Llano Seco Rancho Noticias

Seasonal changes abound here on the Rancho. Birth may be associated with Spring, but our fall is full of rebirth. We harvested our first crop of 100% organic heirloom beans last week. It was a dusty job but fascinating to learn how to operate a 1948 bean harvester that our talented shop crew has brought back to life. We're harvesting smaller plots of various beans and so our regular harvester was just too big for the job. Our ancient grains premiered at the National Heirloom Expo and have made their way to a few local miller/bakers and craft chefs to great response. Our pigs are settled into their newly reclaimed barns. We were able to bring life back into cedar barns used over 80 years ago for the same purpose. Our weaning rates attest to the fact that our ancestors knew how to raise animals in the open air better than we do now. Walnuts are deepening in color and sweetness, nearing harvest time. The land prepares itself to welcome the hundreds of thousands of migratory waterfowl that descend upon our marshes, lakes and ponds during the great Pacific Flyway of the fast-approaching winter.

V I S I T  U S at the SF Ferry Plaza Farmers Market!

We are pleased to announce that we are now at CUESA’s Farmers Market located at the Ferry Building in San Francisco.  Every Saturday from 8 am to 2 pm, rain or shine, we will be selling our responsibly-raised Llano Seco pork, sausage, bacon dogs, bacon, beef cuts, ancient grains, and heirloom beans.

H O L I D A Y  H A M

We guarantee a better holiday season with a Llano Seco applewood smoked ham. We are ready to take your pre-orders at any of our Farmers Market stands (see below for locations) or email Jamie here by Nov 15. Hams are half, bone-in (7-8 lbs each) for $7.80/lb or Whole Boneless Pit hams (11-12 lbs each) for $8.12/lb.  Pick up will be at Farmers Market stands and payment will be due upon time of pre-order and will be based on estimated weights.

Last day to order is Nov 15.  Pick up at your local farmers market:

Ferry Plaza Farmers Market: Saturday Nov 21

Chico Farmers Market: Saturday Nov 21

Fort Mason Farmers Market: Sunday Nov 22

December holiday hams must be ordered by Nov 29.  Pick up at your local farmers market:

Ferry Plaza Farmers Market: Saturday Dec 19

Chico Farmers Market: Saturday Dec 19

Fort Mason Farmers Market: Sunday Dec 20

W E A R  Y O U R  L O V E of Llano Seco We still have Llano Seco merchandise available.  Wear your love of whole animal butchery and celebrate the offal in all of us.  We have men’s and women’s styles available, sizes range from small to 2XL. Email Rebecca to purchase yours.

I N  T H E  P R E S S

Crafted Meat Crafted Meat documents current developments in today’s new meat culture for both epicures and makers. The book offers must-know information, recipes, and expert tips for cooking enthusiasts and conscientious eaters. Llano Seco’sOffal Wonderful, the annual campaign celebrating the insides of the animal, is featured as an example of unique meat culture happenings. Crafted Meat is an international publication conceived by well-respected Berlin publishing house Gestalten, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to be featured alongside many of our heroes and colleagues such as Dario Cecchini and The Meat Hook. US book release is late October 2015 and you will be able to buy online. Feed Your People Our products and recipes will be featured in upcoming book about community gatherings and big batch cooking for friends and families by Leslie Jonath and 18 Reasons. Look out for info on upcoming pig roast featuring our piggie and Ryan Farr of 4505 to benefit the book.

A  B U S Y  A U T U M N of events

Llano Seco is proud to support the California local food community. Listed below are events attend as food purveyors or engaged community members.

Livestock Conservancy Conference

A National Conference celebrating heritage breeds. Join us as we explore forgotten uses and flavors that will bring value added income to farms. 6th-generation Llano Seco proprietor and Director of Llano Seco branded products Charlie Thieriot will be speaking at the Plenary talk on Sat morning as part of a panel discussion on offal, underutilized cuts and older animals. Llano Seco is a passionate about whole animal butchery, and we work with chefs and butchers who strive to use all parts of animals.  This passion led Llano Seco to begin the

Offal Wonderful

Campaign which is held once a year in conjunction with the Eat Real Festival in Oakland to promote use of often discarded animal parts.

Nov 6 -7

Flamingo Resort, Santa Rosa, CA

Farm to Fork Festival

Llano Seco joined in the Farm to Fork Festival, which is held once a year in celebration of Sacramento’s food shed while bringing awareness to local food production, consumption, and sustainability.  We had a chance to converse with people about sustainable farming in the Sacramento area while serving our summer Farro bean salad.  We look forward to participating each year in this educational event.

Sept 26

Downtown Sacramento, CA

Sierra Oro

Once a year the public has the opportunity to explore Butte County local farms and wineries through the Sierra Oro Farm Trail Passport Weekend. Rancho Llano Seco welcomed visitors with El Pastor and chile verde tacos made with Llano Seco pork, grilled Italian and Argentine sausage, and samples of Summer Farro Bean salad.  People dined at our picnic tables while listening to the soothing music from Mark Johnson and Cello John.  Visitors were able to meet a couple of our resident piglets and play ping pong and bean bag toss on the grass.  Our hay-ride circled Perkin’s lake, allowing for views of some of our organic and GMO-free fields, hog farms, all the while learning history of our farm.    

Oct 10-11

Rancho Llano Seco, Chico, CA

Kitchen Table Advisors Fundraiser

Kitchen Table Advisors held their annual fundraiser, Grazing at the Kitchen Table, celebrating local farmers and the community which supports them. Some of the Bay Area’s finest chefs came together and created delicious dishes that featured food grown and raised from local farms.  The dinner featured some of our donated Llano Seco pork, beef, grains, and beans.    

Oct 1

Dogpatch WineWorks, San Francisco, CA

Sunday Supper

As brand new members of CUESA’s

Ferry Plaza Farmers Market

Llano Seco was honored to donate some of our heirloom beans and participate in CUESA’s annual dinner, the Sunday Supper.  Sunday Supper is 4 course dinner that features more than 40 of the Bay Area’s well-known chefs.  Half of the funds collected from this event go directly into the community through CUESA’s healthy food system educational programs.

Oct 18

Long shadows for the long days, impromptu campouts, swimming sessions, wheat harvests, lawn games, more meat on the grill...thankfully it's still summer. Photo by Farmrun

B A C O N  D O G S have arrived. After painstaking testing and trials (meaning copious hot dog eating), a new and improved Llano Seco hot dog is here. Bits of bacon goodness and our signature scrumptious pork will make this frank your favorite. Summer is still around for a while, and our Bacon Dog has arrived just in time to grace your grill. Check our Shop page and weekly social media features to find our retailers. You can also always purchase them at our Farmers' Markets in Quincy (Thurs), Chico (Sat) and Ft. Mason, SF (Sun). Photo by Fare Resources

H E I R L O O M  E X P O Sept 8-10

Our summer harvest of 5 varietals of landrace, estate-grown wheat for 2015 is complete, and we can't wait to bring them to you alongside our beans at this year's Heirloom Expo. The National Heirloom Expo The World's Pure Food Fair! Sonoma County Fairgrounds Santa Rosa, CA Sept 8-10th 2015

We will be serving samples of our heirloom beans while talking production processes and the glory of whole grains. Our wheat berries and flour will be available this fall to artisan bakers and chefs throughout Northern California. Emmer, durum, sonora, spelt, and einkorn will be making their first appearance at the event, alongside our 9 varietals of scrumptious heirloom beans, already available in retail shops throughout Northern California. Chefs and bakers, we invite you to come sample our inaugural estate-grown wheat and we will be reaching out to you with a special invite to visit us at the Expo.  

And social media lovers, use #llanosecoheirlooms when cooking with our beans and we'll repost and tag you back.

