2021-09-08 14:34:20
Leslie Wiser is the owner and farmer behind Radical Family Farms, a 1.5 acre low-till farm in Sebastopol, CA. Radical Family Farms specializes in Asian heritage crops. We work with home cooks, restaurant owners, chefs and families who prioritize heritage cooking and identity exploration through food. Sarah Deragon is the flower farmer and runs our flower CSA program in addition to her work as a professional photographer with her business Portraits to the People. What was your inspiration behind Radical Family Farms? Radical Family Farms was founded in 2019 to explore Wiser’s 1st generation, mixed-Asian heritage through the produce and herbs grown on the farm. Now they provide culturally relevant produce boxes to over 250 families every other week throughout the Bay Area with their CSA programs (community supported agriculture). What is your favorite dish to make with the produce grown on your farm? Kohlrabi in a white rue sauce, German style with boiled potatoes. This is a dish my Oma would make for me while living with her as a teenager, and my kids love kohlrabi this way. My other favorite dish is to make Taiwanese beef way. My other favorite dish is to make tomatoes, and carrots grown on the farm, as well as tea eggs from our chickens. How can visitors get involved with Radical Family Farms while on vacation? Visitors can purchase bulk flower buckets to adorn their vacation home on our website. They can also schedule a short farm tour with a 72 hour notice by email. Tours are dependent on our farming schedule and cost $150/ hour. Tour groups are limited to a five people. Describe your perfect fall day in Sonoma County. Thunderstorms and lots of rain to help our cover crop germinate! Our farming season is from May-November, and in the fall we cover crop our fields to help rebuild the soil and let our well rest. Fall cover cropping is an essential part of our farming process that is dependent on the fall/winter rains. Where is your favorite place to dine in Sonoma County? As a family, we love Handline in Sebastopol. We love the ambience with both their outdoor and indoor seating and lots of air and space! Plus they source from small family farms as much as possible, and you can taste the freshness of their ingredients. My standing order is the burger, fries and house salad with double chipotle aioli! What tips do you have for first time visitors to the area? Check out Sugar Loaf State Park in the winter to hike up to the waterfall but watch out for poison oak! We have an annual summer camping trip there and it’s one of the few places that allow fires at campsites. Their Observatory offers late night star finding sessions during the new moon. What makes Sonoma County such a unique destination for food and drink lovers? Sonoma County is a rich agricultural area with many small family farms that supply the local restaurants and wineries here. It’s important to remember that this area is only the wine destination it is today due to the Chinese laborers in the 1800s, who were later starved out of this county by the Anti-Chinese leagues.
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