Fresh from Wellspring Charitable Gardens - March 20, 2025

Fresh Today… Cabbage, Fennel, Kale, Snow Peas, Carrots, Sprouting Broccoli, Head Lettuce, Spinach, Celery, Radishes, Rosemary, Parsley, Dill, Cilantro, & Lemons

Using your Produce… by Julie Moreno

It’s raining again and we have dill in our baskets. Dill has a fresh, slightly tangy, slightly sweet flavor with hints of citrus and anise. It’s perfect for brightening up dishes. Dill is traditionally used in Mediterranean, Eastern European and Scandinavian cuisines. It goes especially well with fish, cucumbers, eggs and potatoes and makes a great sauce with yogurt or sour cream. I used it this week in this Lemon-Dill soup. If you want to make this vegetarian, use vegetable stock or water and substitute cooked beans or potatoes for the chicken.

Lemony-Dill Chicken Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil

½ onion diced

2 stalks celery, diced small

1 carrot, diced small

Salt and pepper

1 bay leaves

½ cup raw orzo pasta

2-3 cups chopped cabbage leaves

4 cups water or vegetable / chicken stock

1 cup chopped cooked chicken

1 lemon, zest and juice

1/3 cup chopped dill

* In a large soup pot heat the oil over medium heat, add the oil, onion, celery and carrot, season with salt and pepper.  Cook and stir occasionally until the vegetables are soft, about 3-5 minutes.  Add the bay leaf, orzo, cabbage leaves and water/stock. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 8-10 minutes until the orzo is cooked. Add the chicken, lemon zest, juice and dill. Bring the soup to a boil and serve right away.

Dear WCG Family,

Once again, the young veggies are worried about the weather and furious with us, as if we controlled the climate and forecasts. Rain has puddled in their fields, and disturbing rumors that they are destined for soup are floating about. Now stalk deep in cold water, the celery and carrots fear they will meet their end with the chickens in a stock.

Tender snow peas are the garden’s “snowflakes” and rather gullible to conspiracy theories. They are convinced that Chef Julie has masterminded the scheme, and her Lemony-Dill Chicken Soup recipe is the harbinger of their fate. Mere coincidence was all the proof they needed to panic and sound the alarm. Cindi tried to disabuse them of their fears, but to avail. “No one is conspiring to dispatch you!” she reassured them. The snow peas groaned, “Not ‘Dispatch you’! We heard ‘gazpacho!’”

“Is it soup yet?”

Snow Peas…

Snow peas are harvested before the peas inside fully mature. Originating in the Mediterranean, snow peas spread across Europe, the Middle East, and eventually to Asia, where they became a staple ingredient in many traditional dishes, particularly in Chinese and other Southeast Asian cuisines. Cook them quickly in this quick sauté.

Sautéed Snow Peas

2 cups snow peas            

1 tablespoon olive oil      

1 clove garlic, minced     

1 teaspoon minced ginger

Pinch crushed red pepper

Salt and pepper, to taste

* Remove the stem end from each snow pea by pulling the stem gently down the length of the pod to remove the fibrous string. Set a skillet or sauté pan over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add the olive oil, garlic, ginger and crushed red pepper. Cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant then add the snow peas. Season with salt and stir to coat with the aromatics. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until the peas are bright green. Turn the heat off and remove the peas from the pan. Eat right away.

Metaphors of Soil and Soul . . .

Beyond Droplets

Ronda May Melendez

Heavy rainfall resonates outside the window this morning, but darkness overcomes me once again as the rhythmic sounds of droplets lull me back to sleep. Eventually, I awake. The soothing sounds of rain have diminished. Chill and dampness fill the air. As is my custom away from home, I dress quickly and set out to seek coffee. I venture through puddles to my rain-washed car and drive toward the city center. 

Throughout the Sonoma wine country, sun rays peep over hilltops or glisten between parting clouds. March rains have drenched the valley vineyards in billions of droplets. Glancing out the side window, I take in the serene sight filtered through droplets coating the car window. The land is drinking in a refreshing provision from heaven. The vine covered landscape looks tranquil and at peace.

As I reflect, it occurs to me how easily my mental landscape becomes clouded with worry over the impact of the deluge: it makes my garden flowers droop and hang their heads; it makes my clothing heavy and cold when I am out walking; it makes me too easily focus on the “blur” of droplets that obscure a more expansive view of life. I forget there is a cleansing happening, a refreshing occurring. The Lord is providing refreshment in an opportunity to draw deeply from His provision, and yet, I struggle to see past the droplets , just as one struggles to see through tears the hope beyond.

Sonoma looms ahead, and I almost smell coffee. While reading the blurred menu board and struggling to place the order, an invitation comes to my heart: “Allow yourself to enjoy My rest, Ronda. Look beyond the droplets on the pane. Provision and peace await beyond the filters obscuring your view.” Abraham and Isaac come to mind. Let this be your invitation too:

Isaac spoke to his father Abraham and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” And he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.”  Genesis 22