Fresh from Wellspring Charitable Gardens - October 9, 2025

Fresh Today… Eggplant, Chinese Cabbage, Delicata Squash, Bell Peppers, Cucumbers, Green-Purple-Yellow Beans, Radishes, Green Onions, Basil, Parsley & Pomegranates

Using your Produce… by Julie Moreno

Eggplant is a slow growing vegetable that takes off at the end of summer. The plants will produce a few fruits in June or July, but in the fall the larger harvest begins. If you haven’t yet made baba ghanoush, it is a simple dip, that takes advantage of eggplant’s creamy texture. Today’s recipe is one of my favorites, the sesame seeds add texture and flavor. Remember the key to cooking eggplant is to make sure that it is cooked all the way through. It should be soft. Undercooked eggplant will have a rubbery texture that is not enjoyable.

Sesame Crusted Eggplant

(adapted from momfoodie.com)

¼ cup raw sesame seeds

1 large eggplant or 2-3 small eggplant

2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

2 tablespoons olive oil or melted coconut oil

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon white miso paste

2 teaspoons lemon juice

½ teaspoon salt

* Preheat the oven to 400 °F. On a parchment lined baking sheet, spread out the sesame seeds and cook in the oven for 10 minutes until lightly toasted. Remove from the oven and set the pan aside to cool. Cut off the ends of the eggplant and slice ½ inch thick. In a small bowl, whisk together the garlic, olive and sesame oil, miso paste, lemon juice and salt. Brush all the garlic-oil mixture on the eggplant slices. Pour the toasted sesame seeds carefully onto a plate or shallow pan. Replace the parchment on the baking sheet to reuse for the eggplant. Dip the eggplant slices into the sesame seeds on both sides and press gently, then place the eggplant slice on the parchment lined baking sheet. After dipping each slice, sprinkle the eggplant with any remaining seeds. Cook in the oven for 20 minutes, then flip each eggplant slice and roast for about 20 more, until the eggplant is soft.

Great Valley BookFest

May we suggest a wonderful way for you to get outdoors and enjoy a lovely fall day? We invite you to join us at the annual Great Valley BookFest on Saturday, Oct. 11, at The Bass Pro Shop in Manteca. Cindi will be representing her book Choosing Intimacy. The event features the writings of local authors and draws attention to the topics that inspired their creativity. The BookFest offers fun for all. Where else can you buy a book on poetry and trout bait all in one place? We hope to see you there.

Follow your Oktoberfest celebration

with a BookFest celebration

to satisfy your thirst

for mental stimulation.

Pesto…

Pesto is thought to go back to the Roman age. A similar paste called moretum was made by crushing garlic, salt, cheese, and herbs. Basil has only been documented since about 1850. I love mixing up the traditional herbs, cheese and nuts. Try this version with parsley, pepitas, and Pecorino cheese.

Parsley Pesto

2 cups parsley leaves       ¼ cup toasted pepitas

1-2 cloves garlic                 ¼ cup grated Pecorino or

1-2 tsp lemon juice                 Parmesan cheese

½ tsp salt                              ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

½ tsp black pepper 

* Blend all together in a blender.  Enjoy with roasted Delicata squash or pasta, white beans, steamed rice, or as a sauce for seafood or chicken.

Metaphors of Soil and Soul…

Reflection on (Im)Perfection

Keith F Martin

We have replaced all imperfect produce from our fields with more attractive product purchased from Perfection Farms, Inc. On second thought, probably not, though we have noticed some WCG vegetables and fruit bear “slight” blemishes that give them a rather “seedy” appearance. We regret that the produce with these modest imperfections in shape, surface, or hue do not perfectly portray the Ideal Form of  Things – like The Carrot, The Tomato, or The Squash - that Plato described in his renowned “Cave Metaphor.” Obviously, these imperfect specimens clearly reveal the “fallen” nature of visible reality (By the way, what is the Ideal Form of a vegetable called “Squash”?). 

Aesthetic variability (Homeliness?) is unavoidable in our imperfect vegetable garden world. These differences unabashedly show the natural effects of sun, soil, and water on the appearance of our produce. At WCG, we affectionately call these imperfections “beauty marks.” Such superficial blemishes proudly declare their tree-, soil-, or vine-ripened goodness. Confucius (or was it Bruce Lee?) aptly stated our attitude toward preferences based on looks alone: “Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without.” The pronouncement reveals the heart of the matter.

Yes, industrial farms have perfected techniques - pesticide spraying, early picking, culling undesirables, warehouse ripening, waxing – for providing flawless looking produce, but that polished surface comes at a steep price – diminished taste. Perfection Farms provides the perfect pebble, not the diamond in the rough. Have you tasted a store-bought tomato lately? It seduces the eye but sorely disappoints the tongue. It’s better suited for a still life painting than a real-life BLT sandwich or Caprese salad.

We at WCG do hope your preferences also bend toward superior taste rather than pleasing appearance alone. We also trust that you will thoroughly enjoy any rough produce you unpack from your Purple Bag and serve at your family table. If you do not, please promptly inform us so we may replace those undesirables with more satisfying and flavorful fresh produce from our gardens. We thank you for your generous support and your preference for quality that is not merely skin deep.

                               "For the Lord sees not as man sees: 

                                   man looks on the outward appearance,                                    but the Lord looks on the heart.”   1 Samuel 16:7