It's been a weird growing season here in Boonville. June started slow and cool, followed by a July plagued by water issues. We watched 80% of our irrigation water that was collected during the winter rains drain out of our pond and into the Anderson Creek after a critical pump failed. Our stress levels peaked while it took over 3 weeks to get resolved (it's fixed now and we seem to be in a good place for the rest of the growing season water-wise).
Then came the dust mites that took to our strawberries and dry beans. As Nacho always reminds me, "That's farming." It is a constant up and down ride where we try to contain natural systems under ever-changing conditions.
While it hasn't been smooth sailing, I think we are on track to still have a great fall harvest. We won't pick any chiles until September and have a few fun events planned for this month (scroll down to learn more!).
Until then we hope you stock your spice drawers with our chiles that pair so so well with late summer produce. Whether it is corn, tomatoes, watermelon, eggplant, or even an early season apple, may your food be ever flavorful.
Salsa for the End of Summer
It's taken an embarrassingly long period of time for us to finally bring back to the farm two delicious salsas made from our very own Espelette, Guajillo, Yahualica, Sugar Rush Peach, and Habanero chiles!
Both of these chiles are flavor-packed and solidly medium in heat.
We got connected with Chris from Bay Area based Tacos Everywhere last summer. He was looking for some chiles he couldn't find anywhere else and we had exactly what he needed.
We have a limited quantity of two different salsas on hand and if these go super quick (Gideon almost ate a full jar of the Ají Crisp at lunch yesterday), we will try and get them restocked at the end of the month!
Mark Your Calendars!
- Monday, August 7 at 7pm our farm will be Featured on PBS KVIE's (based out of Sacramento) show America's Heartland! We can't wait to gather around the TV and see our farm! If you live outside of California, you can see the whole 27 minute episode here or watch just the 5 minute segment on our farm here! Let us know what you think!
-
If you live in Northern California, make sure to join us on Friday August 25 at PizzaLeah in Windsor! Leah will be making a few special pizzas featuring our chiles and we'll be there from 3-8:30pm with chiles for sale. Leah and I met in early 2020 and I've been obsessed with her pizza since she opened PizzaLeah later that year. She competes in world pizza championships and if you've come to visit us in Boonville, I've probably told you to stop and eat her pizza on the way into town. PizzaLeah is located at 9240 Old Redwood Hwy #116 in Windsor.
- On Sunday August 27, we'll be down in Oakland, CA at the Oaktown Spice Shop at 546 Grand Ave with our whole line of chile powders and flakes from 12-3! We had so much fun last weekend at the Albany location and hope you can make this last pop-up!
Need more enticement to make the trip to Windsor? Check out the prep Leah has been doing to highlight our chiles and her skill. These will be on the menu on the 25th! - #1: Bacon candied with brown sugar and Sugar Rush Peach chile, blue cheese, peaches, and green onion. #2: Sungold tomato sauce with Smoky Piment d'Ville, garlic, olive oil, stracciatella and Yahualica flakes.
What We're Cooking
Hetty Lui McKinnon's NYT Cooking recipe for Crispy Gnocchi with Tomato and Red Onion was a great weeknight dinner where you only have to have your stove on for a few minutes. I seasoned the tomatoes with salt and Piment d'Ville. If you want to add a protein to it, go for shredded rotisserie chicken or some mini mozzarella balls.
Another NYT recent favorite was Alexa Weibel's Chopped Salad with Jalapeño-Ranch Dressing. I added some pan seared chicken breast to the salad that I seasoned with Poblano Chile Powder, salt, and garlic powder. It was a hit while watching the Women's World Cup! If you don't have access to NYT Cooking, make a chopped salad and use our Avocado Poblano Dressing as an alternative!
We're reaching peak tomato season and you can't go wrong with warm bread slathered with mayo and topped with a big slice of tomato. Make sure to salt the tomato and add a sprinkle of chile. My preference is Smoky Piment d'Ville while Gideon reaches for Poblano Chile Powder. Also coming soon is fresh corn! Make sure to try our corn with chile-lime-honey butter or Grilled Golden State Corn!
