A different kind of local food for Healdsburg

Hi there Healdsburg,

I’ve been busy this summer meeting people and talking and building out my plan for this website. This weekend, I finally figured out something I could do relatively quick…

Publish YOUR BLOGS!! Check ‘em out.

I guess this constitutes as local feeds… but really, send me your RSS feeds–for your blogs, for your events, for your websites. You can also just email me: jen@HealdsburgMagazine.com — that should work too.

Let me know what you think.

PS: Just installed some software for the mobile edition. Can anybody see my site on their iPhone? How’s it working for you? I’d love to hear–leave a comment or email me.

Dan the Tomato Man: Soda Rock Farm

After I interviewed Mateo Granados last June, I always stop by his tamale stand at the Farmer’s Market to say hello. He’s always happy and chatty and talking to someone or another. One day, I was just hanging out and Dan Magnuson of Soda Rock Farm comes over to drop off a few boxes of his tomatoes. Mateo immediately says to me: “Here’s one guy you have to talk to. His tomatoes, mmmmuah… ” He kisses his fingers and releases them into the air, in a typical chef-sort-of-way. And he introduces us.

I talk to Dan a bit, and talk to him a few times before we actually make a time to meet. But we meet one morning at the Costeaux Bakery Cafe. He sits down and says: “So. What do you want to talk about?”

I’m prepared: “Tomatoes”, I say.

He smiles: “Well. That’s a pretty big subject.”

I narrow it down: “Your tomatoes? Tell me about your tomatoes.”

That doesn’t do much good. I guess it’s just too big of topic. I ask him some more rhetorical questions.

“When did you start growing tomaotes?” and “Why tomaotes?”

He says he started growing tomatoes about 10 years ago out on his property in Alexander Valley. He’d taken a class at the Santa Rosa Junior college in agriculture. He just liked tomatoes. And I also find out he’s a tennis pro. During the winter months, he teaches tennis athletes at the Charlie Schultz indoor tennis courts.

Tennis and tomatoes. That’s our man. He’s an expert at both.

He started out with an acre out on Alexander Valley and about 3000 plants. He now farms both his property and four to five acres in Dry Creek Valley. Today’s stats are approximately 20,000 tomato plants, 15,000 basil plants, and 1000 lemon cucumber plants.

I ask him how many tomatoes does 20,000 tomato plants produce (I was looking for tonnage or something–I don’t know how you measure tomatoes). He blinked and looked back at me: “A lot.”

He grows between 35 and 40 different varietals, but his mainstay is red beefsteak.

“Do you have any secrets to growing tomatoes.? His eyes are smiling as he tells me — “Trial and error.” He’s been doing it for 10 years, he just figured out what worked and what didn’t. He knows that’s not what I asked and follows up by saying: “Would you give your secrets away?” But he does explain a bit further.

“I grow in Dry Creek Valley. What’s good for the grapes is good for my tomatoes.” Which turns out to be sandy loam soil and sunlight. He also tells me it’s important to plant at the right time, and pick at the right time (which I guess isn’t really anything new.) He plants in April and May (depending on the weather) and the harvest is ready by mid-July through October.

He tells me about staking the plants so they grow up-not out. He tells me about watering them until they’re ripe, then stopping the water before the skins split. He tells me about figuring out how to do things right and making those things repeatable year after year.

He also says that he only grows the tomato varietals he likes. He tried others once, but the fruit could tell he didn’t really like that variety. His customers could tell he didn’t really like that variety–so he just decided he’d never do that again.

I ask him if there is such a thing as a tomato competition. He laughs and said certainly. One year he won awards in five categories from the Kendall Jackson Tomato Festival: aroma, all other colors, orange & yellow, red, and cherry.

He started by selling his tomatoes to high-end restaurants. Bistro Ralph here in Healdsburg was his first. Over the years, Underwood Bar and Bistro and Willow Wood Market Cafe in Gratton sell his tomaotes, Syrah and Willi’s Wine Bar in Santa Rosa. His latest account is Cyrus Restaurant here in Healdsburg. He also does most Farmer’s Markets in the area. I’ll have to check specifically. His tomatoes are also in some produce markets. I noticed them in Big John’s the other day and out at the JimTown Store. And, he tells me later–the Pacific Market in Santa Rosa.

