With all the rain lately, I am considering building an arc. Last Saturday morning I was walking down to the barn to help load the truck for market when I noticed an occasional flash of lighting in the Western sky (it was still dark at the time). I checked the radar an saw a large line of storms over Statesville and headed our way. I don't really like to see rain on Saturday mornings because that is our day at the farmers market and generally rain hurts our sales. In this case, I figured the storm would blow through before 8am so it wouldn't be that big of a deal. However, this storm was slow moving and it parked over our area for several hours. Here at the farm we received over 3.5 inches of rain before 1pm which resulted in water streaming down our driveway and also creeks overflowing their banks and washing over our drive as well. Fortunately, no crops were damaged and the good news is that we didn't have to worry about irrigation for the rest of the weekend!
Sugar Creek Farm primarily markets it produce directly to customers through farmers markets and our CSA. When we have extra produce beyond what our traditional customers need we have a small list of restaurants/stores that we contact. One of the restaurants that we work with is Spring House in Winston-Salem. Chef Tim Grandinetti, co-owner of Spring House, is one of our favorite chefs to work with. His enthusiasm and love of good food always bring a smile. Spring House opened last year and has quickly become a hot spot in the Winston-Salem dining scene. One of the unique things that Chef Tim does every year is a week long event called, Dr. Brownstone's Sweet Summer LuvLuv Festival. Each evening during this event guests will enjoy multi-course tasting menus; showcasing “hot-off-the-grill” specialties prepared by an all-star cast of visiting Chefs. Each evening’s tasting menu will be paired with top notch NC micro-brews, local food, fine wines, and spirits. Soulful, live music allow the decadent festivities to continue into the night.
This year, Spring House has teamed up with local farms who will provide vegetables, herbs, and flowers. Sugar Creek Farm is proud to kick off the festival on Tuesday, August 6th by providing produce for first event, Lipstick on the Pig Reception Extravaganza. Here are some specifics of the event which I copied from the Spring House website: The Lipstick on the Pig Reception Hour & Dinner celebrates the culinary talents of our local Chef community: Pit Master Mark Little of Bib’s Downtown, Chef Shane Moore of Foothills Brewing, Chef Stephanie Tyson of Sweet Potatoes, and Chef Joseph Lerner, Spring House Restaurant, Kitchen & Bar. Chef Jeff Bacon of Triad Community Kitchen will prepare a 4-course Chef-crafted Tasting Menu. Vegetables, Herbs, and Flowers from Sugar Creek Farms, Davie County, NC. Ice Cold craft brews from Winston-Salem’s Foothills Brewing.
If your schedule allows for a unique dining experience on Tuesday, we recommend that you come out. Betsy and I (Jeff) plan to attend so make sure to say hello. The event starts this Tuesday at 6pm and reservations are strongly recommended as seating is limited. We hope to see you there!
Here are two recipes to use with your produce. The first is very, very, strange, but surprisingly delicious! And yes, how you layer this sandwich really does matter.
Enjoy your produce,
Jeff and the Sugar Creek Crew
Diane's Dad's Summer Sandwich from NPR
Ingredients:
Thin slices white sharp cheddar cheese
Tomato, thinly sliced
Cucumber, thinly sliced
Vidalia or red onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons crunchy peanut butter
2 slices whole grain bread
Directions:
Make a sandwich by layering the ingredients in the order given; eat with the cheese layer on top. This sandwich actually won NPR's taste of summer contest!
Fresh Tomato Sauce from Food.com
Ingredients:
2 to 2-1/2 pounds fresh tomatoes
4 ounces extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Pinch crushed red pepper
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
Kosher salt
Freshly chopped parsley leaves
Directions:
Peel tomatoes by scoring the skin of each tomato with a sharp knife (do not cut too deep). Then, place scored tomatoes into a pot of boiling water and boil for approximately 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Remove tomatoes and plunge into cold water. Peel and dice tomatoes and set aside.
Heat olive oil in a saucepan. When hot, add garlic and crushed red pepper. Saute until garlic turns slightly golden. Add chopped onion and saute an additional 2 1/2 minutes.
Add chopped tomatoes and cook approximately 5 minutes. Add salt to taste. Add chopped parsley and additional extra virgin olive oil if desired, just before using.
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