Synergy in the Soil

Met some more wonderful people at the market yesterday. (I forgot to write last night.) We feel very blessed that they find their way to the market so that we can meet them. There are so many venues for organic food these days (and man, isn't that an amazing blessing), that it is a wonder we get to connect with so many people seeking those choices.

We brought some of our concoctions to the market including kale salad and ranch dressing/dip as samples. They seemed to be a big hit. We also brought cucumber salad, honey almond butter, East Indian sprouts, zucchini chips, and banana bark for sale. We are wondering how we will keep up with the demand when we get a lot of customers. I guess we will deal with that when it happens. We know this is what we are supposed to be doing at the present time, and we know it helps people to have support when they are trying to change from destructive habits, so that being the case, He will help us do it just as He always has when He directs the path in which we are to travel. He never leaves us high and dry. We just can't imagine what that path might be. We are ALWAYS amazed at it when it does become evident.

One of the greatest benefits of this has been the wonderful produce WE are blessed to eat. When we were buying it at stores hit and miss, much of it was older and not as good. We are being blessed to eat the best possible food available to us right now, and I am so grateful for that. Some of it is so incredible, and I am so thankful to the growers that produced it.

Speaking of growers, Roger added 40 tomato plants to our farm yesterday. We will soon be swimming in cherry tomatoes, and that is a wonderful thing. Last year I would pick our tomatoes, bring them into the sink, and could hardly resist eating them as quickly as I washed them. Most of them never made it to a salad, sadly for Roger. He has no idea how wonderful they were! There was a sweet tangy thing going on, definitely yen and yang. I am salivating to think of them. I can hardly wait for this year's crop. In the meantime, I will enjoy other farmer's versions.

Saying that reminds me how personal and distinct each garden's output is. I don't believe any 2 gardens or farms produce could be identical. That is all the more reason to have a greengrocer who wants delicious produce as much as you do. I was thinking that at the market yesterday. So many people turn their nose up at organic. I can't even tell you how many people walk by and say, "Oh, that's organic...", and walk by as though it is something to be avoided as much as possible. The sign we have which designates us as organic is as much a detriment as it is an attraction. That is okay. It is the great divider. We don't want to force our idealogy upon anyone. We just want to help those who have come to believe it is important.

I am becoming more and more passionate about buying only those fruits and vegetables produced by farmers who care about their soil and the organisms they encourage to live there in a symbiotic relationship. I can tell by how a fruit or vegetable tastes how much effort was put into this. I know that sounds strange to some. There are even organics for which this is true. There are non-organic (conventional) foods in which I have tasted this, but it is rare, and not worth the chance since most conventional produce is mass produced with little thought put into the life of the soil.

Some farmers accomplish this unknowingly. I think of this when I drive through Hastings and see the silage growing. Farmers grow this as a way to enrich their soil the cheapest way possible, but it is also a great way to accomplish the synergistic relationship that makes for great tasting produce.

I have been thinking of how this is true of our food preparation as well. When we combine fresh, organic, and whole fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds into foods, we must keep this concept going. They must compliment each other. We must keep the synergy going. That is why some combinations are so delightful and others aren't. If we begin with foods that are substandard to begin with, we have little chance of coming up with something wonderful. When we use only great products, and feel what would go well together, we can't lose. I realize too, that what is good for me, may not be good for everyone, but apparently I have a pretty generic sense of this since most people like my preparations.

So no new recipes at the market this week, just some oldies but goodies. We are already excited about what we will be making next week: spinach alfredo stuffed mushrooms, caesar salad, and waldorf salad. We had the most beautiful romaine this week I have seen in a long time, and we can wait to make these delicious salads with them. Our celery was gorgeous too. Oh how blessed we are...

"Sufficient for Our Needs"

Today it was Alicia's turn to forget something...she forgot the agave when she made her smoothies. Like I said, it is really hard to mess these things up. Darius said they were fine. I had watermelon. It was ok, but I am really looking forward to having one of the organic ones from Lady Moon Farms we will have at the market this weekend. All of their produce is top of the line.

We picked up our cherries today. They have been so outrageously priced, we have not been able to get any before today. They are still high, but this is the price they tapped out on last year. We bought some conventional ones last year, and they just aren't that tasty, so we held off getting cherries until we could get the organic ones. They seem hard to come by in general this year though. I haven't even seen any conventional ones at the market.

I have been thinking alot about why organic fruits and veggies taste better than conventional. (There is no doubt that they do. If you don't believe it, eat only organic for a couple of weeks, and then eat a conventional apple.) I believe it has to do with the life of the soil. When the soil is being nourished, there is a magical mix there, and all of the components are able to work together to make for a very desirable fruit or vegetable. Any other theories?

For lunch we had a delicious salad with romaine and heirloom tomato, cucumber, and alfalfa sprouts with some of the fantastic ranch dressing. I also sprinkled on some blueberries and capers. Yummy.

For dessert, we sliced up celery to have with the raisin cheese. Darius convinced me to try a banana with the raisin cheese, and that was good too. Seems like it combines well with all fruit. I had it with strawberries the other day.

Put some bananas in the dehydrator today. Alicia had some slices in there when I pulled something out of there, and they were so good, it motivated me to get more bananas in there. There is just too much good stuff to eat and not enough time to eat it!

We are going to pick basil and parsley and rosemary from our "farm" to take to the market this week. The basil is going crazy! Pesto time!