Edible San Diego E Edition Issue #51 Winter 2019

Explore the flavors of San Diego County 

NO. 51 • WINTER 2019 

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WINTER 2019 | edible SAN DIEGO 1

Winter 2019 

CONTENTS 

DEPARTMENTS 

4 Publisher’s Note 

LIVING LOCAL 

8 Hot Dish, Liquid Assets, 

Feeding Our Souls, Let’s 

Grow, Bookshelf 

EAT WELL 

12 How to Pack a Bowl 

15 Five Ways to Cook with 

Kumquats 

16 Shrub Tonics 

GROW GOOD 

18 Starting a Raised 

Bed Garden 

20 Lemon Grove Builds a 

Community Garden 

FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS 

32 Frank and Rick 

STAYCATION 

34 Getting Away at the 

Rancho Bernardo Inn 

38 Local Attractions 

39 Farmers’ Markets 

FEATURES 

Opinion: 

Who Cares 

About 

Farm-to-Table? 

PAGE 23 

Food to 

the Rescue 

PAGE 24 

ON THE COVER: A toast to the New 

Year with gleaned and honeyed 

kumquats, ricotta, and levain. 

PREP 

40 How to Conquer the 

Spaghetti Squash 

Aren’t these Clay 

+ Craft bowls and 

blates lovely? See 

more on page 9. 

2 ediblesandiego.com

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PALEOTREATS.COM 619.795.2203 

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4662 30TH ST. SAN DIEGO, CA 92116 


PUBLISHER’S NOTE | 

HERE WE ARE ON THE EDGE 

OF THE PACIFIC AND LA FRONTERA, 

WHERE THE MOST SMALL ORGANIC FARMS 

OF ANY U.S. COUNTY 

MINGLE WITH 21ST-CENTURY URBAN LIVING. 

10 YEARS OF LEADING THE WAY 

ON WHY LOCAL MATTERS 

IN TODAY’S GLOBALIZED WORLD. 

LOCAL FOOD, 

LOCAL DRINK, 

AND LOCAL YOU. 


| PUBLISHER’S NOTE 

We are a small, virtually operated company in 

San Diego County, woman-owned. 

Networked with other Edible publishers and our 

parent company, we are entirely on our own as a 

business, hustling in the gig economy. 

Our reason for existing, pure and simple, is our 

commitment to local, San Diego-style. 

While some dismiss the notion or use it loosely, 

local is our 24/7/52 mission. 

We are here to tell the stories that must be 

told because they make all the difference 

in the world. Our blend of journalism and 

storytelling brings people together in new 

ways when business as usual isn’t an option 

anymore. We’ve all got high stakes. 

Whether you’ve come to Edible San Diego 

to relax, explore, DIY, or represent your business, 

we’re here with what you need to connect. 

Welcome to our Conscious Living issue! We’re 

setting a lively table and stepping boldly into 2019 

to make some regenerative waves. 

Wanna surf with us? 

Katie Stokes 

Head Honcho 

OLIVIA HAYO 

P.S. The format for this piece was inspired by one of my 

favorite companies, Title Nine. Missy Park, I hope you 

interpret this imitation as the flattery it’s intended to be. 


REFRESH 

edible Communities 

2011 James Beard Foundation 

Publication of the Year 

Only the freshest organic fruits and vegetables, 

local when possible, in our juice bar. No fillers. 

No ice. Straight up organic fruits and veggies... 

the way it should be! 

MEMBER OF EDIBLE COMMUNITIES 

lOCATIONS 

CARMEL VALLEY 

Del Mar Highlands Town Center 

12853 El Camino Real; (858) 793-7755 

ESCONDIDO 

Felicita Junction Shopping Center 

1633 S. Centre City Parkway; (760) 489-7755 

CARLSBAD 

The Forum 

1923 Calle Barcelona; (760) 334-7755 

4S RANCH 

4S Commons Town Center 

10511 4S Commons Drive; (858) 432-7755 

DOWNTOWN SAN DIEGO 

Horton Plaza 

92 Horton Plaza; (619) 308-7755 

WWW.JIMBOS.COM 

EDITORIAL 

Katie Stokes 

Editor in Chief 

Maria Hesse 

Managing Editor 

Felicia Campbell 

Executive Digital Editor 

Olivia Hayo 

Associate Editor 

Dawn Mobley 

Copy Editor 

Nan Sterman 

Gardening Editor at Large 

DESIGN TEAM 

Allie Wist 

Designer 

Olivia Hayo 

Lead Photographer 

Joni Parmer 

Contributing Stylist 

PUBLISHER 

Katie Stokes 

SALES & MARKETING 

Scott White 

Buisiness Development 

Executive 

Cass Husted 

Marketing 

John Vawter 

Sales Rep 

@ediblesd 

@ediblesandiego 

@ediblesandiego 

ADVERTISING 

For more information about rates and deadlines, contact 

info@ediblesandiego.com 619-756-7292 

No part of this publication may be used without written permission 

from the publisher. © 2019 All rights reserved. 

Every effort is made to avoid errors, misspellings, and omissions. If 

an error comes to your attention, please let us know and accept our 

sincere apologies. Thank you. 

COVER PHOTO BY OLIVIA HAYO 

CONTACT 

Edible San Diego 

P.O. Box 83549 • San Diego, CA 92138 

619-756-7292 • info@ediblesandiego.com • ediblesandiego.com 


Mission Beach 

3733 Mission Blvd. 

Open Everyday 8am-3pm 

Cold Pressed Juices, 

Hand-Crafted Smoothies, 

Acai Bowls & Salads 

@JuiceWaveSD 

Organic Ingredients, 

Locally Sourced, 

Vegan, Gluten-Free 

www.JuiceWaveSD.com 

san diego seed company 

sow-grow-eat-repeat 

REGIONALLY ADAPTED 

& SEASONALLY SELECTED SEEDS 

LOCAL 

NON-GMO 

HEIRLOOM 

sandiegoseedcompany.com 


LIVING LOCAL | 

Liquid Assets 

Hot Dish 

BY MARIA HESSE 

Delectable dishes you can 

only find on Adams Ave. 

Adams Avenue has long been touted as 

one of the best food streets in the city, 

but here we take a look at truly unique 

dishes showcasing local ingredients 

and our food community. 

Giddyup and make your day that much 

brighter by putting the Jimmy Pesto 

in your mouth. Hawthorn Coffee starts 

this beautiful toast off with a slice of 

rustic sourdough from Bread and Cie (a 

gluten-free toast option from Coronado’s 

Gluten Free Pantry is available) and 

tops it with a generous layer of locally 

made spicy pesto from Baby Clydesdale 

and crumbles of almond ricotta and 

blistered tomatoes. 3019 Adams Ave. • 

hawthorncoffee.com 

If eating one of the ultimate original 

pizzas in this city is your thing, look 

no further than Blind Lady Ale House. 

They made this list for always having 

a local, farm-fresh pizza special on the 

menu, plus that Mountain Meadows 

mushroom pizza, and an enticing 

regional beer selection that includes 

house brews from Automatic Brewing 

Co. We also like them for being 

Agents of Change by donating 20% of 

meatless Monday pizza sales to local 

nonprofit organizations. 3416 Adams 

Ave. • blindladyalehouse.com 

Go for the sauce at Bleu Bohème with 

a steaming pot of les moules frites 

au harissa. The classic menu item 

was created by executive chef and 

owner Ken Irvine. “Harissa paste is 

a combination of chiles balanced for 

flavor, not heat, and adds depth and 

complexity to seafood,” says Diego Paul 

Lopez, Bleu Bohème’s chef de cuisine. 

He sautés Spanish chorizo in garlic, 

shallots, and a white wine-harissa demi 

glace with black Mediterranean mussels 

from the Pacific Ocean and serves them 

with hot and crispy Bleu pomme frites. 

4090 Adams Ave. • bleuboheme.com 

If you haven’t seen what a good fluff 

and fold can do to gelato, we suggest a 

freshly made waffle cone full of Yarn at 

An’s Dry Cleaning. What used to be a dry 

cleaning shop on Adams Ave is now the 

storefront for a small-batch gelateria that 

features off-the-cuff fresh and original 

flavors with seasonal ingredients and 

a perfect balance of sweetness. We’ve 

got the scoop on this winter special 

showcasing the bright citrus flavor of 

kumquats with honey and tajin. 3017 

Adams Ave. • adcgelato.com 

BY JONI PARMER 

Winter blues got ya down? Who are we 

kidding, it’s San Diego, so whether the 

sun is shining or we justify donning a 

Patagonia on those dreary 65° days, craft 

cocktail seekers can head straight to 

You and Yours for the urban distillery’s 

Rye Me a River. The wintry blend of 

spice, pine, and citrus spirits is equally 

as swank as their feminine tasting room 

interior. youandyours.com 

Take one sip of Communal Coffee’s 

calming Lavender Honey Latte and 

discover a new form of stress relief. 

Mildly sweetened with clover honey, 

the pleasing taste of their housemade 

lavender syrup shines in this soulwarming 

rendition of a coffeehouse 

classic. For the creamiest combo, get it 

steamed with Communal’s scratch oat 

milk. communalcoffee.com 

Nestled in the heart of South Park, this 

cozy gem serves up a rotating selection 

of natural vinos from organically farmed 

wineries around the globe. Uncork the 

Zorah Karasi from Armenia, a mediumbodied 

red made from indigenous yeast, 

a rare practice that yields a unique 

complexity of aromas and texture. 

The fruity notes piled on a smoky 

undertone pair well with their handmade 

empanadas. 

Join their Winter Wine Club for first 

dibs on exclusive releases and meet the 

makers behind your favorite labels. 

therosewinebar.com 


| LIVING LOCAL 

Feeding Our Souls 


FEELING GOOD 

Something might be in the water with so 

many SoCal pregnant mommas, myself 

included. Do your body and budding spud 

an invigorating favor and head to OH! Juice 

for the OH! Baby Superfood & Juice 

Cleanse, a 100% organic, locally driven, 

plant-inspired custom cleanse. Begin by 

customizing flavor profiles and health goals, 

and leave with a day, week, or even onemonth 

spread of the freshest juices, proteinpacked 

mylks, elixirs, and vegan-inspired 

meals to fuel your nine-month marathon. 