If you’d like to try his tomatoes in more of a social setting, Bovolo Restaurant featuring his tomatoes in one of their BIG NIGHT dinners on Sunday, 14 September 2008. Here’s the menu:

hand thrown MARGHERITA PIZZAS
black pig bacon BLT PANZANELLA
rosemary rubbed PRIME RIB / tomatoes / white corn / fingerling potatoes / salsa verde,
TOMATO + WATERMELON SORBETTO / candied mint + basil / cornmeal shortbread

Let me know if you go. And let me know what you think about it. Minimally, let Dan know what you think of his tomatoes–leave a comment.

On Being Chardonnay

[I saw the film Bottle Shock yesterday. I quite liked it. I'll probably see it again today and take my notebook so I can take notes and say something intelligent about it. It did remind me, however, of this entry I wrote on YukonJen.com a few years ago...On Being Chardonnay.]

A friend and neighbour Paul Brasset has been a winemaker in Sonoma County for over thirty years. Over those thirty years, he has won the Sonoma County Sweepstakes award for his Chardonnay (more than once). He has recently started selling wines from his own cellars (Bluenose Wines), but has started with only Syrah and Zinfandel. I asked him why he doesn’t sell a Chardonnay?

According to Paul, Chardonnay takes more. It takes more to grow the grapes. It takes more to harvest the grapes correctly. It takes more to process the grapes and create the wine. Chardonnay takes more energy. Chardonnay takes more refrigeration. Chardonnay takes more attention. It simply takes more to create a good Chardonnay. His Chardonnay leaves a clean, fresh, crisp palette. Unlike the robust, meaty, lingering palette of a Zinfandel, it takes more to be less.

When I heard this explanation, I decided that I was going to be Chardonnay. I was going to do more. I was going to be more. I was going to ask more (of myself and of other people). I was going to be a good Chardonnay. Clean. Crisp. Now.

When I tried this theory out on a few people, one person mentioned in an email:

>”…I wish you all the best with your quest to become
> chardonnay. When all you drink is fine wine it may
> seem as common as tapwater. Some prefer water to
> kool-aid. Some crave pure glacier water much more
> than kool-aid, or the finest of wines, chardonnay and
> champagne included…”

So, then I started thinking about my experiences with glaciers and glacier water. Now, I’ve been thinking I might aspire to be glacier water instead of Chardonnay. Here is what I think when I think about glacier water (based on specific visuals of the Dyea River, Skagway Alaska, the Yukon River, and the Kluane River in the Yukon Territory): Pure. Natural. Rich in minerals and nutrients (substantial but crystal clear). Earthy. Honest. Firm but fluid. Flexible. Travelling. Moving. Independent. Enduring. Essential. Real.

I tried my glacial water theory out on a few people. Yet another person considered that, effectively, I should be Chardonnay made from glacier water. Who makes wine in the Yukon?

[Picture of a glacier feeding the Dyea River, Skagway Alaska. Originally Published 22 May 2005 on YukonJen.com]

Pug’s Leap Farm

[This article is courtesy of Sasha at Cheese By Hand, a blog dedicated to discovering America one cheese at a time. Originally published 31 July 2008.]

Name: Pug’s Leap
Location: Healdsburg, CA
Owners: Pascal Destandau & Eric Smith
Animals: Milking 24 goats- mixed herd of Alpines, Saanens, and Toggenburgs
Cheeses/Products: Petit Marceau, Pave, Buche

Although the 24 milking goats can browse all the way down to Dry Creek Road, one might never noticed Pug’s Leap because it is nestled back on the hillside among trees and brush so common to the not-quite-coastal valleys of Northern California. Lucky for us- thank you Healdsburg Farmer’s Market- Pug’s Leap was presented to us in broad daylight. We introduced ourselves and thanks to the avid local food supporters of a blog called Fork and Bottle (www.forkandbottle.com) who wrote about us on their slow food convivium’s site, Eric and Pascal had actually heard of us and graciously invited us out to the farm that afternoon.

This invitation was more than gracious considering that Saturdays are their “day off”- meaning that they don’t actually make cheese because they are busy going to market. It doesn’t look like an average person’s day off given that they are still out of bed around 5-ish for the morning milking and then they use the usual cheesemaking time to prepare for market. We descended upon them during their afternoon break- post market and pre afternoon milking.

