10,000 Chrysanthemums

In the autumn, when the garden is fading into lovely beige tones and the front porch needs a new personality, nothing gets scooped up faster in a garden center, in a shorter period of time, than the big, poufy, colorful and hardy chrysanthemum. It speaks to us of autumn––fall winds, cornstalks, pumpkins, gourds and Halloween. The first flower we put out on the front stoop in September is a fresh, plump and rounded mum plant. They go into bushel baskets, iron planters, urns and wooden vegetable crates. The falling leaves scatter around, and the scene is set for raking leaves, lighting fires in chimineas, and kids coming home from school in the afternoon.

Our south lot at Sickles is the loading zone of thousands of mums in neat, color-organized rows. Trucks come early in the morning and throw their ramps down, while we furiously unload them, stacking each one tightly against the other on shelves. Looking at them from afar, they’re like a caravan of small button plants. The mums usually arrive with tight buds which slowly unfold as the hours of daylight get shorter. Chrysanthemums are “photoperiodic,” meaning that they bloom in response to the shorter days and longer nights. That’s the beauty of this flower—they need less light, and are perfect for autumn.

Mums, you may be surprised to learn, are part of the huge Aster family and their flowers are not one, but many small flowers crammed onto one stalk to make a single large flower. First cultivated in China, they are a sacred and revered flower. The name comes from the Greek––Crys for golden and anthemom for flower. In Asia, this fat, bushy plant is used for making tea by boiling the white and yellow flowers. It’s the official flower of Beijing and is said to have been introduced to western civilization by the famous explorer Marco Polo.

Chrysanthemum leaves, with their strong, heady odor, are used in Asian cuisine and as an aid for treating influenza. The flower is steeped in folklore as well as practicality. Pyrethrins—natural chemicals that affect the nervous system of insects—are made from crushed chrysanthemum flowers and are used in thousands of household and garden insecticides throughout the world. Marigolds in our summer vegetable gardens are closely related to the chrysanthemum and are often planted beside veggies to deter insects.

Coming in vibrant colors, the mum is the number one plant from September to October, and mum farmers are furiously digging them out of the local New Jersey fields. Once dug, they are quickly trucked to us still dripping with morning dew.

From start to finish, the field-grown hardy chrysanthemum goes through quite a routine before it gets to your porch and sits beside your cornstalks, hay and pumpkins. No easy feat, the grower must pay close attention to each and every plant as it grows, pinching them back at least three times before the end of July to encourage the plants to take on that plump, fat look we all appreciate.

In your garden, the hardy mums can be planted in any spot with direct sun and good drainage. This keeps them from sitting in wet soil and rotting. A bit of protection during the winter is recommended. Keeping the dead branches on the plant until spring helps insulate the roots. New growth will poke through the soil in spring. As the mum grows in your garden from spring to fall, it’s important to pinch them back often, up until July. In other words, cutting new growth helps the plant maintain its bushy, multi-flowered shape.

Another related plant of the season is the chunky, floral chrysanthemum. Although not hardy in our gardens, they give us huge vibrant flowers indoors and grace our Thanksgiving and harvest tables with long lasting, crisp blossoms. Of this variety, the very large Football Mum and the Spider Mum are available in the greenhouse, and both are deliciously wild with color and personality.

It’s dizzying how many mums come into our lives here at Sickles Market in a month’s time. What they endure to make it to your front porch each September is miraculous in itself. Call it a sea of mums, a plethora of mums or just 10,000-plus mums. Our farm smells delicious and inviting with the fragrance of flowers, apple cider, hay and warm spirits.

Patricia Dumas

California Dreamin’

The week after Labor Day found me traveling along Lucas Valley Road, a scenic route that

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winds among fields and valleys, redwood and pine forests, carving a serpentine trail through the golden hills of Marin County, California. I was visiting my parents, and we decided to go cheese tasting at Nicasio Valley Cheese Company, which hopefully lay at the end of this long, meandering road. (If you were wondering, George Lucas’ Skywalker Ranch is on Lucas Valley Road, which we did pass by, but no, the road was not named after him!) If you have read some of my recent blogs, you’ll know that my daughter’s boyfriend’s family owns and operates this newly opened cheese enterprise in the quaint little town of Nicasio. And I do mean little! The town square is comprised of a ball field, a church and a long building that houses a post office, general store and restaurant. We stopped to eat lunch at the solitary restaurant and enjoyed a delicious sandwich while surrounded by more animal heads and antlers than I have ever seen in one place! Apparently hunting is a popular recreational activity in these parts.