Available for pickup, local delivery, and airmail. 

Starting at $75/day • ohjuicecleanse.com 

LOOKING GOOD 

Just when you thought CBD couldn’t get 

more creative than cannabis-infused edibles 

and hempy beers, Kearny Mesa’s Kb Pure 

Essentials launched an entire business of allnatural 

wellness and beauty products formulated 

with the mega healing properties of the 

once-forbidden extract. A blend of essential 

oils, minerals, natural butters, and their most 

concentrated dose of CBD, Kb’s Eye Renewal 

Cream is the topical cream your fine lines and 

wrinkles have been dreaming of! 

$35 • kbpureessentials.com 

AND READY TO EAT 

Sip, nosh, and cozy up with this designmeets-function 

Mug & Wood Plate set 

from Clay + Craft, the slow-made ceramic 

artisan behind a coveted line of minimalistinspired 

dinnerware and home decor. Perfect 

to give or receive yourself, the creamy 

stoneware mug is purposely designed for you 

to feel the warmth of whatever you are drinking 

and comes with a natural birch plate 

(from local woodworker Grace & Salt) that 

holds the sweet or savory key to your heart’s 

desire—at least for that moment. 

$60 • clayandcraft.com 


Fresh & Local 

Seafood 

OPEN MON & TUES 8AM-3PM 

WED–SUN 8AM–5PM 

Fish Market | Food Demos | 

Special Events 

Committed to sourcing better seafood 

choices from responsible fisheries or farms. 

5202 Lovelock St., San Diego 92110 

619-297-9797 | www.catalinaop.com 

Gelato, Coffee & Panini 

Housemade 

Small Batch Gelato 

escogelato.com 

Downtown Escondido 

Featuring local produce from our community. 


| LIVING LOCAL 

Let’s Grow 


KOHLRABI 

Brassica oleracea gongylodes. 

Ya got that? Good, because you 

don’t want to miss this fiber-rich 

member of the cabbage family 

during the winter months. The 

German term for “cabbage turnip,” 

this recently revived root is making 

impressive cameos at farmers’ 

markets, in home kitchens, and on 

the menu of some of San Diego’s 

best restaurants. Shaved, pickled, 

roasted, sautéed or puréed, Kohlrabi 

is crunchy, juicy, and mildly 

sweet. The vegetable is a blank 

canvas ready to receive almost any 

flavor, and you can eat the stem, the 

bulb, and the leaves. The best news? 

Kohlrabi is easy to grow! Luke 

Girling of Cyclops Farms recommends 

starting your plants indoors 

about four to six weeks before you 

plant outside. The Eder variety 

matures fast, so eager growers can 

harvest when the first stem is one 

inch in diameter, yielding a young 

and tender crop begging to be devoured 

straight from the ground. 

Quick-Pickled Kohlrabi 

Recipe by Davin Waite of Wrench & 

Rodent Seabasstropub 

2 kohlrabi bulbs 

½ cup apple cider vinegar 

½ cup white vinegar 

½ cup water 

1 cup sugar 

1 tablespoon pickling spice 

Pinch salt 

Peel the kohlrabi bulbs, chop off the 

stems and leaves (stems and leaves can 

be saved for kraut or a stir-fry; peels 

can be saved for broth), and thinly shave 

root on mandolin or slice very thin with 

a knife. 

Heat vinegars, water, sugar, and spice 

in a small saucepan and stir until sugar 

dissolves. Bring to a boil, then remove 

from heat; add kohlrabi. Transfer to a 

pickling jar and let sit for 2 hours before 

refrigerating. The pickles are ready to 

eat once they’ve been fully chilled, 2 to 3 

hours or overnight. 

Where to Buy 

Pick up seeds to grow your own 

kohlrabi at Seabreeze Family Farm, or 

visit Cyclops Farms for a list of farmers’ 

markets and restaurants featuring our 

new favorite crop! seabasstropub.com, 

seabreezed.com, cyclopsfarms.com 

Edible Bookshelf 

It’s time for a blanket and a mug of something warm. 

Here’s a couple books to feed our minds with this winter. 

Shine 

La Jolla resident Sylvie Coulange 

self-published a cookbook that shares 

simple and inspiring recipes, including 

Power Bliss Balls that will make you, 

you know, shine. You can find it at 

local retailers like Native Poppy in 

North Park and Timeless Furnishings 

in Solana Beach. Find more locations 

to buy and the recipe for Power Bliss 

Balls on ediblesandiego.com. 

Community Table: 

Recipes for an Ecological 

Food Future 

The Ecology Center documents 

the curation of a series of 

dining experiences in 2016. 

Committed to their 10 principles 

of a regenerative food system, 

chefs and farmers share stories 

and recipes from farm to plate. 

Powerhouse Books, 2018 


How to 

Pack a Bowl 


It is said that Buddha carried a bowl from village to village, 

collecting small offerings of food along the way. At the end of 

the day, he would eat his meal, enjoying a variety of flavors that 

ceremoniously blended together. No wonder the legend inspired 

the trendy name craze for satisfying go-to meals. 

It doesn’t have to be a Buddha bowl or a power bowl to be delicious. 

Just pack a bowl with some basics for a healthy one-dish 

breakfast, lunch, or dinner. 

Start with grains for the base 

Here, we have steel-cut oats but use what you’ve got. Other 

suitable grain bases include rice, quinoa, pasta, and even veggie 

noodles to satisfy low-carb diets. 

Add fresh veggies 

This bowl is packed with greens, including arugula, and 

avocado for some of that healthy fat. We thinly sliced radish 

to add a little extra spice—but mostly to make this bowl look 

pretty with those splashes of fuschia. You can try any other 

fresh veggies you have on hand. 

A little protein 

Try the fried egg or go for toasted chickpeas to keep it vegan. 

Seafood or some cubed-up leftover chicken, beef, or any protein 

will also do just fine. 

Some sprinklings 

Sprinklings like the everything bagel spice mix, which also happens 

to go with everything, add extra nuttiness, crunch, texture, 

protein, and flavor. You can also sprinkle with sunflower seeds, 

hemp seeds, sesame seeds, other chopped nuts, and more. 

And Special Sauce 

What’s a bowl without a little dressing? It can be as simple as a 

little extra-virgin olive oil and lemon, or a quick take on a nut 

butter dressing like this one here. 

Wait, what kind of bowl did you think we were packing? 

Find more nutritionally packed bowl recipes from Bastyr University students 

on ediblesandiego.com. 

OLIVIA HAYO 


Breakfast for Dinner 

SERVES 1 

More like breakfast all day 

long, this bowl is so simple 

and satisfying you’ll want to 

reinvent it for every meal. 

Oats for grain, egg for protein, 

leafy greens, avocado, radish, 

and scallions all topped with 

a tantalizing OJ drizzle pack a 

delicious, nutritional punch. 

Short on time to make steel-cut 

oats? Use rolled oats instead, 

or just reheat plain oatmeal 

left over from breakfast. Enjoy 

with a mimosa. 

OATMEAL 

½ cup steel-cut oats 

2 cups vegetable broth or 

water 

Pinch salt 

OJ DRIZZLE 

¼ cup orange juice 

1 tablespoon almond butter 

1 tablespoon tamari or soy 

sauce 

2 dashes hot sauce (plus more 

to taste) 

Salt and pepper to taste 

EGG 

½ teaspoon olive oil 

1 egg 

Pinch salt 

¼ cup water 

TOPPINGS 

1 handful fresh leafy greens 

1 radish, thinly sliced 

½ avocado, sliced 

1 scallion, finely chopped 

Everything bagel spice mix 

to taste 

Make the oatmeal: In a small 

saucepan, add oats, broth, and 

salt and bring to a boil. Turn 

heat down and simmer until the 

oats soften, about 20 minutes. 

Make the OJ drizzle: In a 

small bowl, whisk together all 

ingredients with a fork until 

combined. Adjust hot sauce, 

salt, and pepper to taste. 

Make the egg: Heat olive oil 

in a frying pan with a lid over 

medium-high heat. Add the 

egg, sprinkle with salt, and 

cook until egg white turns 

opaque. Add water and cover 

pan; turn heat to low and 

cook until the whole egg turns 

opaque, about 1 minute. 

To serve: In a bowl, layer oatmeal, 

greens, radish, egg, 

avocado, and scallions. Top 

with OJ drizzle and finish with 

a generous sprinkle of everything 

bagel spice mix. 

Recipe by Fernanda Larson, 

MS, CN, Assistant Professor, 

Bastyr University 


See what’s growing this season! 

Thursdays at 8:30 pm & Saturdays at 3:30 pm 

Stream online anytime 

@ agrowingpassion.com 

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Artisan Food 

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• Best Chef Winner, 

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• Best Wine List Winner 

• 2017 Pasta World 

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Local organic produce, 

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pairing events 

Patio dining 

Dog friendly 

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| EAT WELL 

Five Ways to Cook with Kumquats 

BY FELICIA CAMPBELL 

Jewel-like kumquats are only in season from January to 

April. We love to eat them like candy, tender skin and all, 

with dime-sized slices making great additions to salads and salsas. 

They also happen to be an amazing ingredient to cook with. 

Honeyed 

Bring a pound of kumquats to a boil with a cup of honey, ⅓ cup 

sugar, 1 ¼ cups water, and half a vanilla bean, then turn down to a 

simmer and cook for about 25 minutes or until the liquid is thick 

and the little fruits begin to melt. Use the topping for ice cream, 

cakes, or ricotta-smeared toast (find Olivia Hayo’s recipe for honeyed 

kumquats on toast from our cover on ediblesandiego.com). 

Slow Cooked 

Slow-roasted pork shoulder, chicken tagine, and Instant Pot 

braised beef all benefit from the bright citrus pop of kumquats. 

Halve a cup or two and toss them in. The result is pure magic. 

Baked 

When your kumquats are getting a little too ripe, toss them in a 

blender with a nub of ginger and add the purée to your muffin 

or cake batter. You can even get fancy and add a few slices to 

the bottom of your muffin tins for miniature kumquat upsidedown 

cakes. 

