Over two thousand years ago, Heraclitus of Ephesus said, “Nothing endures but change.”

That truism is something that fills some with excitement and others with dread. Hopefully, the new changes to our sales program fill you with the former.

Beginning September 1, 2010, you’ll find a revamped, more gorgeous, sales flyer in the store. Vibrant pictures will please your eyes. New recipes will inspire. More deals will help the wallet. Plus, we’ll have more things that are BriarPatch-centric – including new Fresh in the Deli specials.

The Sept. 1-Sept. 14 flyer lists Brown Cow 6oz yogurt in selected varieties for 69¢, Kashi Organic Strawberry Fields Cereal for $2.99, Seventh Generation Bath Tissue 4-pack for $2.69, selected Clif Bars for only 99¢, selected Giovanni shampoos and conditioners for $4.99, BriarPatch Deli’s new pizzas for $7.99, $8.99, and $9.99 in cheese, vegetable, and pepperoni, respectively, as well as so many, many, more amazing deals.

With this revamp in deals, we’re able to offer more things throughout the month on special. Keep that in mind when choosing which sales items to special order. To guarantee the sales price, make sure to place your special orders the same week in which the sale starts.

And maybe the best part of our new flyers – they’re printed on Forest Stewardship Council-certified paper.  FSC-certified paper is created from a common vision that requires, “the paper industry to maximize recycled content whenever possible, and to source any remaining virgin wood fibers from FSC-certified forests.”

Make sure to pick up one of the fancy new flyers on your next trip, ooh and ah at the greater range of products, and remember, you get the opportunity to do it all again in a couple of weeks.

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Even though it was easier for me to get up in the morning and know what was and wasn’t acceptable for local fare, this year still sent some challenges in the form of funky weather and slow-to-produce agriculture. In a way, I’m glad because it reminded me not to take local produce for granted. Not being able to pick up a slicer tomato with baked-in sweetness when I expected was frustrating, but it made that build up of anticipation that much more luscious.

And we still had some usual experiences too. Summer squash was abundant – so abundant, I scramble for new recipes to use it up in unique ways. Tonight I’m planning to sauté some in a skillet with some garlic and olive oil and then add some mint and cherry tomatoes right before taking it off the stove. Really, sautéing is my favorite way of dealing with squash, since it’s quick and tasty, but I’ve also done gratin, casserole, stir fry – you name it.

We had a couple 100+ days this week, so the slicers should finally be sweet. The peppers are gorgeous. The cabbage is bountiful. The blackberries are scrumptious. Isn’t eating local grand?

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2. Local Food Adventures Begin…
3. Riverhill Farm Fresh

Summer produce is no stranger to sweetness, of course, but these were two new experiences for me. The first was the introduction to Honey Rock Melon, an heirloom variety that lived up to the honey in its name. Toothsome, rich, and syrupy with a slight hint of musk, it baptized this melon-hater into a fervent follower. The second taste bud debut was of Ground Cherry Tomatoes, also known as Husk Tomatoes, from Downtown Farm in Colfax. These wee, golden wonders in their papery shells are related to tomatillos but exist in a world all their own. I freed one from its husk, popped it in my mouth, and exclaimed, “It’s candy!” It had zero acidity and tasted exactly like pineapple upside down cake.

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And, yes, the weather is perfect…sunny and hot, just right for sun-kissed cheeks and noses, and for keeping dessert lovers lined up in front of the fudenjuce shakes & smoothies booth for 4 hours straight !

Fast food it is not ! But I’m sure not hearing any complaints. Fudenjuce donated a couple of blenders and their best, expert blender-handlers to whip up fresh, fruity yummies at the Come Home To Eat festival on Sunday.

“$3 each, please … the proceeds go right back into the festival fund and to the farmers who provide our local food.” That’s me … customer service w/a smile, and my sidekick “ol’ sticky-fingers” handling the $. I’m thinking you might describe the mood at the booth as barely-controlled chaos, more “shakey” than “smooth” at times … (ha!), but give the people enough Straus Organic Vanilla Ice Cream and fresh, local Bierwagen/Donner Trail peaches from Chicago Park, just 20 minutes up the road from here, Lazy Valley Ranch blueberries from right here in Penn Valley, SunSmile Farms apple juice and Riverhill Farm strawberries (happy birthday Jo!) … and everybody’s happy.

(.. except maybe the blender guys, as the afternoon sun starts angling their way. Up to their elbows in sugary delightfulness … and hungry ! when do volunteers get to eat anyway ??) The banter is an integral part of this scene … I’m pretty sure some of those folks in line are just here for the ‘floor show’. ‘Me and the sidekick’ have plans for a juggling act between orders for the next gig. But, no blender duty, he says … “I don’t do sticky.”

Somewhere outside of this booth, I know there’s a full-on festival happening. But, I’m spending the whole afternoon here with the smoothie-guys. I’m happy enough right here. The serving volunteers brought dinner to us. In return, I’m running peach shakes to the cooks and kitchen helpers. Somebody even set a cold Sierra Nevada brew right next to my picnic plate ! And what a plate … grilled kabobs with Nevada County Free Range Beef and LaNoria Ranch lamb, a medley of veggies … zucchini, basil, tomatoes and melon from Four Frog Farm, Living Lands Agrarian Network, Mountain Bounty Farm, Naked Farms and SunSmile Farms (in locally alphabetical order), croutons and bread made from Grass Valley Grains – baked locally at Flour Garden Bakery.