We started our tour in the “cheese-room-with-a-view” which looks out across Dry Creek Road to the vineyard on the other side. The cheese room is modest and immaculate with a vat/pasteurizer which is in use now and an additional, smaller vat that Pascal hopes to use for making aged, raw milk cheeses someday soon. There are two small aging rooms off the side wall- one used for the delicate drying stage needed for small, mold and ash ripened cheeses and the other with higher humidity and a slightly lower temperature. These rooms are Pascal’s domain- he has always been interested in and good at cooking so this seemed the most logical place for him. As we talked about everything ranging from selecting goat breeds to the grey area around words like artisan and farmstead, Pascal tilted racks of cheeses made the previous day and encouraged the whey and scraps down the drain in the table.

Next we walked out into the milking parlor which is, as Eric described it, “state of the art for the 1930’s”. More important than being fashionable, it is simple and it works for them although it is uphill (a dirt hill) from the area where the does are kept which means that milking can be time consuming… particularly when you have 30 straight days of rain like they did this past winter.

The bucks are kept at the top of the hill and the does are down closer to the road- removing off-season temptations. The goats are eating browse (read: anything that emerges from the ground), hay, and are supplemented with a bit of grain around milking time. Sounds simple and yet, as with so many things on small farms, there are built-in complexities because Pug’s Leap is a small farm without enormous hay storage capacity thus Eric has to drive hours to do a hay collection every other week.

Everything about Pug’s Leap is in response to Eric and Pascal’s mounting discomfort with the state of affairs in farming and food production today; the ultimate example of consumers taking matters into their own hands. They are an interesting breed of new farmers- both stepped into this project with years of professional experience (Eric as an architect and Pascal as an environmental engineer) and little dairying experience. As we walked uphill to the area where the bucks are kept, Eric and Pascal agreed that although this is more tiring than any work they have done before, it is labor that produces tangible and very real results- life and death included- something they can’t imagine giving up.

Two-Drink Minimum: A Challenge

Two weeks ago, I met Shana for drinks at Ravenous before KC Mosso’s The Situation opened for Langhorne Slim. We were talking about this magazine and ideas that we had and she was introducing me to people she knew. It was all very exciting. I ordered a beer (a safe drink, I know). She ordered a mojito. We were just talking and laughing and meeting people while we waited for the music to start and we came up with this idea: Two-Drink Minimum.

Initially we were going to solicit the general population’s opinion for this new column: What are your favorite two drinks in Healdsburg? Who makes them? We wanted to get people out and about trying new things.

BUT tonight, after dinner with a friend and running a few other errands, I was driving home (twiddling my hair with one hand and driving with the other) and I had THE BEST idea for this column: Make it a challenge–a challenge to the bartenders of Healdsburg to showcase their signature drinks.

Isn’t that an exciting idea? So–that’s what it’s going to be–exactly that. Bartenders, here is my challenge to you:

What are your two signature drinks? How do you serve them? What is the story behind your the creation of the drink?

Think about it. Just think about it for awhile. Let it ruminate. And when you’re ready. WHEN YOU are ready.

Submit it. Submit a picture of the drink. Submit your picture. Submit your story. And we here at Healdsburg Magazine will try to get everybody to come in to try it.

You can submit up to two drinks at a time (hence the title of the column: Two-Drink Minimum). We will need to know your name, where you work, and when you work. I’m creating a completely new email just to take submissions for this column: twodrinks@HealdsburgMagazine.com

How about we just start with that?

PS: You can also take pictures of people enjoying your drink and send them in too. Maybe at the end of it all, we’ll have an event where people can vote on their favorite.

Pairing: Bear Republic and Dessert

[This article is courtesy of Mario at Brewed for Thought, a blog dedicated to home and craft brewing across the country. Originally published 12 April 2008.]

As a beer snob/junkie/aficionado, I like to help introduce my friends to an assortment of fine ales. Mostly this involves forcing my wife to sample whatever it is I’m drinking that night. When we’re out with friends, I extend this privilege to them. One of my favorite activities though, is to host a beer pairing, where I select a theme and pair it with food. Tonight, we featured local brewery Bear Republic and paired their selection of bottled beers with various desserts.

I got this idea a while back, shortly after my Anderson Valley cheese pairing. During that evening, I learned a few things. First, cap the tastings to 5 or 6 beers, because after that, it begins to blur together. Second, don’t take it so seriously. I kind of drug the party down by trying to turn the group into beer snobs like me, instead of just enjoying the beer and cheese.