O F F A L  W O N D E R F U L 2015 SKIN & FAT

It's almost here, our 3rd annual Offal Wonderful! In conjunction with Eat Real Festival and The Butcher's Guild, Offal Wonderful is an annual promotional campaign hosted by Rancho Llano Seco to celebrate the innards of every animal and the bounty of whole animal butchery, cookery and eating. Offal Wonderful introduces eaters to the delicious variety of the oft ignored, off-cuts and offal, traditionally defined as the organ meat of the animals but including what the Italian’s call the “fifth” quarter: tail, ears, head, and beyond. This year’s theme is SKIN & FAT.

Offal-focused activities will take place at Eat Real Festival including demos by San Francisco's finest chefs for at-home preparation of recipes utilizing skin & fat, a pig butchery competition by nationally recognized craft meat cutters, and special limited release of products featuring our lard and skin.

Eat Real Festival Sept 18-20, 2015 Jack London Square, Oakland

More details coming next month in our newsletter and on Facebook. Chefs and retailers, look out for specials on offal in the weeks leading up to the events.

E V E N T S more E V E N T S Llano Seco is proud to support the California local food community. Listed below are events we will be attending as food purveyors or engaged community members.

Sonoma Market Demo Come taste Llano Seco samples! Sat Aug 22, 12.30-4.30pm 500 West Napa Street, Sonoma

Eat Drink SF San Francisco's premier annual food, wine and spirits festival August 22-23, Ft. Mason, San Francisco

Good Food Awards: Blind Tasting Selection Llano Seco is honored to be a judge in the Charcuterie competition Sept 13 (not open to public), San Francisco

Sacramento Farm to Fork Visit our booth at the festival on sat and taste our pork & beans featured at the Gala Bridge dinner. Sat Sept 26 - Sun Sept 27, Sacramento

Kitchen Table Advisors Fundraiser: Grazing at the Table Join Kitchen Table Advisors and their community of farmers, chefs, consumers, and advocates to help sustainable farms become sustainable businesses. Llano Seco will be attending and has a tasty prize in the silent auction. 

Oct 1, 5.30-9.30pm Dogpatch WineWorks, San Francisco

Savory Institute International Conference: Artisans of the Grasslands Oct 2-4 Hyatt Regency, Burlingame

Sonoma Harvest Fair Oct 2-4 Sonoma County Fairgrounds, Santa Rosa

Sierra Oro Farm Trail Rancho Llano Seco open to public for farm tours and tastings Oct 11-12, at Llano Seco and farms & wineries throughout Butte County

Rancho Llano Seco has been growing dryland grains for 150 years, and this season we will premiere our landrace grains to you, our faithful NorCal pork and bean lovers. We are dedicated to biodiversity and celebrate varieties that have culinarily or culturally significant histories in both the new and old worlds. Landrace signifies the transformation of traditional varietals through their adaptation to immediate surroundings: selected for their ability to thrive in the context of their growing environments and chosen above all for their flavor, heartiness, and strong survival. Who better to be the stewards of such selection but the farmers themselves. Over many years of careful observation in the fields, landrace varietals grew to become the American norm despite their European provenance. The needs of the post-industrial era altered farming objectives and preferred grains that could stand up to the demands of the surging market and its rough and tumble supply chain.

We are getting ready for the summer harvest of 5 varietals of landrace, estate-grown wheat for 2015: emmer, einkorn, spelt, durum, and sonora. We have over 20 acres in production and plan to make whole grain (yes, truly WHOLE: bran, germ, and endosperm intact!) wheat berries and flour available to artisan bakers and chefs throughout Northern California. By keeping all 3 components of a single grain of wheat, with none removed by industrial milling methods such as those that give us white refined flour, all the nutritional value and goodness of each kernel is retained. Our grains are ideal for craft baking, pasta-making, whole milled flours, and a healthy, holistic approach to eating. 

Chef Charlie Palmer's 10th Annual Pigs & Pinot

On March 20-21st, Llano Seco was thrilled to participate in Chef Charlie Palmer’s Tenth Annual Pigs & Pinot weekend. Held at Hotel Healdsburg and Dry Creek Kitchen, honored guest chefs Michael Koranic, Ludo Lefebvre, Nancy Oakes, and Bryan Voltaggio joined Chef Palmer in preparing a myriad  of dishes all for Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry Campaign. Chef Palmer and the Dry Creek Kitchen staff uniquely highlighted Llano Seco pork in all of their dishes. Llano Seco beans were also given as part of the VIP ticket to the event. For more information on Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry Campaign, visit their website. 

Recipe Throw-Down Winter Winner: Bean Biscuits

Congratulations to Peter Hertzmann for winning the bean recipe throw down! His creative Bean Biscuit recipe is below.

Visit our Facebook page to see recipes from runners up Tamar E. Adler, author of An Everlasting Meal, and her brother, John Adler, Executive Chef of Franny's Brooklyn, for their Shell Bean Gratin. Also in second place, is Sheila Manzagol of Shining Mountain Herbs and her Black Bean Medley.

Bean Biscuits

1 large egg 1 large egg white 125 ml (1/2 c) whole milk 45 g (about 1/3 c) bean flour made by grinding dried beans in a coffee mill 23 g (about 2-1/3 T) all‑purpose flour 1.2 g fine salt a couple turns freshly ground black pepper 1⁄4 t ground cumin a healthy pinch cayenne pepper 35 g (1/4 c) finely grated parmesan cheese 15 g (1 T) unsalted butter, melted melted butter for the molds

Yield: 15 biscuits. 1. Whisk the whole egg and egg white together. Add the milk and whisk to combine. Whisk in the flours and the seasonings. Whisk in the parmesan cheese. Finish by whisking in the melted butter. Set the batter aside to rest while you complete all of the next instruction.

2. Set your oven to 215 °C (420 °F). Place the silicone mold with fifteen cavities shaped as truncated cones on a baking sheet. When the oven reaches temperature, place the baking sheet with the mold into it. Heat the mold for 10 minutes.

3. Remove the mold from the oven. Brush each cavity thoroughly with melted butter. Using a one‑tablespoon ladle, fill each cavity with batter. Wipe off any batter that spills onto the apron of the mold.

4. Bake the little biscuits for about 25 minutes. The cavities in the middle take longer to bake so those biscuits may need more time in the oven.

5. If not serving immediately, cool the biscuits on a rack.

Note: The biscuits can be frozen and then reheated for 10 minutes at 180 °C (355 °F) before serving.

Recipe Throw-Down: Summer BBQ Sides—Now Seeking Submissions

For our next recipe throw down, we’re asking for your best BBQ side dishes. We’ve been dreaming of chilled bean salads, ham-hock baked beans, and warm endive salads with Llano Seco bacon vinaigrette. Now that summer is here, send us your best BBQ side dishes for a chance at winning a host of great Llano Seco prizes! Submit via Facebook or email by June 15th for a chance to win some great prizes.

Upcoming Events

Llano Seco is proud to support the local food community. Listed below are a combination of events where we will be participating both as food purveyors, as well as engaged community members.

Oliveto Commons Lecture Series Maria Speck, author of Simply Ancient Grains Saturday, May 30th, 1-3pm, Oakland, CA

Out Standing in the Field: SCRIBE Winery Sunday, May 31st, 4pm, Sonoma, CA

Oliveto Commons Lecture Series Stephen Yafa, author of Grain of Truth, with Craig Ponsford of Ponsford's Place Saturday, June 6th, 1-3pm, Oakland, CA

Sausage Sampling at Staff of Life Market Saturday, June 13th, 12:30-4:30pm, Santa Cruz, CA

CUESA Summer Celebration Sunday, June 22nd, 6-9pm, San Francisco, CA

Whole Grains Summit 2015 June 24-June 26th, Corvallis, OR

Planting season has ended and the Rancho settles into its hot growing season. The biodiversity that spans our cultivated fields and our wildlife corridors thrives. Our pigs are also healthier and stronger than ever but missing the wintertime climate. The ancient wheat trial is coming to an end, moving closer towards becoming flour and bread under Bay Area artisan bakers’ watchful hands. Our first try at growing organic tomatoes (part of our crop rotation plan) is going well and we will look to harvest sometime the first week of September. Our mama and calf pairs munch on the still green grass and invasive weeds. Our walnut orchard’s bounty goes from green to brownish, and our nocino, or walnut liqueur, is curing in the cabinet for winter libations. Our June grafts, young scions nested into strong root stock, are growing well. The heirloom bean crops have taken hold well, only our second season with this enterprise. The watermelon and cucumbers that we grow for seed are stretching their limber leggy spindles and growing quite nicely. 

