Greetings from the farm! It looks as though we have broken the wet spell with lots of glorious sunshine for a while. This should kick our tomato plants into gear. It will also, however mean the end of the cauliflower, strawberries, broccoli, and cabbage. Those spring things are giving way to the field tomatoes, squashes, peppers and summer berries.

Green Door Gourmet is thrilled to have our own “Muffin Man,” John Stills, baker extraordinaire! Last week John had the whole farm abuzz with his selection of killer muffins… lemon ricotta, chocolate zucchini, blueberry orange and more! They were huge delicious handcrafted pieces of delight! John is a philosophy major, so perhaps he is intrigued by the question “to bake or not to bake?” That said, he does want to know what YOU want!  Here is a brief bio from the man himself:

“I am a 24 year old baker, native to Nashville, who enjoys Philip Glass, Vaclav Havel, and excessive amounts of coffee. Tired of working for The Man as an underpaid wage slave I have recently decided to work for myself. I have a degree in Philosophy from Belmont University and hope one day to continue my studies; in the meantime, I enjoy experimenting in the kitchen, playing with power tools, riding bicycles, cutting up rugs, honky-tonkin’, limericks, and doo wop. I am tall, dark, handsome,( ????) with a heart of gold and the soul of a gypsy, and I know the sacred secrets of cheesecakes. My passion for the unusual rivals only my passion for palette-satisfaction. If you have a specific request, interesting flavor ideas, questions about pricing, or other feedback of any kind, please feel free to e-mail me at iamahungrymuffin@gmail.com!”

If you want to preorder something fantastic you can contact him at iamahungrymuffin@gmail.com and he will have it here for you on Saturday morning. He will have some new things to try this week at the farm so don’t miss out on coffee and a muffin while you are shopping!

In the box this week…. Broccoli, greens, lettuce, spring onions, hot house tomatoes, new potatoes, squash and zucchini, herb of the week and recipes! OH and remember, subscribing to the newsletter does not automatically order you a box… click here to go to the e-market page on our website and order your box!

Please note that some of our farm to fork coop members need time to get items here, so please try to order co-op items as early in the week as possible so we can get them delivered to us!

I look forward to seeing you on Saturday.

When I “retired” from the restaurant business I had a lot of looming questions. How will I keep current on food trends? Where can I find fresh foods? Will I ever see favorite customers of mine again? Well, I must say that starting Green Door Gourmet has truly answered many of those unknowns! I have been so thrilled to see folks put on the farm, many former CIBO customers. It is much fun for me to witness people seeing what is growing, visiting with neighbors, and asking question about food! I am overjoyed to feel the passion for good cuisine and believe that with Green Door Gourmet’s close proximity to town, a quick visit to the farm can be just what the family chef ordered!

I am delighted to say that the baby squash and zucchini are looking good and the lettuces are at their peak. In your box this week you will get that squash and lettuce, plus kale and swiss chard, strawberries if they are ripe (come on sunshine), hot house tomatoes, and if we are lucky some baby cucumbers. Our feature this week will be from West Wind Farms. Their handmade organic flour and egg “noodles” are a dream with ribbons of kale and fresh chopped tomatoes.
I know everyone enjoyed the honey from Trubee honey farm last week, and if you need more this week, don’t forget to click on their box in the E Market to order some more!
We also have farm fresh eggs and lots more on the e market place so check it out.
Certain farms have different cut off days for ordering, but we will try to get your complete order here if at all possible. It is important to have a way to contact you though, just in case we can’t!
TJ Martell and Green Door Gourmet are partnering to raise some money for cancer research while having a tasty time. Click here for our dinner in the field info and invite, and plan to join us on June 26th!
Feel free to send your comments and ideas, as well as any photos you may take of the farm or your produce ( right from the farm or all cooked up!) to us!  Thanks to CSA member  Juliana E  for her photo ( right) of a gourmands’ dinner made with Green Door products!

Warm and sunny greetings from the farm. We are excited to open this weekend. As you can imagine there are lots of pieces to put together to get ready for opening!

Sequatchie Cove farms, Kenny’s cheese, West Wind farms are ready for your add on orders, as is Miel and Cafe Nonna Restaurants.  Bang marshmallows are joining our co-operative effort and those smart girls are sourcing fresh things from the Green door to make their marshmallows! Be sure to check all the vendors in the e market place for lots of great and yummy things! We will be adding new vendors all through the summer so check in to the emarket place often!

The farm is brimming with great herb plants to take home and create your own herb garden! We also have some great annuals too to spruce up your summer containers and yards!

We will have a free lunch from 10:30 until 1, so plan to come and have some BBq and trimmings and enough the day on the farm. You can also bring your own picnic too. We will not have kids activities this week, but will start our kids club May 28!

In case there is dangerous weather. we will postpone our opening to the following Saturday. If you are planning to come to the farm for pick up of your csa, please include a contact phone number in your order to contact you incase we have to close the farm due to inclimate weather.

If April showers bring May flowers, then we’re in for one HUGE bouquet! This has been one of the wettest springs on record! Our planting schedule is off by a few weeks due to a cooler and wetter spring, but we finally are getting things in the ground. Most of our rows are now occupied with seeds and plants. Squash, cucumbers, beans, tomatoes, eggplant, lettuce, peppers are all planted. We have half of our herb garden in, the other half may take a bit as that part of the field is always the last to dry out! We are thrilled to have around 10,000 herbs for sale here on the farm! Lavender to lovage, stevia to sage, basil to borage, it is here! You can buy just one plant or purchase by the tray. They are gorgeous healthy plants! We can also help design and plant your herb containers too!

The other spectacular thing we have to offer is hanging baskets and ferns. Big, showy baskets overflowing with flowers… just in time for Mothers day, spring spruce ups or just because! Once you see how stunning these are, you will want to treat yourself.
Our line of pickles jams and jellies are here too! Boy, are they good! I especially love our “purple” sweet potato butter and strawberry fig jam. They make a wonderful gift as well. You can get the entire list of Green Door Gourmet products on our e-market place, available beginning May 7 at the Richland home tour, and May 14 for our farm opening.
We are getting ready for farm opening day! Our planting has been delayed due to rain, but we will have some things available and our co op partners will make sure you CSA orders are full of great spring things! Our e market is getting ready to go live and we are excited to offer partnerships with West Wind Farm, Noble’s Dairy, Kenny’s Farmhouse cheese, C&S produce and many more! Make plans to see us on May 14 from 9-2. We will have a free BBQ lunch, so come hungry. It is important to RSVP if you are coming so we can be prepared with enough food. Just send us a message to sylvia@greendoorgourmet.com with your name and how many will be attending and a contact number or email for the morning of the event. If the weather is bad, we won’t have the big festival, just to keep everyone safe. We will call or email, (your choice) to notify you if severe weather is predicted and we have to reschedule. (You can still pick up your produce order.)

Thanks everyone!
Sylvia