Aioli and Artichokes

Mayonnaise has sort of gotten a bad rap in the health food world for being high in fat and calories, and the ridiculous amount of ingredients in the industrial stuff. But at a basic level, mayonnaise is just an emulsified blend of mustard, eggs, and oil. And if you like garlic, aioli is even better.

Aioli is essentially a mayonnaise made with olive oil and garlic. It is a sauce with Mediterranean roots, and is often served with meat and vegetables. If you're like me, you'll want to use it as a dip for yam fries, brussels sprouts, or artichoke. I make a basic aioli recipe, but you can change it up with pickles for a more relish-like effect or peppers and chipotle for a southwestern influence.

You know when you mix vinegar and oil, or water and oil, and the two liquids don't combine? The oil just floats around in little pockets, content to stay completely separate from other liquids. The trick to incorporating the mixtures is an emulsifier, which you'll need for any mayonnaise or aioli recipe. 

Luckily, this recipe has many types of emulsifiers, including egg yolk, garlic, and mustard. The trick is to slowly (SLOWLY) add the oil while whisking or blending the other ingredients. You know the emulsion is happening when the mixture thickens and the oil isn't apparent anymore.

Are you ready for this? I'm going to give you the totally-from-scratch version, and a slightly easier version. Both are delicious. I also included an easy-prep artichoke method so you have something to dip with. If you want to try something else, bake brussels sprouts! You won't be disappointed. 

Aioli From Scratch

Ingredients
two egg yolks
1/8 tsp sea salt
1 tsp dijon or yellow mustard
1 head garlic 
1 cup olive oil 
1 tsp lemon juice
pepper, to taste

Directions

Peel and crush garlic cloves with a mortar and pestle or a garlic crusher. If you don't have either, you can mince finely or use a food processor, but this will mean that less juices will be released. 

Whisk the egg yolks, mustard, salt and garlic in a bowl. At this point, you can pour the mixture into a blender, or continue to hand-whisk. Be prepared; your hand will get tired if you choose to mix by hand, but the results should be the same. 

Set the blender on low (or continue to whisk the mixture) and SLOWLY pour in the olive oil. Allow small amounts to get incorporated into the mixture, and then add more. As the mixture thickens, you can pour the mixture in slightly faster. Continue to pour until all the oil is incorporated. 

The mixture should now be thick enough that it doesn't move much when you tip the blender/bowl. If in a blender, transfer the mixture to a bowl and grind some fresh pepper on top. Add lemon juice and mix. 

Taste. Is the mixture garlic-y enough? Add more salt, pepper, lemon juice, or garlic as you need. 

Quick-Aioli, Not From Scratch

Ingredients
1 cup Canola or olive oil mayonnaise (I use Spectrum-brand Organic olive oil mayonnaise, which is even labeled gluten free)
1/2 to 1 head garlic
dash of salt
pepper, to taste
1 tsp lemon juice 

Directions

Peel and crush garlic cloves with a mortar and pestle or a garlic crusher. If you don't have either, you can mince finely or use a food processor, but this will mean that less juices will be released. 

Combine mayonnaise and garlic in a bowl, stir until the garlic is distributed well. 

Add salt, pepper, and a dash of lemon juice. This should help bring out the flavor, but won't change the consistency of the mayonnaise. 

Taste. Is the mixture garlic-y enough? Add more salt, pepper, lemon juice, or garlic as you need. 

Simple Boiled Artichokes

Artichokes are in season right now, and a snap to prepare. I've tried baking artichokes in foil and also steaming, but the best results are always an easy boiling method. Try it out! 

Ingredients
A pot of water, large enough so that the artichokes are at least half-submerged
Artichokes 

Directions

Boil water. (c'mon, you can do it!)

Chop off the top ~1/4 of the artichoke. You can also clip off the edges of each artichoke leaf with kitchen scissors, although it's not necessary. The pointy tips will soften up when you cook the artichoke, and you don't eat that part anyways. 

When the water is at a rolling boil, stick the artichokes in. I've found that there isn't a huge difference between fully-submerged artichokes and half-submerged, but if one side is sticking out I'd rotate it after 10 minutes or so. 

Let the artichokes cook on a low boil for 15-20 minutes, depending on the size of the artichoke. To test if the artichokes are cooked, stick a knife or fork in the stem. If it goes through easily, the artichoke is done! The leaves should be easy to pull off at this point. 

