November 26

Happy day-after-Thanksgiving friends! I hope your bellies and hearts and fridges are full of goodness.

Today I’m sharing something a little different… two curated gift guides for the holidays! See below for two different guides – the first “Eat Like a Farmer” guide is geared towards cooks/food lovers, and the second “Grow Like a Pro” guide is for all the (experienced or aspiring) gardeners in your life.

Below the visual for each guide, you’ll see handy links to purchase each item (a note that I did my best to link to a wide mix of different sources for these gifts, and if you can find any of these items at your local culinary or garden store, I of course recommend shopping small + local if you can)! I put a lot of thought and energy (and fun!) into these guides, and I promise that I can personally vouch for each and every item you see here.

Last but definitely not least, please do keep scrolling to the end, where I also share a list of inspiring food + farm non-profits for anyone looking to support some hard working organizations holiday season.

Okay, now on to the gift guides…!

1. Six Seasons Cookbook by Joshua McFadden – one of my favorite seasonal cookbooks that epitomizes what it means to #eatlikeafarmer!

2. Microplane – one of my most-loved (and easily overlooked) kitchen tools.
3. Canning Kit – I personally use and love this canning kit, and it has everything you need to preserve seasonal bounty via hot water bath canning.
4. Whetstone Magazine – food-lovers will delight in a (print or digital) subscription to this groundbreaking magazine, which focuses on diverse storytelling around food origins and culture.
5. Le Creuset Dutch Oven – it's an investment for sure, but a classic dutch oven will last for generations and is one of my most-used (and most beloved) tools in the kitchen. The 4.5 quart size is the most versatile, in my opinion!
6. Ronco Food Dehydrator – this is a perfect (and affordable) starter dehydrator for anyone looking to get into dehydrating + preserving fruits, veggies, herbs, etc.
7. Diaspora Co Spice Set – A set of the 9 most popular spices from Diaspora Co, a company dedicated to ethically sourced, single-origin spices from India / Sri Lanka.
8. John Boos Cutting Board – Not only are they useful, these John Boos wooden cutting boards are so beautiful that I happily leave mine out on the counter at all times.
9. Hedley & Bennet Carryall Apron – You can't go wrong with an apron from Hedley & Bennet, and I've gotta say I'm in love with this apron in a perfect "Farmbelly Blue" hue!
10. Lodge Cast Iron Set – A five piece set of high quality Lodge cast iron pans for under $100?! This is a steal of a deal.
11. Souper Cubes – I'm kinda obsessed with these! Perfect for preserving seasonal bounty by freezing + portioning out soups, stews, sauces, etc.

1. How to Grow More Vegetables by John Jeavons – This is hands down my favorite book for getting started in gardening/farming (though it's also full of helpful info for experience growers too).

2. Felco #2 Pruners – Classic and high quality pruners that any gardener will constantly use and love.
3. Grow Bags – Grow bags are a great solution for growing plants at home if you don't have room for raised beds. Perfect for herbs, greens, potatoes, squash, etc!
4. Cobra Garden Tool – This is a super versatile (albeit funky looking) tool that can be used for weeding, cultivating, and planting. One of my top 5 favorite tools we use here on the farm.
5. Drying Rack – For anyone growing lots of onions, garlic, winter squash, etc – this drying rack is the perfect way to store + cure the harvest!
6. Dovetail Overalls – I got my first pair of Dovetail overalls this year, and I practically live in them! This clothing brand is specifically designed for women, and I'm a huge fan.
7. Row 7 Seeds – Gardners will love planting seeds from Row 7 – a seed company founded by chef Dan Barber, featuring vegetables specially bred for incredible and unique flavors. They also sell gift certificates.
8. Opinel #8 Pocket Knife – You can't go wrong with this classic and stylish pocket knife that is super useful for quick harvests and odd jobs working outside.
9. Harvest Basket – Who doesn't love a big, beautiful harvest basket to collect bounty from the garden?
10. Muckster Garden Boots – I got my first pair of Muck Boots this year, and I'm a total convert. They are super comfortable, waterproof, and warm in the winter + cool in the summer. They have lots of different styles and colors to choose from!
11. Watering Wand – Not all watering nozzles are created equal, and this is one of the best for gently watering plants in your garden and/or tender seedlings in a greenhouse.

