We think that our staff is the best in the business (okay, okay, we are a little biased), but the JBG family hails from all over the place and covers the gamut in talents and interests. We love sharing events, adventures, and side projects that inspire and excite our JBG-ers (food-related or not) with the community. Check out the staff-curated list of favorites below!

Peace, potatoes, and JBG peeps. Photo by Scott David Gordon.

Brenton (Head Farmer) - Went eat at Suerte last night and it was great! My favorite dish was the Roasted Zanahorias. These are all the things I got - they were all really good: Roasted Zanahorias (mole amarillo, carrot masa dumplings, puffed rice), Beet Tostada (smashed avocado, peanut walnut yum yum sauce, pickled onions), Carne Asada (oak grilled coulette, refried borracho beans, charred green garlic y tomato, tortillas), and Suadero Tacos (confit brisket, black magic oil, avocado salsa cruda). It was pretty noisy inside, but I sat on the porch and it was awesome. Also, recently went to the Continental Gallery and saw Rosey Flores and then Brandon Temple. Rosey called someone 'big ears' on stage which surprised me and made me laugh for the next 24 hours.

My last pick is the new baby yellow squash and patty pan that are coming in. My favorite way to cook the squash is weird, but I like them pickled like bread and butter pickled. When I was in Alabama a couple years ago, this guy on a boat shared some bread and butter squash pickles with me and I've been making and craving them ever since. Don't forget to put a hot pepper in there! It's a quick pickle, or refrigerator pickle, and is super easy to make. Here's a good recipe for them.

Suerta noms. Photo courtesy of Suerte ATX.

Becky (Farm Manager) - O. Henry Pun-Off World Championships. Basically exactly what it sounds like. A bunch of world-class punsters throwing down the best of dad humor. May 12. 11-4pm @ The Brush Square Museums Foundation (right downtown). I go every year. It's always a good laugh -- bring a blanket and some lawn chairs and come on out!!

Fawn (Farmers Marker Manager) - Lately (but actually always) I've really been into reading memoirs. I recently got the OverDrive app on my phone so I can listen to audiobooks borrowed from the library while I'm cooking or in whatever spare moments my ears are free and there aren't children around to hear cuss words. I'm currently listening to "Blood, Bones, and Butter: The Inadvertent Education of a Reluctant Chef" by Gabrielle Hamilton. I am enjoying it greatly. Being from the Midwest, another chef memoir that I really enjoyed reading was "Give a Girl a Knife" by Amy Thielen.

Coming up in two weekends is the Armadillo Art Glass Initiative. If you want to see a bunch of awesome artists blow glass to raise money for Meals on Wheel, you should check it out! My husband Stephan "SPG" Peirce will be doing demos on the lathe the 18th and 20th.

Nadia (Recipe Blogger) - It's a travel month for me! Luckily all fun, but tiring nonetheless. I'm going to Oakland this weekend for a college friend's wedding and making an SF Bay Area trip out of it. I'm super excited about catching up with my old friends and doing some side sight-seeing -- so far we've planned on an Alcatraz tour and visiting the St. George gin distillery. I've been on such a gin kick for at least a few months (can you call that a "kick" anymore?) and can't wait to make some summery gin cocktails when I return. I'm thinking a JBG-inspired gin cocktail will be on the blog in the coming weeks...

Nadia's famous gin cocktails.

Ada (CSA and Marketing Manager) - It's birding season, y'all! So many exciting birds are showing back up in Texas. While birding near Junction, we recently spotted painted buntings, orchard orioles, vermillion, and great crested flycatcher, yellow-crowned night herons, lots of finches, plus a gamut of probably really neat warblers that I was unable to identify.

I may have already picked this, but I'll pick it again: Just finishing up reading Salt, Fat, Acid, and Heat... an amazing how-to-cook book by Samin Nosrat. For anyone wanting to enrich their understanding of cooked food, this is really a great resource and a wonderful read. It's pickled with so many great antidotes of Samin's time cooking at Chez Pannise (and other notable restaurants), and the shared stories of her triumphs and failures really help you to learn the cooking concepts she's presenting. Great for beginner or seasoned cooks, alike.

Shoutout to my partner, Regan, and this limited run of serving boards that he just completed... all one of a kind pieces made from over 100-year old salvaged barn lumber. They're really beautiful! Check them out here.

Missoula (Farm Dog) - Recently went paddling on the South Llano River near Junction. Mom made me a little platform to chill on, which I managed to stay on for most of the paddle. A couple unexpected bumps threw me over the edge, a few times in the middle of a rapid, but what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, right? For anyone looking to replicate our trip, give our friends Curtis and Rhonda a call. For $20 (cash) they will help you decide what length of paddle you'd like to do and set a shuttle for you. They also have boats to rent if you don't have your own. Best to call them before just showing up.

My paddle with mom.

Megan (Recipe Blogger) - My little garden of JBG transplants is starting to produce! Fuzzy little cucumbers and tiny green tomatoes are popping out, and the mint, chives, oregano, and cilantro are all established and flourishing!! I'm thrilled to check on my plant babies every evening, checking their progression and also scanning for pests. Almost everything I grew last year fell victim to boxelder bugs (nasty little sh!&s) so I've tried to be proactive this year about treating the soil and parameter of our raised beds. So far, so good! Being a CSA member, I don't really need to garden. But like, I neeeeed to garden! So it's okay, if not heart shattering, when pests ruin everything. Chalk it up to a learning experience!

Heydon (Farm Blogger) - My dear friend has just launched her jewelry line's, We Are Ancients, Spring/Summer collection, and holy moly is it magical. Pop on over to her website and peruse. You'll be swooning in no time.

Photo courtesy of the We Are Ancients website.

Farm, in general - The two new markets we're attending! This past Wednesday we attended the grand opening of the Wednesday Mueller Market, and this Saturday we're heading to the grand opening of the Buda Sunday Farmers Market. Thanks to Texas Farmers' Market and Grey Gardens for helping to strengthen healthy communities here in the Austin area!