WHAT DOES "NATURAL" MEAN? A few weeks back, Consumer Reports issued a call to ban the Natural label from food products. Pointing out that the label is unregulated by the US Food and Drug Administration, they are launching a campaign to end use of the word in food manufacturing, focusing on companies that misuse the term and profit from a lack of general understanding of the label. Given that our pork is labeled with the Natural term as well, we thought it wise for us to speak up and let you know our opinion.

We agree entirely with the motivation behind the campaign, in Consumer Reports’ own words: “We want to clean up the green noise in the food label marketplace so Americans can get what they want—truthful labels that represent important and better food production systems.” Labels are currently misleading and confusing for the retail shopper, and often times difficult to certify and control for our governing bodies. But rather than ban the word, Llano Seco would like to see regulations placed around it that distinguish it from other certification standards (such as Organic and GAP) so that producers can have clear guidelines around using labels, or choose to avoid them. We too would like to hold companies accountable for the words they use, and would welcome strict legislation that defines the word Natural so that large food conglomerates are held to clearer standards, and consumers can have clarity.

Most importantly, we feel the best way to educate consumers is to continue to give more information rather than less. We are committed to communicating our mission, our practices, our methodology frequently and with transparency rather than simply rely on a label. We chose the Natural term in hopes that we would always have an opportunity to expound about what it means to us: responsible, with care and concern for environmental welfare and a holistic vision for long term health; humane, always prioritizing the best life possible for our animals while they are alive; family farmed, on a property stewarded by our same family in the same place for 6 generations; GMO-free, without the unknown factors of genetically manipulated feed or crops; local, to Northern California, with the whole lifecycle of our pigs happening on our single, source-verifiable farm in Chico; antibiotic and hormone free, without sub-therapeutic treatment that endanger our collective public health through continued exposure; artificial ingredients and preservative free, without any “unnatural” additives; uncured, avoiding the debatably carcinogenic consequences of nitrate and nitrates in our value added products.

What does Natural mean to you? We welcome continued dialogue. Visit the Global Animal Partnership website and the Non-GMO Project website to learn more about certifications we are in alignment with. We will be posting to our own website and social media a comparison of different types of feed production including organic, conventional, and Llano Seco. And as always, the most important way to know how to differentiate methods is to know your producers, and start a dialogue. Be in touch with us at [email protected] and let us know your concerns and thoughts...we’re always listening.

HEIRLOOM BEAN UPDATE We’ve planted our 2014 crops of bean test plots, full of exciting new varietals such as Jackson Wonder, Snowcap, Tarbais, Bolita, Blue Speckled and more. With our fertile unleveled fields and prime bean-growing climate in Butte County, we have the luxury of cultivating a whole slough of varietals, and doing it well. One group that loves our beans are the deer. They are targeting our heirlooms. They have finer senses than the best human and they are putting their stamp of approval on the heirloom beans with more vigor than we appreciate. Don’t see a bean on the shelf that you like? Get in touch with us, we want to hear what you want us to plant.

Our 7 varietals of heirloom beans can currently be found in these retail stores in the Bay Area and beyond:

Mollie Stones (throughout the Bay Area), Bi-Rite (SF), Olivers Markets (Santa Rosa & Cotati), Pacific Market (Sebastopol), Woodlands Markets (Kentfield & Tiburon), Haight Street Market (SF), Monta Vista Market (Cupertino), Monterey Market (Berkeley), Cal Mart (SF & Calistoga), Bianchini’s (San Carlos & Portola Valley), 26th & Guerrero Market (SF), Market Hall Produce (Oakland), Oceana Market (Pacifica), Andy’s Produce (Sebastapol), Sacramento Food Coop (Sacramento)

No time to hit the grocery store? You can also always find our pork, beef and bean products online and available for home delivery at Good Eggs.  

COMMUNITY NEWS & HAPPENINGS A few past, upcoming and ongoing goings-on that we are proud participants and supporters of:

Hog Butchery Classes at 4505 Meats happen every month on Thursdays in SF. Well-loved Bay Area meat-epreneur Ryan Farr’s butchery shop and newly opened BBQ and burger joint on Divisadero is a meaty enterprise that is also dedicated to consumer education about sustainably raised animals and how to get the most out of them at home. 4505’s classes feature our Llano Seco pigs. Sign-up here and stay up to date with all their happenings via their facebook page.

On August 3rd we got our coals on at Cochon 555 Heritage Fire Napa – Charles Krug Winery, Saint Helena. We joined in the fiery fun and never-ending antics of the Cochon team as they herald heritage breeds, with signature Bay Area chefs cooking everything on open flame at this wine country event. Look out for future editions all over the Bay Area and US.

On August 9th, we’ll be serving our sausages at the American Craft Council (ACC) San Francisco Show, in conjunction with the Good Food Merchants Guild, of which we are a proud member. The ACC is a national non-profit organization now in its 39th year, whose mission is to “champion craft”.  The ACC’s San Francisco Show will take place August 8-10 at the Fort Mason Center’s Festival Pavilion, showcasing 300 of the nation’s top contemporary craft artisans in a three-day celebration of all things handmade. We are part of a vibrant Good Food Artisan collection to showcase the Good Food Merchants Guild members to the greater craft community. More information on the event here.

The 3rd Annual National Heirloom Expo is coming to Santa Rosa on Sept 9-11 and you can bet we’ll be there with our pork and beans. We donated 450 lbs. of our sausage to the Raphael House shelter and its residents, because we believe all folks should have access to good, clean meat. 

Want to know where we’re next serving up our pork? Stay up to date with our happenings on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram feeds.

SUMMERTIME RECIPE: BBQ RIBS Scott Becklund, Pacific Market (Sebastopol) This rib recipe from Head Butcher Scott at Pacific Market will make our ribs stand out at all your summertime festivities. We were thrilled to introduce Scott to our buddies at Dutton-Goldfield Winery in the Russian River Valley, who seem to be making a habit of pairing our pork with their grape juice. Scott cooked their most recent summertime BBQ event -- be sure to get on their mailing list to be sure you don’t miss future festivities.

BBQ Spareribs Use a simple brine to marinate ribs 4 to 6 hours (no longer). Smoke at low temp with apple or other fruit wood 3-5 hours. Remove from smoker and let cool. Dry rub with Pacific Market BBQ spice (or your BBQ spice of choice if you can’t get yourself to Sebastopol!). BBQ on indirect heat, slowly, approx 1.5 hours. BBQ temp should be approx 200 degrees. If desired add BBQ Sauce  for last 20 plus minutes. Turn often, allowing it to camelize.

Wrap the ribs well with foil and 3 tbls of water or beer. Seal well, wrap the whole package in towels and place in insulated cooler for 30 to 40 minutes. This will keep ribs moist and tender as they continue to cook.

Another season has passed and the passing gifted us with rain. The Rancho’s curving borders define where luminous green fields meet dirt roads. Ancient sloughs acting as wildlife corridors and teaming with critters and native flora abut cows and their calves chewing noisily on new grass. Butterflies literally swarm the lilacs at headquarters. New walnut grafts set and prepare for buds to grow tall and fast through the summer, as much as three feet before fall.