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DONATE

If you aren’t looking to purchase any more physical items this holiday season, or are looking to donate to a great cause, here are some incredible options in the food + farming space:

• National Black Food & Justice Alliance

• Agrarian Trust

• World Central Kitchen

• HEAL Food Alliance

• National Young Farmers Coalition

November 19

Farm Notes

It’s about to get real chilly around here, so we’ve been soaking up this week of gloriously warm and clear fall weather. We’ve also been taking advantage of the wild amount of leaves that fall around the farm, by gathering them up and spreading them out over the beds before covering everything with a tarp, so the leaves can decompose and add organic matter to the soil all winter long. Leaves are nature’s way of fertilizing the soil, so don’t let all that fertility go to waste.

Yesterday was our Week 11 CSA pickup, which means there’s only one more pick up left for this year! I’ll admit that going into this fall CSA session, I was pretty nervous about whether I could really keep managing the CSA while welcoming + taking care of a newborn at home. But I shouldn’t have worried. Thanks to our absolutely wonderful team (made up of all wonderful lady friends + neighbors), this season went WAY more smoothly that I could ever have hoped for. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I am just so darn grateful to get to do this work, to work alongside such amazing humans, and to get to put good food on lots of tables in our community.

No other big farm updates at the moment… we are just focusing on slowly but surely cleaning up and tucking in the farm for winter. In other news, stay tuned next week for a fun “Eat Like a Farmer” Holiday Gift Guide that I’ve been working on! It’s chock full of my favorite tools for the garden and in the kitchen, as well as some wonderful food + farm non-profits that you can donate to if you’re not as into physical gifts this season. Next week I’ll also release another batch of our Heal-All Herbal Salves, since our first batch sold out so dang quickly!

Kitchen Notes

Every season when the first of the fall carrots are ready to be harvested, I want to enjoy them in their purest and simplest form. Because when you cook with local vegetables at the peak of freshness, you really don’t need to do much to make a delicious, nourishing dish. This recipe for maple butter roasted carrots with pistachios is one of my favorite ways to cook with sweet + crunchy fall carrots. It’s super simple to whip up, and it would be a fabulous side dish for your Thanksgiving tables next week! Recipe adapted from The Almond Eater.

MAPLE BUTTER ROASTED CARROTS

WITH PISTACHIOS

INGREDIENTS

• 2 lb carrots ends trimmed and cut in half lengthwise

• 2 tablespoon butter melted

• 1/4 cup maple syrup

• 1/4 teaspoon salt plus more to taste

• 14 teaspoon red pepper flakes

• 1/4 cup pistachios chopped

PREPARATION

• Preheat oven to 425°. Line a large baking sheet with foil or parchment paper and set aside (don’t skip the foil / parchment.. this dish gets a little sticky)!

• In a small bowl, whisk together the butter, maple syrup, salt, and red pepper flakes.

• Place the carrots onto the baking sheet and toss them with the maple butter until they're completely coated (there should be a little maple butter left… save it).

• Place the carrots into the oven and bake them for about 30 minutes, flipping half way through to make sure they don’t burn.

• When the carrots are tender and beginning to brown, drizzle them with the remaining maple butter. Taste and add more salt if needed. Serve topped with chopped pistachios and enjoy!

Today’s Stats

• Low temp: 25F

• High temp: 52F

• Sunrise: 6:58am

• Sunset: 5:07pm

• Moon phase: Waxing Gibbous

• Additional notes: Sunny and chilly!

November 12

Farm Notes

After living here for over two years, I finally feel ready to start planting more fruit trees and perennials around the farm. It’s taken two solid years to better understand the nuances of this land – where the cold spots are, where the shade falls in the afternoon, and how water flows during heavy rains (all important factors to consider when planting permanent trees and perennials). In our climate, fall is a great time to plant – as it’s when the ground hasn’t yet frozen and the young plant roots can begin to slowly grow and expand, and it’s when the weather tends to be wetter (and therefore less hand watering or irrigation needed to support the plants).

Our fruit tree expansion officially began yesterday, and we planted a smattering of figs, mulberries, and pear trees around the farm! I’ll be honest that it’s been a very humbling process expanding into the world of fruit trees. While I feel like I instinctually understand vegetables after farming for over a decade… fruit trees are a whole new world and I have so much to learn!

