Blue House Farm

Impress with Breakfast! Sourdough French Toast with Summer Berry Compote

Posted on by Mission Community Market in Arizmendi Bakery, Blog, Blue House Farm, Emmy’s, Recipes, Tomatero Farm, Yerena Farms | Leave a comment


Photo Courtesy of Matthew S. Cain

Try out this sweet summer recipe next time you’re looking to impress with breakfast! Start by slicing a loaf of sourdough from Arizmendi Bakery into 1″ to 1.5″ slices and placing them either on a sheet tray or a baking dish (something with sides). Next, beat together 3 eggs, about a 1/2 cup milk, a tablespoon or two of sugar (depending on how sweet you like your toast), a teaspoon of vanilla extract, a pinch of salt, and a dash of cinnamon (or cardamom, or clove, or nutmeg, or whatever you especially enjoy/have on hand) and pour it over the sliced bread and let sit for a few minutes. While waiting for the bread to soak up the custard, make your compote.

For the compote, add a tablespoon of butter to a pan preheated over medium heat and then add most of your berries (let’s say 2/3 of your carton of raspberries, blackberries, tayberries, blueberries, strawberries, any berry you can find from Yerena Farms, Tomatero Farm, or Blue House Farms) and cook for about a minute before adding either a dash of maple syrup or sugar (if you wanted to, you could also add some lemon zest, orange zest, or baking spice). Then turn down the heat to low and let cook while you take care of the toast. Of course, if you wanted to skip this step all together you can pick a delicious jar of Emmy’s berry jam and proceed to the final step.

To finish up, Add some more butter to another pan preheated over medium high heat. Put in as many slices of the soaked bread as will fit (you might have to do this in batches depending on how much toast you’re planning on serving) and cook till brown. Then flip and do the same for the other side (you can throw these finished pieces into your oven set at 250º until they’re all done). When all the pieces are almost done, add the last 1/3 of your berries to the compote and toss to coat. Plate a couple pieces of toast with some of the compote on top. You can finish with powdered sugar, maple syrup, freshly whipped cream, whipped creme fraiche, yogurt, or nothing at all. Et Voila! Mimosa Time!

Simple Recipe! Delicious Artichoke

Posted on by Jeremy in Blog, Blue House Farm, California Olive Oil, Recipes | Leave a comment

How about those yummy baby artichokes? Blue House Farm is full of them for the season! Not sure how to get the most out of them? Start by turning a sharp knife against the outer leaves of the artichoke and cut away the tough outer leaves exposing the more tender leaves. Next, go ahead and cut about an inch off the top (or half of the artichoke’s length from the base), peel the stem, and cut the whole artichoke in half. With a spoon scrape out the choke, the hairy fibers, while leaving the leaf structure in tact. Blanch in a pot of boiling salted water until easily pierced with a fork. Drain, and serve as, with a little salt, or salad dressing, or try one of our favorite ways of eating artichokes. Sauté the artichokes in some late harvest California Olive Oil with some chopped garlic and sliced chiles (or chile flakes) until nicely browned. Add a squeeze of lemon and some salt and you’ve got a delicious side dish or first course!

Artichokes are also a great source of folate! For women, taking folic acid everyday 3-12 months before pregnancy can lower the risk spina bifida, anencephaly and other neural birth defects by 70%. It may also lower the chance of pre-term labor and low infant birth weights. Remember to check your vitamins for 400mcg of folic acid B9! To see if you’re getting 400 mcg from your food, there’s a cool App available for iPhone from vitatrack that will help calculate your intake. You can start by eating artichokes from MCM! More info at Go Folic .

Street Singing

Posted on by Jeremy in Blog, Blue House Farm | Leave a comment
Rain or Shine, this Street will Sing
Los Chiles Verdes - Mission Cultural Center
After you pick up your Blue House brussels, stop for some other little sprouts: Chiles Verdes, the youth band from the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts. Directed by Jose Leon.
THURSDAY, DECEMBER 9
4:00pm – Los Chiles Verdes, MCCLA Youth Band
5:15pm – Isaac Zones, monthly acoustic set and playalong

November 4th at the MCM

Posted on by Jeremy in Blog, Blue House Farm | Leave a comment

Can 110 million people be wrong?
Thriller at the Mission Community Market
Remember Thriller? Or, pretending like you were alive then? Either way…

5pm: Thriller by the Edison Charter Academy is back! Be on time at 5pm! Album not for sale, but maybe you’re one of the 110 million. Want your youth program to perform or participate in the market? Get in touch!

4 – 6:30pm: Catch squeeze box goddess Renee de la Prade, with “a low-slung button box and a funky fusion of old Celtic melodies, zydeco and punk rock power.” Check out her 11/11 show at the blue macaw or grab an Accordion Babes calendar while you’re at it!

6:30pm: Acoustic set with the Mission’s own Jivano’s Cutlery Service.

Sprout and Pepper
Blue House Brussels into Good Foods BBQ
Get down to the Blue House Farm booth and chow on delicious peppers and brussel sprouts – witnessed here going straight into Dontaye’s dishes at Good Foods Catering, just a few steps away at the MCM.

Spaghetti in a Cream Sauce with Chilies and Spinach

Posted on by Mission Community Market in Blog, Blue House Farm, Happy Boy Farms, Recipes | Leave a comment


This easy dish really is testament to the fact that if you keep your refrigerator stocked with a few high quality, fresh ingredients, throwing a delicious dinner together can be a snap.

Pick up some fresh chilies (poblanos, jalapeño, chilaca–whatever you like) at the MCM’s Blue House Farm booth. Grab a little fresh spinach and a bulb of garlic from Happy Boy Farms and some chicken breasts or fresh sausage links from the Mission Market’s Fish and Poultry counter right next door. Just add pasta and you’ll have a delicious budget gourmet meal that can easily feed a group.

Ingredients

16 oz. dried spaghetti
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 sliced grilling sausages or 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1-2 seeded, diced fresh chilies (keep the seeds intact for spicier pasta)
salt and pepper to taste
3 cups fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup half-and-half

Directions

Boil the spaghetti in salted boiling water according to package directions until al dente.

While the pasta cooks, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the sliced sausages or chicken breasts and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic and chopped chilies, season with salt and pepper to taste and stir well to integrate. Cook mixture 1-2 minutes, making sure to watch the garlic carefully to make sure it doesn’t burn.

Once the pasta has finished cooking, drain it and add it to the pan. Mix well using tongs and toss it around to coat the pasta with the now-seasoned oil. Add the baby spinach and toss with the pasta, encouraging the spinach to wilt slightly.

Reduce heat to medium-low, sprinkle Parmesan over pasta and toss well. Add the half-and-half and continue tossing the pasta as the half-and-half and Parmesan thicken into a creamy sauce. Once sauce is rich and thick, taste for salt and season once more if necessary.

Serve hot.

Serves 4-6.