I Heart Farms

"The Only Leverage We Have": Jeff Fiorovich of Crystal Bay Farm

Pictured here: beautiful squash blossoms, held by Lori Fiorovich of Crystal Bay Farm.

On Monday morning this week, I got a phone call from a farmer friend, Jeff Fiorovich, who runs Crystal Bay Farm with his wife, Lori. He asked for my help, and he's getting it.

Jeff is about as down to earth as anyone alive: his trade is building, but he farms out of love for the land. Originally, Jeff's mother leased the small farm to conventional growers (if, by "convention," you mean "the tradition of poisoning the earth and its inhabitants with toxins unnecessary for the health of the produce or the consumers"). Jeff began to reconsider this arrangement, and eventually, took over the land to grow organically. Specialities include culinary squashes and pumpkins (which turn into a wonderful pumpkin patch at Halloween), as well as giant strawberries, some of which are dipped in organic chocolate and sold at their roadside farm stand.

Growing Goodness: I Hope You Heard It Here First

I have been sitting on a delicious secret for a while now, waiting for the right time to reveal something that is truly and utterly wonderful. I've also been experiencing guilt pangs at keeping something like this all to myself, but the timing has not all been mine.

Some weeks ago, I got a comment here saying:

Growing Goodness™ is a community-based broadband TV network for viewers with extremely passionate interests—beyond what cable television can provide.

Our mission is to create more public awareness and active interest in our local farmers markets.

• Explore the U.S. farmers market world
• Generate farmers market awareness and active interest
• Increase understanding of community affairs and events
• Foster lifelong skills for good living
• Spotlight excellence in goodness

Farmers Market Channel™

Hosted by the community members our Farmers Market Channel™ spotlights farmers, locally grown produce and neighborhood farmers markets.

good food. good health. good life.

Enjoy!

March of the Chefs: April 1

Another chance to sample Justin Severino's cuisine, along with that of Heidi Schlect, of River Cafe & Cheese Shop, who attended last year's Slow Food Terra Madre symposium in Italy. It's a fundraise for SlowFoodUSA. I'll post the menu soon.

Guest Author: Myriam Kaplan-Pasternak DVM

I first met Myriam Kaplan-Pasternak at a farm dinner in Petaluma last July. She and her husband, Mark, who own and operate Devil's Gulch Ranch had provided the rabbits which were most excellently prepared by Chef Nate Appleman, of A 16. Being a veterinarian, Myriam maintains the excellent health of all the animals raised at Devil's Gulch. (That would be rabbits, pigs, and sheep.) A 16 is only one of many chefs serving Devil's Gulch Ranch meat: other restaurants include The French Laundry, Chez Panisse, Bouchon and more.

In January, the bus tour for Eco-Farm brought the Pasternaks out to TLC Ranch, where I was visiting and photographing. Myriam told me she'd recently been to Haiti, participating with Mark and their two young daughters in a farmer-to-farmer program, training the Haitians to raise rabbits and improve their standard of living.  I offered to publish her account of the trip here, so please let me introduce, with great pleasure, Myriam Kaplan-Pasternak, DVM. (She's in the blue shirt, above.)

Rebecca King: Chef, Cheesemaker

Ask yourself this question: "Am I living my dream?"

Are you? Are you surrounding yourself with people who are pursuing their dreams, who are liberating themselves from paths that they have perhaps outgrown? Maybe "outgrown" is not the right word. A good life evolves, and I think a good life recognizes that evolution contains all our previous selves, like the chambers of a nautilus. If you don't have your dreams, you might as well be dead, as far as I'm concerned.

One person here in Santa Cruz is pursuing her dreams in a bold and beautiful way that, frankly, thrills me. Rebecca King is a lovely young woman who does a great many things admirably well. She's worked on farms, and worked with farms. She is currently the chef at Gabriella Cafe, and part of her work ethic includes shopping weekly at the farmers market. And I don't mean just one: I see Rebecca at every market I attend: Wednesday downtown, Saturday at Cabrillo College, and Sunday on the East Side of Santa Cruz.