Walnut grafting

Birth surrounds us, and so despite the ever-present fear of drought, here on the Sacramento River we always feel lucky, and celebrate the good fortune that spring gifts in various shades of green. Our second round of pastured beef has been harvested. Our second season of heirloom beans are being planted. Our second test plot of landrace grain is growing and healthy, and thus we already feel deep into 2014.

Spelt wheat planting

Our pigs continue to be stronger, happier and healthier since our production transition this winter and our pork continues to make its way on to the plates of more happy Californians. We’re on the brink of releasing our new line of sausages, hams, and bacon with a newly designed label, so look out for updated packaging and an eye-catching new look. We have improved on the texture of our Italian and Argentine sausage, showcasing the suppleness of the pork and beef we use. Expect to see a more traditional “shingle pack” on our bacon. We’ve gone back to the drawing board on our hot dogs, so hopefully you can get your hands on those this summer. We don’t want to mess with a good thing so you can count on our smoked ham hocks, hams and breakfast sausage to be the same products we are very proud of.

Spring Means Ham

As always, the spring holidays beg of sweet, savory, sumptuous ham, and dare we say ours is… really, the best. Whether small and single-muscle, perfect for two, or large artisan applewood smoked, or even the bone-in leg for roasting yourself at home, Llano Seco has your ham needs covered. Find our hams online and ready for home delivery at Good Eggs, at our Ft. Mason SF (Sun) or  Downtown Chico (Sat) Farmers Market stands, or  at one of the many retail outlets listed on our Shop page. You can also always email Jamie at the Rancho to reserve from us directly. Hop to it though, we do run out every year. 

Pork Means Beans

We’ve been experimenting with cooking both our pork and beans together in an endless array of combinations. Most recent was BBQ ribs and black beans, a joint effort between the Rancho team and Chef Liza Shaw of Merigan Sub Shop, during a weekend of pontoon floating. Next up in the Summer issue of Edible Marin & Wine Country will be our experiments with traditional southern black-eyed peas and our smoked ham hocks. 

Tell us your favorite pork and beans recipe! Submit yours with a picture to [email protected] and win a package of heirloom beans and artisanal sausages delivered right to your door. Winning recipe will be posted online on our News page and on all our social media outlets.

  Community Events & Happenings

A few upcoming and ongoing goings-on that we are proud participants and supporters of:

Food + Farm Film Festival – April 3-6. SF’s second annual celebration of all things agricultural at the historic Roxie theatre. Llano Seco is sponsoring a showing of the documentary American Meat. Schedule and tickets here.

Butchery Classes at Luke’s Local – April 12. Underscoring the company philosophy of responsible and conscientious food harvest, Luke’s Local practices whole animal butchery to create product efficiencies and minimize waste.  To educate customers about the process, the Luke’s Local culinary team has launched a monthly butchery class series in which attendees will learn how to break down the side of a pig, and understand the art of butchery, using a Llano Seco pig to do so. Sign-up here.

Cochon 555 San Francisco – April 27. This porcine parade that highlights heritage breeds will feature one of our hogs paired with a well-known city chef for the ongoing national tour of pig-ish gluttony. Details and tickets here.

North Beach Citizens Annual Dinner – April 27. Our pork will be cooked by Tasha DeSerio for the annual fundraiser of the non-profit organization that utilizes the talents of the North Beach community to innovatively address the needs of its homeless and low-income citizens in an atmosphere of trust, integrity, and respect. Tickets here.

Raphael House Gala Auction -  May 2nd. The first homeless shelter for children and families in Northern California. Our pork and beans will be part of an auction prize. Learn more about the shelter here.

Chico Unified School District – ongoing. Serving up our responsible, humane, local and family-farmed pork and beef hot dogs for school lunches, every week. Their motto: “Because student health and student learning go hand in hand, we want to empower every child and every family in the Chico community to make healthy food and physical activity choices everyday.”

Want to know where we’re next serving up our pork? Stay up to date with our happenings on our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram feeds.

   Berta’s Cuban Black Beans

To inspire you for our recipe contest, here’s one from our dear friend and culinary mentor Niloufer Ichaporia King, specialist in tropical cuisines, author of My Bombay Kitchen: traditional and modern Parsi home cooking, University of California Press, 2007.

Folklorist Berta Montero Bascom of Havana used to bring a vast vat of these beans, expected and appreciated, to any occasion where food was shared.  Below is Berta’s family recipe recounted as we cooked them together in her Berkeley kitchen.  This is a dish you can and perhaps should make days ahead.  Quantities are elastic, and you can halve or expand this recipe without running into trouble.  Two pounds of beans will serve 15-20 people depending on what else you’re having.

1. Soak 2 lbs. of  Llano Seco Black Turtle beans for several hours or overnight.  Cook with or without ham hocks, 3 ham hocks for 2 lbs. of beans.  When beans are tender but not mushy,  say 1 ½ -2 hours, remove the ham hocks and reserve them.

2. Make a sofrito from 2 large onions, finely chopped, 2 green pepper chopped, 6 cloves of garlic, finely chopped, 2 tsp. cumin seeds, pounded, about 2 tsp. dried oregano, crumbled, and 2 bay leaves:  Sauté onion, garlic and green pepper in ¼ cup olive oil until soft.  Then add the cumin, oregano and bay leaves and sauté another minute or two. Add the sofrito to the beans.  Deglaze the frying pan with red wine or sherry vinegar and add that to the beans as well and if you have any still drinkable bottle ends of red wine, here’s a great place for them. Add salt to taste, being conservative as the cooking liquid will reduce.

3. Bring the beans to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer the beans, stirring from time to time, until the flavors are combined. This second cooking should take another hour and a half or so can also be done on top of the stove, which requires attention, or in a slow oven, about 300 degrees. Add reserved ham hocks, cut up, for the last half hour.  After the beans have rested but are still warm, adjust the salt again.

Welcome 2014. We salute the old, proud and strong, and usher in the new, nervous and eager. We love the holiday because it asks for reflection, it encourages assessment, it illuminates our urge for growth, change, adaptation. Every culture has its own new year, and various celebration rituals, and the universality of the holiday inspires us.   In this spirit of rebirth we have some important information to share with you. After a number of dedicated years inside the organic system, we have decided that this certification does not reflect what we think is the most sustainable way for us to raise pigs. We have applied for and will receive Global Animal Partnership (GAP) step two certification. Our pigs are our first priority, and their health was the driving factor behind our decision. Our fresh pork has already transitioned to this natural classification and our value-added products will change in the coming month.   We are leaving organic certification due in large part to the cost of organic feed and our desire to protect the stable health of our herd through de-worming. The rise in organic feed costs would have forced us to raise prices almost 40% this year. Rather than pass on these costs to you, we aimed to eliminate our expenses without negatively affecting the quality and flavor of our pork. Our feed will continue to be grown on the ranch without genetic engineering, and our rations will remain the same. The pigs will eat seasonally on what the ranch is harvesting: principally, wheat in the spring and summer and corn in the fall and winter. Our farming practice is GMO-free, with minimum to zero pesticide and herbicide application. Our husbandry techniques will continue to be humane and stress-free. By using a common and safe anti-parasitic medication for our piglets, healthy bacteria in the gastrointestinal system can take hold early on. With these changes, our production will increase and our pigs will be stronger and healthier. Our pork will always be rich and complex in flavor, and supple in texture.   OUR PROMISES Despite the transition, the following facts remain true of our pork: ×   Pigs are confinement-free for their entire lives, raised in deep-bedded hoop barns with continual access to large open air pastures with plenty of sunshine and a great view of the California Buttes.  ×   We will never use antibiotics or hormone treatments for our pigs. ×   No sodium nitrates or nitrates, preservatives or artificial ingredients in our products. ×   All feed grown on the ranch is always GMO-free and vegetarian. ×   Animals are never fed animal bi-products or waste. ×   Animals are slaughtered in a USDA-inspected, certified humane processing facility near the Rancho. ×   Products are minimally processed and gluten-free. ×   Cuts are fabricated at our own Chico butchering facility.    For more details about the our practices, see our pork production facts here.