From where I’m standing, I can see the stage where the farmers are being honored, and the dancing will start at dusk. If I could sneak away from my post, I might try some of the local wines from Smith Vineyard, Pilot Peak, and Szabo wineries. The dinner tickets include a beer from Sierra Nevada Brewing Company or Auburn Alehouse, hard cider from Fox Barrel, or a homemade Ginger soda from Shan Kendall … she’s mildly famous around here for her soda ! All of this, from within our local reach. With just a bit of a stretch to our regional neighbors, for Apollo Olive Oil, Chaffin Farms olive oil, Straus Creamery, Clover Stornetta butter, and Riverdog Farm corn-on-the-cob.

Thanks, thanks, thanks to all of the volunteers who make Come Home To Eat happen every year (or almost every year … except the year we were all too tired to do it … ). And, the fudenjuce booth, and all of these people in line, are especially thankful to Rita – for making that mad last minute drive through Friday evening traffic !!! to rescue the Straus icecream from Petaluma ! We are so lucky to have so much good food right here in our local and regional “neighborhood” !

Until next year … I’ve really got to practice my juggling.

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Shoot, I’d do one better than just put it up on Facebook. How could I resist the concept of local, edible flowers for my Eat Local dinner? And if I was going to eat it, I should blog about it, right?

I clocked out and headed to the produce department, giddy with anticipation. I was going to craft a dinner around flowers! Awesome, awesome, awesome! My brain began to spin with options. Obviously, I was going to make a salad with the flowers as the main ingredient. Local greens, blackberries, and Sungolds rounded out the edible posy. We had some green beans we had picked during our last visit to our CSA farm. If I kept it simple and tossed them with some regional butter, they’d compliment the sweet greenness of the salad. Then a little bit of protein… Charles helped me out with that decision – regional chicken it was (and it was reduced – score!).

The minute we walked in the front door, I started warming up the stove-top, cast iron grill and put a pot on to boil for the green beans. Then I began arranging the salad. I must admit that almost half of the local blackberries didn’t make it into the bowls. They’re wild, so they have that wonderful untamed tang as well as sweetness. A healthy amount of Sungolds, sliced in half so their juices incorporated with the greens were next, and then I added the flowers. It was like arranging in a vase, but better, because it would soon end up as our meal. As soon as the green beans and chicken were cooked, dinner was served.

The flowers gave a green pop to the palate. I especially enjoyed the nasturtiums. They presented a sprinkling of spice across the tongue followed by a delightful burst of mandarin oranges. Charles wasn’t as enthusiastic about his edible arrangement, so I helped myself to his nasturtiums too. Because of the wild, green flavors of the flowers accompanied with the chicken and green beans, I’d recommend a Sauvignon Blanc made in the New Zealand style. It complements the range of flavors wonderfully.

A little bit of exotic beauty for dinner – it’s so great to work in a place where I get to be introduced to so many wonderful, new experiences, especially when those experiences are on a plate.

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To top off Eat Local month here in the California foothills, we’re all going to the Come Home To Eat festival and picnic dinner. Volunteers are working at all of the things they are good at to prepare for this event. Everything from parking directors to radio promotions to washable dish rentals…it’s all organized by volunteers from all over our local food-lovin’ community.

The food folks are the most amazing, of course. They’re preparing a full meal – veggie or meat lover’s options, all made with local ingredients … for 1000 people !! That’s more cookin’ than I can even pretend to imagine! Posters and artsy things are my contribution – I’m not goin’ anywhere near the kitchen!

This will be the fourth year for the Come Home To Eat event. Each year it has a slightly different theme, but always focuses on bringing the community together to honor our farmers and ranchers. Through dinner ticket sales, we’re always able to pay the farmers a fair price for the incredible local fruit, vegetables, beef, lamb, eggs, chicken, flowers, greens and grains that become the community meal.

This year’s Come Home To Eat event is a family festival, complete with Contra Dancing and a Dunk Tank .. where you will find many of our favorite local heroes on the dunking seat !

Sunday, August 22 at 3:00, Western Gateway Park in Penn Valley, California.

Dinner tickets are on sale now, get yours before they run out. Bring your appetite, your sense of humor, and some extra change … Local beers and wines will be available for sale. And you’ll find me sellin’ Cool Smoothies in the hot sun with Clan-Fudenjuce. All proceeds from the blended delights will go right back to the farmers who grow the juicy fresh berries and peaches !

Now, back to work for me ….. I’ve got a life-sized cardboard cow to paint for the “Tour of the Farm Guide” meet-the-farmers exhibit.

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My past few CSAs have been a rainbow of produce – tons of basil, patty pans, chard, collards, radicchio, amazingly sweet onions, mint, lemon verbena, Japanese eggplant, strawberries, and so much more. I love to spend a few moments gazing at my box before I place it lovingly in the car.

