Locally Grown - Availability for July 8th , 2015

Hey Local Food Lovers,

Well I don’t know about you guys but it feels like we’re almost at the height of summer production. This is the time of year where we see nearly all the diversity of local foods converge. When you can still get a few of the cooler season crops like cabbage, beets, fennel, carrots, but most of the summer stuff is here like tomatoes, cukes (that’s short for cucumbers by the way), eggplant, peppers, corn, and beans.

As is typical for me, it’s the rare and somewhat hard to get stuff that makes me happiest. For example I went down to the Clarkesville Community Garden last week to take a quick look at things and noticed that the raspberry bushes that I planted 3 years ago (and have been weeding and mulching that bed every few months since) was just chocked full of raspberries. I was a bit surprised as a kids group had been by earlier that week and I assumed the gardeners would keep a close eye on the bushes and nibble every time they went. Lucky for me I think most folks don’t know that you gotta get down on your hands and knees and reach deep under the vines to see all the berries. Raspberries are not an easy fruit to pick. By the time I was done I had well over a pint of beautiful red berries. Well everyday for the last 7 or 8 days I’ve had a smoothy with fresh local strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, milk from Mountain Fresh, honey from Mtn Honey, and then non-local bananas, yogurt, and sometimes a bit of ice-cream and squirt of lime. I absolutely love fruit season. Since not many farmers do raspberries I encourage anyone with a sense of adventure to plant your own. You do have to trellis them which can take some practice. But if you plant 2 or 3, they quickly will become 8 or 12, and you can start giving them to your friends. In fact, find a friend with raspberries and ask for a small rooted plant to get you started.

Also had Wauka Pork Chops this last week that we let marinate in fresh herbs from our garden. Chopped up rosemary and thyme and I mean a lot of it, like a cup or more. Then just pat that on the chops thick with olive oil. I add a little pepper and salt too. Let ’em sit for a half hour. Longer lets the flavor penetrate even more. Then on the grill on low, low heat. Succulent. The left overs were even better as the herbs just keep penetrating.

Chanterelles. I spend a lot time outdoors….my work fortunately has me tromping through the woods a bit from time to time, and after all the thunderstorms this week I was happy to finally find my first patch of Chanterelle mushrooms. These shrooms only grow wild and they are a true delicacy. Cook them in butter of course with a bit of garlic. Then add some cream and cook on low and put over pasta or my favorite is on toast of some really good bread.

You may notice from my writings here that I love to eat food from local farms, but wow, what joy in eating foods grown yourself or even better found through your communion with nature. That’s my kind of worship time, just being thankful that the world provides food if we cultivate our knowledge of it. We all could cultivate a lot more with just the tiniest of efforts. And that is a more sustainable way of living, and perhaps most importantly a more enjoyable way of living. Crusting my food with my own local herbs kind of makes my heart sing.

Also this week, the birds have been eyeing my blueberries. No way about it, I’ll have to share. In fact, they, the birds, are probably watching me thinking, I hope that tall human doesn’t eat OUR berries.

It’s not too late to enjoy some Shade Creek Farm red white and blue potatoes in the spirt of the 4th of July Holiday. Also Shade Creek’s zephyr squash are my favorites. Got two pounds coming on Wednesday.

Been improving my flower and garden beds lately and thought I’d plant some interesting and sometimes medicinal plants from Holman Holllow. Black Cohosh and Wild Ginger should be both beautiful and useful in the years ahead. I love the service they are providing helping to educate us on native plants. Buy one or two and expand your plant brain!

Thanks again to all who enjoyed the FARM TOUR just over a WEEK AGO. Please share with us your ideas to improve it next year by taking our survey at
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/eatwellbuylocal2015

And don’t forget to post photos from the TOUR to
the GA Mtns Farmers Network Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/GeorgiaMountainsFarmersNetwork?ref=hl

We hope you have a great week….. and EAT WELL,

Justin, Chuck, Teri and Andrew