Eat by pulling off the leaves of the artichoke. The outer leaves may not have much "meat" on them, but as you travel inwards, the base of the leaves will have a soft part you can pull off with your teeth. The leaves get softer as you go, until you can eat most of a leaf whole. The center of the artichoke has a delicate "heart" that is absolutely amazing. Dip in aioli for an extra treat! 

Blood Orange and Meyer Lemon Roasted Asparagus

Last week marked the triumphant return of asparagus to the market. As customers walked into the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market on Tuesday they were greeted by the bright green stems standing upright in containers. The asparagus came from Zuckerman's Farm, known for their asparagus and potatoes. 

Zuckerman's Farm is located on 1,500 acres in Stockton, about 80 miles outside of San Francisco. Lead farmer Roscoe Zuckerman represents the third generation of Zuckermans taking care of the farm, which was established in the 1920s. They practice integrated pest management practices such as releasing beneficial insects and crop selection, and plant a cover crop of oats that are tilled into the ground in order to increase soil fertility. At this time of year they put out their boxes of asparagus, ranging from super thin to giant stems. 

I came home with two bunches of medium-thick stalks this week, and was looking around my kitchen for a good way to roast them. I currently have a fruit basket positively bursting with citrus, including a number of blood oranges and meyer lemons from Hamada Farms. I like my asparagus with a bit of a kick, and citrus seemed like the perfect remedy. 

So here it is: a super-easy roasted asparagus recipe that's perfectly seasonal and local. It takes less than 10 minutes to throw together and pop in the oven, and will be sure to deliver. 

Blood Orange and Meyer Lemon Roasted Asparagus

This recipe is easy to change up - asparagus is great with a little lemon and garlic, or even herbs and salt. I like the citrus for its kick and seasonal flavor. 

Ingredients

Half a blood orange (Mine was from Hamada Farms)

Half a meyer lemon (Mine was from Hamada Farms)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil (Mine was from Bariani)

1 bunch asparagus (Mine was from Zuckerman's Farm)

Directions

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Snap off the woody base of each asparagus stalk. 

Squeeze the juice from the orange and lemon into the same bowl. 

Toss asparagus stalks with enough olive oil to cover, then add the citrus juice to taste, covering the asparagus. 

Lay asparagus out into a single layer on a baking pan. Bake for about 20 minutes, until it's easy to pierce asparagus with a fork. 

Enjoy!

Chocolate Cake For the Allergen-Challenged

I've been meaning to try baking a gluten free cake for a while. I think two things have been holding me back.

Firstly, there's always butter involved. Aside from the fact that butter isn't really all that healthy, I'm not so great with dairy. I'll eat something that has a bit of herbed butter sauce drizzled on it at a restaurant, but cake recipes always seem to call for a stick or more of butter. I'm not sure my stomach is ready for that. 

Secondly, flour is daunting. As a society we're so convinced that you need wheat-based flours to bake anything that sometimes the gluten-mania trickles down to me. Who am I to defy centuries of wheat-based baking practice? 

But I remember stumbling across a chocolate cake recipe on Orangette a while back, which is apparently so good that Orangette's author Molly baked it for her wedding. (If you've never visited her blog, do it now! Or just buy her book, A Homemade Life.) The recipe only calls for a tablespoon of all-purpose flour, so I wasn't even too worried about replacing that with a gluten free substitute. 

However, there was the issue of the 7 ounces of butter. I found a handy website that tells you how to convert butter amounts into olive oil, did some math, and decided to substitute .88 cups of olive oil for the 7  ounces of butter. 

The recipe has only five ingredients, and for the dark chocolate I used Organic Baking Drops from San Francisco-based TCHO Chocolate. I've written about TCHO previously, and I'm a big fan of not only their superb chocolate making skills, but also their dedication to cultivating direct relationships with farmer co-ops through TCHOSource. The 66% cacao baking drops come in an 8 ounce package and inclue the following ingredients: cacao beans, cane sugar, cocoa butter, soy lecithin, and vanilla beans. 

So the recipe. It's fairly simple and results in a finger-lickin' good fudge-y chocolate cake. Couldn't ask for more. 

Gluten and Dairy Free Chocolate Cake
Adapted from Orangette's Gâteau au chocolat fondant de Nathalie, which was adapted from Je Veux du Chocolat! by Trish Deseine.

