The Garden Share Giveth

Hello friends, its been too long! I have been journaling some ideas for the blog so I thought it was time to put fingertips to keyboard and draft something about Fall in Florida and our new garden share. This is technically our 2nd Autumn in the Sunshine State but feels like our first since last year at this time we were technically homeless and camping out in Papa Ron’s guest room. It didn’t really feel like Fall since my cute decorations were stuck in a dark box on a semi tractor trailer somewhere between Jacksonville and Scottsdale and the weather we arrived to was sunny, warm and cloudless.

But oh what a difference a year makes! Now that I have endured a Summer here I can truly appreciate Fall in Florida–temperatures in the 60s and 70s without the cloying humidity, big puffy white clouds against a cerulean blue sky, golden light bathing the ocean each morning and evening, the smell of wood burning firepits in the evening and our beautiful oak, cypress, palm, birch, cedar, walnut and pine trees shedding their leaves and nuts. Fall has always been a favorite of mine and I am seeing the charms of the season all around me here on the Southern edge of lowcountry. And no snow…..weird.

But the very best thing so far this season has been our new garden share. There is a local organization in Palm Valley called Peace of Heart Community (POH). Their vision was to create an environment where adults with autism could live a meaningful life by fostering an atmosphere of love, happiness, and belonging where all life is valued, voices are heard and talents developed to make a difference in the world. Their mission is to create possibilities for persons of all abilities through the positive benefits of farming, garden, and community interaction.

POH has a beautiful garden of raised beds where they grow the most delicious organic food (in organic soil of course) that they then sell to the public during their Saturday morning farmer’s market. POH also offers an annual sponsorship opportunity to become a Raised Bed member who then receive a share of the harvest each week. I have been a CSA member at several different farms in the different states where I have lived but this one is hands down in the dirt my favorite.

First of all, their Mission. How can you not support that? Everyone wants to live a meaningful life, and everyone wants to eat delicious food so these folks had me at “hello. ” But the share itself–wow–arugula, mustard greens, purple potatoes, tomatoes, sugar snap peas, radishes, peppers, eggplant, squash, zucchini, cucumbers, okra, rosemary, parsley, ginger root, basil, oregano–and more. Every Saturday morning I pick up my farm share where everyone is lovely, happy to see me and very knowledgeable about how to prepare some of the ingredients that were new to my cooking.

I then hit the grocery store where I buy almost nothing in the produce section because POH has already stocked my pantry with real food. Like this…

Each week I try to use as many ingredients as possible in our Sunday dinner.  For the first Sunday of October I wanted to honor Fall and the garden share so I made stuffed bone-in pork chops.  For the stuffing I sautéed fresh apples, carrots, celery and onion together in some butter and then added some chopped toasted pecans, a few sprigs of fresh rosemary, some cubed day old cornbread and a pinch of nutmeg, allspice, salt and pepper.  I like to use very thin pork chops, salt and pepper both sides and build them “oreo style” with the dressing.  I then melted some butter and mixed it up with some apricot jam and liberally glazed my creation before baking it in a 350 degree oven for 40 minutes.

Our vegetable that night was mustard greens simmered in chicken stock, a little bacon fat and a few neck bones for flavor–you can buy them in the meat section of any grocery pretty cheap and they are great for adding flavor.

If you haven’t taken the leap yet to purchase a farm or garden share I highly encourage you to do so. Eating local is healthier, its good for the environment, its a better value for your money, it tastes amazing, and in this instance its helping some very special people to live a more meaningful life and isn’t that what we all hope for?

If you live in the Ponte Vedra/Palm Valley area and you’re interested in learning more about Peace of Heart Community and their Farm and Enrichment Programs for adults with autism please visit pohc.org and find out how you can become a volunteer or raised bed member. Or visit them on Saturday mornings at their farm at Roscoe and Canal in Palm Valley, Florida. See you there!