I feel very lucky that my work recently has lead me to visit with small, sustainable farms that produce delicious food. This past week, I was able walk the fields with Fred at
Baia Nicchia and Shawn at
Terra Bella Family Farm. Baia Nicchia is at the
Sunol Ag Park and sells heirloom tomatoes, peppers and other veggies like baby radishes to high end restaurants such as Oliveto. Terra Bella Family Farm in Pleasanton sells through farmers' markets and a successful CSA in the East Bay.
After picking up produce at these farms, I was excited to prepare dinner that night using some of these freshly harvested ingredients including the "micro-green" radishes, yellow squash, and heirloom tomatoes (to go along with ravioli from Santa Cruz Pasta Factory).
I can't say definitively that the food really tasted better because it was harvested that morning, but I can say that it tasted pretty darn good. And perhaps more importantly, I felt more connected to the food after spending some time with Fred and Shawn, learning about and seeing the food they grow.
Sweet white corn and heirloom tomato risotto with white corn from G&S Farm in Brentwood (Mountain View and Palo Alto farmers' markets), tomatoes from Baia Nicchia in Sunol (Menlo Park farmers' market), shallots from Borba Farms in Aromas (MV farmers' market) and olive oil from Soul Food Farm in Vacaville
