Still cooling on the racks. The flat bread toward the back of the table is not quite a focaccia. It is Tuscan grape harvest bread, schiacciata, which will be a special at tomorrow’s Howe Meadow farmers market.

P.S. Sorry about the quality of the picture. By the time I got done baking it was too dark [...]]]>

Still cooling on the racks. The flat bread toward the back of the table is not quite a focaccia. It is Tuscan grape harvest bread, schiacciata, which will be a special at tomorrow’s Howe Meadow farmers market.

P.S. Sorry about the quality of the picture. By the time I got done baking it was too dark to shoot without flash.

This is my newest creation, and I am very proud of it.

I love the story of this bread. My girlfriend lives in San Tropez in Cote d’Azur. About a month ago she bought a loaf of walnut-fig sourdough bread at the local farmers market and fell in love with it. Not being a [...]]]>

This is my newest creation, and I am very proud of it.

I love the story of this bread. My girlfriend lives in San Tropez in Cote d’Azur. About a month ago she bought a loaf of walnut-fig sourdough bread at the local farmers market and fell in love with it. Not being a bread baker, she couldn’t tell me how it was made but gave me a very detailed description of the flavor and sent me a picture of the crumb. That was all I had to go by.

Well, I thought and planned and experimented and here it is, in all its glory — a loaf with a salty and tangy crumb and chewy crust which is very nicely set off by the sweetness of the figs and walnuts. The way I see this bread it is not a dessert loaf but something to be enjoyed with a thin slice of medium-ripe goat cheese and a glass of light and crisp white wine or spread with young soft chevre and accompanied by a glass of syrah or shiraz.

I’ve also kicked off the food preservation season for my Canned Goods CSA by starting a large container [...]]]> I see that I’ve been amiss in updating my site. That’s because I’ve been very busy baking bread and making local seasonal soups for the Howe Meadow Farmers Market and Greenfield Berry Farm CSA (soups are pre-order only).

I’ve also kicked off the food preservation season for my Canned Goods CSA by starting a large container of lacto-fermented garlic scapes (thanks go to many local farmers for providing the scapes) and making a huge batch of luscious and delicious ruby-red strawberry jam out of Huffman Fruit Farm’s beautiful berries. Summer is one busy and fun time of the year for me!

Come and see me every Saturday morning at the market or drop me a line if you have any questions or comments or if you would like to subscribe to my mailing list.

When I started my SoupScription in late fall last year, it was designed to be a winter service. Now that the winter is officially over (seems like we’ll have our first 80F day this weekend! YAHOO!), I would like to suspend it until next fall.

If there’s sufficient interest, I will continue bringing [...]]]> Dear friends and customers,

When I started my SoupScription in late fall last year, it was designed to be a winter service. Now that the winter is officially over (seems like we’ll have our first 80F day this weekend! YAHOO!), I would like to suspend it until next fall.

If there’s sufficient interest, I will continue bringing my soups to the market, including to our last indoor market on April 17, and to subsequent weekly markets at Howe Meadow, which will start on May 15. Please take a second to let me know if you might be interested.

I will also continue sending out emails informing you of what’s cooking for the market, and will be happy to accommodate any special requests. If you would like to join my mailing list, please click here.

Now that spring is upon us, there’s a long list of chores here at Gotta Farm, and I will need to dedicate my attention both to farming and to bread baking.

Also, over the winter I’ve been playing with an entirely new (for me) branch of culinary arts — that of charcuterie, an ancient art of preserving meat through confiting, salting, curing, sausage making, smoking etc. My few attempts have been quite successful and I am interested in learning more about it.

I am also anticipating a very busy canning season, as a few local farmers asked me to help them preserve their excess produce. This will allow me to start a small Canning CSA, which I am happy to offer you. You can find more information in this brochure (pdf).

And lastly, the sauerkraut that I started last week will be ready for pickup by next Monday. Please click here if you would like to order some.

I am extremely grateful for your continued support and encouragement. Please let me know if there’s anything I can do for you.

Wednesday, Mar. 24: NO SOUP/BREAD

Friday, Mar. 26: Coconut-Carrot-Parsnip Soup (vegan) Green Olive-Sweet and Hot Roasted Pepper Bread

To preorder any of the above please click here.

Pickup Information.

As usual, for my planning purposes I would appreciate it if you send in your orders as soon as possible but definitely no later than 3 p.m. the day before the pickup.

Wednesday, Mar. 17: NO SOUP/BREAD

Saturday, Mar. 20: Winter market at Happy Days Lodge Vegetable Curry (vegan)

To preorder the soup please click here.

I hope to see you all at the market.

Wednesday, Mar. 10: Broccoli-Cheddar Soup Baguette

Friday, Mar. 12: Asian Miso-Vegetable Soup Country Mulrigrain Bread

To preorder any of the above please click here.

Pickup Information.

As usual, for my planning purposes I would appreciate it if you send in your orders as soon as possible but definitely no later than 3 p.m. the day before the pickup.