating something beautiful and powerful and I'm grateful to share in that and teach my kids about it.” -CSA Member 

Get spooky with us and join the fun at the HOPE Night market this Friday! It’s from 6-10 pm at Plaza Saltillo. Find more info here.

Are you an Austin Energy client? If so, you are eligible to receive a free tree at the Sunset Valley Farmers Market this Saturday! Bring your ID, grab a tree, and visit Matt Pelkey at our stand for some veggie goodness! Check out the event here.

***major contributions by Steve Diver