I’m excited to share what I’m learning with everyone here, in hopes that it will inspire you to give fruiting trees and perennial plants a try in your space. And so! Here are some resources that have been super helpful for me as I dip my toe into growing more fruit:

FRUIT TREE RESOURCES

• Resources from The Giving Grove – this is a great organization that works to promote a network of small, sustainable orchards around the country, and their resources page is chock-full of great information around fruit tree planting, maintenance, pests, etc.

• The Southern Gardener’s Guide to Growing Fruit Trees – I just purchased this book for my own education, and it looks like a great resource for growing quality fruit here in the south (where it can be notoriously difficult)!

• Edible Landscaping – This is an amazing farm/nursery based in Afton, VA which has a great selection of fruit trees and other edible perennials. Locals can pick up from the farm, or they will ship across the country. Their website is a trove of information filled with growing tips, so I encourage you to explore all they have to offer!

• Century Farm Orchards – For folks living in the south/mid-atlantic, this is an incredible farm that grows + sells heritage fruit trees (apples, pears, figs, etc) that are bred to do especially well in this climate. David Vernon, the owner of Century Farm, is a treasure trove of knowledge and has a TON of resources on his website here.

Kitchen Notes

Today’s kitchen notes aren’t exactly edible… but I’m excited to share my “recipe” for making homemade healing salves! I feel like the cosmetic/beauty industry has made us believe that skincare products have to be complicated and made in a science lab to work… but I’ve found that simple skincare products made from plants are the most nourishing and beneficial for your skin. I’ve been making salves for several years now, and I love using them to moisturize dry skin and/or for soothing cuts, scrapes, burns, rashes, etc.

I’ve just released a batch of my Heal-All Herbal Salves in our farm shop (Farmbelly Club members get first dibs on this small batch) – but I believe that sharing is caring, so I’m happy to share my salve-making secrets with y’all. The “recipe” is in two parts – first you infuse olive + coconut oil with a blend of dried medicinal plants (I use comfrey, calendula, and plantain). Once you have your infused oil, to make salve you just need to melt in some beeswax (a natural hydrating ingredient that increases moisture in the skin), and then I like to add some essential oils for extra nourishment, and finally just pour into tins to harden. The whole process does require a bit of preparation, but once you have all the components ready, it really does come together quickly and easily. See the full process below, and please let me know if you have any questions!

HERB-INFUSED OIL

INGREDIENTS

• 1/3 cup packed dried comfrey leaves

• 1/3 cup packed dried calendula blossoms

• 1/3 cup packed dried plantain leaves 

• 1 cup organic extra virgin olive oil

• 1 cup organic, unrefined coconut oil

PREPARATION

1. Place dried herbs in a small stainless steel saucepan with olive and coconut oil. NOTE: Feel free to substitute with other dried herbs, so long as you have 1 cup total. 

2. Heat over a gentle heat (between 100°-150° degrees) for 2-3 hours.

3. Strain your oil through a metal mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth or a flour sack cloth.

4. Allow to cool, then squeeze the cloth around the herbs to get out as much remaining oil as possible. Discard herbs and use a funnel to pour the oil in a clean glass jar/container with a lid.

SKIN NOURISHING SALVE RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup (8 ounces) of herb-infused oil (see recipe above)

• 2 tablespoons (1 ounce) grated or finely chopped beeswax

• ~20 drops essential oils (ex : 15 drops lavender + 5 drops tea tree oil)

PREPARATION

1. Combine the infused oil (from previous recipe) with the grated/chopped beeswax in a saucepan. Heat the mixture very gently (on the stove’s lowest heat setting) and stir occasionally to help the mixture melt.

2. Once the wax has fully melted into the oil, remove from heat and quickly stir in essential oils. 

3. While warm, pour the salve into tins. This recipe makes enough for four 2-oz tins (you can easily double the recipe to make bigger batches). Allow to cool and solidify fully without the lid. When solidified – cap, label, and store away from direct heat.

NOTE: For an easily spreadable salve, use the above ratio of 8:1 (8 parts oil, 1 part wax). For a firmer salve (such as lip balm) use a 4:1 ratio of oil to wax.

Today’s Stats

• Low temp: 41F

• High temp: 69F

• Sunrise: 6:50am

• Sunset: 5:12pm

• Moon phase: Waning crescent

• Additional notes: Rain overnight, clear and sunny during the afternoon.

November 5

Farm Notes

This morning I woke up to the beautiful sight of a glistening, frost-covered farm – the first frost of fall here at Farmbelly HQ! The first frost marks the official end of our summer growing season – so goodbye to the few remaining peppers + eggplant – and helloooo to heaps more leafy greens and root veggies, which are made even sweeter by the cold temps.

