Weiser Family Farms Blog

Apocalypse Now

2010-08-30T02:54:21Z

So, yesterday was supposed to be a pretty uneventful day, head up to Tehachapi to meet with a local irrigation specialist, check out the crops, stuff like that, nothing special. Fuggetaboutit! I found myself right smack in the middle of a Charlton Heston movie!

OK, so I’m exaggerating a bit. Just a little hail and fire. It could have been worse. Still, it shakes you up a bit when you see planes flying near your property dropping fire retardant as you drive up. Lucky for us the 55 acre blaze was East of our property with a prevailing West to East wind (just East, across the street East!). Everybody was safe and the crops were unaffected (big sigh of relief!).

If that wasn’t bad enough, on the way back home, I noticed a few rain drops hitting my windshield. I thought nothing of it. Little did I know that, oh, 70 or 80 miles or so further East, heavy rain, gusty winds, and half-inch hail was battering Lucerne Valley. As of this writing, I haven’t had a chance to check things out first hand. The roads leading to our farm are terribly muddied up and I don’t have a four wheel drive vehicle. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that our melons and our winter squash are okay.

Well, I guess I gotta go now. I’m heading over to the local slaughterhouse to get me some lamb’s blood. Can’t be too cautious.

Whole Foods Event

2010-08-23T01:59:19Z

On Aug. 10 we had the pleasure of hosting our friends from the Southern California Whole Foods Markets at our farm in Tehachapi. A caravan of white vans arrived around 10am where upon they were able to observe us hard at work in the fields, specifically weeding a field of Parsnips that were just planted and picking Persian Mulberries for the Santa Monica Farmers Market.

What a beautiful summer day it was! The temperature was around 85 degrees with the cool mountain breeze. We walked around showing the freshly plowed fields that had just been planted for our Fall season coming up. In just 60 days or so and these fields will all be green with a rainbow of colored carrots, romanesco cauliflower, parsnips, brussel sprouts, crosnes, and onions.

After the tour of the main farm, we jumped into our vehicles and drove a few miles to our potato fields in Cummings Valley that are getting close to harvest . Volunteers from the Whole Foods group were selected to dig up some Red Thumb Fingerlings and Purple Peruvians so we could check on their progress. I must say they’re looking pretty good. It would appear like we’ll need just a few weeks of growth at which point the crop will be set. Looks like we’ll have a nice crop in the ground!

After enjoying the views and breathing in some fresh air, we capped off the tour with a short drive to Brites Lake. There, Chef Claud Beltran from Noir Restaurant in Pasadena made us a marvelous barbecue featuring Weiser Family Farms vegetables. Featured were Claud’s fantastic heirloom potato and carrot salads, and a mixed melon dish with curry leaves and vanilla. But that’s not all! Fresh roasted Padron Peppers, roasted Bermuda Onions and Fingerling Potato chips that were also a huge hit. For the carnivores among us, barbecued Tri-Tip and the Chicken, smoked with apple wood, was prepared. It was fantastic!

Thanks to Whole Foods and all theTeam members and Martin Anenberg of Freshpoint for coming out to visit and for having such enthusiasm for the crops we grow and the supporting local sustainable farms. Finally, a special thank you also goes out to Daniel Beaman Photography for taking great photos.

Want to see more photos from the event? Check out this album on Daniel Beaman's Flickr site

It's That Time Again!

2010-07-12T02:42:12Z

Melons are back! There is nothing better on a hot Summer night than a cold piece of melon and we are ready to hook you up. We have six different varieties of melons this year: Sugar Queen, Cavallion (French Melon), Ogen, Aravah, Sugar Cube, and Anana. Each one has a different flavor and taste, but all are sweet and sugary. My favorite melon is probably the Sugar Queen, it even has 'sugar' in the title. There really is something for everyone here. So come down to the farmer's market this week and give them a taste.

Better Late Than Never!

2010-06-29T21:52:54Z

After an unavoidable delay (see my April 14 post, "The Big Wind") our world famous melons are hitting the farmers' market table today (eh, a little hyperbole never hurt anyone)! The first melons to show up will be our Cavaillon melons with Arava melons likely to available at this weekend markets (check out the Farmers' Market page). Shortly thereafter, we will have available Ananas, Ogens (check out the photo below clipped from the produce industry paper, The Packer), and market favorites, Sugar Queen melons.

This particular crop of melons is particularly near and dear to my heart. After the first transplants were literally blown away, we babied these melons like nobody's business. I even got my son to help prep the field for irrigation and brave southern San Joaquin heat to hand cultivate the pesky pigweed (brutal stuff!).

So, wait no longer, summer is about to begin at a farmers' market near you!

Worth A Good Cry

2010-06-14T00:50:21Z

Summer means sweet onions and we don't want to disappoint. After curing our onions out on the field, they are finally ready for you to eat! This season we will be harvesting the popular sweet Bermuda onions, the Spanish Yellow, Sierra Sweets (which are a maui type), and red Chianti onions. You have to try each one because each one has a different robust flavor.

In conversation with Esther Weiser yesterday, she mentioned that not enough people eat onions as a main dish. So she gave me this recipe for all of you to try:

Balsamic Sierra Sweet Onion Blossoms

-8 large Sierra Sweet Onions

-Course salt and freshly ground pepper

-2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

-about 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

-1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Oil the bottom of the baking dish or pie dish large enough to hold the onions in a single layer.