Stuffed 

Slide slices of kumquat and little pads of butter under the skin 

of a roaster and stuff the cavity with aromatic herbs, garlic, and 

a few whole kumquats for a sweet take on classic roast chicken. 

They also make a great addition to stuffed pork loin. 

Grilled 

Add a subtle smoky flavor to your kumquats by skewering them 

with chunks of marinated fish; if you’re grilling steak, chicken, 

or anything that takes longer than a few minutes to cook, make 

separate kebabs of kumquats to serve alongside. 


EAT WELL | 

BY ERIN JACKSON 

Shrub 

Tonics 

POST-HOLIDAY SEASON, we’re reaching for refreshing 

tonics made with local shrubs—sweet and tart concoctions 

of fruit, sugar, and vinegar that stimulate the 

appetite while slaking thirst. Besides being delicious, 

these tonics are said to contain healthy ingredients that 

aid digestion and fortify the immune system. 


| EAT WELL 

Cold Buster 

This tropical tonic has ginger 

and turmeric to help strengthen 

the immune system, encourage 

digestion, and ease pain and 

inflammation, plus a dollop of 

honey to soothe sore throats. For a 

boozy version similar to a hot toddy, 

reduce the water by 1 ounce and 

add 1½ ounces of warm whiskey. 

½ ounce Nostrum Pineapple 

Turmeric Ginger Shrub 

1 ounce fresh lemon juice 

2 teaspoons honey 

4 ounces hot water 

Mix first 3 ingredients in a mug and 

top with hot water to serve. 

Cranberry 

Bubbly 

The dynamic duo of ginger and 

cranberry juice may improve heart 

health and help prevent infection, 

making this mocktail tonic tasty 

and good for you. 

1 ounce Nostrum Strawberry 

Cascara Ginger Shrub 

¾ ounce unsweetened cranberry 

juice 

¾ ounce fresh lemon juice 

3–4 ounces soda water 

Build in a tall glass over ice to serve. 

Make Your 

Own Shrub 

Most shrub recipes use a 

1:1:1 ratio of fruit, sugar, 

and vinegar. Macerate 

acidic fruits like citrus, 

berries, apples, pears, or 

stone fruit with white 

sugar and add your choice 

of vinegar. Apple cider, 

champagne, or white wine 

vinegars are best. 

Grapefruit 

Rosemary Shrub 

1 grapefruit 

1 cup white sugar 

1 cup organic, unfiltered apple cider 

vinegar with the “mother” 

2 sprigs rosemary (optional) 

Remove zest from the grapefruit and set 

aside. Cut away the peel and chop the 

flesh into large chunks. 

Pour sugar into a medium nonreactive 

bowl, add zest, and massage to extract 

the fragrant oils. Add the chopped grapefruit 

flesh and gently toss. Cover with 

plastic wrap and store in refrigerator 

until the mixture resembles a thick syrup, 

about 24 hours. 

Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh 

sieve into a large measuring cup. Press 

down lightly on the fruit to extract the 

juices and scrape in any remaining sugar. 

Whisk in vinegar and pour into a glass 

bottle or jar. Add the rosemary (if using), 

cap the bottle, shake well, and store in the 

fridge for another 24 hours. 

Shake mixture before using, as sugar may 

not fully dissolve for several days. Shrubs 

can last a few months in the fridge. Over 

time, the vinegar flavor will mellow out. 

Recipes by Nostrum • nostrumshrubs.com 


GROW GOOD | 

BY NAN STERMAN 

Waterwise Gardening 

Starting a Raised Bed Garden 

Winter is the perfect time to prepare for a spring vegetable 

garden, especially if you are just beginning. There’s much 

more to growing vegetables than plopping seedlings into the 

ground. In our hot climate, where soils have very little organic 

matter and no summer rainfall, the best way to grow veggies is to 

plant them in raised beds. 

What’s a raised bed? The most simple and time-proven raised 

beds are bottomless wood boxes that sit on the ground. Each is 

filled with a soil mixture customized for vegetables. Since vegetables 

tend to be “thirsty” plants, each bed gets plumbed with 

a dedicated irrigation system on its own valve, separate from the 

rest of the garden. 

Planting in raised beds is different too. The plants can be 

grown closer together, which means more vegetables in less space. 

There are endless variations of raised beds, but here are the basics. 

The best place for raised beds 

Choose a spot in full sun, near your kitchen, with good access 

to water. Set beds atop bare soil, NOT on top of grass, landscape 

cloth, weed cloth, concrete, gravel, or asphalt. 

The best materials for raised beds 

I am a fan of building raised beds with untreated wood, preferably 

redwood. 

Line the bottoms with hardware cloth (not chicken wire, 

which breaks down sooner). Cut hardware cloth a little wider 

and longer than the bed, and push it down into the bed from 

above so the hardware cloth curves up the sides. This helps keep 

gophers, voles, and other critters from burrowing in through 

the seams. 

STELLA DE SMIT ON UPSPLASH 


The ideal size for raised beds 

Width: The ideal bed is four feet wide. At that width, most adults 

can reach the center from either side without stepping into the bed. 

Length: Length is not critical, though the most practical length is 

eight feet or longer. 

Height: The easiest-on-your-back beds are 18 inches or taller. Cap 

the top with a horizontal 2x4 or 2x8. Use the cap to set tools, 

plants, or your rear end on. 

How many raised beds 

Two or more beds allow you to rotate crops between beds each 

year. Vegetables in the nightshade family (tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, 

tomatillos, potatoes) are highly susceptible to nematodes, 

fungi, and other pathogens that develop in the soil. Rotating them 

from one bed to another helps keep those pathogens at bay. With 

two beds, you can plant the nightshade plants in one bed the first 

year, in the other bed the second year, then continue to alternate 

back and forth. 

How to irrigate raised beds 

For best success, use in-line drip laid out in a grid atop the 

soil. I like Netafim Techline EZ 12mm dripline irrigation, with 

emitters spaced every six inches. Space grid lines six inches apart 

so there is an emitter every six inches in every direction. With 

this layout, water spreads evenly through the soil and doesn’t 

leave dry spots. 

The best soil for raised beds 

Fill beds with a soil mix (not “potting soil”) that is at least 40% 

organic matter, 60% soil. Since beds hold a considerable volume— 

a bed 4’ wide by 8’ long by 18” tall holds just shy of two cubic 

yards—buy soil in bulk from a soil supplier, rock yard, or compost 

facility. Mix in two to four cubic feet of compost, plus one or two 

cubic feet of worm castings (both compost and worm castings are 

sold by the bag)—the bigger the bed, the more compost and worm 

castings. Fill each bed to the top. Water two or three times to saturate 

the soil and help it settle. I do not recommend using perlite in 

raised beds, since it eventually migrates to the surface. 

Mulch for raised beds 

Straw (not hay) is the best mulch for vegetable gardens. Layer on 

three or four inches of straw to keep soil moist and temperatures 

moderated. Eventually the straw will decompose into the soil. 

For more information, watch my YouTube videos on building 

and planting raised beds. 

Garden expert, designer, and author Nan Sterman specializes in low water, 

sustainable, and edible landscapes. She is the host of A Growing Passion, a 

TV show that explores how plants power the planet. Episodes air on KPBS 

television on Thursday nights at 8:30 and Saturday afternoons at 3:30, and 

on Monday nights at 8:30 on KPBS2. See past episodes online at agrowingpassion.com. 

Sterman’s latest book is the just-released Hot Color, Dry 

Garden available in bookstores, online, and on her website www.waterwisegardener.com. 

She runs the popular Facebook group San Diego Gardener 

and leads international garden tours. 


GROW GOOD | 

BY CHERIE GOUGH 

From Vacant 

to Vibrant 

Lemon Grove Builds 

a Community Garden 

When you picture a community garden, you might imagine 

neighbors gathering, chatting as they water tomatoes and 

attend gardening workshops. But before the dream of a community 

garden can become reality, a lot of planning, sweat, and 

persistence goes into it. Lemon Grove’s Community Garden 

Board knows this to be true. Their garden, which is coming 

together in stages, has been a dream since 2008. Now, with the 

go-ahead from the city, along with the support of community 

organizations and neighbors, they are growing community in a 

once-vacant lot at the corner of Olive Street and Central Avenue. 

Putting Down Roots 

Anita Lopez says that in order for the city to lease the property 

to create the community garden, it wanted commitment from a 

community-based group. A team of volunteers elected leaders, drew 

up a business plan, and found a fiscal agent in THRIVE Lemon 

Grove, a nonprofit grassroots organization that focuses on improving 

the public safety and health of the city. In June 2018, the Lemon 

Grove Community Garden gained approval from City Council. 

The community garden is part of the Healthy Eating Active 

Living (HEAL) Zone Coalition. Kaiser Permanente helps fund the 

initiative through a grant to help small communities like Lemon 

Grove focus on reducing obesity. Lopez, program manager of HEAL 

Zone, envisions a future where plot members can learn new ways to 

use their seasonal produce through cooking demonstrations at the 

farmers’ market and monthly Saturday workshops in the garden. 

Environmental Sustainability 

John Hochman, a key member of the group since its inception, 

is the environmental sustainability officer. “I see this garden 

as an extension of the world at large and I want to help it grow 

with the principles by which we should live,” says Hochman, 

who reclaimed the wood to build the raised beds. He also found 

a friend and Vista community activist to donate the salvaged 


| GROW GOOD 

materials for the chain-link fence that lines the garden’s perimeter. 

“It takes a lot of energy and natural resources to create these 

materials, so everything that can be reused serves an important 

purpose,” he notes. Last summer, the group began meeting every 

Saturday to clear the land and start building beds and fencing 

that will eventually be surrounded by dwarf citrus trees. 

Garden chair Walt Oliwa says that the drip irrigation system will 

help save water and minimize the frustration often experienced by 

novice gardeners who may not know how often to water. 