Ingredients

7 ounces (200 grams) dark chocolate (my choice was Tcho 66% cacao baking drops)

.87 cups Extra Virgin Olive Oil (my choice was Bariani)

1 and 1/3 cup granulated sugar

5 large eggs (mine are always from Rolling Oaks Ranch)

1 TBS all-purpose flour, or a gluten free substitute in the same amount (I chose 1 TBS of brown rice flour)
Some coconut oil for the pan

Tcho Chocolate Baking Drops

Chopped Chocolate

Pre-oven

Rolling Oaks Ranch

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Use coconut oil to "butter" an 8-inch round cake pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper, and "butter" that as well.

Chop the chocolate into fine pieces and combine with the olive oil. Slowly melt in a microwave (or like me, just place inside the oven with the door open). Stir occasionally to incorporate the oil and chocolate.

When the chocolate has melted, take the pan out of the oven/microwave and add the sugar.

Stir to combine.

Add the eggs one-by-one. Stir after each egg is added in order to incorporate into the mixture.

Add the flour and stir.

Pour the mixture into the cake pan and place in the oven for about 25 minutes. Mine ended up taking more like 45, so watch for this: the top of the cake should be crackly, and the center should barely jiggle.

Turn off the oven and let the cake sit on the rack for 10 minutes. Then remove from heat and let the cake cool down to room temperature. The cake will deflate a bit.

Molly also suggests that this cake is even better the next day, so don't hesitate to wrap it up, stick it in the fridge, and serve it after 24 hours. I ate some after sticking it in the fridge for a couple of hours; it hardened up nicely and turned positively fudge-like. Perfecto!

Enjoy!

The Farmstead Restaurant: A Napa Gem

Choosing to live in Berkeley has had the unexpected bonus of being within close driving distance of Napa Valley. Nothing like a sunny Sunday wine tasting with friends to cheer you up

Excellent brick cooked chicken

But with all that wine, I definitely need a nice place to eat. Passing through Helena for the first time last summer, it was hard to miss the bright red sign reading "Farmstead Restaurant" standing between rows of leafy green vegetables on the side of the road. It's usually a good sign for me and my dietary restrictions when a restaurant is so openly flaunting the farm-to-table ideology, so I tried it out. And then I went back. And then I went back again. 

Peppers I found on-site last summer

The Farmstead Restaurant is directly connected to Long Meadow Ranch, a 650 acre historic site located in the mountains above Napa Valley. The land was originally a vineyard from the 1870's, and was re-established by the Hall family in 1989. The ranch produces grass-fed meat, olive oil, wine, eggs, and fruits and vegetables, all of which are featured at the Farmstead Restaurant along with other local producers. Their land is Certifed Organic by CCOF, and the family seems to take pride in their artisan products. 

The restaurant itself is very farmstead chic (is that a thing? It makes sense to me), with re-purposed farm implements hanging from high ceilings. There's a bar, central kitchen, long tables, and an outdoor seating area surrounded by espaliered trees. If you like a rustic feel, this place is perfect for you. 

Herb Roasted Potatoes

The Farmstead Restaurant's Executive Chef is Stephen Barber who comes to the restaurant with southern roots and a long list of accolades. While their menu doesn't specifically list gluten free items, the waitstaff is always knowledgable about gluten and readily points out options on the menu. 

On my last visit, I had brick cooked chicken with savoy spinach, Rancho Gordo Beans, and salsa verde. Paired up with a very seasonal blood orange martini, and it was perfect.  

If you're interested in visiting the Farmstead Restaurant, it's located at 738 Main Street, St. Helena and is open daily at 11:30 am.

What you see as you drive past the restaurant

Espaliered trees surrounding the outdoor seating area

Blood Orange Martini

In Organic We Trust: A Documentary

Last week I attended the world premiere of a new food-umentary (see what I did there?) playing at the 14th annual San Francisco Independent Film Festival. Aptly titled "In Organic We Trust," the documentary explores what Certified Organic really means and whether or not it is truly healthier, as many Americans believe. 

