Meet your farmer

Hi, my name is Zoë. I grew up in the valley but have recently spent time farming and living the Aloha life in the Hawaiian islands. I am very passionate about food access and spend lots of my time contemplating food access and it’s pinch points at Rainshadow. But right now, I am feeling grateful. This time of year just brings that out.

Photo credit: Zoë Griffith

What… are we going… to do… with all this food?

I (Zoë, a Rogue Farm Corps intern) wondered between my own grunting and the squeaking of cabbages. It must have been quite the sight as Adam, Simon, and I hauled nearly 3000 pounds of cabbage through the field and up onto the flatbed, flinging ourselves up on top. Sarahlee drove us back to the Farm Stand and I realized that to live and work at Rainshadow is to be in a perpetual state of awe at how much food we grow here. 

Photo credit: Zoë Griffith

Cabbage larger than your head and farmers Adam and Simon on top of Cabbage Mountain. It was so smoky that week that all farmers were wearing KN95 or respirators to protect their lungs from the junk in the air.

Much of that is made possible by our ragtag crew of ranchy rebels who wake up each day and work to bring this place to life. Each day I’m inspired by us — us as in Sarahlee and her crazy, beautiful vision; us farmers with our capacity for joy in the midst of challenge (and our huge biceps); Chef, who has preserved hundreds of pounds of food this summer months while simultaneously cooking for weddings, longtable dinners, and the farm fam every day; Al working around the clock to bring our community onto the farm; Melody helping us in the store; Tall, Wes, and Big Country doin’ cowboy stuff like wrangling cows and getting our food from point A to B; Chris and David holding us all together; Mark fixing our rusty — sorry, I meant to say trusty — farm trucks; Jer and Brandon with all their know-how… the list goes on forever.

Photo Credit: Zoë Griffith
Farmers Adam, Christine, and Nat having a sweet corn moment; The brunch menu for our friend and fellow farmer Richard’s wedding; Roasting tomatillos for Chef’s tomatillo salsa.

It goes on forever and also includes YOU! You make it possible, too. You who believe in a healthy, community-based food system and choose to support Rainshadow in growing one — even when we force cabbages the size of small children upon you. Each week we serve more than 200 of you and your families. There are times when I wonder how the Farm Stand’s door bell hasn’t fallen off yet.

Most of the time, though, I’m thinking about how grateful I am to be here, in a place that values the work farmers do. To witness what farmers can accomplish when supported by their community has been inspiring. From seed and food sovereignty to soil and watershed health — topics my fellow farmers have written to you about — I’ve been learning a lot. 

Photo Credit: Zoë Griffith
Neighbor Impact gleaning our kale.

Like who and what it takes to build a community. Because the list doesn’t end with farmers and their CSA members. Community organizations like Redmond’s Neighbor Impact Center, HDFFA, and the Food Bank are also working to grow a more resilient Central Oregon. In August alone we donated hundreds, possibly thousands, of pounds of fresh food to these organizations and the people they serve. Whether I go on to start my own farm business, manage someone else’s farm, or take what I’ve learned and help another community grow in the way Central Oregon has, everything I’ve learned here at Rainshadow and in Central Oregon will help me do it. 

Photo Credit: Zoë Griffith
Farmer Zoë harvesting chard; green onion transplants for our winter CSA; Echinacea flowers at sunset; longtable wedding feast in the garden.

Join us for Customer Appreciation Day, Saturday, October 23!

Mark your calendars and join us on Saturday, October 23 for a day of gratitude, gleaning, small plate eating, live music, and farm tours. 

Every year after we finish harvesting our winter storage crops we open up the 25-acre to our community. It is impossible for us to harvest everything. There are always treasures that we missed. Join us and glean for your pantries!

We also celebrate you with food on this day. Our kitchen prepares and serves a variety of farm to table small plates ranging from soups to salads to sliders. 

While you are here, stock up on flour, meat, and other goodies from our farm store!

Come make a day of it as we celebrate you and the end of our summer growing season. This is a great opportunity to get you and your kids in the dirt and remembering (**or learning**) where your food comes from!

You all mean the world to us let’s spend the day together.

Harvest List
This time of year, harvest lists can be a bit hit or miss. Crops are starting to get fatigued and produce less than expected. We clear beds and find more of something than we initially thoughts. Either way, you know the list below will adjust to reflect what is actually out there by the end of Tuesday harvest and you know it will be delicious!

