From the Fyr 5.28.2026
- Jessica Kelleher
- May 28
- 7 min read
Farm Forecast
The farm is entering that slightly feral stage of late spring where everything is happening all at once. The weeds are winning, the greens are exploding, the sourdough shelves are getting cleared out before some of you have even had coffee, and every chef currently smells vaguely like smoke, onions, and olive oil at all times.
Which to me says everything is right in the world again. Listen, I know there's a lot going on in world today, but it's simple moments on the farm that can make everything feel okay, even if it's just for a moment. Small gratitudes. It's what we all need.
Memorial Day weekend may have been rainy (to say the least!), but now everything looks electric green because of it. The kale is insane right now. The herbs are finally acting alive again. And every time I walk through the market lately I find myself accidentally buying six things I didn’t plan on because suddenly it feels like cooking season again. And thank goodness for that because pantry cooking is fun, but only until it's not!
And the market itself has become kind of amazing? (Thanks Max!)
Like a REAL market market now.
Not just prepared food.
You can build an entire kitchen here at this point. Cooking fats, pantry staples, pickled things, sauces, pottery, wooden utensils, weird little treasures, breakfast, desserts, things you didn’t know existed but now suddenly can’t live without.
I swear every week I discover some new tiny obsession hiding on a shelf somewhere.
And once produce really starts rolling in over the next month or two? Forget it.
This week’s cafe menu feels like it was designed by someone who wants to feed you properly before sending you back out into the world. And that is exactly how the chefs make the menu over here at the cafe.
The crispy porchetta egg sandwich is completely outrageous in the best possible way. Chili aioli everywhere, mozzarella melting into everything, little sharp bites of pickled onion cutting through all the richness. It’s the kind of sandwich where halfway through eating it you stop talking entirely. Partially because you can't keep from taking another bite, and partially because truly, there are no words.
The roast beef with buffalo mozzarella, mushroom conserva, truffle mayo, and balsamic somehow tastes both extremely fancy and extremely comforting at the same time. Like if an Italian grandmother and a Brooklyn wine bar collaborated on lunch.
The ham and havarti with fresno aioli and pickled relish is giving “French train station sandwich but better.”
And then there’s the duck cassoulet.I genuinely don’t know how else to explain this dish besides saying it tastes celebatory and oh-so-fancy. Rich duck, savory beans, fried duck egg, thick sourdough toast soaking up all the goodness underneath it. This is one of those meals that slows people down when they eat it. Remember those little gratitudes I was talking about? And we do need to slow down to find real gratitude, so why not do it over the most delicious meal.
The pickled egg salad also deserves attention because the spring veg right now is peaking. Peppery arugula, crunchy fennel, cucumbers, radish, sunflower seeds, turmeric pickles… this whole plate tastes like the farm waking up.
And honestly, while we’re talking about food at the cafe…
Yes, the sandwiches cost more than your average deli. But they’re also the size of a small toddler. These are full meals built on fresh sourdough baked daily with beautiful flour and actual fermentation, not floppy grocery store bread designed to survive the apocalypse.
Come early because the bread situation becomes emotionally charged by noon this time of year. Lately my house has basically been surviving on toast with farm butter and blueberry spread. That’s it. That’s the meal. And somehow it's been keeping my growing wolf pack alive. Oh speaking of a household full of boys...the prepared meals in the market are life-giving when it comes to feeding teenage boys, you just gotta know when to stretch it.
The prepared meals this week are secretly doing a lot of heavy lifting for busy people.
The fried rice remains one of the greatest “clean out your fridge and accidentally feed eight people” foods of all time. Go back and read this recipe where I fully turned one container into an entire lifestyle for my whole family of 6 (yes, baby June included).
Same with the Thai carrot soup. Add broth, noodles, coconut milk, herbs, leftover chicken, crispy chickpeas, random greens… suddenly dinner appears. Recipe here, all product available at the market. I told you - one-stop-shop is where it's at!
But my current fixation remains the curry chicken over turmeric rice.
I know I’ve talked about this dish before, but this week I accidentally cracked the code on stretching it into something even better.
I took the container home, added a giant pot of lentils, split up the chicken throughout the dish, added herbs and a huge dollop of Greek yogurt and suddenly it became one of those meals that feels like your body says thank you afterwards. Need a little more guidance? Recipe is below.
And let's talk nutrition for a second because if you know me, you know I can't help but geek out here. This is where I feel like nutrition conversations online are finally starting to get interesting again.
Protein has obviously become the celebrity nutrient of the internet and yes, protein matters. Amino acids literally help us build and repair tissue, support muscle, hormones, enzymes, immune function. All important. We get it. Eat your protein. Fine.