At the Rancho, we’re preparing for winter. In the down time we’re laying drip irrigation for new fields to go into production next spring. About 1/3 of our heifers have born their calves and the rest should be done by Christmas. We’re watching the walnut leaves blow around, awaiting the flux of annual visitors, the migratory birds of the Pacific Flyway. We’ve started our duck hunting season by inviting friends from far and wide to cook with us, hatch new business endeavors together that give back to the earth as we take from it.

The last of our new crop of heirloom beans was harvested last week, getting ready to ship out to Mollie Stones Markets and restaurants throughout the Bay Area. We’re growing 11 varietals: Black Calypso, Black Turtle, Black-eyed Peas, Yellow Canary (Canario), Pinquito, Baby Lima, Appaloosa, Jacob’s Cattle, Anasazi, Tarbais and Cannellini beans. Some are small, delicate, white and simple…while others are elegant, mottled and multicolored. And each has its own distinct and fascinating history. Tarbais, named for a small town in Southwestern France, is the original Cassoulet bean and is traditionally companion grown with corn, using the stalk as its runner pole. Jacob’s Cattle is a Prince Edward Island native, and legend has it that the bean was a gift from Maine’s Passamaquoddy Indians to Joseph Clark. The Pinquito (or “Little Pink”) is rooted in California history, a mainstay of Central Coast Santa Maria BBQ culture and brought here by the Missionaries. Each bean tells us a unique gastronomic and cultural story, and we are reminded that “agriculture” is in practice the same as its provenance: field + culture.

Heirloom Beans In their first year of production here on the Rancho, our heirloom beans are harvested proof of our commitment to biodiversity. Or rather, first year of our commitment to GMO-free heirloom varietals grown with minimal to zero chemical treatments. Beans were a common crop here on the Rancho over the course of its history and we’re excited to revive the tradition with this autumn’s crop. With over 150 years of experience cultivating legumes, we have applied our know-how to growing older varieties of beans and ensuring that heirlooms continue to be available for eaters who put a premium on flavor over price. The unleveled fields along the Rancho flood plain curve in the shape of the gentle paleo-era oxbows, created over millennia by the Sacramento River and its sister waterways.

But what’s an Heirloom? What's a Heritage Breed? We grow heirloom beans expressly for their rich flavor and their rich history. Heirloom vegetables and heritage breed animals are, in simple terms, the old timey varieties that are known for their flavor and nutritional value, that have gone out of fashion due to their inability to adapt to industrial agriculture’s ways.

The mechanization of agriculture began with the industrial revolution in the late 1800's but was changed dramatically in the years post-WWII, as when the war came to an end, our industry was flooded with extra chemicals, materials, metals, and manpower with undetermined end-users. Agriculture absorbed the surpluses, and created machines, fertilizers, pesticides, and big agriculture companies from the “run-off”. As the food business expanded, and companies consolidated, and began to rely more on mechanized planting, harvesting, packaging, trucking, and selling, the types of fruits and vegetables and animals that were best suited to those processes became preferred. Flavor was no longer the factor in choosing to cultivate a certain crop, but rather its resilience to the supply chain: could it withstand a long truck ride in crates without its skin tearing or bruising, or be stored for months in a warehouse without rotting.

As breeds and varieties were chosen for their adaptation to industrial agriculture systems, the diversity of food choices we now have naturally decreased – our choices were robbed of us in favor of efficiency and profit. But as part of the local/organic/small-scale food and farming movement, farmers have been rerouting back to varieties and breeds that are flavorful, beautiful, nutritious…maybe less resilient, but more enjoyable to eat. They may not be the easiest to grow, pack, or ship. But they are better for you, better tasting, and better suited to our needs as humans, not just the needs of corporations. 

How to store, soak, cook and enjoy Llano Seco Heirloom Beans

×   Store in airtight containers in a cool, dry place that is not in direct sunlight. 

×   Rinse beans to remove dust dirt and any small pebbles.

×   Cover beans by at least 3 inches of cold water. Soak beans for 6 to 10 hours (up to 24 is fine). Drain the beans and put covered in fridge if you are not cooking them immediately.

×   If you are ready to cook, place the beans in a large pot. Fill the pot with cold water. Bring to a boil, and continually skim any foam that rises to the surface and discard. Lower to a simmer and cook for 1-2 hours, depending on size of bean and desired tenderness. Gently simmering allows beans to stay creamy in texture.

×   To season, add salt when the beans have begun to soften, usually about halfway through cooking. The salt will pass through the beans’ softened skin and bring out their flavor.

×   Add acidic ingredients such as tomatoes, vinegar, wine, or citrus juice once the beans have softened; if added too early, acid can thicken the beans’ skin and extend cooking time. Non-acidic seasonings such as herbs, garlic, and onion can go into the pot from the start. Bay leaves, whole chili peppers and peppercorns are beautiful ways to brighten a pot of beans.

×   Conversely, If you are in a rush,  put the beans in a large pot with enough cool water to cover by about 3-inches. Bring to a boil; boil for two minutes. Remove from the heat, cover, and let stand for 1-2 hours. Drain and rinse before cooking. This doesn’t insure even rehydration, and therefore beans may cook more unevenly.

The heat wanes, the tomatoes in the kitchen garden ripen, we take our last fishing trip before kiddos go back to school, all the while waiting patiently for our made-in-june nocino to be ready. We realized it's been some time since we sent an update, so here we are with some "noticias", or news of the Rancho.

O F F A L  W O N D E R F U L September 23-29, 2013

We have Offal Wonderful news! In partnership with the Butcher’s Guild and the Eat Real Festival, Llano Seco is proud to present the inaugural event Offal Wonderful, September 23-29th, 2013. Offal Wonderful is a week-long promotional campaign to celebrate the fabulous innards of every animal. The climax of the week will be a series of offal-focused activities at the 5th annual Eat Real Festival in Jack London Square, Oakland, September 27-29th.

Offal Wonderful will introduce eaters to the delicious variety of variety meats, the oft ignored, off-cuts and offal, traditionally defined as the organ meat of the animal, and will help you to do the same. Read on to see how you can join in our mission to share wonderful offal with the world! In the lead up to Eat Real, there will be a 4-day fest of Bay Area restaurants, butcher shops, caterers, food trucks and pop-ups featuring offal on their menu and hosting their own offal-centric events. The Butcher’s Guild Retreat, an educational, inspirational gathering of the country’s premier meat- cutters, curers and creators that directly follows the Eat Real Festival, will also feature offal in its programming this year. A cavalcade of carnivorous curiosity!

