Cucumber, the utility player

Summer's stars and certainly featured players at our farm are all 

the many varieties of tomatoes and squash that are ripening 

almost by the minute and in great abundance this time of year. 

The tables at the farmers markets are full of much red, orange, yellow, dark and striped green goodies and we are all searching for recipes that highlight this bounty.

one of many squash beds going crazy at the farm

top photos features roasted garden squash & grilled flank steak
with garden tomato panzanella
from bistro plats du jour at the girl & the fig

But the "veggie party" isn't only about 

dark bold colors—pale and light should not be overlooked. 

So, in the wake of our tomato talk, squash chatter and zucchini zeal, 

we want to coo about our cucumbers!

cucumbers growing at the farm

cucumbers amidst the squash at the farm

and cucumbers co-existing with other vegetables
at the farm behind the fig

Cucumbers are like a utility player, sitting patiently in the crisper 
while you create dishes where flashier vegetables are the stars. 
But that tomato gazpacho will taste better with some chopped "cucs" 
added for crunchy texture. Pureed cucumber added to lemon and lime juice 
with some sugar suddenly makes a "frosty" slush really healthy.  
And in their "supporting role," besides added to a salad or substituting 
for a cracker to scoop dip, they can make a dish really come to life. 
Our chefs love 'em to be the delivery to for a succulent meal.

Lamb, chickpea, cucumber, feta salad
photo by Steven Krause for
Plats du Jour: the girl & the fig's Journey Through the Seasons in Wine Country

Need more ideas about how to use cucumbers?

You probably know the benefits of cucumber slices on  puffy eyes, but did you know they can help  prevent a hang over or even better will remove crayon on a wall 

or clear up a pen mistake? (really!) 

while the squash "stars" seem to take center stage at the farm,
the cucumber plants to their right are holding their own.

While cucumbers are originally from the Indian subcontinent, 
they are grown on most continents now.
At our farm, we have jade, English, Armenian, lemon, 
Sikkim and poona kheera cucumbers.

Each variety is distinctive—some typical green (certainly the jade), but not all.

 They might "pale" a bit at first glance, when compared 

with "stand up and notice me" tomato and squash. Until you look a bit closer.
Did you know there are close to 100 varieties of cucumbers?

Armenian cucumbers, known as the "snake cucumber"
can grow to 36 inches, but taste best harvested when 12-15 inches.
You can eat the pretty skin of these-looks great sliced on a plate!

The Armenian cucumber is particularly interesting, 
since it is really "a melon with a cucumber taste."
English cucumbers, like the slicers, are the most common.

The Sikkim cucumber, a historic plant from the Himalayas of Sikkim and Nepal, 

first discovered in 1848, is a large, fat fruit and can actually 
reach several pounds in size. 

Wonder what our chefs will make with this? 

who says a cucumber has to be long and green?
photo of  Sikkim Cucumber courtesy of Gardenista

peeled Sikkim cucumber may be more yellow than green
but still pale and light

Poona kheera cucumbers are Indian and look a bit like

the common "slicer" in  size, but are even lighter in color. 

But, as we've been saying, the demure pale color 

belies how vibrant these fruits can be. 

Like the Sikkum, these cucumbers have a skin that is dark russet color. 
When these first appear, they are green and spiky, but they will eventually 
ripen to look like "typical" cucumbers you are used to seeing. 

And while they can get a traditional looking green skin, 

they actually taste best at their palest color. 

Check out this great short video detailing the 

ideal time to harvest a poona kheera cucumber. 

Might seem as if it needed more time to darken, but not so!

The palest of our cucumbers, but by no means a lightweight, are the lemon cucumbers. 

Not named for a lemon flavor but with their size 

and pale yellow color they sure look like lemons! 

Tender and sweet, lovely in a salad and excellent for pickling, 

they have a crunchy texture and non-bitter skin. 

lemon cucumbers growing behind "the fig"

Here are some delicious recipes using lemon cucumbers.

not a lemon, but a cucumber!

Like any really good utility or supporting player, 
the cucumber doesn't only perform well in one place.
Cucumbers not only help transform a dish in the kitchen, 
but can enliven the bar scene. 