Accessibility 

“Accessibility is a key factor in the garden’s vision and planning,” 

says Oliwa. Of the garden’s 40 raised beds, six will be raised higher 

to provide seniors with elevated access to tend to their gardens, and 

three beds on the garden’s perimeter will be wheelchair accessible. 

Neighbors Come Together 

Neighbors in passing have contributed significantly to the 

garden’s progress. In October of last year, while volunteers took 

measurements to install the drip irrigation system, a pickup truck 

stopped by. The community resident was a contractor who offered 

his time to do the job professionally. Other neighbors have 

donated tools that they no longer need. Such small acts are planting 

seeds of success. Locals attend Saturday builds when they can, 

and engage through an active social media campaign and website. 

Logistics 

Garden beds are available to interested Lemon Grove residents 

first, and any excess beds will be available to neighboring community 

members. To make beds affordable, the $100 annual 

fee can be paid quarterly and includes access to water, seasonal 

starter seeds, shared garden tools, and monthly workshops. Garden 

members will be expected to volunteer for several hours each 

year to keep the space looking beautiful and welcoming, which 

will also give them a chance to take advantage of the garden 

managers’ expert advice on topics such as composting and growing 

organic produce. Monthly newsletters will keep members 

and interested residents informed about events put together by 

the group’s program director Kirk Taylor. 

“There is a synergy here,” says Lopez. She believes that with the 

garden’s growing success, neighbors will continue to support efforts 

that raise awareness about healthy living. A thriving garden yields 

more than just produce. It means active time spent outdoors, 

relationship building, and access to healthy foods for all. 


When it's about food... #specialtyproduce 

Fabulous 

INSIDEOUT 

FABULOUSHILLCREST.COM 


| FEATURE 

A few CSA shares and 

farm boxes we’ve tried 

Garden of Eden Organics 

Find pickup locations and add eggs 

to a cooperative CSA box offering 

a variety of regional produce at 

goeorganics.com. 

Who Cares About 

Farm-to-Table? 

BY MICHAEL A. GARDINER 

Remember when farm-to-table was all the 

rage? Or was it just that “shortening the 

food chain” sounded cool? I was genuinely 

excited by the first appearance of Cherokee 

Purple potatoes, wasn’t I? But then there was 

that Colin the Chicken bit on Portlandia 

where it wasn’t enough to know the chicken’s 

breed, if it was organic, that it was locally 

raised and from which farm, and whether or 

not the hazelnuts in the bird’s diet were local—but 

they also had to know the chicken’s 

name. I laughed at this. And not ironically. 

Such a chuckle suggested that I was not 

adequately invested, and for that, a friend 

of mine—let’s call him Colin—threatened 

to pull my foodie card. “In San Diego, we’re 

not second fiddle to Portland in farm-totable 

or beer,” Colin says. He had facts. “San 

Diego County farms are worth $1.7 billion 

annually, contributing 16,000 jobs to the 

local economy, and no other county in the 

country has more small organic farms.” 

I proudly point out that I’ve immensely 

enjoyed dining at spots like Wrench & 

Rodent Seabasstropub, Garden Kitchen, 

and A.R. Valentien, who persevere on 

the restaurant side of the farm-to-table 

equation. However, despite growing efforts 

by grassroots campaigns like Farm 

to Fork San Diego and the Farm Bureau’s 

San Diego 365 that verify local sourcing 

practices for diners, we both know 

that these efforts are far outnumbered 

by restaurants whose commitment to 

farm-to-table is marginal, at best. 

I don’t know what’s worse: greenwashing 

menus, which undercuts the value of those 

who walk the talk, or ignoring provenance 

altogether. 

But Colin persists further, the bastard: 

“Throw a stone and you’ll hit a farmers’ 

market.” 

Yes, San Diego County boasts a bounty 

of farmers’ markets, but many are overrun 

with expensive crafts, and produce from as far 

north as Modesto isn’t what I would call local. 

Pressing the point, Colin adds, “Farmers 

are feeling the pinch of long-term drought, 

increasing water rates, and regulatory 

requirements and are struggling to get their 

crops to market.” Ouch. 

So the moral of the story is there’s no single 

step consumers can take to support local 

farms, but making the effort matters. If you 

like looking a farmer in the eye at a market, 

buy direct from them even if they’re from 

Modesto. This foodie—yes, I reclaim my 

card—prefers CSAs. Community Supported 

Agriculture, at its purest level, is an alternative 

socioeconomic model in which community 

members purchase advance shares of a harvest 

from a farm in exchange for future weekly 

boxes of fresh produce or goods. 

“So, which is your CSA?” Colin asks me. 

I gulp. “I used to be with Suzie’s before 

they closed. And I was with J.R. Organics 

before that.” Colin gives me a dirty look. 

“Yeah,” I say. 

I’ll have resubscribed before you read 

these words. 

Dickinson Farm 

CSA shares are available quarterly 

for the finest selection of heirloom 

varietals. Their Farmacy offers chefmade 

meals at dickinson.farm. 

Be Wise Ranch 

Checking out their online harvest 

calendar works up an appetite. 

Sign up for quarterly shares at 

bewiseranch.com. 

Eli’s Farms 

Get the Farmer’s Pick Plus CSA 

box with 13 to 15 items from this 

Fallbrook farm at elisfarms.com. 

J.R. Organics 

Get a free box for every 12 boxes 

purchased at jrorganicsfarm.com. 

Wild Willow Farm 

Support regenerative agriculture 

and one of the most significant 

educational farms in the region by 

purchasing a $25/week full share or 

half share at sandiegoroots.org. 

Da-Le Ranch 

The Inland Empire ranch offers CSA 

shares for their variety of ethically 

and sustainably raised meats at 

da-le-ranch.com. 

Farm Fresh to You 

Flexible box options range 

from traditional CSA to fruit 

only to organic snack pack at 

farmfreshtoyou.com. 

Imperfect Produce 

This San Francisco-based 

company is buying ugly fruits 

and veggies from organic 

growers and selling them in 

customizable boxes that can be 

delivered straight to your door at 

imperfectproduce.com. 

Specialty Produce 

The farmers’ market box is a great 

deal for $20, with options to add 

local favorites like PB Peanut Butter 

and Chuao Chocolatier for when 

you’ve had too many vegetables, 

at specialtyproduce.com. 


Food 

to the 

Rescue 

How six 

San Diegans 

changed 

their lives 

by changing 

their diet. 

BY DEBRA BASS 


| FEATURE 

OLIVIA HAYO 

As in most things, intent makes all the difference. Making 

dietary changes to punish yourself typically leads to failure. 

But if your objective is to feel better, you can make the same 

changes with less resistance and more long-lasting positive results. 

It won’t feel like a sacrifice because you have a greater goal. 

If your diet makes you miserable, then it’s not the right option 

for you, no matter what anyone says. Your happy medium 

might be more animal protein, less animal protein, or no animal 

protein at all. And your preferred diet doesn’t have to have 

a name. Maybe you’re 80% vegan and 20% carnivore, or 60% 

keto and 40% fruitarian. Don’t let labels dictate your lifestyle; 

experimenting with different eating lifestyles, however, can 

serve a purpose. It can help you determine what satisfies your 

body and what satisfies your soul—or it can help you determine 

what doesn’t. 

Mentally and physically, there is no one way to eat healthily. 

And it should go without saying, but we’ll say it now: If you 

can honestly say that you feel great, sleep well, wake up energized, 

and you’re happy with the condition of your body, skin, 

hair, and nails, then read no further. 

You don’t need to adopt a specific dietary preference to 

live your best life. But if you’re curious about how these San 

Diegans turned their lives around with wildly different dietary 

styles, read on. 

This article shares the dietary experiences of six individuals and is not intended 

to make medical claims, provide dietary advice, or suggest treatments 

for health-related issues. Consult a qualified healthcare provider with any 

questions regarding treatment for a medical condition. 

Christina 

Kantzavelos 

30, GLUTEN-FREE 

Christina Kantzavelos would like to officially apologize for all 

the eye rolls she gave people on a gluten-free diet. 

“I learned the hard way that gluten intolerance and celiac 

disease are very real,” she says. 

Kantzavelos admits that she ignored her symptoms for years. 

She was at her worst in graduate school, but she assumed that 

stress was the obvious cause. 

She suffered through bloating, swelling, migraines, and 

cramps and took it all in stride. The last straw for her was acne. 

“It sounds vain that it was acne that sent me to the doctor 

and not the other stuff, but, well, it was a lot of acne,” 

Kantzavelos admits with mock horror. She never had acne as a 

teenager, so developing blemishes after graduate school seemed 

a cruel twist of fate. 

Visiting dermatologists didn’t yield a solution. The lotions and 

potions didn’t help, so a friend recommended she see a naturopath, 

something else that Christina would have normally greeted 

with an eye roll, but this time she was desperate. The naturopath 

diagnosed her with celiac disease almost immediately. Later tests 

confirmed her condition—and then everything changed. 

Her gluten intolerance made her a lot more tolerant of 

gluten-free enthusiasts. 

“Yes, it’s a fad diet for some 

people, but the fact that it’s a fad 

drives up demand, which means 

that there are a lot more options for 

people like me,” Kantzavelos says. 

Besides, going gluten-free won’t 

harm anything but your tastebuds. 

She’s found many gluten-free 

options, including some things that 

rival their gluten-laden counterparts. 

But occasionally, she starts raving 

about a product that she thinks must 

taste as good as the original and she 

presents it lovingly to her spouse or 

family for confirmation. 

“The response is usually, ‘um, no, 

I can tell it’s missing gluten,’” she 

says. “So my baseline has definitely 

shifted.” 

The good news is that she 

doesn’t care and she doesn’t feel 

like she is sacrificing. Her diet is 

stricter than most because of other 

dietary issues, but she says that it 

doesn’t feel limiting since she focuses 

on what she eats that makes 

her feel good. 

She’s gluten-free, dairy-free, and 

soy-free. She keeps her sugar intake 

to the bare minimum, doesn’t 

drink alcohol, and mostly follows 

a low-histamine eating regimen as 

well. When she “cheats,” she eats 

lentils, nuts, other legumes, avocados, 

and sometimes eggs. 