Events & Activities

Offal All Over in Bay Area restaurants Participating restaurants will feature locally sourced offal dishes throughout Offal Wonderful Week, Monday Sept 23 – Sunday Sept 29th.  Check in with our Facebook page to see a constantly updated list of participating restaurants.     Butcher’s Guild Whole Hog and Master Case Butchery Contests A competition enthusiastically watched by hundreds of Eat Real guests, 3 teams are given the opportunity to turn a whole hog into porcine plentitude in a timed competition with their skills of cutting, curing and creating. Expert judges make the final call on the team that has transformed a carcass into the most efficient, profitable and tasty display. Offal will be included as part of the competitions, as chefs will be required to utilize off-cuts, and will be judged on their prowess.   Oakland Chefs Stage Don’t miss the Oakland Chef Spotlight this year at the Eat Real Festival, where our very own Oakland Chefs will demonstrate how to prepare creative and flavorful dishes from a pre-selected basket of ingredients featuring Llano Seco offal as part of the competition’s “Offal Off.”    Delicious America Offal tasting As part of Eat Real’s workshop series “Delicious America,” this will be a series of 6 curated tastings of delicious craft food offerings available around the United States. Each tasting will include 5 samples and a beer, wine, hard cider or non-alcoholic drink. Tickets for each tasting are $15.00 and will be sold in advance. Tastings: ·       Country Ham ·       Chicharrones ·       Pepperoni Meat Stick ·       Beef Jerky ·       Goat Cheese ·       Kraut and Kimchi DIY Offal Workshop Get down and dirty with Eat Real festival’s DIY Foods! Traditional food craft goes new school in our workshops on Butchery, DIY chiccharones, sausage, homemade bitters, jam, fresh cheese and more.   Butcher’s Guild Booth at Eat Real Come meet the butchers! Come meet the producers! Find a schedule of all the meaty happenings all weekend at Eat Real Festival.   Butcher’s Guild Retreat: September 30th-October 2nd, California Culinary Academy, San Francisco Two days of education in the art and science of the meat business, including branding, bookkeeping and of course, butchery. Attendees are members of The Butcher’s Guild, an organization promoting the success of artisanal butchers in North America. This year, our master butcher instructor is Dario Cecchini, the world’s most famous butcher, visiting from Tuscany to impart his knowledge with America’s finest. We have added a third-day to the BGC for ten attendees to work hands-on with Dario and hone their skills under the master. Merchandising and processing with offal will be part of the curriculum: butchers know that how you prepare and present these tasty side-notes can often be the difference between break-even and profitability.  Want to learn more, participate, volunteer? Reach out to Olivia Tincani.

H A R V E S T  D I N N E R

Join us at the Rancho for the third annual Harvest Dinner Under the Stars, a fundraiser for the Northern California Regional Land Trust on October 5th, 2013. In addition to a delicious, locally-sourced candlelight dinner, guests will enjoy a ranch tour, live music, wine & beer tasting, and a raffle. The Northern California Regional Land Trust assists Northern California landowners and public agencies in the voluntary protection of land and other natural resources, of which we are a proud member. Sponsorship and/or ticket information here. For more information contact Angie at 530.894.7738. 

L O R E N  A V E N U E

Did you know we process at our own facility in Chico? Our pigs travel a short 20 minute drive to our abbatoir for slaughter, and then another 10 minute drive to our plant where our master butchers cut your meat to order. We're spending all our dollars in our local economy to bring you California's premier organic pork and beef products, from farrow to fork. 

Tried our Organic Argentine Sausage? We recommend cooking it "asado style". That means put them on the grill early over a wood coal fire until they're dark and their casings are crispy. Don't have fire? Otherwise cook in a dry skillet over medium low heat until dark brown. And check the web for good Chimichurri sauce recipes to pair with them. 

In the marginal moments of our holiday weekend, sandwiched in between never ending meals of hot dogs and lemonade, Budweiser and potato salad,  it occured to us how FULL we are. 

As both patriots and pioneers of the sustainable food movement, we often spend much of our energy ruminating on what we lack. We lack legislation that encourages long-term restorative land stewardship methods and encouraging innovation in sustainable practices. We lack the right to save our own seed for certain crops, to ensure our right to farming freedom. We lack food policy that stands up to multinational corporate food conglomerates to make our food actually safe, traceable, transparent, understood. We lack implementation of plans for ending diseases such as diabetes and obesity, diseases that thrive not from failures in medicine but from our culture of convenience and commercialism.

 We endlessly complain about what we lack, what we don’t have, where we must get, what we must do, to change the way our country farms and eats.

But let us take a moment and reflect on what we have.

We live in a place that is fertile and can produce food. The agricultural diversity of our landmass is astounding, the distances overwhelming but the richness even more so. We do not ship in foreign wheat and cereals to feed our children. We do not stand in line for rations.  We do not wait for air drops of some other country’s processed meals to feed us. The majority of us do not die of hunger or malnutrition. We are satiated, we are nourished, and we are self-sufficient. 

We live in a place that encourages individual success. Schools, parents, government, work, television and technology all teach us to know that what we want – whatever we want – is achievable. In our blood is a belief in meritocracy. This allows us to dream up our lives, and then make them happen. We look for solutions to hurdles rather than allow ourselves to be self-defined by them. And so we make gardens, farms, companies, CSAs, restaurants, farmers markets, shops, distribution lines, bicycle delivery services, online meal kit plans, buying clubs, 4H groups, county fairs, recipe boxes, cookbooks, urban farms, school gardens, soup kitchens, and hundreds of other ways to get food to the table. We feed ourselves well, resourcefully, and often.

We have choices. We choose how we spend our money to nourish our families, even when our dollars are few, because we have healthy market competition to bring us options. We value diversity and encourage the world to offer us more. We may choose fast food, we may not. We may cook at home, we may not. We may feel stretched thin by SNAP benefits, but we have SNAP benefits to turn to in times of needs. We may not all be able to afford the $5 Ferry Plaza market peach, but we may consider it a political statement when we do, and we may try and adjust our expenditures elsewhere accordingly. Our food choices are voices, even if the song is humble.

After a long, quiet, chilly season, Llano Seco Rancho is headed out of the winter with a veritable bloom of news and goods! As we grow closer to the Spring Equinox we've got lots of "new new new" to announce. We can finally invite you to visit our new website where all our news, photos, vendors, and product detail can be found. We're nestling into our new online home, so please send us your feedback on what you think could be better about our site! In Rancho news, we are  preparing 300 acres on the ranch for a planting of chandler walnuts this June, and we are installing our first drip system for our certified organic fields, which should be ready for March planting of organic corn. We are nearing the next slaughter of our organic cows for our beef program. We continue our partnership with US Fish & Wildlife to operate our rotational grazing methodology in the field, restoring native grasses while eradicating invasive weed species.

This passing through winter toward spring has revealed two new value-added products as well, our breakfast sausage and hot dog, both 100% local and organic, raised from our own pig and cow herds. Our breakfast sausage has just enough sweetness to awaken your palate while still offering our trademark unctuous savory porkiness. And our hot dog is unparallelled on the market - finally an organic, nitrate and nitrite free ballpark dog with all the right ethics and amazing flavor and texture. Check out availability near you on our brand new Shop web page.

We have been hard at work all winter on preparing a new meat cutting and cold storage facility in Chico. From now on we will take all butchery in house, and we have a solid team of sage professional butchers at the helm. We have had years of great service from nearby Olson Meat Company, but are excited to expand our own internal operations with this development.

The daylight hours shorten and the end of fall nears at the Rancho. We've completed our harvest of walnuts, cucumbers, squash, pumpkins, melons, sunflowers, and corn. The natural agricultural cycle of reaping nears a close as we begin to wind down for the season. We are planting oats and wheat, crops that will be overwintered. We're preparing new land for organic corn, and a new walnut orchard alongside the Sacramento River. Our organic calves are all sold and gone. Duck and deer season have begun and the ranch is alive with the winged visitors of the great Pacific flyway.

A Note to Our Loyal Customers 2012 has seen numerous changes for the Rancho and its pork program. So as to meet the growing demand in our Northern California community, we've augmented our herds, added another barn, and increased our volume 50% from where we were a year ago. We have worked diligently to control inconsistencies in growth and slaughter so that we may provide you with a dependable product each week. We've listened to your feedback on items such as our bacon, sausage, and loin size, and aim to continue to provide an exemplary, unparalleled certified organic and local product to you and your customers. Despite our focus, the surrounding agricultural climate has been working against us. In order to offset the overall environmental impact of our farming, we buy 100% organic feed, 90% of which is sourced locally. As we're sure you are aware, the worst drought in 25 years wracked the fields and lives of farmers across America this summer. Corn yields were down by more than 11% by the end of the season, gaining record high prices.{1} Soybean and wheat were not far behind, and together these three crops make up a good portion of our pig feed. In addition, the high demand for corn by Ethanol production creates a situation in which animal feed costs soar, thus putting many small and mid-scale farmers in danger. Many farmers have scaled down their herds in order to afford to feed them, and many have folded. The demand for organic feed is growing at a rapid rate as the market for organic meat products expands, and organic feed prices are, on average, double that of conventional grains. {2} We at Llano Seco pride ourselves on creative problem solving, and are working hard to keep feed costs down. We have entered into a unique relationship with a local tofu producer to utilize his soy bi-product, rich in the nutritional requirements for our pigs, to supplement our feed. Despite this, however, we are presented with the difficult reality of needing to raise our prices slightly in order to continue production. We perform deep analysis on our production costs, and have been operating at a nearly insolvent rate for the last 18 months. We want to continue to provide you and your consumers with our exceptional organic pork, and in order to remain operational in these times, we must raise our per pound price on certain cuts and products.