The Certified Organic label is as problematic as any other food label, and should never indicate the end to critical dialogue. There are a wealth of food documentaries - Food, Inc., The Garden, King Corn, Super Size Me - but not too many that openly critique the organic industry. I remember reading the book "Agrarian Dreams: The Paradox of Organic Farming in California" by Julie Guthman a few years back, and it truly helped me focus a critical lens on our "sustainable" sector of the food system. Guthman takes readers through the reality of the organic sector, much of which has become industrialized. Little to no attention is paid to the working conditions of field laborers, and organic systems are increasingly unhealthy for the land and consumers. 

All of this can be very confusing to consumers, who are trying to make good choices for themselves, their families, and the earth. Some advocates worry that labeling makes consumers less critical, more complacent, in that you feel trust that the system is working for you. Hearing that labels are deceiving is enough to make anyone throw up their hands in despair and go back to the cheaper, conventional products. But eating well is never easy - we just need some help and guidance in navigating the system. 

In Organic We Trust does a very good job of laying down the issues with the industrialized, large scale sector of certified organic farms, but also visits farms and vendors who are dedicated to the original idea of the organic movement: small farms that operate using environmentally friendly practices to feed their community. The film really hones in on the fact that you need to have a relationship with your farmer in order to understand where your food comes from, and interviews a number of farmers and food vendors that speak passionately about what the system is doing right. 

Bacco Ristorante: The Best GF Pasta in the City?

When the Fall 2011 edition of Edible San Francisco hit the stands, I was excited to see that the theme was Noe Valley. I haven't explored the area much yet, but I really wanted to find some good gluten-free friendly restaurants in a neighborhood that is constantly referenced for its great food. (If you want to read Edible San Francisco for yourself, view the online edition here.)

A cute series interviewed Noe Valley Chefs, but not about their own restaurants - rather, the chefs gave local recommendations for where they love to eat. The first chef was Brad Levy, the chef and owner of Firefly Restaurant, who has two daughters with Celiac Disease. He recommended Bacco Ristorante for an Italian Dinner with good gluten-free pasta options. 

I'm always a bit nervous about pasta. One of my personally worst experiences being "glutened" was after washing my own gluten free pasta in a strainer that was previously used for wheat-based pasta. I even rinsed it out beforehand, but apparently not enough. Restaurants sometimes offer gluten-free pasta options, but you have to make sure they don't share the pasta water with the wheat-based versions. People with little experience in Celiac Disease might not think twice about the water itself, but cooking gluten-free pasta in contaminated water can be dangerous. 

Bacco Ristorante, on the other hand, was a wonderful experience. The atmosphere was quaint and intimate, and although I've never been to Italy, the setting had nice authentic Italian touches. We were seated quickly and servers were very attentive the entire evening. 

While the menu doesn't list gluten free options, when I mentioned that I have Celiac Disease to the waitress she knew exactly what to point out. She was clearly trained on gluten-free issues, and gave me a number of options while assuring me that the pasta is cooked on separate equipment from the wheat-based pasta. 

As with most Italian restaurants, before our main dishes came out my table was given bread with olive oil for dipping. Just a few minutes after the wheat-based version was served, I was brought my own gluten-free bread basket with my own olive oil. Imagine that: they knew enough about gluten to know that I wouldn't want to dip my bread in the same oil as everyone else. 

The bread itself wasn't the best, a little crumbly, but definitely was fulfilling for a starter. I ordered the Vermicelli Con Polpettine, which was a thin spaghetti with house-made, slow braised Tuscan meatballs. It was a good, standard Italian meal, and my gluten-loving dinner companions were impressed with their dishes. 

All in all, this is probably the best, safest Italian meal for someone with Celiac in the city!

Bacco Ristorante is located at 737 Diamond Street, and you can view their menu here.

The Farmworkers' Journey: NAFTA, Agricultural Exceptionalism, and California's Farmworkers

This is part six in my coverage of EcoFarm 2012. Access other posts here. Click on the photos to view a larger version.

We hear a lot about immigration and agriculture, and how immigrants are taking Americans' jobs, but it's never that easy, is it? In an EcoFarm Conference session panel titled "The Farmworkers' Journey," Dr. Ann López spoke about her research, work with farmers and farmworkers, and introduced us to two California Farm Laborers. 


López is the founder of the Center for Farmworker Families, an organization that works to promote awareness and better conditions for binational farmworker families in both Mexico and the United States. She eloquently described her research into NAFTA and the plight of farmworker families. 