The drive home is a feast too, with the amazing aromas of the herbs and strawberries mingling, filling the vehicle with so many tantalizing smells, Charles and my stomachs begin to rumble louder than the gravel road.

And then the joy of turning those aromas into meals! I love the bounty of summer.

Cheesy Tomatoes Love Herbs

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

1/2 cup bread crumbs

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 teaspoon water

1 egg

1 package 8 oz Sierra Nevada Cheese Company Chevre, made into four rounds

4 very thick slices of fresh tomato (heirloom or slicing)

2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, plus a drizzle for dressing

1 small head of curly endive (or you could use traditional endive)

1 bunch cilantro (or you could use fresh basil)

1 bunch wrinkled cress (or you could use radicchio)

drizzle of red wine vinegar (If you use the basil & radicchio, use balsamic vinegar instead.)

How-to:

Mix breadcrumbs, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Add water and work until crumbly. Beat egg is a small bowl. Dip Chevre rounds in the egg and then the bread crumbs. Place in fridge for 15 minutes.

Place tomatoes on plate and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Add olive oil to a skillet and heat on med/high until the oil is hot but not burning. Carefully place the Chevre rounds in the oil and cook 45 seconds, then flip and repeat. Place rounds on tomatoes.
Toss greens with the drizzles of red wine vinegar and olive oil. Add a little seasoning if desired. Heap 1/4 of the greens on each tomato slice, and voila!

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The challenge is officially on, for the whole month of August. Join me! Yes, I’m challenging you – let’s see who can eat the localest!

For those of you who can’t resist a dare, you’ll really shine here – seeking out local ingredients for all of your recipes, snacking only on local fruit, building meals around foods that are available right now and right here.

For the rest of us mere mortals … it may be a challenge afterall – no matter how idealistic and tasty it sounds.

I can’t say that I’m setting my sights too high for myself.  I’ve been through this before, and I know my limitations ( finding extra time for deliberate qualifying ingredient seeking ) and my weaknesses for imports ( coffee, chocolate, vanilla … cereal-straight-out-of-the-box ). But, I’ll give it a good try.

The first thing I’ll have to do is rearrange my schedule and my priorities as far as shopping goes.

Since my garden is lacking in just about everything (except mint and parsley) this year, I’ll have to go out into the community to find my local meals.

The best selection of fresh local goodies is at a farmers’ market. And, unlike the grocery store – the markets are only held on certain days and you’d better get there early.  Since the market closest to home is on Saturday mornings, and Saturday mornings are usually my catch-up-on-yard-chores time ….  I’ll have to make some adjustments.

Luckily, if I miss the market, I’ll still be able to shop for local produce and meats at BriarPatch Co-op and SPD Market, not too far from my house.  My habit of late night shopping will have to be put on hold – Raley’s has been a good backup for organic produce after hours, but you’re not going to find local there … don’t let the advertising fool you, we’re talking about actual local now, not southern California or Washington state produce.

I am looking forward to finding time to visit the farms for super fresh, and super local food with the personal touch. There’s nothing quite like meeting the people who are growing your food.

So, the challenge is on. Go do your shopping, and come back here to compare notes, and find out how “challenged” I become before this month is over !

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Yet I can’t help but love this extreme giver of food. You can do so many, many things with summer squash.  My grandma has been gifted with zucchinis that are too large to cook and has discovered that they pickle as easily as cucumbers. Then of course, there is the gloriousness that is zucchini bread. They’re a great addition to stir fries. They’re lovely as a side dish. They’re terrific stuffed, as casserole, and even as appetizers. How could I not love something that gives so much and asks for so little?

Zucchini Bread Recipe

Ingredients

2 eggs, beaten
1 1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups grated fresh zucchini
2/3 cup butter, softened
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, mix together sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add zucchini and butter. Sift flour, soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together and gently spoon into mixture, a third at a time. Fold in walnuts.

Divide the batter equally between 2 buttered 5 by 9 inch loaf pans. Bake for 1 hour (check for doneness at 50 minutes) or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Turn out onto wire racks to cool thoroughly.

Makes 2 loaves.

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I’m filling my early mornings with the best agricultural activity that can be experienced -on my patio- crawling inside the bird-netting tent to pick beautiful morning blueberries.

Three plants in pots, three different varieties – all three yummy in their own way.

Harvesting supplies needed:  hands, ..and mouth for when hands are full.

Saturday -  5 blue ones .. enough to share with friends !

Sunday -  5 more

Monday -  oh, these are not quite blue …

Tuesday -  23 ! wow, ate ‘em all.

Wednesday -  7  and counting.

Thursday -  4  …  are you keeping up, is this annoying ?

Friday -  ok, ok, I’ll stop … but I’m still counting silently ….

Saturday -  you’re kind-of curious, I know -

Sunday -  mmmmmm, not tellin’

Monday -  53 !  ate a bunch on yogurt .. with chocolate chips 

Tuesday -  40   takin’ them to work for lunch.

….. stay tuned.

breakfast art: bb's & mint, w/Amy's home yogurt made with milk from Gerome's cow next door

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