A Tour of Davis Ranch in Sloughhouse

California is known for growing all types of food.  Just take a drive down any major freeway from Northern to Southern California and you will see food being grown.  Tomatoes, artichokes, sunflowers, almonds, walnuts, mandarins, lettuce, grapes, garlic, strawberries, melons, and even hops are just a few of the crops I see daily.

I feel blessed to also have daily farmer’s markets and farm stands that supply fresh fruits and veggies.  The farmers love sharing information about their crops and will let you know when the peaches are ripening, the best tomatoes for making a sauce, or that you better get your Gravenstein apples this week because what they have is the last of this year’s crop.

Davis Ranch in Sloughhouse, CA

Thanks to my friends Shane and Genevieve from Fittyfoodlicious for the wonderful behind the scenes tour of this family-owned working farm.

Close to Sacramento, there is a well-known farm stand called Davis Ranch in Sloughhouse, California.  This is the place to get your pumpkins, strawberries, squash, gourds, pickling cucumbers, green beans, peaches, asparagus, and corn stalks; and everything is non-GMO.

What Davis Ranch is known for is its corn.  Sloughhouse Corn has a reputation, it’s simply the best corn you can get. This corn is super sweet and tender and you can get yellow corn, white corn and my favorite the yellow and white corn.

With over 500 acres of land, Davis ranch grows a lot of food. With its humble beginnings in 1940, this farm has been a mainstay for almost 80 years.

Corn

Of course, we have to start with the corn. As you drive up to Davis Ranch you can see the massive cornfield where the corn is picked daily. It just can’t get any fresher than this.

Look behind the counter for piles of fresh corn getting cleaned and bagged for sale.  Grab a paper bag at the counter that’s filled with 8 or 12 ears of corn.

The Strawberry Patch

You can also pick your own strawberries at Davis Ranch.  But this isn’t your typical strawberry patch.  Here there are rows and rows of unique stacking strawberry pots with berries growing from all sides.

Squash

There are bins of different squash from little to big and green to orange.  These Red Kuri squash are perfect for soups, curries and baked goods.

They have Pumpkins of all sizes

Good Old Fashion Watermelons

Corn Stalks and Lavender

Davis Ranch at Sloughhouse

Did you know you can pick your own produce at Davis Ranch?  What better way to get fresh veggies than to pick your own.

• I am a firm believer that everyone needs to see where their food is grown.  Food doesn’t grow in the grocery stores, it grows in the dirt with the help of amazing farmer’s who put in hours of hard work. It is worth seeing fruits and vegetables at all stages of growth, and that not every piece of produce is perfect like we have come to know from the beautiful grocery store displays.
• Fruit and vegetables are seasonal and this is when they are the most nutritious – why not pick what is in season?
• If you like canning and freezing this is the perfect place to get your fruits and vegetables.
• You can pick Peppers, Squash, Tomatoes, and Eggplants and other items when available.  The strawberries are not included in this but make sure to pick a few baskets too.

Sloughhouse U-PICK

Our course I had needed some goodies to take home with me. Corn for freezing, pickling cucumbers for Bread and Butter pickles, acorn squash drizzled with honey for supper tonight and this cute little pumpkin for my fall decorating.

Here are some recipes I think you will love using your fresh-picked produce.

Bread and Butter Pickles

How to Keep Strawberries Fresh

Strawberry Feta Cream Cheese Crostini

How to Make Watermelon Pizza

Thank you for visiting One Hot Oven today and I hope if you live nearby Davis Ranch you will stop by for a visit.

Blessings,

Jere’