Upcoming Farm Fun

Saturday, December 6th, 11 am - 1:00 pm - Holiday Wreath-making: We provide the wreath frame and loads of fresh foliage, berries, and evergreens as materials for your wreath. $25 per person. Event limited to 20 persons. Event Full

Happenings at the Farm

You'd be forgiven if you mistook our knobby-kneed sunchokes for ginger - they look a lot alike! I've written previously about the (mis)naming of sunchokes as "Jerusalem artichokes," but it seems the new moniker - sunchoke - is catching on. Sunchokes are the tuber of perennial sunflowers, native to North America. If you've wandered the farm and noticed a long row of really tall sunflowers - those are the sunchoke plants. Sunchokes are great raw or cooked and have a nutty taste and starchy texture, often compared to water chestnuts or potatoes. These gnarly vegetables may look nondescript, but sunchokes do have a superpower - inulin. Inulin is a soluble dietary fiber that is quite prevalent in sunchokes and which renders them a "prebiotic" food. The nutrient inulin is a unique type of carbohydrate called a polyfructan. Instead of getting digested in the small intestine as most carbohydrates do, inulin passes through intact to the large intestine, where it becomes food for certain types of bacteria. As these good bacteria proliferate, they help to increase nutrient absorption while also lowering risks associated with colon cancer and allergies. Wow! We've got to keep these good guys well-fed and watered. And sunchokes can be part of that plan! You might try eating them raw, dipped in hummus or guacamole. Or roasting sunchokes is also a great option as the outer skin will crisp up while the interior remains soft. Even easier is a quick stir-fry - and then add some white wine and braise your chokes with thyme or rosemary...bonus sunchoke recipe below. Looks delicious! I'll take those knobby knees any day.

The celery is tall and beautiful right now, so we're featuring it in our Harvest Bag and at the stand. Zucchini keeps coming, but winter squash will soon crowd it out. Speaking of, I'm hearing sweet reports about the winter squash. Time to add it to the menu plan! Green beans are gorgeous. Lettuces are amazing. And we continue to have sweet Cornitos peppers coming out our ears! Don't forget to try some celery root; it has wonderful flavor and real versatility. More strawberries and blackberries on the berry shelf, plus Big Beef and 4th of July tomatoes. Red d'Anjou pears will be soloing for the pear family, but several varieties of apples will still be around. You will find small Kishu mandarins on the fruit table - easy peel, perfect for kids, nice flavor! Valencias, passion fruit, and satsuma mandarins round things out. We're looking forward to seeing you!

- Eileen

Inside the Harvest Bag

Friday, November 7, 2025 Harvest Bag

all for $20

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Acorn Squash

Blue Lake Green Beans

Orange Cornitos Peppers

Parsley

Romaine Lettuce

Halcyon Gold Potatoes

Zucchini

Celery

Blackberries

Vendors

VENDORS THIS FRIDAY

Tiber Canyon Olive Oil

Little Red Hen Bread

VENDORS THIS SATURDAY

Bread Bike Pastries and Bread

The Farm Stand Table (should have...)

Grown on our farm using organic practices and no pesticides:

Brussels sprouts | sunchokes | radicchio | celery root | bi-color corn

blackberries | strawberries | jicama

orange, purple and white sweet potatoes | Italian eggplant | butternut squash

delicata squash | spaghetti squash | kabocha squash | acorn squash

shishito peppers | jalapeno peppers | cornitos peppers | poblano peppers

4th of July and big beef tomatoes | cauliflower | zucchini | carrots | rainbow carrots

Blue Lake green beans | Sierra gold, Halcyon gold, and fingerling potatoes

red and green cabbage | leeks | broccoli | Napa cabbage

spinach | salad mix | red and green salanova lettuce | red and yellow onions

romaine lettuce | red butter lettuce | dandelion greens | collard greens

chicken eggs (limited) | essential oils | sage bundles

marigold and dahlia flower bunches

farm merch: market bags | aprons | t-shirts | baseball hats

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From our partner growers using pesticide-free and/or organic practices:

walnuts | pomegranates | passion fruit | persimmons

apples | red d'Anjou pears

Valencia oranges | satsuma mandarins | kishu mandarins | limequats

Hass avocados | Medjool dates | canned Alaskan salmon

local honey | bee pollen | organic Gilroy garlic | stone-milled flours

Paso almond brittle | Bread Bike granola (Saturday)

duck eggs | sunflower microgreens

vegetable and herb starts from Growing Grounds Farm

Recipes

Sunchoke and Cashew Stir-fry

Ingredients

1 teaspoon peanut or sunflower oil
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon peanut or sunflower oil, plus more if needed
1 tablespoon minced ginger
2 cloves minced garlic
3 medium shallots, chopped
1/2 jalapeno or serrano chile pepper, deveined and minced
1 cup very thinly sliced sunchokes, well scrubbed
Kernels from 2 ears of corn
1 1/2 - 2 cups day-old, cooked brown rice
1 egg, beaten (optional)
1 tablespoon soy sauce, plus more to taste
1/3 cup toasted almond slices
1/2 cup toasted cashews
fine grain sea salt and pepper, to taste
plenty of chopped fresh basil (or sub parsley)

Directions

Start by making a thin egg pancake/crepe by adding one beaten egg to a hot wok (or well-seasoned skillet) that has been coated with about 1 teaspoon of oil. Carefully tilt the pan so the egg covers the bottom as thinly as possible. Cook until the egg is just set. Flip and cook the other side before removing to a cutting board. Let cool, then cut into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
Now you're ready to stir-fry the rest. Make sure all your ingredients are prepped and at the ready, because this goes fast. Heat your wok (or skillet) over high heat until a drop of water vaporizes in a second or two. Swirl in 1 tablespoon of oil, and add the ginger, garlic, shallots, and chile pepper. Stir-fry 20 or thirty seconds, or until fragrant and softened a bit.
Stir in the sunchokes and cook until they take on a hint of color, then add the corn, all the while pushing the ingredients around the pan. If you feel like you need a touch more oil at this point, swirl a bit more in before adding the rice, and stirring well to combine.
If you like less separation in your fried rice, you can stir another beaten egg straight into the rice at this point, it's optional though. If added, stir well, letting the egg cook through. Swirl in the soy sauce, and continue to toss the ingredients.
Add the egg crepe, almonds, and cashews, then taste and work in more soy sauce if needed (or perhaps a bit of salt and pepper instead). Quickly turn out onto a platter to serve, sprinkled generously with chopped basil.

Adapted from https://www.101cookbooks.com

Click to purchase an eGift Certificate to Halcyon Farms.

Stand Hours

OPEN RAIN/SHINE, YEAR ROUND

(may close due to high winds or flooding)

Tuesdays & Fridays: noon to 5 pm

Saturdays: 10 am to 3 pm

FARM STAND LOCATION:

1075 "The Pike" in Arroyo Grande.

We are located on the south side of The Pike,

between Halcyon Road and Elm Street.

write an email to us at

halcyonfarmsag@gmail.com

Grab and Go Harvest Bags

AVAILABLE TUESDAYS AND FRIDAYS ONLY

NO RESERVATION OR SUBSCRIPTION NECESSARY. $20 per bag.

We continue to have a table set up adjacent to our parking lot with the Harvest Bags and the white mail box where you can put your payment ($20/ bag). We accept cash, checks, and Venmo at the table. Or, you can come into the farm stand to pay by EBT or credit card.

Growing vegetables, fruits and fresh cut flowers for our community using organic farming practices and no pesticides.

Halcyon Farms | 1075 The Pike in Arroyo Grande | halcyonfarmsag.com