So the lineup tonight featured all 6 of the readily available Bear Republic family. This was a good choice because one of the people in our small group had mentioned a fondness for Racer 5. Since Bear Republic favors strong brews, and hoppy ones at that, I had a tough time deciding where in the sampling a few beers should go, but in the end, I figured the order would go as such: XP Pale Ale, Red Rocket, Racer 5, Hop Rod Rye, Pete Brown Tribute, and Big Bear Stout.

We started with the XP Pale Ale. My wife’s friend Kayla was delighted by the color of this beer. We paired this with a green apple pie from Marie Calenders. The flavors blended well with the tartness of the green apples shining through. This was an excellent way to start the pairings, very accessible flavors that were familiar to everyone.

Next was the Red Rocket paired with flan (Mexican custard, for the uninitiated) made from scratch by my wonderful wife. The Red Rocket and flan were both very rich, with the vanilla from the flan standing out. It was this richness of the two that made them match so well. All involved loved this pairing as well, except Johnny, who just doesn’t like flan. Too bad, his loss.

Third we went to my favorite beer and dessert pairing, IPA and carrot cake. We chose a carrot cake from the local Safeway (we picked the gourmet slice, because that’s how we roll). The intense sweetness of the carrot cake and the frosting was amplified by the bold malt and hop flavors of the Racer 5. When making this pairing, if using a different IPA, be sure to chose one with strong, floral hops flavors and a very sweet malt character. To me, Racer 5 reminds me of a biting a fresh hop dipped in honey, that’s the kind of IPA you want. Also, if you’ve ever bitten a fresh hop, with or without honey, you’d know this is not a pleasurable experience, and I would not recommend actually trying this. As for the pairing, this was the most popular of the evening.

Making the turn, we went on to the Hop Rod Rye paired with a dark chocolate torte from Whole Foods. This one was hit and miss. The group was split on the Hop Rod Rye. Johnny, Kayla and I really liked it, while my wife and Tommy were not fans. It’s a very aggressive beer, and asking newcomers to enjoy it is a bit much. Not only that, the torte was too dry, and while it looked fantastic (no picture, sorry), the taste didn’t back it up. What I can say is the two did compliment each other, with the beer really bringing out the flavors of the cake.

As we headed into the homestretch it was time for the “dark beers.” Pete Brown’s Tribute Ale was paired with Häagen-Dazs coffee ice cream. For me, this was the highlight of the evening. Ironically, Kayla commented the beer looked like root beer as it poured. Paired with the ice cream, the sensation of eating a root beer float came to mind. I actually took a large spoonful of the ice cream and dropped it in the last half of my beer. The two mixed together extremely well. Not everyone was a fan though, with one dissenting vote, costing this amazing pairing the “Best in Show” ribbon.

The finale for our evening was the Big Bear Stout and chocolate mousse from a local Italian restaurant. Our group of friends knows this restaurant for their mousse, so when we saw this as an option to be paired, we knew exactly what we would be getting. The mouse was fantastic, and brought out the roasted malt flavors of stout. Not as inspiring as the Brown and ice cream, this was a nice way to finish the evening. Aside from Johnny and I, no one else cared for the beer though, and we had the duty of finishing the last of the stout on very full stomachs.

In the end, the evening went well. I relaxed and let everyone have fun, simply asking for impressions after each sampling, then letting the conversation flow where ever it went. When it comes to desserts, I will probably buy less next time, as we were all a bit stuffed by the time the evening ended.

A big thank you goes to Jayne Allegra of Bear Republic. She came up with the pairings we had. Initially she gave us this list of pairings that we chose from. Maybe you can use it in the future to plan your own pairing.

• Red Rocket – Strawberry Rhubarb Pie or Flan
• Special XP Pale Ale – Apple Pie or Cobbler (Green Apple)
• Racer 5 IPA – Carrot Cake
• Hop Rod Rye – Dark Chocolate Torte or Tiramisu
• Pete Brown’s Tribute Ale – Coffee Ice Cream
• Big Bear Stout Ale – Milk Chocolate Mousse or Champagne Cake

Update: The wife was picking through the leftovers this afternoon and noticed the box for the chocolate torte. Turns out this was a vegan chocolate torte, which would explain why it sucked.

Some Things We Like About the Palette Art Cafe

Just a bit of a shout out here to the Palette Art Cafe. We have started to meet there for coffee a few mornings a week just to get things done for this magazine. So today, we thought we’d make a quick list to say what we like about it.

