Farm Food: Not Fancy, but Friendly

Some special friends of ours live about a mile or so down the highway. I've known Ron since I was a little girl, and was delighted when he and his wife Jane relocated to Montana almost two years ago, and even more tickled when they found a beautiful home nearby.

Our friends Ron and Jane at Christmas.

Last week Ron gave us all a big scare: a very serious heart attack.

During stressful times, there are really only two choices. Either you stop eating, or you eat like a locust. At Flower Farm, we are card-carrying members of the latter camp. So we helped the best way we knew: food offerings.

While in the hospital, Ron the Patient was getting broth and Jello on a hospital tray. For his worried wife and daughters, though, the situation clearly called for comfort food. Crockpots and casseroles.

So we cooked up some BBQ pulled pork, rolls, cheesy creamy potato casserole (I'm not calling them funeral potatoes because he lived! Ron lived! But that's what they were), a veggie balsamic-herb medley of asparagus, zucchini, peppers, mushrooms and onions, and chocolate cake with chocolate frosting.

Ron is home now and doing a little better every day. We are grateful. Because this world needs more Ron.

He is a big kidder and likes to laugh. I've been teasing him about his new "heart healthy" diet, insisting that he will now need to subsist mainly on twigs, nuts, berries and pebbles. (I used to be a healthcare professional. I know things.)


Today I'm sending over another meal, and since this one will include Ron, the menu selection needed more restraint, fat and calorie-wise. So I made soup.

The roasted tomatillo verde soup base doesn't
 look very appetizing, I'll grant you.
But trust me: it's amazing.

Cooked up a big 'ole pot of Montana-Mex verde soup, using a roasted base of tomatillos, Hatch chile peppers, onions, garlic and tomatoes grown right here in the garden at Flower Farm last summer, scratch chicken stock, black beans, white corn, spinach, chicken, cilantro and mild(ish) seasonings. Spinach doesn't usually belong, but we'll say it's camouflaged it as "extra" cilantro for Ron, and his on-the-mend heart.

But toppings! This is where things got tricky.

Avacados are probably okay for our boy Ron. But Monterey Jack cheese, tortilla chips, and sour cream? Not so much.

Organic, non-GMO and no salt... it all sounded hopeful.
But on second thought, no. None for Ron.

So I made some special food labels to distinguish between Ron-approved and Ron-prohibited toppings.

Sour cream label: "Sorry, man."

Cheese label: "Absolutely not."

And so on and so forth.

Still, I didn't want him feeling left out. So as an extra thoughtful and caring gesture, I also sent some special toppings, just for Ron.

Ron Toppings:
pinecones, gravel, sunflower seeds, twigs

Farm food and friendship. Nothing fancy, but I sure hope it does their hearts good, and gives them a little chuckle.

PS.  I also sent the food with an extra special delivery guy -- the boonies version of Waiters on Wheels. Pretty sure Ron and Jane will like that.

My Daddy, friend to all,
and the world's greatest food deliverer.

Pinned a note on my Dad, just in case he forgot what he was doing. (While he was here waiting for me to finish packing up the food, he went to the bathroom but forgot to pee. Just sayin'.We had a good laugh about that.)