Starting with West Central Mexico, López explained that the basis of agriculture is the corn, beans, and squash inter-crop, also known as the Three Sisters. This is a polyculture planting that has been so successful that it's been used for years; the corn provides a pole for the beans to grow, the large squash leaves shade out potential weeds, and beans fix nitrogen in the ground for the following year's corn. The three plants are also nutritionally complementary, with corn as the good carbohydrate, beans as a quality source of protein, and squash providing vitamins along with oil from the seeds. 

The corn varieties that are traditionally planted display a rich genetic diversity that is a far cry from the starchy yellow version we're used to in the United States. Mexico is a "repository" of genetic diversity that is being threatened. Mexican farming families traditionally hand-select their seeds after harvest, allowing them to select for the largest cobs and kernels. This means that over time each family develops variations that are perfectly suited for their specific geographic region's weather and soil conditions. 

After planting the polyculture on the same land for about two years, families let the land lie fallow so that native shrub can re-claim it. This means that there's "essentially no damage to the environment, and all the farmers have been supplied with an ample amount of corn, squash, and beans for the year" (López).

López said that pests were never a problem in this system until the introduction of mechanical devices from the United States in the 1940s, along with Green Revolution technologies such as hybrid seeds and GMOs. Families that farmed in Mexico maintained a strong family connection, working together to feed themselves. 


In 1994, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) went into effect. No farmworkers were included in the talks that NAFTA is based on, effectively marginalizing their voices and positions. López laid out the assumption that led to NAFTA: the U.S. assumed that Mexican corn production was inefficient. They saw that using the polyculture method, corn was produced at a rate of 4.5 tons per hectare, while the U.S. can produce 16 tons per hectare using intensive chemical production methods. There was no discussion about the other crops that were produced, or the benefit to the farmworker and the environment. 


Before NAFTA, the Mexican government had tariffs at the border, which protected the small producers that used polycultures. López pointed out that the government also bought a third to a half of the crop at an extremely good price, and then placed these crops in inner-city stores, allowing good food to be sold at a low price. NAFTA's goal was to get rid of this tariff so that anyone could sell corn in Mexico, giving a free flow of goods, capital, and information. This meant that the Mexican government could no longer support small production farmers. 

Immigration was conspicuously absent from the decision-making process surrounding NAFTA. 

On top of an already bad policy, NAFTA didn't follow through with the agreed upon phasing period. When it was created, there was supposed to be a 15 year phase period in the trade that would allow small producers to adjust their lives. Instead, López pointed out, tariffs were phased out completely within 30 months and the U.S. almost immediately started dumping corn into Mexico. 

Keeping Organic Relevant: Labels and Confusion

This is part five in my coverage of EcoFarm 2012. Access other posts here. Click on the photos to view a larger version.

When you are trying to decide what product to buy at the grocery store, what helps you make your decision? More often than not, the answer is labels.

In a session at the EcoFarm Conference, attendees got to hear from Dag Falck, the Organic Program Manager at Nature’s Path, and the Chief Certification Officer of CCOF, Jake Lewin. The topic was “Keeping Organic Relevant,” and started with a discussion of the organic label.

Falck briefly took the audience through the origins of the organic movement, which was mainly a response to the problem of chemical usage in agriculture. The set of ideals that developed eventually formed into a set of standards that hopefully help protect the health of farmers and eaters, along with the environment. Organic certification is regulated by the USDA, along with third-party certifiers such as CCOF. And for all the faults and loopholes in organic regulation, it has helped institutionalize and legitimize an agricultural system that produces food without man-made chemical inputs with yields comparable to conventional agriculture.

Only half a percent of all farmland in North America is certified organic, and many farmers are having a hard time maintaining their practices since the high premium for organic food became diminished in the recession. But the lagging premium might have more to do with labels than people’s shrinking wallets.

While there are now labels for everything from fair trade to GMO free, the biggest competitor of “Certified Organic” is the “natural” claim. While certified organic foods undergo a series of inspections and rigorous documentation, natural is un-regulated and thrown around without any backing. The Hartman Group, a firm that researches consumer knowledge, came out with a study showing how most consumers think that organic and natural are not different.

Why does it matter if consumers can’t tell the difference between organic and natural labels? Falck pointed out that it results in deception of the consumer, environmental contamination, and financial loss to organic farmers. 

Chart from Organic Biologique at the Canada Organic Trade Association. 