But fiber is finally getting a little attention too and THANK GOD because this conversation is majorly overdue. Did you know we don’t actually digest fiber ourselves. Our gut microbes do it for us. And where do we get microbes? From eating plants (sorry meat, but you've got nothing on plants here)!
And when those microbes ferment fiber, they create compounds called short chain fatty acids which help support metabolism, immune function, gut integrity, inflammation balance, heart health. Just all the systems keeping us alive and functioning. No biggie.
So yes, protein builds the structure. But Fiber is basically running the whole operation if you ask me.
And legumes are one of the cheapest, easiest, most effective ways to get both fiber AND plant-based protein into a meal.
So when it came to bulking up and streching the curried chicken and rice dish, it wasn't about adding more meat. It was about adding more protein AND fiber at the same time. Lentils, baby. Your golden ticket to all things health.
And somehow, It made the dish even better. I didn't think that was even possible.
More texture. More staying power. More nourishment. More people fed.
Also the baby went absolutely insane for the little currants in the rice which honestly felt adorable and vaguely sophisticated of her.
And while yes, this farm sells beautiful meat, I think one of the coolest things about the food here is that the vegetables are never treated like decoration. The plants matter just as much.
Sometimes more.
Meat doesn’t always need to be the entire center of the plate. Sometimes it’s there more like a condi-meat. Flavor. Depth. Support cast.
Then the legumes, grains, herbs, greens, fermented things, sauces, crunchy vegetables, and all the weird delicious extras get to do their thing too.
That’s where food actually gets exciting.
Okay.The liver mousse. We need to talk about it again because I refuse to let people be
scared of one of the best things in the market. First of all, this is not “sad health food.”
This is luxurious little goblin food. This is “eat standing barefoot in your kitchen at 9pmwhile hiding from your responsibilities” food. But best of all, it's a meal in a jar. It's got fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals. It's a win all around.
The texture is silky and rich and savory in a way that somehow feels both old-fashioned and wildly indulgent. And the best part is there are approximately one million ways to eat it.
Spread onto warm sourdough with sharp mustard and pickled onions.
Dragged through flaky salt and olive oil.
Layered onto crackers with cornichons and butter.
Put onto a board with cheese, radishes, herbs, and wine and suddenly people think you know things about jazz.
Smear it onto toast and top it with jammy eggs and herbs
And nutritionally… liver is basically nature showing off. Iron, vitamin A, B12, choline, folate, protein. The kind of deeply usable nutrition people traditionally relied on long before protein powders and wellness influencers existed.
Ours also includes mushrooms, bringing this deep earthy umami thing while quietly supporting immune health too.
Honestly I think the comeback of organ meats is less about trends and more about people realizing their bodies feel better when they eat real food again.
Revolutionary concept, apparently.
Kitchen Spark
“We all find ourselves in food ruts, so here’s a little spark to light the fyr in your kitchen.”
Curried Chicken and Rice - Stretched and Fiber Rich - Family Style
You’ll Need
• Curried chicken over turmeric rice from the market (F)
• Lentils (green or brown work great) (F)
• Carrots
• Celery
• Olive oil (F)
• Salt (F)
• Pepper (F)
• Garlic powder or fresh garlic (F)
• Paprika (F)
• Yogurt (F)
• Fresh herbs (dill, parsley, cilantro, chives. Really,whatever you have is perfect)
Optional additions:
• Greens, always greens. (F)
• Pickled onions or pickled veg (F)
• Chili crisp (F)
• Extra lemon (F)
• Jammy eggs (F)
How I Did It
The night before, I soaked an unmeasured amount of lentils in water because I happened to remember. Totally optional, but soaking legumes can help with digestion for some people and helps them cook faster and more evenly.
The next day, I finely chopped carrots and celery and sautéed them in olive oil until just starting to soften but still with a little bite left.
Add salt, pepper, garlic, and paprika and let everything cook together for another minute until fragrant.
Toss in the lentils and stir to coat them in all the goodness.
Add just enough water to barely cover the lentils.
Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until the lentils are tender but not mushy. Important distinction. Lentils deserve texture.
Drain any extra liquid if needed.
Fold the lentils into the curried chicken and turmeric rice.
Finish with a giant dollop of Greek yogurt and a ridiculous amount of fresh herbs.
Feel wildly accomplished for turning one prepared meal into dinner for basically everyone.
Stretch It
This lentil situation is one of those magical “component meals” that keeps working all week.
Add it to rice. Throw it over greens. Stuff it into wraps. Top it with eggs. Spoon it into soup. Eat it cold straight from the fridge while hiding from your responsibilities.
Sometimes the best meal prep isn’t fully prepared meals.
It’s just having really good building blocks waiting for you. And that's what we've got for you.
And lentils might be one of the most underrated building blocks in existence.
Cheap. Nourishing. Fiber-rich. Protein-packed. Endlessly adaptable.
Tiny little nutritional overachievers.
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