Fresh from Wellspring Charitable Gardens - September 11, 2025

Fresh Today… Bell Peppers, Slicing Tomatoes, Cherry Tomatoes, Anaheim Chiles, Summer Squash, Lettuce Mix, Cucumbers, Carrots, Swiss Chard, Basil, Parsley, Melons, Flowers & a Loofah

Using your Produce… by Julie Moreno

I use my dehydrator frequently this time of year. It works unattended at a low temperature to preserve the harvest. I like to dehydrate tomatoes and herbs to have on hand in the winter. I also use it to make kale chips in the winter and these squash chips in the summer. You can use any variety of summer squash. If you have a mandolin slicer, it will come in handy, if not, just try to make the slices even. They might take longer to cook, but they will cook in about the same time. Variation in the thickness will cause the thick chips to cook slower and the thin ones to become too hard. Feel free to add extra spices to this recipe, like chili powder or curry powder, to your taste. If you don’t have a dehydrator, use the lowest temperature on your oven. You will need to reduce the time and keep an eye on them until you learn how long they take in your oven.

Summer Squash Chips

2-4 large zucchini or summer squash

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

* Slice the squash thin, about 1/8 inch. Place the slices in a large bowl and sprinkle with the seasonings and oil. Mix gently. Place the slices in a single layer in a dehydrator or in a low oven at 225°F for 1-2 hours until crisp. In a dehydrator set at 135°F they will take about 8-10 hours.

Flexible Roasted Pepper Tomato Sauce

for Chicken Enchiladas

* Sauce – It is spicy, but you can tame it by adding more broth and/or more cheese. On a parchment lined sheet pan, place 8-10 red or green Anaheim peppers (I try to use all green or all red); add jalapeno or serrano peppers (optional, for desired heat), ½ or 1 whole sliced red, yellow, white onion, 2-4 whole peeled garlic cloves, 3-4 large, unpeeled tomatoes or 1 basket of cherry tomatoes. Roast at 425°F for 20-25 minutes until tops are charred. You can peel off the skins or blend everything at high speed and then strain them out. Now add 1 cup of chicken broth and ½ cup or more cottage cheese and/or 1-4 ounces of cream cheese. Blend again on high and check your consistency. Salt to taste.  

** Chicken - Season both sides of 4 breasts with salt, black pepper, garlic and onion powder. Sear chicken in a skillet with oil over medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes till golden on each side. Add 1 cup chicken broth to the skillet, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook 8-10 minutes. Chicken is done when internal temperature reaches 165°F. Transfer cooked chicken with juices to a bowl and shred by fork. 

*** Tortillas - Wrap 10 tortillas, corn or flour, in a damp paper towel and microwave for 1 minute, flipping halfway through until all are warm and soft. Fill tortillas with shredded chicken, shredded jack cheese, and 3 Tbsp sauce. Roll the tortillas tightly and place seam down into a lightly sauced baking dish. Pour remaining sauce over tortillas, top with shredded cheese, and bake at 350°F for 20 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbly. Sprinkle with fresh parsley to serve.

Roasted Peppers…

Roasting peppers brings out their sweetness and gives them a smoky, rich flavor. You can use this method with any of the peppers. I like to make large batches and have them ready to go. There are three common methods for roasting - oven, broiler/barbecue, and over a stovetop gas burner. Oven roasting is best for large batches, the broiler gives you more intense heat so keep an eye on them, and the stovetop is good for one or two peppers. Oven roast at 450°F or broil on high heat. To cook on the stovetop, place a pepper directly on the flame and turn with tongs frequently, until blackened. Once the peppers are charred, place them in covered bowl or plastic bag to steam for 10 minutes. Peel off the skins and discard them with the stems and seeds. Store peeled roasted peppers in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for 3 months. Try packing in extra-virgin olive oil with garlic cloves, consume within a week. Use the peppers on sandwiches, in pasta dishes, over rice, or in salads.

Metaphors of Soil & Soul…

No-Till Living

Ronda May Melendez & Keith F Martin

Market gardener Julie Moreno inspired me to write about No-Till farming, a soil conservation practice where hand tools rather than mechanized tillers are used to prepare fields for planting. Heavy machines compact soil and plows dredge dormant weed seeds to the surface where they germinate, grow, and overtake the fertile topsoil. Once established, weeds battle fiercely with desirable plants, competing for sun, water, nutrients, and space.  

Our discussion turned toward an obvious consideration: “What are weeds and how do we best deal with them?”  A weed is “a plant out of place and not intentionally sown; a plant growing where it is not wanted; a plant that is competitive, pernicious, and interferes negatively with human activity.” (12.09.09, extension.psu.edu).  No-Till farming effectively manages soil and prevents unwanted, pernicious plant growth. Though gentle, the practice requires strength and endurance to carefully loosen, but not overturn, compacted soil so weed seeds stay buried. Loosened soil allows roots, water, and nutrients to penetrate deeply so desirable plants flourish. No-Till is messy. Fields seem worse initially, especially before desirable plants have developed healthy roots, anchored themselves firmly and deeply in the soil, and supplanted the weeds in their space.

There is much to learn from No-Till farming about cultivating the hardened soil of a fallen heart. First, dormant weed seeds - envy, jealousy, selfish desires, hate - are ever-present in its soil. Crises, stress, frustration, loss, and disappointments stir weed seeds to the surface where they germinate, root deeply, and spread.  Once established, they vie for vital resources and choke the growth of desirable fruit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control.

How can we best manage “weeds” that do take root? First, we need to know our weeds. Some are best pulled,  mulched, and returned to the soil. Decomposed, they amend the heart and feed the growth of fruitful plants. Other weeds are best burned or consigned to a landfill. They are pernicious, like goat’s head and bindweed. Malicious ideologies, aberrant paradigms, rigid mindsets, biases, and prejudices must be summarily eradicated and dispatched. Second, we must stop mindless tilling that unsettles the heart. Resentments, bitterness, grudges, and pride dredge up malevolent weed seeds, impel them to take root, and empower their spread.

Weed seeds are inherent to our fallen nature. Disturbed, they surface, overtake precious mental and emotional landscape, and choke out desirable fruit. Learning to effectively manage the soil of the heart is critical. It is time we practice “No-Till Living” and say, “I will not compact the soil of my heart or dredge up seeds of trouble! I choose a better way.” 

“What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?  You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”  James 4:1-3