This year, more than any other year in our lives, it’s been hard to remember what day it is – or even what month! What happened to April? We’re not sure! But Oregon’s farmers have a way of bringing us back to moment. The next four weeks are that magical Oregon moment known as berry season!
We have just picked up our first flats of raspberries and tayberries from Riverland Family Farms. The very earliest boysenberries from Groundwork Organics are here, too. The next weeks will bring gold raspberries, marionberries, gooseberries and so many more.
So how will you get the best berries? From us! You can find half- and full-flats of mixed berries – we’ll pick the freshest! – for next-day curbside pickup or for contactless delivery with our partners at Providore.Want to choose your own? We have re-opened on Tuesdays, so you can come in (don’t forget your mask) seven days a week!
Now, with a flat of berries, there is always the possibility that a few start to get a little soft. So just in case you don’t eat them all within minutes, you might consider former Portlander Sara Bir’s buckwheat buckle, local cookbook superstar Martha Holmberg’s blackberry-almond sauce, or maybe substitute for blueberries in this recipe for cornmeal shortcakes from Danielle Centoni.
June can almost feel like too much is happening at once – or maybe this whole year feels that way? – But one GREAT thing that is happening right now is cherries! Baird Family Orchards gave us our first cases of beautiful red cherries last weekend and we have tried not to eat them all. Add them to your pickup order or stop by!
Have you tried the Discovery Box? There’s a little-known secret to our boxes: when we only get a little bit of something amazing from our favorite farms, it goes in the box first! This week we’ll be filling the boxes with sprouting cauliflower from Fox+Bear Urban Farm, our one and only delivery of purple snow peas from Deep Roots and – of course – berries!
The spring vegetables are in full swing! We have fava beans, garlic scapes, sugar snap peas and spring onions of every kind. Scapes, from leeks, garlic and elephant garlic, are our favorite for grilling. Fava beans make the perfect weekend project. Shuck them into Scott Dolich’s little gem salad – and check out his new project serving Portland’s houseless population.