We found the cheese company a few doors down in an unassuming blue building with a signpost out front indicating that we were in the right spot. We stepped into the tiny retail shop and were greeted by Mary Lafranchi, whose husband Will had the dream of starting a

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cheese business one day. Sadly, he did not live to see his dream fulfilled, but their children were inspired to carry the project to fruition. Three brothers and three sisters are working together to produce six varieties of cheese using only milk from their own certified organic dairy. We even were able to watch Scott the cheesemaker and his crew as they worked behind a glass partition, cutting the curd and pouring it into the cheese molds while whey splashed out everywhere. It was really fun to see the product in the making. We took several cheeses away with us that day, although Nicasio Square is by far my favorite. Fortunately, it is also the only cheese currently being shipped to the East Coast, and to only one retailer as of this writing (Sickles Market of course!) The washed rind is a lovely rosy orange and the cheese is aromatic and flavorful without being overwhelming.
 

After a delicious and informative afternoon of cheese tasting, we headed out of town, and came to the crossroad, Petaluma-Point Reyes Road. Which way to go? If we headed west toward the ocean, we would end up at Point Reyes Station, home of Point Reyes Original Blue Cheese. This full-flavored raw milk blue is one of my favorites, spread on walnut bread as an appetizer or served with fresh or dried figs. Or, perhaps we could visit Cowgirl Creamery, and delve into a heavenly Mt. Tam triple crème or knock our socks off with some washed rind Red Hawk. Well, we ended up turning east toward the town of Petaluma, to visit my sister and her husband, but, not to worry, the cheese adventures didn’t end there.

After a twenty-minute ride through rolling hills dotted with cows and scrub oak (but no cell phone service) we suddenly found ourselves driving past stately Victorian homes in the

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historic district of Petaluma. This charming town made famous by the movie American Graffiti is now in the spotlight these days for more epicurean reasons: wine and cheese! There are so many cheese companies popping up in Petaluma and Marin County next door that the area has been referred to as “Little Vermont.” Petaluma is even home to the annual California Artisan Cheese Festival with almost 5,000 attendees. With the cooling breezes and fog that blow in from the nearby coast, Petaluma has the perfect microclimate for growing certain grape varietals such as Syrah and Pinot Noir. It has a wine appellation of its own now, and is designated as the wine region of Petaluma Gap. There are already over twenty-five wineries in the Gap!

We stopped in at my favorite grocery in town, the Petaluma Market, and paid a visit to Marie,

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the very pleasant and helpful cheesemonger. We picked up some mozzarella di bufala and checked out the selection of local cheeses. One Petaluma company, Achadinha Farms, hand rolls an old world-style aged goat cheese called Capricious. Another, Bellwether Farms, makes a zippy raw sheep’s milk cheese with peppercorns. And the list goes on and on: Marin French, Spring Hill, and nearby Laura Chenel are just a few of the other local cheese companies.
 

We headed up the hill to my sister’s lovely home overlooking the Sonoma hills. As we delved into our cheeses and enjoyed some local wines I was thinking how lucky my sister was to be living in both wine and cheese country! I took full advantage of the opportunity and had plenty of both while visiting “Little Vermont.” I’m home again and those golden hills are a distant memory, but I’m still California dreamin.’


Enjoy!
Cheri The Cheesemonger

Start Cooking Purple

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When I used to live and work in New York City, I’d travel to my mom’s house every weekend

during the summer to escape the urban oven and chill on the Jersey shore. Early Monday morning, minutes before I’d have to leave the house for the ferry back to the city, I’d pick a few springs of

blooming lavender from my mother’s backyard that has a stunning view of Sandy Hook Bay and the skyline I’d soon be rejoining. It was a routine that helped me prolong my time in nature and allowed me to bring a bit of summer back to my office. Over the course of the season, my bouquet of lavender in a slender vase by my computer grew, as did my yearning for those weekends away.

My relationship with lavender isn’t limited to the office and garden; this flowering plant, a member of the mint family, has also found its way into my kitchen. For most people, lavender in the kitchen means a pleasing and calming scent for hand soap, air refreshener, or dish-washing liquid, but for me it’s an intriguing ingredient.