An intact, original Mexican Land Grant tract, Llano Seco is in its 6th generation of California agricultural production and land conservation. We have no interest in stopping our work. We hope you understand the pressures affecting this change. Please be in touch directly with Charlie  or Jamie if you have questions or concerns.

{1} USDA Report: Drought 2012 Farm and Food impacts. {2} University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension: Organic Grains and Oilseed for Animal Feed.

Good Food Merchants Guild Llano Seco is proud to have been accepted as a charter member of the Good Food Merchants Guild, an organization that will foster, distinguish, and unite good food producers from across the country. The Guild is designed to both broadcast and support craft food producers from coast to coast who create tasty, authentic, and responsible food. The Guild will connect, convene, and promote good food businesses of all sizes, and was born out of the Good Food Awards, which in the last three years has become a nationally recognized benchmark for exceptional quality in artisanal food production. The Guild's members include producers making everything from cheese and charcuterie to coffee and confections. Llano Seco was accepted as a member for our "Salt & Smoke" charcuterie products, such as our bacon, Italian sausage, smoked ham hocks, etc. We look forward to participating in growing the association as it seeks to raise market-wide awareness about honest producers and their much loved products. Look for the Good Food Merchants Guild mark as it begins to be used by fellow sustainable producers!

Giving Back In September, we gave 300lbs of pork shoulder to the annual Eat Real Festival in Jack London Square. The annual gathering's mission is to help revitalize regional food systems, to build public awareness of and respect for the craft of making good food, and to encourage the growth of American food entrepreneurs. The three day festival is a varietal smorgasbord of a variety of food vendors and trucks, educational events such as live butchery and craft beer workshops, music, eating, drinking, and general gastronomic debauchery. We were proud to have Charlie Hallowell of Pizziaolo mix up our pork into meatballs as part of the west coast installment of NYC's Meatopia, Josh Ozertsky's yearly carnivoral carnival. We were honored to be in the meaty mix with many venerated producers and talented chefs. We also recently donated product for The Bay Institute's annual San Francisco Bay Gala event. For the last 28 years, The Institute's mission has been to protect, restore, and inspire conservation of the San Francisco Bay and its watershed -- from the Sierra to the sea. Given our delicate positioning and dependence on the Sacramento River, we here at the Rancho feel strongly about supporting water conservation efforts in our region.

Shop our Farmers Markets Now you won't have to wait until the weekend to get your Llano Seco meat! The newest addition to our market schedule is downtown SF at Crocker Galleria. Come see us for lunch, we'll feed you some sausage samples...

  The solstice, the 4th, and Labor Day weekend's blue moon have all come and gone since last we wrote and Llano Seco Rancho has seen a successful summer, despite the national drought. Our calves sold well at auction and have been sent off to new stewards. Our wheat is fully harvested and we're happy with the yield. We are getting ready to harvest the sunflowers and vineseed (watermelon, cantaloupe, cucumber, squash and the like). Walnuts are leafy and green and growing fast. Pigs farrow and baby pigs grow up and we continue to sell deep, rich reddish organic pork with pride.

Sausage and Spare Ribs New sausage is here! We listened to your feedback and perfected the recipe so that our lean and fat are now in delicious balance. Brand new Italian Organic sausage is available at all retail outlets and farmers markets beginning this week. Spare ribs are in full effect at our farmers market stands. Slender bones wrapped in meaty goodness, they are perfect for a summer grill after a marinade or spice rub or BBQ douse. Or you can try our pre-cooked bourbon peach 17-spice spare ribs from John Fink and The Whole Beast. We've paired up with John to make co-branded products using our pristine product and his chef smarts. Check out our "Tuscan Pork" potted pork in the cute little mason jar - it's spreadable happiness. All are available at our farmers market stands in Chico and Fort Mason

Our Butchers... In a sleepy hill-top Bernal heights spot lives Avedano's Holly Park Market, one of our most loyal butcher shop clients. Originally opened as a butcher shop in 1901, this historic establishment has been reinvented as an old-fashioned butcher shop and market specializing in sustainably grown and raised products. With their well-honed cleaver skills and an impressive yet ancient rail system, owners Tia Harrison, Melanie Eisemann, and Angela Wilson re-opened the shop in 2006 and restored the spirit of the neighborhood butcher shop.

Their Head Butcher Chris Arentz first learned about the shop by way of Meatpaper, one of our favorite food rags. As a chef who traveled to Italy to expand his gastronomic knowledge, Chris spent almost a year studying the old ways of meat cutting with famed Italian butcher Dario Cecchini in his shop in Panzano. When he finally came home, he was attracted to Avedano's for their old world, artisan ethos and traditional whole carcass butchery, as the ladies were early pioneers in reviving this method of purchasing and utilization. Chris quickly worked his way up from humble beginnings lingering in the meat locker working for free, and after two years, is now Avedano's main butcher. Chris buys LSR pork for the shop, appreciating the thick-but-not-to-thick luscious fat cap on our pork chops, the carefully preserved skin on our roasts, and the deep marbling of all our meat. We're lucky to have him as a patron and deeply appreciate his and Avedano's work.

Introducing: Llano Seco Pasture Raised Organic Beef Llano Seco is thrilled to announce the first offering of its own Organic Beef. Our initial herd of organic, pasture raised cattle is now at market in the form of your favorite primal and sub-primal cuts. These animals feed on native California grasslands for their entire life, with a supplement of organically grown, highly nutritional local cereals and grains for their last 120 days only. They never leave the pasture to feed, and never see confinement. Our beef has the benefits of a grass fed product, with delectably complex flavor, and is ribboned with fat for a supple texture. Our finish feed was developed specifically for our herds by an animal nutritionist, as we believe strongly in maintaining the highest health standards possible as our animals are growing towards slaughter.

Like all of Llano Seco cattle, these animals play a critical role in our conservation efforts. In a unique partnership with US Fish & Wildlife, we graze our cattle on native grasslands. They in turn eradicate non-native invasive weeds as part of their feeding. By promoting a biodiverse plant population through their rotations across our pastures, we continue to rejuvenate a nearly lost California landscape through sustainable and responsible animal husbandry practices. Furthermore, in investing our dollars in a localized grain economy, we are working to complete the circle of a sovereign local and organic food system for our region.

Spring stomps toward summer and we continue to cultivate. We completed planting 432 acres of sunflowers, and continue to pre-irrigate and plant vine seed crops of watermelons, cucumber, squash, pumpkins and melons. The first irrigation of the walnuts is complete and this year's crop is developing nicely. We work to control the primrose in Perkins and Eddy lakes, an invasive water plant that takes over the natural riparian species. In a month or so Bake and Coop will wean our calves and prepare them for sale via auction.