“I know it sounds really sad 

that those are my cheats, because 

most people think of those things 

Go-to snacks 

Laiki Crackers Gluten-Free 

Rice Crackers 

NuGo Egg White Protein 

Bar 

Justin’s Peanut or Almond 

Butter Packets 

Crunchmaster Protein 

Crackers 

Lark Ellen Farm Grain 

Free Bites 

Bubba’s Snack Mixes 

Bhuja Snacks 

Favorite Restaurants 

Nectarine Grove in 

Encinitas 

Starry Lane Bakery 

Plumeria (Thai vegan) 

Instagram @ 

buenqamino 

as really healthy, but they don’t agree with my body. So if I eat 

them, I do it in moderation,” Kantzavelos says. 

A licenced psychotherapist by profession, Kantzavelos is also 

a writer. Her favorite topics are wellness and mental health. 


FEATURE | 

Esperanza 

Peralta-Guerrero 

69, KITCHENISTA 

As a first-generation Mexican-American, Esperanza Peralta- 

Guerrero spent most of her life cooking a traditional Mexican 

diet—lots of flavorful pork dishes cooked in lard and supplemented 

with processed sugar. She had a desire to eat and cook 

healthier meals, but she didn’t know where to begin. 

A friend invited her to her first yoga class at Olivewood 

Gardens & Learning Center in National City. That day, they 

were also doing cooking demonstrations. Peralta-Guerrero 

was immediately interested and signed up for the Kitchenista 

program. It took a year for her to get through the waiting 

list, but she says the program changed her life and the life of 

her family. 

“I’m most proud of my mom,” she explains. Her mom is 

now 90 years old and at the time that Peralta-Guerrero started 

the program, her mother was pre-diabetic. She shared all the 

information with her mother who was initially skeptical, but 

gradually, her mother changed a lifetime of cooking habits 

and started eating meatless meals, eliminated processed foods, 

and switched from sugar to Stevia. 

“She really accepted all of it and started eating more vegetables 

and more salads, which are not traditional in a Mexican 

meal,” Peralta-Guerrero says. “I think it’s because she felt the 

difference, not just saw the difference in me.” 

The Kitchenista program stresses the benefits of cooking 

with organic foods and shares meatless recipes and ways to 

incorporate healthy substitutions into traditional meals. 

Peralta-Guerrero says that her husband grumbled a little 

about missing red meat at mealtime, but he had faith that 

she was looking out for his best interests. She says that he too 

noticed a difference in himself. 

“I don’t know how to describe it, but for me I felt not so 

heavy,” Peralta-Guerrero says. “I feel like I have more of a 

balance in my body. I don’t miss the meat or any of the foods 

that I used to eat.” 

Though she concedes that she didn’t give up tamales, she 

now eats them with chicken, not pork, and she only eats those 

from her own kitchen or her mother’s so she knows what they 

are made with. 

Three years as a Kitchenista has changed her entire eating life. 

She now has a small garden at home and grows many of the 

fruits and vegetables that her family eats most. Her husband 

has planted tomatoes, zucchini, chiles, and bell peppers, and 

they also have nectarine, peach, golden mandarin, apricot, and 

lemon trees. She says that it 

sounds like a lot, but you don’t 

need much space to start a family 

garden. 

As a volunteer educator at 

the center she learned that 

food gardens aren’t so difficult 

to maintain. Having fresh 

produce is also a great motivator 

to use it in meals and share 

them with family. 

After Peralta-Guerrero 

finished the program, her 

47-year-old daughter did the 

same. Now, when her family 

cooks together, they are creating 

healthy meals that everyone 

enjoys. Peralta-Guerrero hopes 

this cultural shift will mean 

that she will be preparing nutritious 

meals with her mom and 

daughter for years to come. 

Go-to breakfast 

A slice of Ezekiel bread 

with coconut oil, plus 

yogurt and fruit, usually 

a mix of strawberries, 

blueberries, bananas, 

apples, pecans, almonds, 

cinnamon, and a 

teaspoon of maple syrup 

Go-to snacks 

Raw mango 

Homemade coconut balls 

and chocolate peanut 

butter balls 

Handful of nuts 

Orange slices with chili 

powder and pink salt 

Go-to salad 

Greek salad with Napa 

and green cabbage, 

tomato, cucumber, feta 

cheese, cilantro, thin 

slices of red onion, 

kalamata olives, and 

extra-virgin olive oil 


| FEATURE 

Colleen Someck 

58, FLEXITARIAN 

Before Colleen Someck could start dancing in the kitchen, she 

had to learn to like food again. She survived an eating disorder that 

escalated when she was 19. 

“I knew I had a problem because I was binging and purging and 

feeling guilty and ashamed,” Someck recounts. “I knew something 

was wrong, but I couldn’t fix it.” 

She had semi-successful recoveries but always relapsed. When 

she finally attempted to get help at a rehabilitation center, they 

turned her away because she wasn’t thin enough. So you can guess 

the damage that wrought. 

“I can look back in hindsight and see that I wanted to punish 

myself. I felt less than, like I had no value,” Someck says. “Food … 

food was bad.” 

She used extreme diets to mask her dysfunctional eating. She 

was macrobiotic for a while because it gave her an excuse to make 

small meals and avoid most readily available foods. 

Someck describes her routine as exhausting. She was moody, 

hungry, and lonely. She didn’t have the energy she needed to get 

through the day, but she was still running miles every day in order 

to lose even more weight. 

She doesn’t remember a last-straw or rock-bottom moment, but 

she remembers deciding that food is not bad. In the days that followed, 

her only goal was attempting to not purge or binge. The successful 

days stacked up, and eventually she knew her life had shifted. 

“I think I was in recovery for 20-some-odd years,” Someck says. 

“So now, all food is good.” 

Dancing in the Kitchen was her first cookbook in 2016. Her 

second is currently in the works. Most of the recipes are vegan, 

but she includes tips and suggestions about adding meat or eggs to 

certain recipes. 

“You have to listen to your body. I’m not going to tell anyone 

that they can’t or shouldn’t eat something,” Someck says. 

She describes herself as a flexitarian because she eats mainly 

vegetarian, but she no longer gets stuck on labels. If she 

orders soup and it turns out it was made with chicken broth, or if 

there’s birthday cake and everyone is celebrating, she doesn’t flip 

out or exclude herself. She says that if something doesn’t fit into 

what she normally eats and she wants to eat it, she does. 

“I can’t play those mind games. I won’t do it,” she says. “I choose 

food that makes me feel the best that I can be. That’s it.” 

Instagram 

@colleensomeck 

Go-to favorites 

Cooked beans and grains 

Seasonal vegetables 

Mock tuna 

Quinoa for soups 

and salads 

Favorite restaurants 

Lofty Coffee in 

Solana Beach 

Cucina Enoteca 

True Food Kitchen 

in La Jolla 

Nectarine Grove 

GOODONYA 

Organic Eatery 


Instagram 

@onedopevegan_ 

Branden Williams 

38, VEGAN 

“I like to say that I went cold tofurkey,” Branden Williams explains 

in a manner that sounds like a joke but implies that he’s dead 

serious. “Vegan and sober. Everything happened all at once.” 

He says that he looked in the mirror and knew that he could do 

better. 

“I was like, I’m not going out like this,” he says. 

He was 5’10” and 270 pounds. “I ate lots of food that came out 

of a box, I wasn’t active, and I didn’t know how to be myself without 

alcohol,” he says. If he was going out with friends to a concert, 

he’d drink before going out to loosen up. If he was home, he’d 

drink to relax. If he was out, he’d drink to enjoy himself. 

“One day, I realized that everything I was drinking and eating 

was making me feel bad,” Williams says. 

He went to the doctor to figure out why he was suffering from 

horrible migraines, irritability, and poor sleep. After lots of testing 

and a CAT scan, there was no clear diagnosis. No one told him to 

change his diet. He figured that out on his own. 

“I just thought, I’m already living in one extreme and it’s 

clearly not working for me, so why not try the reverse,” he says. 

Williams was also motivated by his aunt who had been following 

a vegan diet for more than 30 years. She was 62 years old 

and had none of the health complaints he was dealing with. 

“It saved my life. Really. I can’t imagine what I would be like if I 

OLIVIA HAYO 


| FEATURE 


Loving Hut in Mira Mesa 

Donna Jean 

Evolution Fast Food 

Plant Power Fast Food 

Mission Square Market 

for the vegan deli 

Go-to salad 

Spinach leaves, diced 

bell peppers, diced 

black olives, diced red 

onions, diced tomatoes, 

avocado, kidney beans, 

and garbanzo beans with 

Annie’s Goddess dressing 

Go-to snack 

Lenny & Larry’s 

Complete Cookie 

hadn’t made that change,” Williams adds. Now, he says there is no 

going back. When he switched his diet, he also started going to the 

gym regularly to lift weights. 

“I didn’t know what I was doing the first three to four months 

but I kept going,” he says. The same was true of his new vegan 

diet, but he studied and gained expertise about vegan cooking, 

animal cruelty, and the physiology, psychology, and politics 

behind veganism. 

He’s now a personal trainer and he’s committed to being a 

lifelong vegan. His son and his fiancée are also vegans. When Williams 

and his fiancée first met, she was skeptical about vegan diets. 

“She was saying the same thing everyone else parrots: ‘I could 

never,’ ‘What about your protein?’ ‘Aren’t you hungry all the 

time?’ And I was like, damn, you’re cute but you just don’t get 

it,” he says. They didn’t talk again for months. When he saw her 

again, she looked different and her skin was glowing. She had 

switched to a vegan diet on her own. 

Williams says that his son saw the change in his dad and 

embraced vegan food without much resistance. 

“He could see me as an example. He saw the before and the 

after. He saw round, unhealthy, angry dad,” Williams says. He’s 

lost more than 80 pounds, although that’s not as important as 

how he feels. 

“I’m calmer. It has changed my overall mental and physical 

health,” he says. “But no one could have come to me the day 

before I started and forced me to be vegan. I had to be ready. 

So I don’t preach to anyone, I just live as an example. People 

will change when they are ready.” 