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Elegant pots de crème, delicately scented with lavender, was my first foray into using this flower for culinary purposes. Always game for a cocktail, especially on a Friday night in my mother’s tranquil backyard after a hectic workweek, I next attempted lavender simple syrup. It’s best to combine this herbaceous sweetener with neutrally flavored spirits, like vodka. It can clash with the botanicals in gin. If you prefer a refreshing drink without alcohol, the simple syrup can serve as a complex sweetening agent for lemonade. I got this idea from Murray’s Cheese Shop in New York City, which sells this icy drink on hot, sticky days in the summer. Even though the dried flowers are the most used part of the plant, the piney-looking and -tasting leaves also have a role to play, as in a vegetable-heavy pasta dish created by Mark Bittman of the New York Times. Next on my cooking list are shortbread cookies flavored with lavender that I saw at a cheese shop during my travels in New Zealand. I’ve got to find a recipe.

To make the dishes listed above, I harvest my own dried flowers (and leaves) and rub off the buds into a bowl. You can do the same, as long as your plants haven’t been treated with chemicals. If, however, lavender plants don’t currently grace your garden, they’re on sale right now at Sickles. Simpler yet is indulging in prepared products made with lavender. In Sickles’ cheese department is Purple Haze, a small disk of tangy, fresh chevre rolled in lavender and fennel pollen. Also available is lavender honey from Spain, which is delicious drizzled on plain goat cheese, fresh ricotta, or blue cheese. To enjoy lavender’s more savory side, head to the spice section in Sickles’ gourmet department. There you can find herbes de Provence and sea salt mixed with dried lavender from the Lavender Farm in California.

Both season chicken, fish, lamb, and vegetables (especially slices of ripe tomatoes) beautifully.

Whatever you do, use lavender sparingly as it can be unpleasantly overwhelming if used with a heavy hand. You’ll feel like you are washing your mouth out with grandmother’s lavender-scented soap. With a bit of judicious restraint, you can treat your mouth to lavenders’ beguiling floral delicacy.

Enjoy!

Diana the Cheesemonger

Glorious Morning

“All happiness depends on a leisurely breakfast.”

John Gunther

Although my happiness doesn’t necessarily depend upon it, breakfast is certainly an uplifting affair in my view.  There is something enormously satisfying about breaking the fast of the evening before with a steaming cup of coffee and an array of breakfast sweets and savories.  The upcoming day with its unseen obstacles, unpredictable moments, twists and turns, is much easier to navigate when satiated with tasty morning fare.

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Breakfast comes in many shapes and sizes.  Back in my college days, when I was a student at the University of Bordeaux, I found my favorite breakfast in the unlikeliest of places, the school vending machine. A local baker used to stock the machine every morning with the most incredible pastries.  For two francs I could pull a couple of fresh flaky pains au chocolat out of a little glass door and even get a pretty drinkable double espresso besides. On the opposite end of the size spectrum, my mind wanders back to the lavishly appointed breakfast room at the Cahernane House Hotel in Kilarney, Ireland.  My husband, Rafael and I spent several days at this charming 19^th century country house, where we were kept daily in breakfast heaven with creamy, rich Irish oatmeal, or eggs and thick sliced bacon served with sautéed mushrooms and tomatoes.  There was always freshly baked Irish brown bread with sweet butter in abundance of course!

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A little closer to home, my favorite breakfast spot is in Red Bank, at the Oyster Point Hotel.  Leisurely is definitely the key word at The Pearl Restaurant, so don’t be in a hurry when you visit, but the view is spectacular and the table setting is lovely.  I always feel like I’m on vacation as I sit watching the boats gliding along the Navesink. The White Chocolate Brioche French Toast with Berry Compote and Whipped Cream is particularly decadent, and the Irish Oatmeal is the best I’ve had outside of Ireland.  When I’m feeling a little more energetic, I enjoy walking along the boardwalk at Pier Village and then popping in at the Turning Point Café for a Tropical Crunch Waffle.  Another great water view, especially if you get an outside table.

The options are endless for breakfast at home.  Although I love pancakes and French toast, my preference is the Continental style breakfast.  A basket of sliced breads, such as walnut, baguette and multigrain, accompanied by a selection of cheeses, fresh figs and apricots or other fruits, and thinly sliced Serrano ham or speck makes a perfect start to the morning.  For the cheese plate, try a variety of tastes and textures:  a fluffy goat cheese, a creamy washed rind, and perhaps an alpine style cheese or aged Gouda.

Rafael likes his breakfast a little spicier and often heads down to the local Mexican mercados near the Red Bank train station on Saturday mornings to purchase fresh chicken tamales.  You have to get there fairly early on Saturdays because they do tend to sell out.  There are usually three types of tamales available:  mole, chile verde (green sauce), and Colorado (red sauce).  Tamales are a delicious accompaniment to scrambled eggs and fresh fruit.  Add some chorizo to the eggs and you’ll really wake up your taste buds!

