In the classroom this week, we looked at photos of Prunus subcordata, also known as the Sierra, Klamath, Pacific, or Oregon plum, which is native to present-day California and Oregon. We learned the Konkow word for this plum and watched a short film by the Konkow Valley Band of Maidu Indians about recent initiatives to return land back to their tribe.
In the kitchen, we made a plum panzanella, not with native plums, as we don’t have a known, organic source for them, but with the descendants of plums from around the world that are now a highlight of the late summer California agricultural bounty: Black Kat and Dapple Dandy pluots from Cliff McFarlin Family Farms in Orosi and Santa Rosa plums from Knoll Farms in Brentwood.
There was quite a bit of chopping involved in this salad, as well as making a salad dressing and adding in fresh herbs such as thyme (which we grew in our own school garden!) and basil. We added a little fresh mozzarella to the mix, and only wish there had been a bit more time for the bread pieces to soak up the dressing before we had to eat, though this didn’t stop some chefs from having four servings before our closing circle.