Yesterday was an exciting day around here… next season’s garlic is officially in the ground! We planted 150 row feet of garlic, focusing on 4 different varieties: Music, Violet Spring, German Hardy White, and Purple Creole. To help control weeds over garlic’s long growing season (it won’t get harvest until next June) we plant them into landscape fabric – though you definitely don’t need to do that if you’re just growing a small amount of garlic in your home garden.

*A note that we have quite a bit of extra garlic seed leftover from our planting yesterday, so if you're local and you'd like some cloves just shoot me a message and I'll happily give you a bag of 20-30 cloves (for free of course)!

It may not look very exciting yet… but there is a LOT of garlic in the ground in these beds!

Did you know there are several different kinds of garlic? Here’s a quick rundown:

• Hardneck garlic produce a stiff stem that grows up through the center of the bulb. Compared to softneck varieties, they have a sharper flavor, with more variation in flavor among the varieties. They are also hardier than softneck, so they are the best option for growing in cold climates. This is the variety that produces garlic scapes that need to be pulled (and then enjoyed!) in early summer before the garlic is harvested.

• Softneck garlic don't produce a stiff central stem. Softneck garlic is the best choice for regions with mild winters, it has a more mild flavor than hardneck garlic, and it's the type to grow if you want to make garlic braids.

• Elephant garlic resembles a giant head of garlic and, indeed, it does belong to the same genus, Allium. However, it isn't a "true" garlic but rather is more closely related to the leek.

Ok, now here are some helpful pointers for planting garlic:

1. Plan to plant garlic in the fall, ideally between Halloween and Thanksgiving (aka right now)!

1. Prepare your soil by loosening it with a fork/broadfork, and work in a good amount of compost into the bed. Garlic is a “heavy feeder” and requires a lot of nutrients, so having good quality soil is important to get a good crop.

2. Purchase garlic seed from your local farm/garden store (not the supermarket)! Just prior to planting, break up the garlic heads into individual cloves, leaving as much of the papery covering on each clove intact as possible.

3. Plant cloves 3"-4" deep and 4”-6” apart, orienting them so the pointy ends face up and root end is pointing down.

4. Water gently to settle the soil, and then cover the bed with a 4" to 6" layer of leaves or straw. You will likely see some green shoots starting to grow before the end of the year, which is great! They will really start to take off in the spring.

Kitchen Notes

While we’ve got garlic on the brain, let’s talk about cooking with this delicious and powerful member of the allium family! Not only does garlic add heaps of flavor to dishes, it also has incredible health benefits – it helps boost your immune system, works as an anti-inflammatory, can help lower blood pressure, and has great anti-fungal + anti-microbial properties. And there are SO many different ways that garlic can get worked into your daily diet… don’t be afraid to think outside the box!

Here are some tips + links for all the ways that you can enjoy garlic:

ROAST IT – One of my favorite ways to cook garlic is roasting a whole head in the oven, until it becomes a sweet, nutty, caramelized delicacy. Here's a great guide on how to roast whole heads of garlic in the oven.

MINCE IT – You can’t beat simply minced raw garlic. My tip for mincing garlic quickly? Use a microplane!

SAUTE IT – So you’ve minced your garlic and you’re ready to throw it in a sizzling hot pan, right? WAIT! Garlic is super delicate and can burn to a crisp in the blink of an eye, so make sure your pot/pan isn’t blasting heat before adding and cooking your garlic. Sometimes if I’m adding garlic at the end of a dish, I’ll even turn the stove completely off before adding the garlic, and I’ll let the residual heat from the pan gently cook it.

FERMENT IT – That’s right, you really can ferment garlic! Here is a super simple recipe/method for making fermented garlic in honey. The end result is deliciously sweet + funky garlic, as well as honey that’s been gently infused with garlic flavor (delicious in vinaigrettes, with fried chicken, over pizza, cornbread, etc).

PICKLE IT – Another great way to preserve garlic is to pickle it! The process couldn’t be easier – just pack whole peeled cloves of garlic into an acidic brine, along with any other aromatics you’d like. Here is a great recipe to get you started.

Today’s Stats

• Low temp: 29F

• High temp: 54F

• Sunrise: 7:43am

• Sunset: 6:18pm

• Moon phase: Waning crescent

• Additional notes: First frost! Clear and sunny