FEATURE | 

Tony Cohen 

54, KETO DIET 

Tony Cohen, founder of the San Diego Keto Club, calls himself 

one of the first human guinea pigs for exogenous ketones. 

He received a FedEx package filled with two clear sandwich 

bags of white powder from a friend in San Diego. There were 

instructions about how to pee on a ketone testing strip (a practice 

that is no longer in favor) and more instructions on what 

to eat and when. 

It says a lot about Cohen’s life at this time that he started 

ingesting the mystery substance without knowing much about 

how the keto diet worked. He was living in New York and he 

was broke. “I probably suffered from some type of depression, 

although I wouldn’t have said that at the time,” Cohen admits. 

He lived in a tiny studio above a pizza and ice cream parlor 

in Spanish Harlem with no natural light and was teaching Krav 

Maga, a relatively obscure mixed martial art, at the time. While 

he previously trained to be a chef in Northern Thailand, he 

didn’t have a kitchen, so most of his meals were of the typical 

New York commuter variety. He had a bacon, egg, and cheese 

bagel for breakfast, a slice or two of pizza in the afternoon, 

more pizza for dinner, and ice cream for dessert. Every day. 

“It was a downward spiral that I couldn’t work my way out 

of,” Cohen says. “So when that package came in the mail, I was 

ready to make a serious change.” 

He says that timing is everything. It also helped that he 

didn’t consider it to be a “diet”; it was more of an experiment. 

It wasn’t a fad yet, and Cohen, a born contrarian, seemed to 

embrace it. 

“When I started three years ago, people thought I was an 

idiot,” Cohen says. 

But it was the right diet—or should we say eating regimen— 

at the right time. 

“If you had told me to diet, I would have told you where to 

go,” Cohen says. “Gradually, I only had pizza and ice cream a 

few times a week instead of every day. Then I’d eat the pizza 

and skip the ice cream or eat the ice cream and skip the pizza, 

and then I just stopped eating them both altogether. But it 

didn’t happen overnight.” 

The keto diet consists of eliminating refined sugars and eating 

low carbohydrates with a proper balance of high-fat foods. 

Ketosis occurs when there isn’t enough glucose, the body’s primary 

fuel source, so the body starts to break down fat stores to 

produce energy. There’s a lot more to it, and taking exogenous 

ketones is entirely optional. Tony recommends starting with 

small changes, such as cutting down on processed food. 

“It can be really overwhelming. You have to do it in steps,” 

he says. 


Bare Back Grill in Pacific 

Beach for burgers 

Second Nature North 

Pacific Beach for clean 

steak and bacon 

Cívico 1845 in Little Italy 

for great cheese and 

salami plates 

Wheat and Water in Bird 

Rock for bulletproof 

coffee 

Shops 

Sprouts 

Little Italy Farmers’ 

Market 

Treats 

Yez Foods, local keto 

bread and cookie 

company 

Dry Farms Wine 

Instagram 

@therealtonycohen 

OLIVIA HAYO 


Instagram 

@steph_gaudreau 

Steph Gaudreau 

39, PALEO 

Steph Gaudreau thinks the “caveman diet” analogy is the worst 

thing to happen to Paleo dieters. 

“It’s a trope that has not done us any favors, but it’s an 

association that sticks,” she says. Even though it’s ridiculous to 

think that we can or should eat like a prehistoric human with a 

30-year lifespan, we can eat simpler food, she says. As famed food 

writer Michael Pollan would say, “Don’t eat anything your greatgrandmother 

wouldn’t recognize as food.” 

Even though the Paleo name hails from the Paleolithic 

era, she says that we shouldn’t pretend that the dietary needs 

of the modern human haven’t evolved since the Stone Age. 

Among other innovations, our crop-growing skills and cooking 

technology allow for a more appetizing and nutritionally 

balanced year-round diet. We can do better than caveman meals. 

“I’ve tried every diet under the sun and I always fell back into 

old habits,” Gaudreau explains. Starting the Paleo diet was incidental. 

In 2009, she was active in the mountain biking and racing 

community. She needed a way to fuel her body and she stumbled 

upon a way of eating that provided the fuel that increased her 

performance and satisfied her cravings. 

“For years, I had digestive problems and weird menstrual cycles. 

I was hangry and had sleep issues, and I thought, I guess that’s just 

how I am,” Gaudreau says. “But so much of that was governed by 

my diet and how I was eating.” 

When she started the Paleo diet, it was the first time she 

started a diet that wasn’t about losing weight. It made all the difference, 

she says. 

“People saw that I was changing, and I don’t just mean losing 

inches. I was different and thinking differently, and that’s what 

got me into starting the blog,” she says. At first, it was just recipes, 

but soon she was explaining what she could about her journey and 

how others might experiment with 

the diet for their own health. 

Go-to favorite foods 

Gaudreau went from teaching high 

Batch-cooked sweet 

school chemistry and biology to blogging 

full-time in 2012. The blog was 

Safe-Catch tuna 

potatoes 

how she met her husband, who was Homemade hummus 

living in Scotland at the time. They 

Go-to meal 

bonded over Paleo and racing, dated 

InstaPot beef stew 

long distance for a couple years, then 

married in 2014. 

“It’s great to have a partner who was already committed to 

Paleo,” Gaudreau says, but she’s really referring to conscientious 

eating. 

She says she understands that some people are really adamant 

about not eating meat and she assures them that she doesn’t 

want animals to suffer either. Ethical eating is a lot more difficult 

than eat this or don’t eat that. 

“I don’t think anyone has a simple answer, but I know that 

if we eat less meat, and better meat, we could support a more 

sustainable, ethical, and environmental process,” Gaudreau 

says. “There will always be death associated with the way we 

grow our food unless we start growing it in a lab, and that has 

its own ethical problems.” 


FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS | 

BY BETH DEMMON 

Friends with Benefits 

Frank and Rick 

“M 

y family has always been in the dairy business. It’s a... 

different sort of business,” laughs Frank Konyn of 

Frank Konyn Dairy. Established in 1962 by his father, Konyn’s 

250-acre dairy farm is nestled on the San Pasqual Valley floor 35 

miles northeast of downtown San Diego. With over 800 cows, he 

estimates his monthly feed bill to be over a quarter of a million 

dollars. As land costs increased alongside agricultural regulations, 

Konyn realized that in order to survive, he’d have to diversify. 

“In California, you’ll find the same thing among most dairymen. 

It’s not a standalone business. Throughout the state, they 

grow almonds and walnuts, own real estate, maybe they do hay 

sales, etcetera. But for a standalone dairyman to survive is proving 

to be very difficult,” he explains. 

Even on farms, opportunities to turn wasteful liabilities into 

profitable assets are hard to come by, but as Konyn searched for 

a profitable new venture, he realized he was sitting on a veritable 

gold mine—or more accurately, a brown one. 

A dairy cow can eat over 100 pounds of food in a day and generates 

over six yards of manure per year. Cow manure happens 

to be very rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, making 

it a perfect source for mixing rich compost for growing crops 

or flowers. In 2007, Konyn launched the dairy’s sister company 

San Pasqual Valley Soils to combine landscape trimmings with 

manure in order to provide greenhouse gas-reducing compost 

available for sale. It remains one of the only approved organic-use 

composting sites in the county. 

Rick Sarver, vice president of sales and operations at San 

Pasqual Valley Soils, describes some of the unique challenges they 

OLIVIA HAYO 


face as unfortunate. “Composting is a heavily regulated 

industry, and we’ve spent a lot of money on permitting, 

and spend a substantial amount annually on regulatory 

compliance. And the rules are getting more stringent. 

This dynamic makes it hard to make ends meet. Since 

composting and use of the end product actually reduces 

greenhouse gas emissions, we think the regulations should 

take that into account and soften up on activities that are 

moving our environmental goals in the right direction.” 

Despite these roadblocks, their compost ships to everyone 

from local landscapers to the Carlsbad flower fields 

and even California State University, San Marcos for use 

on the baseball field. Konyn also uses it on-site to help his 

alfalfa fields grow, generating an additional feed source for 

his cows in order to reduce his monthly expenses. 

The symbiotic benefits were immediate. “The compost 

site helps the dairy survive, and consumers get the benefit 

of microbially rich soil amendments as well as locally 

produced milk,” says Sarver. 

As the businesses grew, costs for transporting materials 

across the county grew right along with it. Thus, the third 

leg of the cooperation “organically” emerged in the form 

of KD Farms Trucking, Inc. 

“The trucking company started out as a pickup truck 

with a dump trailer. Now, we have a fleet of eight trucks,” 

says Konyn. 

Today, the trucks deliver their compost all over the 

region, but Konyn saw a greater opportunity. With no 

shortage of local beer being brewed in San Diego, KD 

Farms Trucking, Inc. is now one of the biggest users and 

transporters of spent grain from local breweries. Konyn 

estimates they’ve grown from picking up two to three tons 

of grains at a time to over 250 tons per week (50 tons 

alone come from Karl Strauss). 

“[We] collect more than 1,500 tons per month of food 

waste, including spent brewery grains, bakery products, 

and pressed fruits and vegetables from juice manufacturers. 

All of these materials are diverted from landfills and 

converted into feed for the cows,” says Konyn. 

Sarver sees the relationship between the companies as 

“a win-win, but not without its costs, hard work, and 

diligence to bring to fruition.” He urges those interested 

in establishing the same type of dynamic to follow the 

proper channels in order for small operations to continue 

delivering consumer benefits. 

When it comes to benefits, Konyn acknowledges that 

CAFOs (confined animal feeding operations) concern 

animal welfare advocates, vegans, and environmentalists, 

but contends that diversifying his dairy operation enables 

him to produce milk while recycling food waste into animal 

feed —plus it produces soil-building compost. “We’re 

taking refuse from urban centers and converting it into 

feed for our animals. Those animals in turn create highprotein, 

human-consumable foods. By co-composting the 

manure with landscape trimmings, we create soil-building 

products. How can you create a more sustainable closedloop 

cycle than that?” 

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34 ediblesandiego.com 

OLIVIA HAYO

| STAYCATION 

Getting Away 

at the 

Rancho Bernardo Inn 

BY OLIVIA HAYO 

We set off for the weekend with little more than a duffel 

bag and plans to relax away from the hustle of Little 

Italy. Heading north on the 15 freeway for only 30 minutes, our 

destination was the Rancho Bernardo Inn. 

I grew up in the lush suburb of Carmel Mountain Ranch, 

attending many special events at the Rancho Bernardo Inn over 

the years. One of my earliest memories is being a flower girl in 

a family wedding, tossing rose petals between olive and cypress 

trees. Returning to RB usually feels like going home—but this 

time it felt like getting away. 

Friday 

We arrived on Friday just in time for the farmers’ market at 

the 130-year-old Bernardo Winery. With coffees in hand from 

Manzanita Roasting Company, we wandered through the estate’s 

dozen shops and galleries before stopping into the tasting 

room for a few sips of wine. 

Back in the car we continued through the residential neighborhood 

until we reached the Rancho Bernardo Inn. Its Spanish roof 

and cream exterior standing out amongst rich greenery and terra 

cotta accents. The lobby is welcoming with warm earth tones, 

exposed beam ceilings, and a cozy fireside nook. 

The resort is part of a 265-acre property that includes 287 

rooms and suites, multiple dining options, a luxury spa, and 

an 18-hole championship golf course. Rooms are elegantly updated 

in cream and olive-green tones that make for a traditional 

Southern California take on Mediterranean style with patios 

and balconies overlooking the golf course and courtyards. 

We enjoyed glimpses of ivy-draped buildings through weeping 

willow branches, shimmering olive trees, and cypress tree 

spires on an evening stroll. The peaceful trickle of more than a 

dozen unique water features completed the distinctly Mediterranean 

atmosphere of the property. 

We followed one of the lantern-lit paths and arrived right 

on time for a dinner reservation at AVANT. A warm fireplace 

greeted us inside, along with a glowing sunset streaming in 

through the windows. The wraparound bar was filled with 

guests and locals chatting over cocktails, while others finished 

happy hour on the vibrant patio just beyond. Dark beams and 

wood paneling framed the dining room furnished with intimate 

booths, tables, and banquette seating, all tied together with 

Spanish iron accents. 

The drink menu offers New and Old World wines, hyper-local 

beers, and cocktails crafted with regional touches. Partial to 

gin, I ordered The Flying Dutchman, a refreshing combination 

with spicy ginger beer, tart pomegranate, and aromatic mint. 

We turned our attention to the dinner menu, organized by sea, 

garden, and land. The dishes can change daily for seasonality, 

with many ingredients sourced from the on-site chef’s garden. 

We enjoyed the salmon belly crudo served with creamy avocado, 

briny seaweed, and crunchy radish along with Dungeness 

crab elegantly wrapped in sheets of avocado and cucumber, and 

topped with crispy potato wafers. The Wagyu beef duo of petite 

tenderloin and braised brisket with roasted young squash and 

zucchini purée was a definite highlight of the evening. We considered 

whether we had room for dessert as live music played in 

the background and couldn’t resist the house-favorite cinnamon 

sugar doughnuts with Irish coffee affogato as the sweet end to 

our evening. 

Saturday 

We’d ordered room service the night before and woke up to take 

advantage of a lazy morning breakfast on the balcony and coffee in 

bed while making plans for the day. I was excited to be staying near 

my hometown where I could revisit some of my favorite places like 

the Blue Sky Reserve. We tackled the two-mile hike through live oak 


trees and sagebrush, finishing just in time to stop for a quick lunch 

at Brothers Provisions. This artisan market and deli is part of the 3 

Local Brothers restaurant group, which started with RB favorites The 

Barrel Room and Urge Gastropub, just down the street. 

Back at the inn, we spent the afternoon lounging at the adultsonly 

pool, our noses in books and palm trees swaying above. 

As the sun set, we returned to our room to change for dinner. 

We began the evening with fireside drinks at Veranda, the patio 

lounge and restaurant on the property, before catching an Uber 

to our dinner reservation at The Cork and Craft. Located in an 

unassuming business park, this hidden gem cultivated by local 

talent shares space with urban winery Abnormal Wine Co. and 

craft brewery Abnormal Beer Co. 

Sunday 

We started the day with coffee in the room before heading back 

to Veranda for a patio brunch. While sipping on a fresh strawberry 

lavender lemonade, we decided to spend the day in the lush alcoves 

of the award-winning Rancho Bernardo Inn Spa. Its natural beauty 

was instantly therapeutic. Fragrant herbs, flowers, and fruits are 

freshly picked from the chef’s garden next door and used in spa 

treatments to create a truly grounding experience. 

We left feeling not only rejuvenated by our stay, but relieved that 

we can easily return—maybe even next weekend. 

OLIVIA HAYO 


SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION 

Neighborhood Dining Guide 

These restaurants are either locally owned, passionate about local sourcing, or both. Enjoy a delicious meal 

and make sure to tell our advertisers that Edible San Diego sent you! 

NORTH COUNTY 

MISSION BEACH 

POINT LOMA 

A.R. VALENTIEN 

A.R. VALENTIEN 

11480 North Torrey Pines Rd., La Jolla 

858-453-4420 • lodgetorreypines.com/ar-valentien 

The Torrey Pines Lodge’s signature restaurant, 

A.R. Valentien, highlights regional San Diego 

cuisine served in an elegant, timbered indooroutdoor 

dining room overlooking the 18th hole 

of Torrey Pines Golf Course. Executive chef Jeff 

Jackson sources only the best local provisions, 

and the menu changes frequently based on 

seasonal fare available. The restaurant takes 

its name from a talented early-20th-century 

California artist whose works are exhibited 

throughout the restaurant. 

ESCOGELATO 

122 South Kalmia St., Escondido 

760-745-6500 • escogelato.com 

Located in the heart of Escondido, EscoGelato is 

made fresh daily using the highest quality ingredients 

and fresh fruit sourced from local farmers. 

The result is a luscious, super-creamy gelato that’s 

full of flavor. You will taste the difference. In addition 

to the main event, enjoy a nice selection of 

paninis, soups, salads, coffee, and tea. 

JUICE WAVE 

3733 Mission Blvd., Mission Beach 

858-488-0800 • juicewavesd.com 

What began as San Diego’s first organic juice truck now has 

two happy homes in Miramar and Mission Beach. Still, their 

commitment rings true: “Refresh and nourish the soul by 

using the best quality farm-fresh ingredients from local farms 

that reflect the radiant growing season in Southern California.” 

Check out their creatively named cleanses, like Lettuce 

Love, Turnip The Beet, and Kalefornia. 

OCEANA COASTAL KITCHEN 

3999 Mission Blvd., San Diego 

858-539-8635 • catamaranresort.com/dining-entertainment/ 

oceana-san-diego-restaurant 

Oceana Coastal Kitchen features chef-driven California cuisine 

and a modern, ocean-inspired design. Oceana offers bayfront 

dining at an iconic Pacific Beach hideaway. Executive 

chef Steven Riemer’s playful interpretations of classic dishes 

highlight the purity and flavors of California local produce 

and a commitment to sustainable ingredients. A cold bar with 

sushi options, small bites, and main dishes includes the freshest 

seafood available from the coast of Baja and the Pacific. 

SOLARE 

2820 Roosevelt Rd., San Diego 

619-270-9670 • solarelounge.com 

Solare is an authentic Italian restaurant with a special 

focus on southern Italy and Sicily featuring a menu made 

with fresh ingredients selected daily. Blending modern 

and traditional tastes, the results are light and healthy 

dishes brimming with natural flavors. Complement your 

meal with one of 2,000 bottles of wine from the cellar or 

30 wines by the glass. Solare is committed to serving the 

cuisine of today, created with all the love and attention to 

detail from generations past. 

DOWNTOWN / LITTLE ITALY 

Bivouac Ciderworks 

3986 30th St., San Diego 

619-725-0844 • bivouaccider.com 

As a center for experimentation and 

camaraderie, Bivouac Ciderworks 

is a welcome home for active, creative, 

and outdoorsy cider and food 

enthusiasts alike. Their goal is to inspire curiosity and 

foster a passion for what craft cider brings to the table. 

The outdoor-inspired tasting room, right in the heart of 

North Park, features a full menu of food options. Don’t 

miss the Impossible Burger, award-winning tuna poke, 

and vegan jackfruit sliders. 


LOCAL ATTRACTIONS | 


CHECK THIS OUT 

San Diego Children’s 

Discovery Museum 

Remember watching Mrs. Frizzle 

on The Magic School Bus on Saturday 

mornings? This children’s museum is 

the magic school bus in living color, 

bringing scholastic entertainment 

to life with endless interactive 

opportunities for your kiddos to 

explore. With the massive Magnetic 

Ball Wall and Magnification Station 

to Farm Animal Friday and the 

museum's Nature Make & Take 

projects, you will be begging your 

toddler to head to Escondido for an 

educational adventure. 

Check the museum’s calendar for 

daily programs—and my favorite, 

World Culture Wednesdays—to travel 

the globe through fun stories, art, and 

engineering. 

General admission $8/person 

IN SEASON 

California Spiny 

Lobster 

California spiny lobster season runs 

October–March, but crustacean lovers 

throughout the states are hard-pressed 

to find this elusive favorite due to a 

high demand and price tag in overseas 

markets. Sweeter than their East Coast 

counterparts, these pincer-free bugs are 

soft in texture and delicate in flavor, 

allowing culinary creatives to go wild 

in the kitchen. Try yours at Mitch’s 

Seafood or get to the market early to 

take one home from Tuna Harbor 

Dockside Market. Both San Diego 

establishments make a point of selling 

locally harvested seafood. Adventurous 

types can throw on 

some diving fins and 

try catching their 

own. It’s far more 

complicated than 

that, so beginners 

should do some 

research and 

find a buddy. 

Events 

JANUARY 

Every Saturday, 8am–1pm, rain or 

shine, visit the Tuna Harbor Dockside 

Market and get the freshest 

selection of San Diego seafood 

direct from San Diego fishermen. 

» thedocksidemarket.com 

Get an anniversary Teku glass and 

sample rare beers at the third 

anniversary party at Pure Project 

Brewing on Jan. 12 from 1–5pm. 

» purebrewing.org 

Farm to Fork San Diego presents 

Local Libations Week, starting Jan. 

13 with the third annual BIGA Hog 

Roast. Deals at participating 

restaurants run through Jan. 19. 

» farmtoforksd.com 

San Diego Restaurant Week 

features specials from over 180 

participating restaurants for eight 

tantalizing days from Jan. 20–27. 

» sandiegorestaurantweek.com 

FEBRUARY 

Random Acts of Kindness Week 

is the third week of February, and 

we will be sharing ideas for you to 

spread kindness early in the month 

at ediblesandiego.com. 

Learn how to grow your farmers’ 

market business at the InTents 

Conference reconvening for its third 

annual year Feb. 24–26. 

» intentsconference.com 

Farm school at Wild Willow Farm 

will offer a series of three classes on 

holistic winter orchard care taught by 

Paul Maschka Feb. 12, 19, and 26. 

» sandiegoroots.org 


Farmers’ Markets 

Monday 

Escondido—Welk Resort † 

8860 Lawrence Welk Dr. 

3–7pm, year-round 

760-651-3630 

Tuesday 

Coronado 

1st St. & B Ave., Ferry Landing 

2:30–6pm 

760-741-3763 

Escondido * 

Heritage Garden Park 

Juniper btwn Grand & Valley Pkwy. 

2:30–6pm 

760-480-4101 

Mira Mesa * 

10510 Reagan Rd. 

2:30–7pm (3–6pm fall-winter) 

858-272-7054 

Otay Ranch—Chula Vista 

2015 Birch Rd. and Eastlake Blvd. 

4–8pm (3–7pm winter) 

619-279-0032 

Pacific Beach Tuesday *† 

Bayard & Garnet 

2–7:30pm (2–7pm fall-winter) 

619-233-3901 

UCSD Town Square 

UCSD Campus, Town Square 

10am–2pm, Sept to June 

858-534-4248 

Vail Headquarters * 

32115 Temecula Pkwy. 

9am–1pm 

760-728-7343 

Wednesday 

Grantville 

4647 Zion Ave. 

Noon–4pm 

619-550-7180 

Little Italy Wednesday *† 

501 W. Date St. 

9am–1pm 

619-233-5009 

Ocean Beach 

4900 block of Newport Ave. 

4–7pm (4–8pm summer) 

619-279-0032 

People’s Produce Night Market *† 

1655 Euclid Ave. 

5–8pm 

619-813-9148 

Santee *† 

Carlton Hills Blvd. & Mast Blvd. 

3–7pm (2:30–6:30pm winter) 

619-449-8427 

State Street in Carlsbad Village 

State St. & Carlsbad Village Dr. 

3–7pm (3–6pm fall-winter) 

858-272-7054 

Temecula—Promenade * 

40820 Winchester Rd. by Macy’s 

9am–1pm 

760-728-7343 

Thursday 

Lemon Grove 

2885 Lemon Grove Ave. 

3–7pm 

619-813-9148 

Linda Vista *† 

6900 Linda Vista Rd. 

3–7pm (2–6pm winter) 

760-504-4363 

North Park Thursday *† 

North Park Way & 30th St. 

3–7:30pm, year-round 

619-550-7180 

Oceanside Morning * 

Pier View Way & Coast Hwy. 101 

9am–1pm 

760-791-3241 

Rancho Bernardo 

16535 Via Esprillo 

btwn Via Fontero & Via del Campo 

11am–2pm 

619-279-0032 

SDSU 

Campanile Walkway btwn Hepner Hall 

& Love Library 

10am–3pm, Sept to June 

www.clube3.org 

Sleeves Up Horton Plaza 

199 Horton Plaza 

10am–2pm 

619-481-4959 

Valley Center 

28246 Lilac Rd. 

3–7pm (2–6pm, Nov to Mar) 

vccountryfarmersmarket@gmail.com 

Friday 

Borrego Springs 

Christmas Circle Community Park 

7am–noon, Oct to May 

760-767-5555 

Horton Plaza † 

225 Broadway Circle 

11am–2pm 

619-795-3363 

Imperial Beach *† 

Seacoast Dr. at Pier Plaza 

2–7pm, Oct to Mar 

2–7:30pm, Apr to Sept 

info@imperialbeachfarmersmarket.org 

La Mesa Village * 

La Mesa Blvd. btwn Palm & Allison 

3–7pm, year-round 

619-550-7180 

Mission Valley *† NEW! 

Civita Park 

7960 Civita Blvd. 

3–7pm 

760-504-4363 

Rancho Bernardo Winery 

13330 Paseo del Verano Norte 

9am–1pm 

760-500-1709 

Saturday 

City Heights *†! 

On Wightman St. btwn Fairmount & 

43rd St. 

9am–1pm 

760-580-0116 

Del Mar 

1050 Camino Del Mar 

1–4pm 

858-465-0013 

Kearny Mesa NEW! 

8725 Ariva Ct. 

9:30am–1:30pm 

858-272-7054 

Little Italy Mercato *† 

600 W. Date St. 

8am–2pm 

619-233-3901 

Pacific Beach 

4150 Mission Blvd. 

8am–noon 

760-741-3763 

Poway * 

Old Poway Park 

14134 Midland Rd. at Temple 

8am–1pm 

619-249-9395 

Rancho Penasquitos YMCA 

9400 Fairgrove Lane & 

Salmon River Rd. 

9am–1pm 

858-484-8788 

Temecula—Old Town * 

Sixth & Front St., Old Town 

8am–12:30pm 

760-728-7343 

Vista *† 

325 Melrose Dr., South of Hwy 78 

8am–1pm 

760-945-7425 

Sunday 

Allied Gardens Sunday 

Lewis Middle School 

5170 GreenBrier Ave. 

10am–2pm 

858-568-6291, 619-865-6574 

Hillcrest * 

3960 Normal & Lincoln Sts. 

9am–2pm 

619-237-1632 

La Jolla Open Aire 

Girard Ave. & Genter 

9am–1:30pm 

858-454-1699 

Leucadia * 

185 Union St. & Vulcan St. 

10am–2pm 

858-272-7054 

Murrieta * 

Village Walk Plaza 

I-15, exit west on Calif. Oaks/Kalmia 

9am–1pm 

760-728-7343 

North San Diego / Sikes Adobe † 

12655 Sunset Dr., Escondido 

10:30am–3:30pm, year-round 

858-735-5311 

Rancho Santa Fe Del Rayo Village 

16079 San Dieguito Rd. 

9:30am–2pm 

619-743-4263 

Santa Ysabel 

Hwy 78 & 79 

21887 Washington St. 

Noon–4pm 

760-782-9202 

Solana Beach 

410 to 444 South Cedros Ave. 

Noon–4pm 

858-755-0444 

* Market vendors accept WIC (Women, Infants, Children Farmers’ Market checks) 

† Market vendors accept EBT (Electronic Benefit Transfer) 

! Currently only City Heights accepts WIC Farmers’ Market Checks and the WIC 

Fruit and Vegetable Checks. 

All San Diego County markets listed except SDSU and Seeds @ City are 

certified by the County Agricultural Commissioner. 

Visit ediblesandiego.com and click on “Resources” for more complete 

information and links to farmers’ market websites. 


PREP | 


How to 

Conquer 

the 

Spaghetti 

Squash 

Tempted by the Pinterest-pretty 

carb-free pictures of roasted halves of 

spaghetti squash (Curcurbita pepo) forked 

into appetizing strings that look like guiltless 

spaghetti, you start by following blog 

directions that insist “it’s so simple” and 

preheat your oven to 350°. 

To prep the squash, you proceed to 

cut the squash in half—or, at least try 

to cut the squash in half. In 10 minutes’ 

time, your heart rate is up and you’ve 

nearly missed severing three fingers. 

There’s nothing in that blog about what 

to do if cutting a spaghetti squash open 

is like sawing through concrete with your 

bare hands, but you got this. About 40 

minutes later, that sucker is halved, seeds 

removed, set on a baking sheet, rubbed 

down with extra-virgin olive oil, and salt 

and peppered. You’re panting, but it’s 

ready to go in the oven. 

The timer is set for 30 minutes and 

now you wait, hanxious (hungry and 

anxious) for your hard work to deliver a 

golden roasted pasta substitute packed 

with potassium and beta-carotene. The 

timer goes off and you pull the sheet pan 

out of the oven and start at the squash 

with a fork. But nothing’s happening. It’s 

not turning into pasta like magic because 

it looks raw, no golden brown roasting 

marks in sight. You put it back in the 

oven and set the timer for 15 minutes. 

Blast, it’s still raw—and looking a little 

dry. You burn your hand adding a little 

more olive oil and it goes back in the 

oven. You sit intensely in front of the 

window watching for this thing to turn 

perfect like it’s your final bake. Another 

45 minutes and it’s ready, but you’re not 

hungry because you snacked on a pack 

of cookies and ate all the chips with salsa 

during that extra hour. 

Next time, conquer the spaghetti 

squash by preheating your oven to 425°. 

Rinse under cool water and dry the entire 

squash to remove any dirt and debris. 

Pierce the skin four times with a fork 

and toss the squash into the oven on a 

cookie sheet. That’s right, you’re baking 

it whole. Bake smaller squash for about 

40 minutes, up to an hour for a larger 

squash, and flip the squash over halfway 

through cook time for even baking. You 

can tell it’s done when the squash feels 

soft under the push of a wooden spoon. 

Remove and cool the squash enough to 

handle with a hot pad or glove, about 5 to 

10 minutes. Effortlessly slip a chef’s knife 

right through the center, end to end, and 

stand back to let it steam once it’s opened. 

Use a metal spoon to easily scoop out the 

seeds, and pull with a fork to separate the 

squash into al dente strands. No handsawing 

required. 

Toss the squash with a little salt, pepper, 

grated romano, and olive oil to serve 

cacio e pepe style, or incorporate into 

another favorite pasta recipe.

Edible San Diego E Edition Issue #51 Winter 2019

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