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Chef Chino at Santa Ana

9/24/2018

Santa Ana - Kids participating in after-school programs at the Tamaya Wellness Center were treated to samples of two different salads created by Tamaya's Chef Chino. Kids, and their grown-ups, tried a Romaine-walnut-banana-feta bonanza, or an an elegant butter lettuce and tarragon melody as they passed by on a busy afternoon. A big thanks to Chef Chino and Wellness Project Coordinator and Mogro Food Champion Perdita Wexler for helping kids get their "rainbow a day" and stay healthy with colorful phytonutrients.

We know many of our members are as committed as we are to making fresh, healthy food an option for all kids and families. Our members include health care workers, nutritionists, educators, gardeners, parents, neighbors and cooks of all stripes, working to help strengthen our local food system and get fresh healthy food out there on the table. If you would like to help spread the rainbow and host a tasting event, or volunteer with Mogro, please email us at infor@mogro.net

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Farm Feature: North Valley Organics

9/17/2018

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Now that we are well into the season, tomatoes in our kitchens have found their way into practically everything: they are star of the show in BLT’s and TLT’s (“T” for tempeh, for the vegetarians among us); they form the base for an endless variety of bright tangy garlicky sauces for sautéed green beans or pinto stews; and they foretell a year of good eating as they slow-cook down into tomato sauce for year-round cooking.

North Valley Organics off 12th Street is our first stop these days picking up produce on Tuesday mornings. A long, dusty or muddy, and at times rather high-clearance lane leads to the tomato oasis. Minor and Matthew and a small team of creative interns cultivate a small plot here, bounded by ditches lined with prickly pear and elms. These farmers are united in their shared concern for the biological life of soil, and they tend and feed, with the devotion of mother Sandhills. Scientific instincts and long attention to the inner workings of the soil has led this team to some unorthodox practices, like keeping weeds around. They see value in the weeds that come up between the crop rows during the growing season, and they mow the weeds and reintegrate this organic matter into the soil. The small size of their plot makes it feasible for them to forgo tilling, a practice which many agriculturalists regard as an unavoidable but soil-depleting means to prepare the soil for next year's crop.

Minor and Matthew regularly share what they have discovered with other cultivators in demo-classes and seminars. Many thanks to these guys, and to all of you, for making our steady supply of in-season tomatoes possible.

Click here to download a PDF of this week's Newsletter!

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Farm Feature: Silver Leaf Farms

9/12/2018

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"Turn left on the ditch bank, and drive down the road for a second and you'll see us harvesting in the field on the right," were part the instructions we were given early Wednesday morning before we met with Elan. Aaron & Elan Silverblatt-Buser, born and raised in Corrales, are co-owners of Silver Leaf farms, a farm based in their home town. Elan has a background in biology and renewable energy, and though Aaron studied business and accounting at UNM, he has always loved farming, and interned on local farms during college. Their shared love for organic farming, local food, and sustainable agriculture has made Silver Leaf thrive in Albuquerque's growing urban farming community.

We turned down the cottonwood-lined ditch and saw a few folks quietly harvesting in the field in the photo above. We stood with Elan on the edge of the field in the shade. At first just we just listened to the sounds of birds and insects while we watched Aaron and three of their employees harvesting summer squash. Elan explained that the plot of land we were looking across had been pasture land for decades and that it was their first season farming it. This was hard for us to believe as we watched the farmers haul wagon load after wagon load of squash to the van through waist-high plants.

We walked across the field to where they had recently planted their mid-fall crops, like broccoli, red & green cabbage, and cauliflower. Elan told us that this field was protected under Corrales' farmland preservation program. This is crucial to preserving the historical integrity of the land in the Rio Grande Valley that has been used as farmland and ranch land from pre-contact pueblos to folks like Aaron & Elan, and many generations in between. With so much land being developed and more houses being built in that area, preserving historic farmland has become even more important in recent years. For more info on the Corrales farmland preservation program, and the role that Elan & Aaron played, search for the Edible NM article, "Open Fields Preserved."

We ended our time with Elan at their hydroponic greenhouse where they grow living lettuce (in last week's Share),mini cukes (also in last week's Share), as well as herbs & watercress. They use hydroponic farming to grow certain crops in efforts to reduce water. They want to have as little environmental impact as possible so they do things like harvesting rainwater to water their fruit trees, and have built solar-powered coolers to store their veggies. The list goes on!

We are still digesting all of the info that Elan shared with us last Wednesday, but we couldn't wait to share what we learned with you! If one thing is clear to us, it's that Elan & Aaron are fully committed to producing organic, local veggies while leaving as little trace as possible, and sharing it with our community. We really enjoyed getting to know two of our farmers that contribute almost weekly to our Shares. We hope you feel a little bit more connected, too!

Click here to download a PDF of last week's Newsletter!

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How Do You Like Them Apples?

9/5/2018

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Mornings are getting chillier and shadows are growing longer; Fall is quickly approaching. With Labor Day marking the unofficial end of Summer, we decided to include apples from the first harvest of the season in this week's Share to kick off our favorite time of year. You're going to start seeing a LOT of apples in the upcoming Shares, the majority of which will be coming from Northern New Mexico, where the most of apples are grown in this state.

Earlier this season, we were able to meet with some of our apple farmers to learn about the different phases of the growing season. At that time the apples were still small, green, and tart. During our visit, we learned that for them the apple season beings in the winter. Due to the fact the the majority of the apples grown in New Mexico come from the north, farmers go to great lengths to keep their trees happy during the unpredictable northern New Mexican winters. For example, Chris & Taylor at Freshies just built a MASSIVE heated greenhouse over their fruit trees to keep them toasty and frost-resistant during the winter months. Eddie & Linda from Rancho de Santa Fe have constructed 30-50 foot windmills to blow warmer air onto their trees when the temperature drops. It can take anywhere from 6-10 years before an apple tree starts to bear fruit. This helps us to better understand why they put so much effort into protecting their trees and nurturing them through each season.We can't imagine how devastating it would be to lose an orchard that is 15+ years old because of frost. Next time you crunch into a perfectly crisp apple, think about the year-long care and planning that went into it!

Click here to download a PDF of this week's Newsletter!

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Chef Chino at Santa Ana

Farm Feature: North Valley Organics

Farm Feature: Silver Leaf Farms

How Do You Like Them Apples?

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