Soil Born Farms 2011 - Is there a better way to celebrate the fall?

 Soil Born Farms Autumnal Equinox is one of the To-Be-At Foodie events for Sacramento, and has been for years, there is really no better way to celebrate what is so uniquely wonderful about Sacramento then to enjoy the fruits (and vegetables) of it's labors - the works behind Soil Born always humble me, and also astound me when other don't seem to know who/ what they are. 

A friend of mine, fellow blogger Jackie Howard from Yummy Vegan Tummy, (and a previously fellow co-op kid) went with me to this years Soil Born festival - "I had no idea she said...so beautiful...so incredible." This is a common reaction to what Soil Born farms is able to achieve in the Sacramento urban area. From their Farmer's Market stand that sells out within hours at McKinley Park (8:00am/ Saturday) in East Sacramento (all the eggs were literally gone in 2 minuets) to their constant supplementing the "it" foodie restaurants in Sacramento with their seasonal produce. 

Their karma is seeming to know no bounds, oh wait but the real wonder work is done on the school education front; where the Soil Born farmers teach kids how to grow, cook and care for REAL food.
This festival is a celebration of all that.

 Another previous co-op kid friend of mine, Elle, got a chance to work on their farm...and she quite seriously lived, slept, ate, showered, and breathed farm life in their apprenticeship program (like really lived on the farm, not in the farmhouse) - this is a feat I fear I would never be capable of. My mother a life long farmer and orange grower heard this and said "I would never do that, I need a real bed" granted Elle is a bit more spry than my farming family - but that little anecdote was to express the deep love these farmers, foodies, and agriculutre zealots have for such a worthy cause. 

OK so enough rhapsodizing, and on to the food...real highlights included:

• the cold melon soup with a hint of spice put out by Ame Mean Eats                                                                                             (yeah, Ame Harrington is back!)
•  short ribs from grange
• panzanella salad and sausages from OneSpeed (evening winner!)
• Hay-Wire cider (9%) from Two Rivers (this was a real crowd pleaser, and I loved the barnyard-y taste of their cider - definitely not the traditional too-sweet apple style)

Congrats Soil Born on a great year! Looking forward for many years to come!