So now we need to decide - are "natural" products really all that bad? Naked Juice, owned by PepsiCo, was hit with a class action lawsuit late last year for using the "all natural" claim for a product that contains "unnaturally processed and synthetic ingredients". Or what about Kashi, a company "passionate about good, healthy foods" with its own definition of natural, which states: 

"Natural food is made without artificial ingredients like colors, flavors or preservatives and is minimally processed. A natural ingredient is one that comes from or is made from a renewable resource found in nature. Minimal processing involves only kitchen chemistry, processes that can be done in a family kitchen and does not negatively impact the purity of the natural ingredients."

That sounds great, but a lawsuit against the company asserts that many of Kashi's regular ingredients are indeed unnatural, including inulin, cholecalciferol, high oleic safflower oil, and soy products.

Falck's proposed solution was for the Certified Organic label to absorb the natural label. He figures that because the term "natural" is an inherent part of our vocabulary, and consumers have an understanding of what makes something "natural", it makes sense to incorporate it into the language of organics. He emphasized that we must keep organic as the gold standard among labels if we want to give farmers, consumers, and the environment a fair chance. 

Falck's talk was followed by Lewin, who talked about CCOF's new standards for Organic Principles. CCOF was founded in 1973 in Santa Cruz, and has since become one of the most trusted organic certifiers in the country. Lewin talked about the organization's early influence by the book Radical Agriculture, which came out in the '70s. CCOF established itself as a prominent force in the movement and ideology of organics and sustainable agriculture. When the current CCOF attended a conference in 2010, they were forced to look at organics and ask: What's so radical about organics today? This question led them to create new principles in organics that will lead their policy moving forward. The policies are as follows: 

• Animal Welfare
• Carbon Sequestration
• Ecosystem Protection
• Genetically Modified Organisms
• Processing Standards
• Social Justice

I'm especially excited about their newfound devotion to social justice; most people assume that organic agriculture is more humane and socially just, but there is absolutely nothing in federal organic standards that mentions farmworker treatment and rights. 

All in all, it's an interesting discussion about consumer confusion over food labels and organic standards. We must continue to be critical and think radically if we are to support the movement towards a healthy, just food system. 

If you're still confused about food labels (as you rightly should be), head on over to Audubon Magazine's succinct descriptions of food labels that get it right and ones that should be criminal. Remember, third party certifiers are always better than those coming from in-house - do you really expect the egg industry to ethically police itself? 

Bonny Doon: A Biodynamic Winery

This is part four in my coverage of EcoFarm 2012. Access other posts here. Click on the photos to view a larger version.

After visiting Fogline Farm, Yellow Wall Farm, and the UC Santa Cruz Farm, our group was ready for a winery. Our last stop of the day was at Bonny Doon Vineyard, a winery in Santa Cruz that does things a little differently. 

The Leader

Bonny Doon was established by Randall Grahm in 1983. Grahm soon after earned the nickname "the Rhone Ranger" for his unique choice of Rhone grape varietals and is often described as "particular". He writes the most foot-noted blog posts I have ever seen (seriously, 32?!), has an active twitter feed, and seems to obsess about finding new ways to experience and approach winemaking. He has been on the receiving end of many honors for his viticulture-knowledge, including having the asteroid 4934 Rhoneranger named after him in 1992 and being awarded the Wine and Spirits Professional of the Year award by the James Beard Foundation in 1994. 

Sourcing and Growing

In the late 1980s Grahm purchased land in Bonny Doon, located in the Santa Cruz Mountains. After losing the land in the mid-90s the winery began focusing on sourcing from other farms, with a specific focus on biodynamic growers. 

Biodynamic farming is often described as "organic plus", in that it goes many steps further than organic certifications and strives to create a self-sustaining system. The approach treats the entire farm as a living organism and focuses on creating a balance between the soil, plants, and animals. 

In deciding to focus on sustainable practices, Bonny Doon has gone through some changes in the last four years, and produced this great graphic storyline to explain the changes and heart of Bonny Doon. Namely, after becoming wildly popular and expanding, they decided to downgrade and focus on quality and practice. They recently purchased new land and are exploring ways to grow grapes that they believe are fully sustainable and delicious. 

On this new land, Bonny Doon is hoping to make wine that can be classified as vin de terroir, a wine that expresses a sense of place and the land. This differs from the more commonly practices vin d'effort, which is more an expression of the winemaker's practices and decisions. Bonny Doon hopes that this reliance on the land will make their wines truly unique. 