Sometimes, I find myself eating on the run, but I still make my breakfast an enjoyable one by choosing something delicious and satisfying. For me, it’s the Morning Glory muffin at Sickles bakery.  It is chock full of goodies like golden raisins, shredded carrots and coconut.  This plump, moist muffin always brings a smile to my day.  So whether brief or leisurely, if you have been missing out on the joys of breakfast, I hope you’ll take some time out of your busy schedule to appreciate its special pleasures.

Enjoy!

Cheri The Cheesemonger

A hint of Autumn

Garden Center Newsletter

By Patricia Dumas

August 2010

The heat is passing, and there’s rain and a wispy breeze coming in at night.  The garden has had a good drenching, and as I leave Sickles at 6pm on Thursday, the sky is a little darker, and the deer are showing their faces earlier as they munch on leaves by the raspberry field.

The last Robin’s nest was built in a Gardenia tree in the annual flower yard and 3 chicks hopped out one sunny morning to face the big world.  Lucky Robins-- they have all of Sickles Garden's to occupy and explore.  Sparrows who make their homes in the back loading dock have found their place for the winter amidst the cubbyholes in the roof awnings. Their messy, haphazard nests made of packing material hang like rags in the breeze.  When everyone is gone for the day, they scoop up the scattered bits of corn and other castaways of a hard days work at the market.

The Market has a certain peace.  A calm before the bustling and frenzied holidays ahead.  The quiet drone of bees can be heard in the flowers while the sun slowly turns away inch by inch, day by day.  The goldfinches have just finished nesting.  They wait until the end of the summer when the seeds of flowers and shrubs are ripe so they can feed their young. They’ll now join us in the perennial yard on their favorite 20- perch Niger seed feeder where they pig out in privilege all day long. 

The Monarch butterflies are scouting butterfly weed and milkweed to lay their eggs on.  There are 100’s of butterflies in the yard this year, marking a very successful season. Some of the rarer ones we’ve seen here are the Pipevine Swallowtail, Giant Tiger Swallowtail, Spicebush Swallowtail, and Mourning Cloak. 

It’s a good time to take a stroll through the flower and tree yards.  The fall is the “new” spring, and there’s much to do if your green thumb is still itching.  Mums and Asters are starting to come into bloom, as well as the gorgeous burgundy millet plants, which grow a long stalk full of seed that attracts birds by the dozens. Rudebeckia is stunning with its fuzzy leaves and huge yellow flowers.   The winter-hardy pansies will be making their debut soon, and are incredibly hardy and beautiful—staying alert even with a dusting of snow and ice on them at Christmas. 

Many folks ask if it’s too late to plant— Think of it this way, whenever you can get your spade into the soil and lift the dirt up, you can plant. Even when a plant is dormant, you can transplant as well.  All will hold tight until the spring.  Planting when the cool weather approaches helps keep the roots of your plants, trees, and shrubs cool.  They settle in better, and are established quickly without the stress of heat and lack of water like we’ve had this historic water-free summer.

It’s also time to plant romaine and buttercrunch lettuce for a second season. They grow beautifully in the cool autumn garden along with peas and spinach. The cooler it is without freezing, the more lettuce, greens, and peas you can pick.  In fact, the autumn season for greens here in our area is surprisingly successful -- the cool nights warm days last longer, giving green vegetables a good long season without the heat and humidity.

When I think of fall, I think of berries on bushes, hungry birds, vines that entwine with hanging pods, and loud red leaves that go out with a bang.  The Winterberry bush is laden with hot red berries that last through to the New Year and are brilliant against the snow while feeding the birds that live in our yards.  The “Burning Bush” (Euonymous) lights up the days before Halloween with its fiery red leaves.  Cranberry Viburnum gives clusters of juicy kool-aid colored berries that the birds go wild for, while the fruits of the Beauty Berry (Callicarpa) clog branches with the most unearthly color of purple ever seen in the landscape.

The garden doesn’t have to be a huge show of order all the time. It’s nice to have a little disorder as things die off and wind their way towards their long winters sleep.  Little porcelain berries twirl their way around fences with little turquoise and pink marble-like fruit, while the long stalks of Limelight Tree hydrangeas start to dry and turn pink-- perfect for arrangements indoors. Add to that a little round wreath made from some dried wisteria or grape vines, and you’ve got a ready-made autumn expression of your very own garden.

It’s the little things that make the season.  It’s the last rose of summer breaking through on the first day of school or the few tomatoes still clinging on dried vines.   The garden’s not over yet— it’s not a big deal, but rather a sweet gentle song before it all goes to sleep.