Fruits and Veggies are Poppin' out of the Earth
News from the Farm
It sometimes feels like the weeks go by so slowly in late June and early July as we watch and wait on green, green and more green fruit and vegetables. There's the daily inspection to check for any signs of ripeness. "Are they ready yet??" I ask Wes or Kris every other day. "No, still green" is the response I get. Then, all of sudden, it happens; baskets of ripe pears, blackberries appear in the kitchen. A few peaches start to trickle in along with a cherry tomato or two. Tonight Kris, our garden caretaker, went out to the garden and picked a couple of beautifully ripe and lusciously purple Black Krim tomatoes. We savored them for dinner tonight drizzled with a little olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt and cracked pepper (and topped with a delicious herb marinated chevre round that Alisa had made for a farm dinner). The other night our neighbor came by with a huge bag of sweet corn that he had just picked. We cooked it that same night-a quick journey in boiling water. My mother, visiting us from Boston, remarked "This is the best corn I have ever tasted in my life." Our prairie soils are show-offs of the highest order, and we feel so fortunate to experience such richness of flavors.
Speaking of abundance, we will start offering hours for u-pick fruit in the next week or so. Stay tuned.
Farmers' Market Offerings
We're attending three farmers' markets this week: Urbana, Green City Market and Oak Park.
We have plenty of fresh chevre this week--plain, herbs de Provence and cracked peppercorn
We also have Angel Food and Little Bloom on the Prairie for those of you have been waiting patiently for these gooey little rounds.
Prairie Dropseed will be making a semi-final appearance this weekend as we give our sheep milk bloomy rind cheeses a rest for a few weeks. If you love this little mixed milk ball of creamy-crumbly cheese, you might want to get a couple. I made a pasta dish with it earlier this week, and this cheese really adds wonderful creaminess and flavor to grilled veggies with pasta.
Ewe Bloom, Black Sheep and Krotovina are on summer vacation and should be back sometime in late August.
Our next batches of Roxanne and Moonglo are ready, so we will be bringing those to the markets this week.
Don't let the heat keep you away from the farmers' markets or from buying cheese. Just come with an insulated bag or cooler, and you should be just fine.
Farm Dinners Beyond the Farm
As if our own farm dinners aren't enough to satisfy desires for eating amazingly prepared local foods, we're partnering up with a couple of restaurants in Chicago who will prepare special menus featuring our farm's bounty. The first one takes place next Wednesday evening, July 21st, at Vie Restaurant in Western Springs. Here are the details:
Join us for a 6 course Dinner featuring Prairie Fruits Farm
6:30 reception 7:00 Dinner
$65 per person $30 optional wine pairings
excluding tax and service
reception
passed items
apple mint cocktail
first
swiss chard and gooseberry tart, pickled lily buds
second
pan-fried fresh chevre and potato terrine, basil and wild greens
third
ricotta tortellini in hen brodo, kale, italian parsley and pecorino
fourth
deep-fried chicken scotch egg, wilted dandelions
cheese
a selection of farmstead cheeses, preserves, and sourdough
predessert
frozen yogurt and blackberry compote
to finish
bartlett pear tart honey ice cream, almond cream
Call Vie for reservations
708-246-2082
The second dinner is set for Monday evening, July 26th at Birchwood Kitchen. Located in the Bucktown neighborhood, they plan to offer a four course BYOB dinner featuring our cheese and produce. Go to their website to find out how to make reservations and for forthcoming details about the menu: http://birchwoodkitchen.com/
How do I proceed?
Thanks,
Eliane