Category Archives: Fresh cuts

What’s Hot: peppers, tomatoes, cucs, oh my!

wheatgrass trays for décor and juicing; yes, careful: cats like chewing on it, too….

raspberries (half pints, hand picked daily) we make frozen drinks and crème pops from this fruit, too

limited citrus: currently, Calmondin oranges, kaffir limes and bitter orange (great for zest, calmondins are fantastic scissor cut into drinks [i cut them into “flowering wedges” and leave whole under ice], used as a salad dressing, marmalade, glaze etc.  The skins are much thinner and more edible than the other 2.

flats of tomatoes (the hand pollinated classics that got me addicted to farming and heirlooms from the field that are coming soon)

cases of peppers (we get all seed verified, specializing in Hatch, NM and Pepper Institute varieties…please note that we have taken the “Safe Seed Pledge”)

arugula  (8×8 box of baby green)

watercress (8×8 box of clean top growth)

tatsoi (8×8 box of baby green; all are ready to use from the box)

lemon verbena (garnish, syrups, muddled drinks, stewed with fruits, chicken, fish, tea)

rose geranium (ditto above, all applies…contains more of the chemistry of the scent for rose than a rose! )

tis the season to dress in mint!

english, thin skinned  cucumbers

squash, & squash blossoms

potatoes, check for availability… lots of Adirondack reds i can remember off the top of my head…

mixed heirloom eggplant varieties, including the Louisiana green, Japanese Bride, etc.

superb jalapeño jelly; we do have by the case… red fire jelly is the hottest variety (caution!)

pesto varieties… basil, sorrel, watercress, arugula, etc.  also made to order for vegan requests, etc.

flat leaf parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, marjoram, spearmint, peppermint, dill, basil, thai basil, (see also microgreens for many herbs are available as such also), red shiso, lemon verbena, rose geranium, pineapple sage, nasturtium in leaf and flower, mixed edible flower chef boxes, black leaf amaranth (wine colored), baby beet leaf, mixed color Chard, fig leaves, wild grape leaves,  wildcrafted garlic mustard, now is the season for wildcrafting goldenrod, anise hyssop, Echinacea, ginger root (not harvest time yet)

its summer: did i mention basil, mint, & dill? cilantro: hard to grow in this heat, but we’ve got some!

greens, lettuces, etc: like kale, kohlrabi, colored chard, etc.

im sure there is more but i have to run out on delivery…. catch Mike at the Forest Lakes farmers market

DIY moment: Deer, wildcrafting and chemical warfare

Why i like to lay out at night between 1am and 4am….

decides to present itself in the middle of the day, munchin on my hard work, no less…

Hey, you got some pretty yummy stuff…Thanks!

Here’s a look at where i lay with my gun:

hunting stand

The Stand

Yes, i wildcraft meat, too.  Makes good sausages, food gifts, cat food, roasts, etc.  Makes good bar-b-q and chili.  And it satiates my desire to not ever eat meat that i didn’t prepare or catch on a hook.  I know what these deer are eating. Positioned over the lower field, all my shots are down into the ground.  🙂 And i catch the occasional breeze thru the sassafras.

BTW, venison goes great with garlic mustard (which is all thru American lands now).  Garlic mustard is on the “must wildcraft” list.  See video for chemical warfare reference.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Field Harvest: Fresh Veggies on a June evening

These are the hours in the year when my wellspring is doubly renewed.  Yes, it is exciting to tend green living things in the middle of January and February in a greenhouse. It is also energizing to peruse the seeds those months as dreams of warmer nights create a distant vision of gifts from the field.  I even get warm fuzzy feelings when plunging my fingers into little fertile soil pots as seeds get awakened to the coming mission… “Hello! welcome to the world…thank you for your companionship on this journey…”, my mind might interject.  But then the fruits of our labors actually grow before our eyes and i get a bit like a child, becoming fascinated even more and my anticipation grows.  Bringing it fresh cut to the mouth is like nothing else. Then the call to further explore, preserve, and create in concert with this moment in the kitchen comes a’ callin:

From the garden
An evening in the garden 2
An evening in the garden 1

These veggies became a steamed meal for us that evening as well as a refrigerator marinade or “pickle” garnish for my spring rolls.  The cruciferous vegetables were lightly steamed until colors brightened and rolled in butter.  These tasted so good that we ate the entire lot that we steamed and kept adding more…mostly broccoli became my dinner that night.

I had cold infused some rose petals in a vinegar base that Mike made with allspice, giving it a nice color, and this became the marinade for small slices of all the veggies you see in the photos.  The cabbage became pink; the purple cauliflower and chartreuse romanesco all bounced off of each other nicely.  I cut the stalks of the Bright Lights chard like diced celery and the slices of the multi-colored carrot rounds were about the same size.  All together it made a nice chilled salad that was ready to adorn any plate.