Summertime Hues

For a chef, summer is the best time of year, and the summer of 2007 is proving to be no exception. While spring this year came to us in fits and starts—blanketing us with a layer of snow one day, then turning sunny and summer-like the next—summer came on strong, bringing with it the variety of fruits and vegetables we'd been longing for. It's a real treat for those of us who get to do the shopping for Tree House Pastry Shop and Cafe.

Each time we stock up at the Santa Fe Farmers' Market—twice a week now, every Tuesday and Saturday—we're presented with an overwhelming array of georgeous colors and flavors that truly reflect the best of what New Mexico has to offer this time of year. We walk down the rows of the market, taking in the sensations and imagining what delights we might produce from all this abundant life. What an exciting time to be in the kitchen!

Right now we're getting about 95% of our ingredients from local growers. Doing so allows us to support the community and our local economy, and it forges important bonds between our providers and our customers. (Anyone who read the recent article in the Santa Fean Magazine about the Farm to Restaurant program got to hear a little bit more about this great program we're involved with.) And we love to talk up our local farmers! If, when you're dining in our shop, you come across an ingredient that really intrigues you, ask us about it. We'll be happy to let you know where it was grown.

Those of you who frequent the café may have noticed that we've gone from paper-based menus to using a chalkboard. We long felt the practice of printing new menus every morning was more than a bit wasteful. Especially during this time of year, the great majority of our menu is different with each new day, and we needed a way to quickly and easily make changes as new items are created or specials sell out. Although it doesn't allow us to highlight the farms that are providing us with our produce (as we tried to do in our paper menu), we think the blackboard's been working well.

Here are some of our recent featured specials you may have seen on the new board:

• Soba Noodles with peanut-coconut sauce, pea shoots, bok choy, sugarsnap peas, and fresh basil
• Quinoa Salad with lemon vinaigrette, Sweetwoods fresh feta, mint, and orange segments
• Balsamic Roasted Oyster Mushroom Sandwich with sweet pepper pesto and fresh goat cheese
• Pizza Rustica with sun dried tomato sauce, lion's mane mushrooms, green chile, and goat cheese
• Cold Cantaloupe Soup with yogurt and fresh mint
• Strawberry Cake with fresh strawberries and whipped vanilla cream
• Apple and tart cherry pie with Tara's organic ice cream

Our menu changes daily, so stop in anytime to see what's new.

How Time Flies!

Slowly, but surely, Tree House Pastry Shop and Café has inched past the first anniversary of its Grand Opening, which took place on July 18, 2006. It's been a very exciting year for us. We've made some really good food and some really great friends. The truth is, we could have never made it this far without the support of some truly wonderful people. We're looking forward to the next year.

Buen Provecho,
Maria