For this week, we think our foundational veggies will be:

  • green butterleaf lettuce
  • hakurai salad turnips
  • fresh daikon radish

Asian greens
Thai basil
Italian Basil
Golden beets
Chiogga beets
Red Beets
Cabbage
Carrots
Chard
Cucumbers
Daikon radish
Fennel
Green onions
Kale

Lettuce Heads
Parsley
Lettuce Mix
Salad turnips
Yod Fah
summer squash
Radish
Tomatillos
Cherry tomatoes
Large tomatoes
Onions
Hot peppers
Sweet peppers
Potatoes

Meat CSA

This week, Bend Farmers Market Small Meat CSA folks, it’s finally your turn: you will get short ribs and ground beef, and all other Meat CSA shares will be getting an assorted meat share. This will finally catch us up on the short ribs!

Recipes

If you, too, ever scream when you see the size of our veggies and wonder what the **** you’re supposed to do with it all, I have one word for ya: Stock! 

Monstrous celery? Leftover onion skins, leeks, squash peels, or herbs? Carrots you found in the back of your fridge from who knows how long ago? Stock, baby, stock! I’d like to point you back to September 5 CSA email and the stock recipe there. When we make it at the farm, it looks something like this. Chicken feet for the win!
Photo Credit: Zoë Griffith

Zoë’s Pot Pie
I don’t know about you, but this rainy weekend has me in the mood for comfy fall food. Tonight I’m making this pot pie recipe with some of that chicken stock, Rainshadow Organics’ hard white flour (I’ve found that sifting it really does make a difference), celery, carrots, milk from Ginny and Amiga, potatoes, garlic, and onion, and maybe some parsley depending on what our crop looks like. 

For the crust:
2 cups sifted Hard White flour
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons butter
cold water

  1. Combine the flour with the salt. 
  2. Cut in butter with a fork or mixer. Add cold water until the mixture is coarse but moist. 
  3. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into a ball; flatten slightly. Wrap 1 ball in plastic food wrap and refrigerate.
  4. Roll out remaining ball of dough on lightly floured surface into 11-inch circle. Fold into quarters. Place dough into an ungreased 9-inch pie plate;  unfold dough, pressing firmly against bottom and sides. Trim crust to 1/2 inch from edge of pan; set aside.
  5. When pie innards are finished, roll out the dough in the fridge and place on top of the pie. Press ends firmly together and cut slits into the top so steam escapes. 

Insides
Enough to vegetables to fill the inside of the pie such as: onions, garlic, root vegetables
1/3 cup butter or oil
1/3 cup flour
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup milk
1 3/4 cup broth

  1. Preheat oven to 425F.
  2. Chop vegetables.
  3. Melt butter or oil in a skillet or saucepan and sauté vegetables until they are golden and soft. 
  4. Combine the flour, salt, and pepper and stir until it’s smooth and thick. Then add milk and broth.
  5. Add the cooked vegetables to the pie, pour the gravy over the vegetables and top with the 2nd pie crust. 
  6. Bake for about 30-40 minutes (or until the crust is golden brown) and voila! You’ve got a pot pie. 

 

Wendy’s Eggplant Caviar
Our good friend of the farm and fellow Chef Wendy DiPaolo shared this recipe with us a couple weeks ago. While we don’t have any more eggplant, we thought you might enjoy making this “caviar” recipe if you have some eggplant still lurking in the back of your fridge

INGREDIENTS
3 Med. Eggplants
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1/4 c chopped Ginger
1/4 c Chopped Shallots
1/4 c Chopped garlic
1/4 c sugar
1/2 c chopped Cilantro
Sesame oil
Rice wine vinegar
Salt and Pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Preheat oven to 375F.
  2. Cut eggplants in half lengthwise. Salt and pepper them.
  3. Put a good amount of Extra Virgin Olive oil on a baking sheet. Place eggplant, face side down on baking sheet.
  4. Bake at 375 until tender (1/2-1 hr.)
  5. Cool and scoop out the meat and place in food processor.
  6. Saute ginger, shallots, garlic and add 1/4 c sugar. Let cool and add to eggplant schmeck in food processor with Sesame Oil and Rice Wine vinegar to taste.
  7. Pulse to desired consistency (I like it a little chunky) and add cilantro.
  8. Serve at room temperature w/ Vegetables or home made crackers.

Thanks for being a part of our community,

Zoë

Please email us and let us know if you can’t make Wednesday or if someone else is picking up for you. We can’t wait to see you on Wednesday!