The atmosphere in general. It’s light, bright, and open and often playing jazz. Not to mention the live music events, art displays, and art openings. Soon, too, there will be Open Mic night on Wednesday nights.

The friendly and knowledgeable staff.

Fast, public WiFi.

According to my friend Julie–great chicken soup.

According to Shana, the fact they have fondue on the menu. Cheese fondue. Dessert fondue.

According to the three people at the counter the other day the chicken, pesto sandwich.

Find out yourself. Check it out.

Palette Art on foot: 235Healdsburg Avenue, suite 105 (behind the LaCrema tasting room).
Palette Art online: www.palette-art.com.

Tierra Vegetables Farm Stand

I emailed Evie of Tierra Vegetables a few weeks ago to ask if I could write a feature article on their Farm Stand. I wasn’t sure if she’d remember me–because I’d met her through a friend. But of course she remembers and sure I can write an article. She tells me a good time to catch her (or anybody at Tierra Vegetables) is on Tuesdays or Thursday mornings–when they’re packing up the CSA boxes. “It’s pretty hectic and you’d have to be patient but you could get some good pictures and info.” I wonder what the CSA boxes are, but believe I’ll find out soon enough.

I find the Farm Stand off Highway 101 at the Fulton/Airport Boulevard exit and arrive on Tuesday morning around 9h30. Evie’s not there yet so I introduce myself and have a look around to get myself oriented. I offer to help get things ready for the CSA boxes.

Lee sets me up with a few bushels of garlic. She’s very efficient: “I need one hundred bulbs that weigh 3.2 ounces each.” Roxie shows me how to clean them and weigh them.

I start preparing the bulbs of garlic. Roxie is preparing chard and lettuce for the boxes. We start to chat. We talk about what Tierra Vegetables is doing with the Farm Stand and the CSA boxes. She says: “Well, for example, we grow everything that we sell. Or almost everything. If we don’t grow it, we know who does.”

She points to the field behind the Farm Stand: “Those are the strawberries that we’re selling today. We pick what’s ready and sell them as soon as they come in from the field.” Then she motions to the tractor that’s appeared behind me. “Those are the carrots that are going in the CSA boxes.” I grab my camera and take an action shot.

As I’m trying to finish prepping the garlic, a van rolls up and somebody shouts, “It’s the group from Santa Rosa.” Then, there’s hustle and bustle everywhere because the arrival signals the start of everybody else arriving to pick up their boxes.

Tierra Vegetables grows, harvests, and preps the produce. But you actually have to assemble your own box when you come to pick it up. Also, you provide your own “box”. It can be a paper bag, a cloth bag, a basket–whatever you want it to be. As long as you reuse it every week. Two guys get out of the van and start their assembly line.

I wait until it gets organized before I ask a fellow: “Where are you from?”

“Winzler and Kelly,” he replies.

“What’s that?”

“An engineering firm in Santa Rosa.”

“How come you have so many bags?” There seems to be about twenty different bags they need to fill.

“Well,” he explains. “There’s a group of us at work. Every Tuesday, somebody different has pick-up duty. We come out and fill up everybody’s bag and bring it back to the office.”

They’re on a timeline and by now, more and more people are arriving to pick up their CSA boxes. I wander out to the front of the Farm Stand to get out of the way and see what’s going on there. Evie’s chatting to everybody as she rings them up–she knows everybody’s names.

It finally occurs to me to ask: “What does CSA stand for?” As it comes out of my mouth, I remember reading about it on their website: “Community Supported Agriculture”.

COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AGRICULTURE

Evie explains that the idea of CSA is to connect the local community with local farmers. It’s about creating a relationship between the consumers of the food and the farmers growing the food and about knowing about how the food is grown.

I ask Evie, “How long have you been selling these boxes?

She thinks for a minute. “I think our CSA program started in 1992. We started with about 10 families. We’ve grown some every year and last year we topped around 200.”

A customer comes round front from assembly line out behind the Farm Stand. Evie introduces us, “Denise, meet Jennifer. She’s writing an article for a Healdsburg Magazine. Jennifer, why don’t you talk to Denise?”

I start talking to her. She’s been part of the Tierra Vegetables CSA program for over three years. “What do you like about it?” I ask.

