Get 'em while you can!

Every year around this time, French prune plums 

make a brief and glorious return to Farmers Markets but only for a limited time. 

With their concentrated sweetness and easy perishability 

they are usually only sold in their dried and preserved states. 

But now for a brief time, you may see them at the Farmers Market. 

And we are especially lucky that we can pick some 

from our French Plum tree in the Orchard!

our French plums ripe on the tree

You might also know these gems as Sugar Plums. 

"These plums are variously called French Prunes, French Plums, 

Sugar Plums, and the odd but apt, Undried Prunes.
(because these plums are the ones most often used to make prunes).

Whatever you call them, get them. These sweet stone fruits are not to be missed.  

They're smaller than typical plums, maybe the size of an elongated ping-pong ball, 

with a dusky skin of mottled purple and yellow. 

The flesh itself is a deep autumn gold." 

The are incredibly sweet and can have a brown sugar flavor,
not too sweet but certainly not tart. 

They also have a surprisingly firm texture. 

They're juicy, but not to the point that you have to eat them hovered over the sink.

photo by Steven Krause page 308 in
Plats du Jour: the girl & the fig's Journey Through the Seasons in Wine Country

Their texture makes them wonderful to eat
but also perfect to cook (hence the drying for prunes).
Our chefs like to use our French plums in a clafouti. 

These plums are frequently used for this—a baked French dessert 

using fruit arranged in a buttered dish and covered with a thick flan-like batter. 

Did you know that the clafoutis comes from the Limousin region of France 

and while black cherries were the traditional fruit used, 

there are numerous variations using other fruits including red cherries, 

plums, prunes, apples, cranberries or blackberries. 

Our specialty at the girl & the fig stars our French plums. 

Or, you could just cook these plums down and serve them over ice cream.

Just remember to enjoy them soon. And to extend your enjoyment of French plums, 

here's how to transform them into prunes.

The short season for French plums reminds us that we are at the end of summer. 

Of course there is still time to enjoy the bounty of that season

even as we look ahead to the Autumn stars we will soon harvest. 

The beds planted with all the many Winter squash will soon take center stage 

on the table, replacing zucchini and lemon squash as inspiration in the kitchen.

Fall squash last year at the farm

But before that, while we are still picking summer fruit from the farm, 

it's great to know how we can extend our experience. Besides drying fruit like the plums, there other ways to preserve the bounty from the farm. 

Some of our recipes were recently featured in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat. 

And the Huffington Post featured an interview with 

Executive Chef John Toulze talking about how easy it is to pickle vegetables. 

What summer fruit or vegetable are you still savoring these days?

And is there a favorite "end of summer" recipe you want to share?

Preparing for the veggie explosion

May is always the month that really begins to feel like spring to me, 

when we are anxious to get outside, be in the garden, get going on planting in earnest.

Remember the article we posted about how 

getting your hands in the dirt elicits a feeling of euphoria?

This is true spring fever, which of course will soon 

become full-blown summer obsession. 

one section of our farm early Fall 2011

The seduction of our gardens, enticing us to plant as much as we can, 

may bring us to the moment where we have run out of ideas 

of what to do with the abundant zucchini 

or the rampant arugula (can there really be too much arugula?) 

Of course this is not really a problem-how could there be too many fresh vegetables? 

And certainly, when it is winter time, we know we will be 

missing that just-picked squash, tomato or bunch of fresh herbs. 

One option for all those veggies is pickling. 

Pickling is not just for fall harvest or something we do as we prep for winter-

it is easy throughout the year and can be a great option 

when you have been overly enthusiastic at the farmer's market or in your own garden. 

One day last summer, John mused while working at the farm, 

that when they are in season, "I just want to eat as many fresh vegetables 

as I can each day." We all know what he means-

those verdant salads and colorful side dishes--

(spring and summer almost persuades us to become vegetarians!)

So, go ahead and plant whatever you want. 

It is amazing how much food you can grow in a small space. 

SF Sustainable Food has great ideas and inspiration

 for growing food in urban areas or other small areas. 

area behind the fig not much bigger than your house

or use a raised bed-we have several behind the fig

And whether you are growing your own food or not, 

 be sure to support your local Farmers Markets. 

I figure if you are reading this blog, you likely already know your Farmer's Markets 

and CSA resources, as well as restaurants like ours 

that serve fresh seasonal food, but if this helps, go to Local Harvest  

to find that information anywhere in the country or more California-focused, 

 is Community Alliance with Family Farmers: "Buy Fresh/Buy Local."  

For national resources and more in-depth discussion, visit Sustainable Table-

celebrating local sustainable food and providing education 

about issues that build community through food.

 "Beacalivore," and join in the "Food Journey of California" 

this new Facebook page connects you to like-minded food friends. 

And of course, build your own community by 

sitting down at a table with friends and family whenever you can. 

So, in your garden or at the Farmers Markets indulge in what is fresh and seasonal. 

It lifts my spirits when I see new vegetables that herald a change in the season-

asparagus telling me that spring is arriving and of course 

tomatoes affirming that we are in summer!  

When your bounty overflows and your creativity for what to do 

with all you've gathered is challenged, think pickles. 

Pickled veggies liven up a salad, are a perfect complement to salumi or certain cheeses 

our house-made pickles from the farm with house salumi

and as for a grilled burger--well, you know what I mean!

the girl & the fig's burger

But not just pickled pickles. John and the chefs pickle lots o'vegetables all year and in 2010 expanded our pickling to create Sonoma Valley Sharecropper project. 

This became a natural outgrowth of the farm project, 

as a way to share the bounty of our harvest at Imagery Estate Vineyards 

 with the Benziger family who own the land we farm. 

This traditional Sharecropper arrangement for us as tenant farmers

 deepens our connection with the farm and 

our commitment to being part of the community. 

From Bread & Butter pickles, Sonoma Valley Sharecropper 
grew to include a wide range of vegetables

 from cauliflower, carrots, and fennel in winter 

to onions, ramps, leeks and fava beans in spring.
Our pickled sweet & sour squash was a finalist for the Good Food Award in 2010.

Now you can use our exclusive blend of pickling spices 

to create your own pickled vegetables.

Sonoma Valley Sharecropper Pickling Spices 

are available at all our restaurants, online at the FIGstore 

or at Local Landscapers' booth at the Tuesday night Farmer's Market in Sonoma.

Sonoma Valley Sharecropper Pickling Spices are created 

using spices from all over world and are available in three varieties: 

color for carrots, red peppers, rhubarb, beets, purple cabbage, 

purple cauliflower, red onions, orange peppers and tomatoes.

blanc  for cauliflower, jicama, onions, turnips, parsnips, 

white radishes, shallots, mushrooms and cabbage.

vert for zucchini, cucumbers, asparagus, brocolini, green peppers, 

artichokes, green tomatoes, peapods, Brussels sprouts and green beans.

The pickling process for the home chef takes about 30 minutes hands-on
in the kitchen and then 24 hours in the fridge for the vegetables to marinate. 

Tips are included from the Chef and we hope you will also be inspired to be creative.

Watch John's pickling demo on ABC TV for tips. 

Pickling extends our experience of the farm, allowing us to enjoy

the abundance we harvest all year and in new ways. 
The same vegetables we savor fresh from the garden 
are transformed into a new flavor with a different use.

We created these blends to help you do the same with your bounty.

Share your experiences, ideas and recipes with us,

tell us how you like to serve the pickled veggies.

And of course now that we are entering high farm & garden season,

enjoy getting your hands dirty as well as
all the freshness the farm has to offer to your table.