Production

While touring Bonny Doon's production facilities, we learned more about their unique take on winemaking. In touring other wineries, I've only seen small oak barrels and large steel ones; I've been told that small oak barrels are used so that all of the wine has a chance to touch the surface and absorb the oak taste. That also means that wineries only use barrels for a couple of years before buying new ones so the oak taste doesn't wear off. Bonny Doon, however, is so invested in the production and quality of their grapes that they don't want the fruit flavors to be overtaken by the oak. This leads them to buy large oak barrels and keep using them long after they've lost their oak-y overtones. 

Bonny Doon production facility

In terms of yeast, Bonny Doon uses yeast lees in their white wines, leaving the wine in contact with the dead yeast after the fermentation process has taken place. The lees sink to the bottom of the container, and Bonny Doon re-stirs the mixture on a regular schedule in order to achieve a specific creamy texture and possibly heightened antioxidant qualities in many of its wines. 

Look at the yeast lees!

They also use screwcaps (*gasp*) instead of the traditional corks that are seen as higher-class. Their reasoning? Cork-sealing makes the wine susceptible to TCA, also known as cork taint. This is a set of offensive smells or tastes coming from the wine after it has spoiled due to TCA contamination. Bonny Doon also claims that screwcaps help the wines age much more consistently than corks, and is actually more airtight. Plus, there's the added benefit of an easy to open bottle that is 100% recyclable! (You can watch Bonny Doon's video "sober discourse on the virtues of screwcaps" on their website, under Doonyverse -> Learn Our Ways.) 

Bonny Doon has some fantastic wines, and should be given praise for their dedication to sustainability and new ways of approaching at wine production. 

Biggest oak barrels I've ever seen

UC Santa Cruz Farm and Garden

This is part three in my coverage of EcoFarm 2012. Access other posts here. Click on the photos to view a larger version.

Of all the farms we visited during the EcoFarm Conference this year, I was probably the most excited about seeing UC Santa Cruz's Farm and Garden. I was very involved in the UW farm at the University of Washington during my time there, and am always interested to see what more established school farms can accomplish. UC Santa Cruz definitely didn't disappoint. 

The farm at UC Santa Cruz was established in 1967 by master gardener Alan Chadwick. It was started on 4 acres of land using organic techniques, including French biointensive horticultural techniques like double digging. This campus farm movement was influenced by 1960s back to the land ethics and sustainable agriculture, and while it had to fight for a legitimate space within the campus system, it directly influenced a dedication to organic agriculture on campus and beyond. Long before kale became a supermarket staple, Chadwick was helping students understand that quality should take priority over quantity. 

What's interesting about the location of those first 4 acres is that Chadwick intentionally turned down space on in sloping, grassy meadow that was removed from campus and opted for a rocky hillside that was in the middle of activity. Not only would this put focus on the garden, but successfully farming this land with organic techniques would go a long way in showing the true effectiveness of sustainable farming. 

As I learned while working on plans to increase acreage at the UW Farm, campus farms almost inherently get into land disputes with the university. Open space is either preserved or slotted for development, and it's difficult to argue that a place to grow food is worth more than whatever grandiose plans a university official had for the space. In an interview, Phyllis Norris, who was involved with the farm from 1973 until the 1990s, talks about ways that the UC Santa Cruz Farm overcame these obstacles by gaining campus support and building community. With the support of a professor on the steering committee of a campus housing plan, the farm was protected against some development efforts. The farm also built up a strong community of supporters and forged ahead with programs and initiatives, giving their programs an increased value when the land was threatened by other interests. 

The farm is now located in two spaces, including the original garden and a larger seventeen acre farm on the lower campus (established in 1971). We got to walk through the farm as staff pointed out features like the blueberry patch with multiple varieties of blueberries, which was being used to test outcomes like yield and flavor. Much of the land was planted in cover crops, and we passed a few students transplanting plant starts into rose pots. We heard from a researcher who was testing organic methods for reducing pests in strawberry plants; they recently achieved higher-than-conventional strawberry yields using mustard cover crop as a biofumigant on a very small scale. (The same technique used by Yellow Wall Farm, which we also visited.) 