“Well,” she ponders. “I really like that it’s fresh. I like that it’s fixed. I mean. I just arrive and my vegetables are already chosen for me.” She pauses, “I guess I like that I don’t really have to think about what I’m going to be eating this week. They’ve done it already.”

What do you mean? “, I prompt her to explain more.

“Not only is the produce grown and picked for me, Evie also emails recipes for what’s in the box that week. It just makes my life easier. And,” she perks up, “I never would have some of the vegetables if they hadn’t been in the box–like cactus!”

I nod my head. I know what she means. Having somebody else think about planning my meals every week would definitely make my life easier.

I ask Evie how to sign up for their CSA program? She tells me there is a waiting list of about 25 or so right now. But all the information is on their website: TierraVegetables.com. Or just email, call, or stop by the Farm Stand. She repeats with a laugh, “You can always just stop by the Farm Stand.”

SUSTAINABLE PRACTICES

I talk to Wayne as he finishes preparing the bushels of garlic. He’s set himself up in the shade and he stands with one leg up resting on the bench. I notice he doesn’t wear shoes. And I remember somebody telling me once that he never wears shoes. He’s always barefoot in the fields. I make a mental note to ask him about it.

Now, I ask about his history with farming and with farmer’s markets.

“We’ve been farming most of our lives. In the 70s, I was running a produce farm up in Potter Valley. Farming has been our way of life for over 25 years. CSA is only part of it.”

“Part of what?” I ask.

“Sustainability.” He states the obvious. “Everything we do here is environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable. It has to be all three.”

I email him later to ask him to elaborate on this explanation. He sends me his own words:

Sustainability is economically, socially, and environmentally friendly practices. To make it work, you have to have all three parts and all three parts must be as equal as possible.

• Economically means that the farm can support not only the farmers and the farmers families but also all the farm workers and their families.
• Socially means that it needs to support the local community and be part of the local community by supporting the local businesses, supporting the local residents (don’t spray, don’t disrupt the farm’s neighbors, etc, paying our workers living wages, and supporting them how we can).
• Environmentally means that we use practices that least impact the environment, from not using plastic for coverings in the beds, to not using pesticides, fungicides, herbicides, etc.

This is the balance we strive to achieve and it means keeping our money in the community. It’s very complex, and we have a long way to go. But every day, we are working towards this definition of sustainability.

FARMER’S MARKET vs FARM STAND

I ask Wayne about selling the produce. Do they only have this Farm Stand? Or do they sell at other Farmer’s Markets?

He sort of sighs and says, “We used to do Farmer’s Markets everyday around the Bay Area. At one point, we were travelling to Farmer’s Markets as far away as Danville.”

“But really, with the cost of everything–time and transport–it was soon not becoming worth it. When this land became available, I knew it was where we needed to set up and start the Farm Stand. “

“Now, our transportation costs consist of bringing the food from the field (he waves his hand behind him)—to the Farm Stand. And, we use those (he motions to the huge wheelbarrows) as transportation.”

Tierra Vegetables leases 17 acres of farmland from the Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District. And a few more acres out by their own home. Everything they sell they grow on the land they farm.

If they don’t sell it, it goes back to their licensed kitchen to become part of their prepared food offerings. If it doesn’t sell or get prepared in the kitchen, it’ll go back into the land or fed to the animals. They have chickens, sheep, and sometimes pigs at home on their farm.

I ask him if he knows how many people buy from Tierra Vegetables and he works out the figures right there.

“We have about 500 families who buy from the Farm Stand in peak season.

“We have about 200 families subscribing to the CSA program.”

“And Lee sells to about 100 different customers on Saturdays in San Fran (because they continue to sell at the Farmer’s Market at the Ferry Plaza on Saturdays). So—I guess roughly, that’s about 800 families who we supply from our land.” He looks satisfied as he realizes the numbers.

I say to Wayne: “Roxie said that you built everything here at the Farm Stand from recycled materials.” And I ask him to explain.

He laughs and says: “How do you want me to explain? What do you want me to explain?”

I think. “For example, where did you get the materials to build the stand?”

He shrugs and points to the wood framed boxes that display the produce. “That wood came from the old Frizelle-Enos feed store out in Sebastopol when they tore down the old building.”

He points his shears at the structure where he’s shucking garlic. “This wood is from when the fence out there (and he motions to the field) blew down and we had to replace it.”

“Those pipes (that hold the shade tarp over the actual stand itself), those pipes are from our old well out on the farm.”