Our Artisanal Products Our Organic Smoked Mini Hams are here! Our hams will hit the stores this week so be sure to ask your retailer to carry them if you don't see them in the meat case next to our chops and bacon. Sweet pork flavor and hickory smoke come together artfully, and at just over 2lbs, it's a manageable size for a small family or couple. We take a single muscle, brine it with organic spices, and then smoke it to make a ham that's perfect as a roast for a modest dinner party, or to slice for sandwiches. The hams are the most recent release in our line of artisanal, hand-crafted value added goods, all made with our organic pork and available at both the downtown Chico and Fort Mason (SF) Farmers Markets. Next up out of our kitchen will be Organic Hickory Smoked Ham Hocks, Organic Breakfast Sausage, Organic Argentine Sausage and Organic Hot Dogs. Send us feedback and help us suit our product to your liking!

The Gentle Farmer: Mindful Meat Eating The New York Times recently asked for our thoughts on whether we should eat meat, and if so, if it's ethical. This inspired our Director Charlie Thieriot to think through his feelings on the matter. "May this food, as it becomes my body, make the dream of the universe come true."  - Unknown author   When I was a kid I experienced food in two very different ways.   My mother raised me on a mix of eastern philosophies and western ethics, which were in turn influenced by our Christian heritage and culture. What we called spirituality, what helped her guide me toward the world she wanted for me, was Buddhism more than anything else. There was a magic to its practice that resonated with me and the exercise of meditation felt so tangible. Like a work out, I could physically take my spirituality into my own hands through meditation. That was easier for me than faith, which I’m still working on making space for.   I would go with my mom on meditation retreats, some as long as a week, some silent. We went to places like Green Gulch and Tasahara and retreat centers whose names I can’t remember. We sat and listened to teachers like Tich Nath Hanh and Jack Cornfield. We ate vegetarian meals in silence. We meditated for long periods of time and worked in the kitchens and the gardens as part of our practice and as part of the community. My hands would ache for my Nintendo video games, but then the rhythm of working, sitting, breathing, working, sitting, breathing would break through the anxiety and the calm would come pouring in, or the stress would pour out, or maybe both.   I was a sensitive kid, and also very rebellious. It was the late 80's and I was a skater punk: more punk than skater; more poser than punk. I craved and ate McDonalds. Commercials for Snickers Bars would send me like a Pavlovian dog on treks to the corner store between endless HBO sessions. Action movies, sugar, salt and fat: these were the highs I sought. They were a sadly brief respite from the emotional hurricane of puberty. The louder and angrier the distress in my head became, the saltier, fattier and sugarier the food had to be. Cigarettes and alcohol came later, but all my methods for feeling better when I felt bad, a familiar response for many of us at some point in our lives.   From my late teens through my twenties, I steered clear of Buddhism and the mental emotional exercise of meditation. Then, after 15 years, I went to a silent Vipasana men's retreat at Spirit Rock Meditation Center near Fairfax, California. I went to sit with and listen to a childhood teacher, Jack Cornfield, whose lectures on tape had reached me and given me succor in my darkest times. I had been selling something I didn’t believe in while living in a place I didn’t like and over time this changed the way I thought of myself. When I stopped to look around, I realized I wasn’t all that proud of myself.   During the first three days of the retreat we ate the kitchen out of food, literally. They hadn't hosted an all-men retreat for years and they were unprepared for how much we ate in those first days. None of us were accustomed to not being unable to snack. Three meals a day and nothing but our own minds as a distraction in between. We attacked our food and ate with the purpose of medication. That quiet voice inside, the part that tells us we’ve had enough to eat, got blown out of the way. Then, like horses suffering from colic, whose large round panicked eyes roll around in their heads, we wondered, with belts unbuckled and hands massaging tummies, how we ate so much.   During the evening lectures the teachers suggested that we try eating meditation. We were already eating in silence, so it wasn't too much of a leap to close our eyes and put the fork down between bites. We were encouraged to think about where the food had come from while we chewed: the sun, the earth, the rain, the farmer, the packer and the cook. Around that third day, after hours of sitting and breathing and walking and breathing, we found a deeper connectivity, and personal acceptance. Our food consumption halved. The buffet pans were half full at the end of lunch. You could look around the room and see men’s upturned faces, eyes closed, chewing purposefully and with delight. We were lost in the meals and the glory of this fundamental connection we all share with the planet. I remember clearly biting into a boiled carrot and tasting so much sweetness and flavor that it was a near ecstatic experience. It became clear to me in that moment that the stillness and intention of the eater is the most important ingredient in any meal. It is the most important element in eating appropriate portions.   In the words of my good friend, and mentor in all things food, Max Stepanian, “With the click of a mouse death is dealt.” The sentence refers to how easy it is in the meat business to become disconnected with the very serious effects of our actions. And how we had better keep an eye on our humanity as the kill days come and pass. At Llano Seco we slaughter every Monday, cut and wrap every Tuesday and bring the meat to our purveyors in the Bay Area and Central Valley every Wednesday. We do this so that our customers can eat fresh pork every Thursday. I eat meat. I sell meat. I kill. I also think about how the Buddhist texts are written by men and women who counsel us not to kill.   In the years after my last sales job, I practiced and taught yoga. There was constant reference to how living a vegetarian life was a good idea if you wanted to deepen your physical practice. For two months in 2006 I was a practicing vegetarian. It was bacon that brought me back to meat, but only at the end of a lot of suffering. I worried that I was weak for not being able to stay away from meat.   “Non-violence begins with the self.” – Robert Boustany, Yoga Teacher   I still practice yoga and I meditate. I also eat meat and love it. The way that I interpret the Buddhist and Yogic teachings is to do the least amount of harm possible. I believe in humane animal husbandry and organic agriculture. That is why I don’t beat myself up over eating meat if it makes my body feel good. That is why I attempt to eat slowly and think about where my food comes from, so that I can hear myself saying, “enough”.

Niloufer's Carnitas We asked our dear friend Niloufer King for a recipe that she uses for our organic pork. The acclaimed Bay Area chef and author of My Bombay Kitchen, a unique view into modern Parsi cooking, explains that simple cooking can produce lovely, versatile results with our product. ~ - ~ - ~ - ~ Nothing could be easier or more delicious than this simple Diana Kennedy-inspired approach to duplicating the mounds of fragrant, succulent pork you see in Mexico. It's a perfect example of how superlative ingredients don’t need much done to them, and how a cooking technique from one cuisine can be a springboard  treatments from elsewhere. Yes, you can go in several directions with herbs and spices, or wine as the cooking liquid, but for the first time at least, let Llano Seco pork speak for itself. What we have here are a few guidelines, freeing you up to cook for as many people as you want.  All that's required is that you not wander away from the kitchen for too long at either of the two stages of cooking. Carnitas { serves 4-6 } Boneless LSOP pork shoulder ~3lbs. Good salt, about 1 ½ tsp. Water Cut the pork into chunks about 2"x2"x4" and don’t worry if all the pieces aren’t  even.  Put them in an unheated iron skillet big enough to hold them  in one layer without overlapping. Pour in cold water to cover the chunks without setting them afloat. Add the salt (you can always add a little more later). Bring the water to a boil over high heat, lower the flame and let the pork cook at a very gentle simmer until the water boils away. This should take about 45 minutes, but if the pork isn’t cooked through by then, add more water and keep doing so until the pork is tender but not falling apart. If a knife tip goes through the meat without resistance, you’re there. Continuing over low heat, let the pieces of pork get brown and crusty.  How brown and how crusty is up to you. In our house, whoever is watching the pan at this stage gets to decide. You can serve these carnitas with tortillas, a salsa, avocado slices and lime wedges, or you can head in another direction with polenta (my new favorite is Polenta Taragna, a mixture of corn and buckwheat), or grits, or beans cooked with a little garlic and a bay leaf, and a quick sauté of chard, kale or cabbage. Grind black pepper over the carnitas just before serving them.

We're looking forward to the Tony's Fine Food show on June 5th, an industry event hosted by our loyal distributor where we will display our growing line of artisanal cured pork and beef products. The event is for food industry representatives only, but you can be sure to see the results appearing at a retail store near you soon.