Strawberry test plots (foreground)

The farm itself led the way for the establishment of the Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems, a respected academic research center with a wide range of programs. One such program is the Farm Apprenticeship in Ecological Horticulture, which was created partly to help provide a more consistent and year-round workforce for the farm. The program offers both hands-on and academic training in organic and sustainable farming techniques, and strives to help students think about the transferability of their skills based on factors such as climate, geographic location, and soil quality. 

Over 1,300 students have graduated from the apprenticeship program, and many have gone on to start their own farms. (Including Johnny Wilson of Fogline Farm.) Others have gone on to work with school gardens, urban farms, or influence farm policy. 

The Apprenticeship program helped establish a more academically oriented focus at the farm, and in spring of 1976 the farm project became sponsored by one of the colleges on campus. By 1978 the farm was being used as an experiential laboratory for Environmental Studies students, an outdoor classroom for classes such as Ecodevelopment,independent studies, and a space for student-directed courses.

The people who run the farm know that they are in a unique situation in terms of farm labor; their students actually pay to work the land. Instead of competing with local farmers by selling food to grocery stores or at farmers markets, students run a farm stand on campus and have relationships with campus dining. You can read more in the UC Santa Cruz Food Systems Working Group's 2011-12 Campus Food and Garden Guide. These initiatives have made UC Santa Cruz a leader in the Farm-to-College movement. 

All-in-all, UC Santa Cruz is a beacon of hope for every start-up school garden that exists. With some innovation, passion, academic connections, and community support, what started as a back-to-the-land sideshow developed into an integral part of campus activities.  

Yellow Wall Farm: A Micro-farm Experience

This is part two in my coverage of EcoFarm 2012. Access other posts here. Click on the photos to view a larger version.

Did you know that if you let a granny smith apple hang on the tree after it's normally harvested, it will develop a red blush and become much sweeter than the expected sour green version you buy at the grocery store? You wouldn't know because the riper fruit probably wouldn't ship as well, but it's taste over thick skin at Yellow Wall Farm. 

I've heard about small scale farming, but Yellow Wall Farm is a self-proclaimed "micro-farm". At just under three acres, the farm is so small scale that it fits into the farmers' backyard. 

When we showed up for our tour of the farm, we were led through a semi-open house with a beautiful outdoor kitchen and out to the backyard. As we walked past a beautiful citrus tree bursting with ripe blood oranges, I were greeted by a small cluster of noisy chickens foraging in a mixed cover crop of cereal grains and legumes. 

The microfarm is located in a valley along the San Lorenzo River in Santa Cruz, and is run by Allen and Judy Rose Hasty. Both farmers had prior careers before "retiring" to farm the land. Judy worked as the Director of Humanities at the UC Extension of 20 years, and Alan is a former building contractor. They talked about the act of farming as a lifestyle choice, and are invested in providing food for the local community. 

In their first year, they weren't sure what to do with the land that had been farmed organically for many years. They were still working, but when a friend that worked for the Agriculture and Land-Based Training Association (ALBA) came by and offered to buy all the fruit in their orchard, they started looking for local markets. They were certified organic in 2004, and are currently certified by California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF). 

Their markets have spread from a local "farm friends" listserve to a CSA and then finally to their current endeavor: a farm stand located right down the street. Judy also talked about local restaurants that use their products and how this all helps them continue to "grow food for people as close to home as possible." 

mustard cover crop (close) and cereal/legume cover crop (far)

Their fields consisted of small expanses of cushy cover crop, which we learned was mustard. The mustard was planted in a field that was most recently growing tomatoes and peppers, both of which deplete the soil of nutrients. The height of the mustard at the end of the season helps show soil fertility, and when it decomposes it puts out a gas that acts as a natural "biofumigant" that kills pests. The two farmers also add up to 20 pounds of compost every other year. 

And then there are the chickens. While the chickens are great egg-layers, they are also important for soil fertility. As we watched, Yellow Wall Farm's small flock pecked through a field with a cereal and legume cover crop. Allen pointed out that as they eat foliage from the legumes, they are helping the plants concentrate nitrogen in the roots. Eating down the cereal crop means there's less mowing for the farmer. 

As we walked through Yellow Wall Farm's small orchard, Allen pointed out the varieties of fruit; asian pears, red haven peaches, and heritage apples. Even though the trees were bare, Judy and Allen both talked about the quality of the apples and the joy they associate with picking their fruit right before eating. Judy summed up the desire to farm: "this work is hard, but soulfully gratifying."