Working with 1 onion at a time, peel the skin from the top of the onion, trimming off the long hairs but leaving the root end intact. Using a sharp knife and starting at the stem end, cut the onion into eights or tenths almost through the root end. Be careful not to cut all the way through. Using your thumbs, pull the onion open slightly to form a blossom shape. Set the onions, root ends down, in the prepared dish; they should be touching but not packing too tightly. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then drizzle with the vinegar and olive oil.

Roast until the onions are tender when pierced with a fork and the tips are browned, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a warmed platter and garnish with the parsley. Serve immediately.

A Potato By Any Other Name

2010-06-06T02:13:28Z

Laker Bakers, Zebra Potatoes, Pinto Potatoes, all working names for an experimental potato variety we've been tasked to test market by a breeder that I met a while back at a local potato trial. I would reveal the breeder's name but, well, I'd have to, well, you know. Last year's trial was small and we didn't get enough information so we decided this year to try plant a bit more. The acreage planted, and the amount yielded, was relatively small but so far, I'd have to say that the response has been very enthusiastic! So here's the deal, we need any of you who have tried (fill in any of the working names) to give us any and all feedback you might have. What was your first impression? How did you prepare it? Most importantly, how did you like it? Post your thoughts in the comment section of this blog or email us at weiserfamilyfarms@yahoo.com. We will convey your thoughts to our breeding partner and maybe next year this very unique potato will have a proper name. It's in your hands!

Menu Minuet Panel Event

2010-05-10T01:15:38Z

This week I had the honor of being on a panel discussion, titled "Menu Minuet" with Chefs Akasha Richmond, Mark Peel, and fellow farmer Romeo Coleman, at the Santa Monica Public Library. We had an enthusiastic discussion about farming, seasonal produce, and the challenges of menu planning. Moderating was Jonathon Gold, Puliitzer Prize winning writer for the LA Weeekly. In the packed MLK auditorium were many familiar happy faces from the Farmers' markets. We sat down and talked and shared our passions for the food that we grow and eat. Chefs stressed how important it is to use food seasonally at it's peak. Once that was unanimously agreed on, we celebrated about how for 12 months a year California farmers have the best, most flavorful diverse produce in the country, if not the world and how forutnate we are to have this Mediteranean climate.

We also reminisced about the early days of the Santa Monica Farmers Markets and how it has evolved over the years. With Farmers and Chefs continually callaborating on seasonal menus, it has really transformed what we grow and offer to all and what has been created this wonderful symbiotic relationship. They depend on us and we depend on them. The time just flew by! We could have talked about fresh produce all night. At end of the discussion, the audience recieved delicious seasonal treats from the Chefs. What a great time! It's such a pleasure to farm, grow good food for flavor and for a community that really appreciates it. Thanks for all the love and support.

Alex

The Big Wind

2010-04-14T14:05:20Z

No, the headlines does not refer to Alex's gift of gab. Rather, it refers to the strong winds that hit the Bakersfield area last Sunday, a sure sign that we are subject to the whims of Nature. Unfortunately for us, the wind caused extensive damage to our recently transplanted melon plants. More than half the transplants were totally blown away, the other half we hope to salvage. It could be worse. We will be set back a few weeks but we WILL have melons. At least we won't have to replant uprooted trees like an Almond grower friend of ours will be doing for the next several days.

Also, I'm happy to report that our new potato, beet, and onion crops "weathered" the storm relatively unscathed. That's great news for us given our high hopes for those crops. We are getting every close to harvesting our new potato crop. Weather permitting, we will be knocking down our Red Thumb fingerling plants later in the week. Our yellow fingerling varieties will soon follow. Oh, and let me not forget...last year's breakout hit, the Zebra potato will be back soon to "blow you away"! Look for them sometime in mid-May.

Time to head out to prepare the ground for the next group of melon transplants.

Optimistically Yours,

Dan

Transplants and Footprints

2010-03-29T18:32:33Z

I stand here in the field with our recently transplanted melons. I can't help but feel a surge of optimism. Everything so far has gone off without a hitch, unlike the drama of last weeks onion planting. The transplants are looking happy and healthy. The beds are smooth, fluffy, and oh so flat. It really is a beautiful thing. And best of all, not a weed to be found. Yeah, let's see how long that lasts!

Well, I'm off to check out our over-wintered onions. They're doing great so we should have a pretty good crop. I know many of you are looking forward to our Bermuda onions. We're targeting Memorial Day, or thereabouts, for our first harvest. We'll see what Mother Nature allows.

Hop Over To Weiser Family Farms

2010-03-28T02:33:59Z

Hey everyone. Easter is coming up! Get ready to eat some ham, decorate eggs, and eat some chocolate bunnies. I sure am. I know it can be hard to plan out that special Easter meal for you and your family, but Weiser Family Farms is here to help. Potatoes are the best for side dishes that will please everyone. So check this out and consider adding this to your Easter meal:

Oven Roasted Pee Wee Potatoes with Rosemary and Garlic

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds of pee wee potatoes (about 15), scrubbed and dried
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 to 6 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon fresh or 1 teaspoon dried rosemary

Direction

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Pare a narrow strip of peel from the middle of each potato. In a large bowl mix the oil, garlic, and rosemary; add the potatoes and toss well. Transfer the potatoes to a shallow baking pan and roast until potatoes are tender when tested with the tip of a knife. Serve hot. These can also be chilled and served with fried chicken or ham.

Courtesy of Food Network and Paula Deen.