Week 1: Finding My Way

Prepping, cooking, cleaning, and a whole lot of learning

As I reflect on my first week at Stonewood Farm, it seems obvious that a recommendation I received at Relais de Camont would lead to an experience at a place as remarkable as here. I found myself getting a restaurant-level education in food preparation, knife skills, and organization (and dishwashing!), while working in an idyllic setting preparing meals to support those in need.

It’s gratifying going to a job where every day presents a learning opportunity. Sure, I’ve cooked plenty and have challenged myself, but here, I’m grateful to have a teacher alongside me when I have questions and to observe where I can improve. As a home cook, I have never taken the time to appreciate the variety of knives that can make cooking easier. I use my chef’s knife for most tasks, with some support from a serrated knife to slice bread or a tomato. Working here, I have been taught the value of a utilitarian paring knife and joy of peeling with a parrot’s beak.

Each day brings new tasks based on what the farm is producing, our neighbors are donating, and our community is needing. I’m there to provide support in the kitchen as the farm’s culinary director navigates the week’s demands. One morning, I may be peeling garlic for a couple of hours, before dicing up a box of “second” tomatoes we’ll use for jam for an upcoming event. The next I may be chopping up zucchini to create a soup we’ll deliver to the local community fridge. The variety is exciting, each new task presenting the chance to learn.

I can tell already this experience is the logical next step in my culinary journey, deepening my commitment, understanding, and appreciation of whole ingredient, low-waste cooking. In the kitchen, we also make every effort to minimize waste. When we boiled zucchini to turn into a dip, we saved the broth for a future batch of beans. When I removed collards from the stems, I saved the stems to turn into a pickle. When I “topped” eggs, we used the whites for meringue and the yolks for ice cream. If we can’t use the scraps, we toss them in the chicken bucket, which I have the pleasure of bringing to the farm’s sixty chickens every morning - chickens that will produce the eggs we sell and use in the kitchen. The circularity feels natural, yet all too uncommon.

To cap off my first week, I had the privilege of working the service for a Sunday Harvest Dinner. These dinners are the farm’s signature fundraiser, where the farm open the doors of the cookhouse to share the ritual of a traditional Sunday meal. Approximately once-a-month, these brings bring together a visiting chef and community members to celebrate the bounty of the harvest - with all proceeds from these dinners directly supporting the First Harvest Food Pantry and Stonewood’s other community outreach programs.

This week, the farm hosted Texas’-own Chef Adrian Lipscombe whose winding career path has taken her from architecture and urban planning through community-centered food systems. Drawing on her experience as a fourth-generation pitmaster, Chef Adrian put together a southern-BBQ inspired feast featuring produce from Stonewood, paired with expertly smoked brisket and her custom sausage blend. On the menu:

• Stonewood Egg: feta custard with okra stewed in shrimp butter

• Biscuits with tomato jam, country ham, goat’s milk aged cheddar, candied jalapenos (colloquially known as cowboy candy), and locally-cultured butter

• Beet salad with watermelon, tomato and summer greens served over green goddess dressing

• Smoked brisket and sausage with collards, mac n’ cheese, potato salad, bread and butter pickles, and a gochujang-spiked BBQ sauce

• Blueberry cornmeal cake with peach leaf ice cream and doenjang (a cousin of miso) caramel

While I just got to spend a few hours with her, it was exciting to share in her talents, learn her story, and watch our 32 guests savor her creations

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My Weekly Task List

Each week, I’m going to share a list of the tasks I completed that week to share a sense of what it’s like in the kitchen here. This week, I took myself to a charming new restaurant, Isabela, in a neighboring town, grabbed a seat at the bar, and started writing out my list:

• Stripped collard leaves from stems; peeled collard stems for pickling.

• Topped eggs

• Diced tomatoes for jam

• Chopped potatoes for potato salad, and squash for soup

• Pitted and sliced shiro plums and peaches for jam

• Picked herbs from the garden for salads, soups, and garnishes

• Peeled cucumbers for a salad; and turned the peels into cucumber lemonade.

• Saved plum pits to make a cordial

As much as I learned from doing, I learned from observing and listening to Kristen. I watched as she turned peach leaves into an ice cream with the perfume of almonds. I listened as she explained her techniques for jam, meringue, and salad assembly. I saw her spray just a tiny bit of vinegar on raw vegetables to spruce them up before service.

I can’t wait to get back to work tomorrow - and see what I can add to the list this week.