Fresh from Wellspring Charitable Gardens - January 8, 2026

Fresh Today… Red Cabbage, Kabocha Squash, Carrots, Celery, Kale, Lettuce, Peas, Potatoes, Green Onions, Cilantro, Parsley & Pomegranates

Using your Produce… by Julie Moreno

This week we have red cabbage coming, and I still think about this recipe that was brought to harvest now many years ago. It’s a classic combination of sweet, sour, and spice that comes together in a deep purple silky side dish. It reheats well and makes a great side to sausages or chicken.

German Red Cabbage

Rotkohl von Sissy Wells

1 small onion

¾ cup butter, divided

1 head red cabbage, chopped,

    discard core

½ cup water

3 bay leaves

3 whole allspice berries

2 whole cloves

1 teaspoon salt

¼ cup bacon bits, cooked and

     finely chopped

1 red delicious apple peeled, cored

     and finely chopped or grated

¼ cup vinegar

1/3 cup sugar

¼ cup flour

* Melt ½ cup butter in a large pot, add onion and cook until just soft and translucent.  Add water and cabbage.  Mix well and heat slightly to boiling.  Reduce heat and add bay leaves, allspice, cloves, salt, apple and bacon.  Cover and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add vinegar and sugar.  Continue simmering for an additional 10 minutes.  Separately, in a small saucepan, melt the remaining ¼ cup butter and the flour, stir well and cook for 5 minutes on low heat.  The cabbage should have a minimal amount of liquid in the bottom of the pan, remove some and discard if it is too watery.  Blend the butter-flour mixture into the cabbage.  Stir and let simmer for an additional 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  If desired, add additional vinegar, sugar and/or salt to taste. 

Happy New Year!

We at Wellspring pray you enjoy the happiest New Year in 2026 - May your joys be many, your loves grow deeper, and your blessings abound beyond measure! Though you look forward, do take time to look back. Recall your joys, recount your blessings, and remember the faithfulness of the LORD:

“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord,

plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and

a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to

me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me when

you seek me with all your heart.” Jeremiah 29:11-13

Kabocha Squash…

Kabocha is a Japanese variety of winter squash. It is similar to butternut and pumpkin, with creamy flesh and a nutty flavor. You can eat the skin, after cooking it becomes tender and is full of fiber and nutrients. This roasted squash recipe gives a nod to the Kabocha’s heritage.

Roasted Winter Squash Wedges

1 winter squash, cut into thick      

    wedges, seeds removed              

2 tablespoons olive oil                     

½ teaspoon salt                                        

¼ teaspoon fresh ground                

     black pepper

 1 tablespoon coarsely

chopped cilantro

2 teaspoons toasted

sesame seeds

1 teaspoon rice vinegar

* Preheat your oven to 400°F.  Toss the winter squash slices with the oil, salt and pepper.  Spread out on a parchment lined baking sheet and cook in the oven for about 40 minutes, turning the squash two times. Transfer the cooked squash to a serving platter or bowl and sprinkle with sliced green onions, cilantro, toasted sesame seeds, and rice vinegar.

Metaphors of Soil and Soul…

Evergreen in the New Year

Ronda May Melendez & Keith F Martin

Years past I rang in a New Year in a tiny Arkansas town. New Year’s Day skies were grey and humid. An unseasonable seventy degrees had settled into December and provided my brother and me the opportunity to begin the year fishing at a lake nearby.

As we set up our rods, I surveyed the surrounding panorama. Unlike California, Arkansas is mostly grey, brown, and bare in winter, except the evergreens. The lake is lined by evergreens and leafless deciduous trees. I noted the images of the trees reflecting off the surface of the lake and then heard the rhythmic hum of wings as ducks flew overhead. A white crane settled itself securely on a partly submerged tree trunk in the middle of the still lake. It was peaceful. 

Vibrant evergreens added the only beauty to what could be fairly described as an otherwise lifeless grey landscape, but evergreens add more than shades of beauty. They clean carbon dioxide from the air. This is especially important during the bleak winters here, as there is little other plant life that performs that essential service. Evergreens also provide safety, warmth, and peace of mind. When properly planted alongside homes, they shield the dwellings from destructive sheer winds, insulate against cold weather, and safeguard the refuge and inhabitants with privacy. 

My musings on the lake carried me beyond the immediate landscape to the wider human panorama. Is it not true of us, as well, that like evergreens, we can offer beauty, security, safety, and cleansing to those that stand leafless in ever dark, cold, and bleak surroundings? We have the Light, Life, and Spirit of Christ to offer our world. This New Year may you be the evergreen who brings the Good News that The Prince of Peace first brought to our bare world years ago.

“How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!’”   Isaiah 57: