A Farm-to-Table Dinner at Novato's Farm Girl Nursery

A few weeks ago, we had a fabulous time at the first-ever Farm-to-Table Dinner at Novato's Farm Girl Nursery. The nursery, a labor of love by Novato resident Lisa Marvier, has really taken off as a local resource for fresh produce, seeds, plants, and food education. Our kids even attended one of the nursery's summer camps and had a blast.

The Farm-to-Table Dinner featured five amazing courses prepared by Marin chef Suzanne Griffin, as well as wonderful conversation with some really interesting people. Dinner guests chatted over wine before dinner and toured the beautiful Farm Girl Nursery property, where we even met some goats and horses. Later, we all sat down for dinner outdoors at a rustic table. As the name implies, all the courses, from the opening Caprese salad to the the closing berry tart with a date-and-nut crust, featured ingredients sourced from Farm Girl Nursery's gardens.

While everything was delicious, my favorite course was the green Farm Girl gazpacho served as the second course. It was so fresh and cooling (the dinner was on one of those rare really hot days this summer), and was a wonderful amalgam of different flavors. Chef Suzanne was gracious enough to share the recipe with me, and it follows below, so you too can amaze your dinner guests with something this good!

The next Farm-to-Table Dinner at Farm Girl Nursery takes place Saturday, September 22, and is almost sold out! Chef Suzanne has an amazing menu planned that includes panzanella (Italian bread salad) , sweet corn bisque with crispy shiitakes, and roasted halibut with citrus herb sauce over Farm Girl greens. The dinner starts at 6 pm, and the cost is $175 per couple or $90 per individual.  To reserve your spot, call (415) 730-6917.

Farm Girl Nursery is located at 100 Pacheco Avenue in Novato. For more information, visit their Facebook page.

Farm Girl Gazpacho

Serves 6–8

Ingredients

• 3 tomatillos, husks removed, and chopped
• 1 avocado, pitted and peeled and chopped
• 1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped
• 1 cup chopped zucchini
• 1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
• 1/2 cup green grapes
• 1/4 cup fresh or frozen peas
• 8 mint leaves
• 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives
• 2 teaspoons chopped garlic
• 2 1/2 cups coconut water
• 1/4 fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt & pepper to taste

Place tomatillos, avocado. jalapeno, cucumber, zucchini. bell pepper, grapes and peas in the bowl of a food processor and process until smooth.

Add mint, cilantro, chives, and garlic and process again to combine.

Add the mixture to a blender and add the coconut water, lime juice, and olive oil, working in batches if necessary.

Blend the soup a few minutes until completely smooth and creamy.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.