Food writers at the San Francisco Chronicle have said, 
"the salad days for cucumbers are over. 

They are all grown up and have taken to bar crawling." 

While cucumbers have been a traditional garnish for the classic Pimm's Cup, 

a gin drink that hails from 1823, the girl & the fig bartenders 

mix up a cucumber-lemon verbena drop.
Summer is an especially good time to try these other cucumber cocktail recipes.

How creative are you in the kitchen with cucumbers?
And, have you tried any of the more unusual varieties?

Veggie Bowl

Here we are in July, officially summer and we are in full swing at the farm. 

We may still be doing some planting, mostly to spread out what is harvested when, 

but we are pretty much planted for the season.

As you know, we consciously chose to go a little tomato crazy, 

but who can blame us? 

The farm at Imagery Estate Winery is just a perfect spot 

and then there's you and what we know you crave.

Heirloom tomato and watermelon salad photo by Steven Krause
for Plats du Jour: the girl & the fig's Journey Through the Seasons in Wine Country

Heirloom tomatoes & mozzerella
at the girl & the fig 

 We've noticed something very interesting this year 

among the 800 tomatoes we are growing:

you can get lost in our "tomato alley"

Some of the tomato plants are shooting up so fast, from first planting day, to the next week, they were growing so tall—some of them are almost up to six fee already, 

even before the fruits are ready to be picked. Then there are others, 

that are certainly abundant, lush and healthy, but seem to be growing more slowly. 

The slower growing ones are all heirlooms and the faster growing ones 

are all the hybrids we experimented with this year. 

you can see the difference in heights of the tomato plants

Since this is our first time growing hybrids, we didn't know what to expect. 

In the past, we were purists planting only heirloom tomatoes, 

but this year, knowing we would devote so much of the farm space to tomatoes, 

we decided to give the hybrids a try. 

Executive Chef John Toulze
checks on the hybrids about 2 weeks ago
They were almost as tall as he is!

While you mostly think hybrids are a "dirty word," and only found in supermarkets, 

actually, we grew ours from seeds exactly as we did with our heirlooms. 

And for the real "tomato dirt" on the subject, check out what Tomato Dirt blog 

says about the pros and cons of heirlooms vs. hybrids.

They are called hybrids because they combine two varieties
and you get the best qualities of both "parents."

KQED Science page shares differences between heirlooms and hybrids 

as well as busting a few myths about heirloom tomatoes—such as, 

they are not "old fashioned tomatoes," as much as they are 

varieties that have had no crossbreeding for 40 years. 

we hope to be serving these to you very soon!

Did you know that 93% of American households grow tomatoes? 

Do you? What kind?

But, as we've been saying, our veggie bowl has more than just tomatoes in it.

We are growing many varieties of squash, several cucumbers, 

beans, eggplant and peppers.

And the gift of summer is that we are now beginning to truly see

the fruits of our labors.

most of what's planted certainly has been planned.
And then, we find bountiful purslane just appearing
but our chefs get very creative with this! 

this purple flower will soon be an Ping Tung Eggplant

You have to look close but there are lovely padron peppers
amongst the leaves already

beans

lemon cucumber growing in the Orchard bed

Now into our third year at the farm, we have a sense 

of what grows best where. And while we still like to experiment a bit, 

the deepening of our relationship with the farm (as well as knowing what our guests 

like to have at their tables), directs what we plant.

But it's hard not to get carried away and want to plant everything. 

We really related to a recent post by Smart Gardener: 

"Remember when you were a kid, and the holidays or your birthday 

rolled around—that excitement about looking through the catalogs 

circling the toys you just had to have? 

And then the excitement as the gift-receiving day got closer and closer,

 the wonderfully delicious wondering of what would be wrapped up for you? 

I think the closest thing to that hopeful anxiety is the feeling 

gardeners get as they spend the winter months pouring over seed catalogs 

and making endless lists of what they want to plant this year, 

and then waiting for the seeds to arrive."

Here's a rundown of what they finally decided to grow this spring and summer. 

We've shared our garden plan with you.

What are you growing in your garden?