“The shade tarp is actually an old billboard that you see out on the highway.” He smiles, “One of my friends got it for me.”

“And that’s an old shipping container.”

I get the idea. Everything. Everything to do with Tierra Vegetables –quite literally from soup to nuts—is either grown from seed, recycled, or re-used. They support their family, their worker’s families, and (in peak season) up to 800 other families.

And how can you not support that?

MORE INFORMATION

Before you go somewhere else, have a look at the photo album of this day on Flickr.
Visit the Tierra Vegetables Farm Stand (directions)
Open 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday (Wednesday when tomato season starts)

Tierra Vegetables CSA program
Tierra Vegetables website
Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District
More on CSA in general

Saturdays at the Healdsburg Farmer’s Market

I hadn’t talked to Julie all week so I didn’t know if we still had plans. I phone her at eight o’clock in the morning: “Are we walking to the Farmer’s Market today?”

“Sure,” she says. “Give me a moment to get ready.” She sounds a bit groggy. I’ve called and she’s still in bed. Half an hour later, I show up on her front porch, pick an apricot, and few minutes later, we set off down the street.

The Healdsburg Farmer’s Market starts at 9 o’clock in the morning on Saturday right behind Hotel Healdsburg. If you’re serious about fresh produce, I think it’s better to get there early. We are lucky that we live close enough to be able to walk and it’s a good start to the weekend.

I wasn’t sure what to expect so we just wander. I want to know what’s available. I end up thinking that there seems to be a good balance: produce, plants, crafts, community. We continue to browse the stalls.

I am surprised that there were things ready to harvest. I ask a vendor when he planted his carrots and he tells me he’d planted them in February. Other produce available include onions and garlic (of all kinds), pitted fruits (peaches, apricots, cherries), root vegetables (carrots, beets, kolorabi), and leafy greens (lettuce, collards, and various herbs).

Julie buys two types of cherries: Rainer (yellow tinged red) and California Bing. I continue just to wander and browse. After the first go around, we stop and listen to the music.

I still haven’t bought anything. I’m a bit overwhelmed and don’t really know where to start. I ask the lady standing next to me what she’s bought and we look in her basket. Her son has devoured the cherries while we’re listening to music and her daughter is munching on a carrot. She’s also bought fresh collards and avocados. She tells me: “You have to buy an avocado from that guy over there,” and motions in a general direction. “They’re perfect right now–like a peach. Just peel ‘em and pit ‘em.”

I wander over to the Avocado guy and say: “Somebody just told me I have to buy an avocado. Apparently, they’re perfect.” He smiles and says: “Definitely. More perfect in a day or two. Take one home a put it in a paper bag so that it ripens just so. ” He demonstrates a gentle squeeze with an avocado in his hand.

I tell him I’ll let him know how it goes.

Fresh Apricots

Listen to this article: FreshApricots.mp3

I arrived at my friend Julie’s house last Saturday morning at 8h45. We’d planned on walking to downtown for breakfast and meeting her friend at the Farmer’s Market. The first thing she said when I walked through her front door was: You have to turn around and go back out. She laughed at my confused look and repeated: Turn around, go back out on the porch, and pick an apricot.

I turned around and walked back out onto her front porch. Sure enough, she has a huge apricot tree in her front yard that is just bursting with fruit. I searched the foliage for an accessible apricot, reached up to lower a branch, and just plucked one.

That’s it. I just reached up and picked an apricot from her apricot tree. That’s one of the best things about living in California I think. Fresh food. Fresh fruit. Fresh vegetables. I grew up in Northern Canada but I’ve been living here since 2001. It is such a novelty to realize that fruit actually grows on trees (and not in the displays and bins of the supermarket). It’s even more of a novelty to reach up and pick a fruit from the tree and just eat it right there and then.

Which is exactly what I did. She said to pry the apricot in half. The flesh was just tender enough all I had to do was to hold the fruit in both hands and use my thumbs to open it up. I picked out the pit and bit into one half.

I offered the other half to Julie, but she said she’d already had some for breakfast. I asked her how did she get her tree to produce so much fruit. She said the guy who worked on her trees asked her: Do you want it to look pretty? Or do you want it to produce fruit?

She said she wanted it to produce fruit.

I think the fruit looks just gorgeous. And it tasted unbelievable.

PS: Check the comments. We eventually found out the guy who works on her tree is Mike Mahoney of Healdsburg Tree Service.

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