Timeframe 1 to 4 weeks What you'll need: Equipment Ceramic crock or food-grade plastic bucket Plate that fits inside the crock or bucket 1-gallon/4-liter jug filled with water, or other weight Cloth cover Ingredients 3 to 4 pounds/1.5 to 2 kilograms unwaxed cucumbers (small to medium size) 3/8 cup (6 tablespoons)/90 milliliters sea salt 3 to 4 heads fresh flowering dill, or 3 to 4 tablespoons/45 to 60 milliliters of any form of dill (fresh or dried leaf or seeds) 2 to 3 head

Though we seem to have more tomatoes than we know what to do with, we couldn't help taking home this palate of heirlooms from Birdsong Orchard's recent farm swap. We drove down to the new homestead, where we met our host, Nadine, and a few other local farmers. Nadine showed us around her tomato garden, which sits at the edge of a few acres of soon-to-be farmed land, and we were awestruck by the many varieties she was growing. We traded some dried nettles, Poblano peppers, wil

The garden and orchard at Bobcat Ridge are chock full of delicious fruits, veggies, herbs, legumes, and - you guessed it - weeds. Try as you might, these suckers just keep coming back, no matter how frequently you pluck, pick, and dig them out. Some weeds are more invasive than others and have to be literally suffocated before being added to the compost pile. Speaking of compost, there's no better way to relieve stress/get an arm workout/kickstart the composting process than

Last week, we harvested what seemed like zillions of tomatoes and Nancy showed us how to preserve them in sealed mason jars. By some force of magic (or, you know, photosynthesis), there were even more bright red tomatoes ready to harvest this week! With plenty of jars of pureed tomatoes already in storage, we decided to dehydrate the freshly picked San Marzanos from the 'tomato jungle.' Since dehydrating takes up a lot of energy, we used the greenhouse to kickstart the proces

At Bobcat Ridge, we usually start the morning with whole grains and protein. Granola with yogurt or rice milk is a fan favorite, and makes for a quick and easy meal before the day's work. Ken and Nancy have perfected their recipe, with clumpy bits of granola and a slightly sweet flavor. We made ours in the sun oven, so it tasted even better with the knowledge that we were saving energy. We also harvested giant sunflowers growing in garden. After letting the flowers dry out fo

Ken swears by his flour mill and bread maker. Our diet here is mostly veggies, legumes, and whole grains, and while the produce comes straight from the garden, making bread from scratch takes a little more work. Luckily, Ken has mastered the process, and was happy to teach us his secret recipe. We've made a few loaves of whole wheat bread with the wheatberries in the pantry. This time around, we decided to experiment with some local wheat, which was given to Ken by a friend i

September is a dream come true for tomato lovers in California. Here at Bobcat Ridge, the garden is overflowing with all different varieties. It seems like every day, more and more are ripe and ready to eat. We especially like snacking on the orange heirlooms, which are super sweet and juicy. But alas, an all tomato diet does not a healthy farmer make. Luckily, Nancy taught us about canning, so we were able to preserve the end of summer's bounty. The first step is harvesting.