Our Community Cafe strives to bring the best quality foods to our menus. We are committed to sourcing products that are low-sodium, MSG free, and without artificial ingredients. Our kitchen team prepares nutritious fresh fruits and vegetables daily. We source local seasonal and organic options when available. Delicious recipes are thoughtfully prepared to keep our community well fed and healthy.
PLEASE CALL OR TEXT FOR RESERVATIONS AT 970-264-2167
Archuleta Seniors Grow Dome Update - January 2024
Our guest columnist this week is Archuleta Senior Inc grower and farmer Kelle Carter Bruno. Kelle joined the ASI team this past August 2023 when ASI purchased through ARPA grant dollars a 42 foot growing dome from local business Growing Spaces Greenhouses. The dome is located on the Growing Spaces campus in Pagosa Springs, CO. The purpose of the dome is to provide a year round location for fresh fruit and vegetable production to supply the Pagosa Senior Center Community Cafe which serves the community five days a week providing tasty and nutrient dense seasonally inspired meals through on site dining, grab and go and Meals on Wheels.
“I began working as a horticulturist for the Archuleta Senior Center this past August with the goal of supplementing the current food program by providing fresh, nutrient dense, locally grown produce to the kitchen. This position was made possible by a grant from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which President Biden signed on March 11, 2021, to combat the public health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Of the $1.9 trillion package, $1.43 billion is earmarked for the Older Americans Act (OAA), and the national network of Area Agencies on Aging.The San Juan Basin Area Agency on Aging, Inc., is working in partnership with Archuleta Seniors, Inc. (ASI), to provide a greenhouse garden to support the senior center and the meals on wheels program.
Growing food has been a passion of mine for close to two decades. I have a vivid memory of pulling a carrot out of the ground at the age of 17 and feeling like I had answered a question I didn’t know I had asked. Like most gardeners, the end of August is a busy time for me. The garden is exploding and those green tomatoes are finally turning lovely shades of red, purple, and orange. It’s a time to cook, eat, share, and preserve your harvest for the coming winter. This August I found myself starting seeds and making preparations for a new growing season. The act of placing a seed into the soil is always one of trust and hope. As the season shifted to fall, a time I am usually putting my garden to bed, I found myself beginning a new gardening experiment. Which plants would produce at 7,500 feet above sea level during the cold winter months? I discussed the needs of the kitchen with the ASI chef, Cynthia Sperry, and paired her desires with the plants that are hardy enough to grow through the cold season. We decided to try: collard greens, cilantro, cucumbers, radicchio, dark purple and red lettuces, spinach, fennel bulbs, green and red kale, multi-colored chard, dill, and cherry tomatoes.
My seeds began to sprout in September. I pulled out the spent plants from the summer season and transplanted the new plant starts. So far I have produced: 45 lbs of cucumbers, 50 lbs of lettuce, 33 lbs of kale, 26 lbs of chard, 15 lbs of fennel bulbs, and 15 lbs of collard greens; in addition to culinary herbs like lemongrass, rosemary and dill. Cynthia and her team have been making use of the veggies in many of their homestyle meals. The cilantro is used in guacamole that tops Baja-style fish tacos; rosemary adds flavor to vegetarian navy bean and artichoke casserole; the lettuce, cucumbers, and grape tomatoes are incorporated in the fresh salad bar; lemongrass is added to red curry cod fish and Moroccan stew and the kale and chard have been sauteed up as a nutritious side dish.
It’s bitterly cold this Tuesday morning as I head inside the dome to check on the plants, my car thermometer registers a chilly -13*F. Inside the dome it is warm, humid, and 45*F. The condensation has frozen to the window and the trim on the door. The plants are working hard; they are not loving these temperature drops but they are slowly growing. I am adjusting my thought process to harvesting and washing greens while there is snow on the ground. It is incredible that the Growing Spaces growing domes provide the ability to allow for vegetable production in the winter! I am grateful for the opportunity to serve the community in this way and to learn from the plants, as they are always good teachers.”
If you would like to sample these locally grown vegetables and freshly prepared meals, stop by the community cafe at 451 Hot Springs Blvd M-Th to dine in or M-F grab n go. All ages welcome. Please make your reservation for lunch by 9 am each day by contacting us at 970.264.2167.
Our guest columnist this week is Archuleta Senior Inc grower and farmer Kelle Carter Bruno. Kelle joined the ASI team this past August 2023 when ASI purchased through ARPA grant dollars a 42 foot growing dome from local business Growing Spaces Greenhouses. The dome is located on the Growing Spaces campus in Pagosa Springs, CO. The purpose of the dome is to provide a year round location for fresh fruit and vegetable production to supply the Pagosa Senior Center Community Cafe which serves the community five days a week providing tasty and nutrient dense seasonally inspired meals through on site dining, grab and go and Meals on Wheels.
“I began working as a horticulturist for the Archuleta Senior Center this past August with the goal of supplementing the current food program by providing fresh, nutrient dense, locally grown produce to the kitchen. This position was made possible by a grant from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which President Biden signed on March 11, 2021, to combat the public health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Of the $1.9 trillion package, $1.43 billion is earmarked for the Older Americans Act (OAA), and the national network of Area Agencies on Aging.The San Juan Basin Area Agency on Aging, Inc., is working in partnership with Archuleta Seniors, Inc. (ASI), to provide a greenhouse garden to support the senior center and the meals on wheels program.
Growing food has been a passion of mine for close to two decades. I have a vivid memory of pulling a carrot out of the ground at the age of 17 and feeling like I had answered a question I didn’t know I had asked. Like most gardeners, the end of August is a busy time for me. The garden is exploding and those green tomatoes are finally turning lovely shades of red, purple, and orange. It’s a time to cook, eat, share, and preserve your harvest for the coming winter. This August I found myself starting seeds and making preparations for a new growing season. The act of placing a seed into the soil is always one of trust and hope. As the season shifted to fall, a time I am usually putting my garden to bed, I found myself beginning a new gardening experiment. Which plants would produce at 7,500 feet above sea level during the cold winter months? I discussed the needs of the kitchen with the ASI chef, Cynthia Sperry, and paired her desires with the plants that are hardy enough to grow through the cold season. We decided to try: collard greens, cilantro, cucumbers, radicchio, dark purple and red lettuces, spinach, fennel bulbs, green and red kale, multi-colored chard, dill, and cherry tomatoes.
My seeds began to sprout in September. I pulled out the spent plants from the summer season and transplanted the new plant starts. So far I have produced: 45 lbs of cucumbers, 50 lbs of lettuce, 33 lbs of kale, 26 lbs of chard, 15 lbs of fennel bulbs, and 15 lbs of collard greens; in addition to culinary herbs like lemongrass, rosemary and dill. Cynthia and her team have been making use of the veggies in many of their homestyle meals. The cilantro is used in guacamole that tops Baja-style fish tacos; rosemary adds flavor to vegetarian navy bean and artichoke casserole; the lettuce, cucumbers, and grape tomatoes are incorporated in the fresh salad bar; lemongrass is added to red curry cod fish and Moroccan stew and the kale and chard have been sauteed up as a nutritious side dish.
It’s bitterly cold this Tuesday morning as I head inside the dome to check on the plants, my car thermometer registers a chilly -13*F. Inside the dome it is warm, humid, and 45*F. The condensation has frozen to the window and the trim on the door. The plants are working hard; they are not loving these temperature drops but they are slowly growing. I am adjusting my thought process to harvesting and washing greens while there is snow on the ground. It is incredible that the Growing Spaces growing domes provide the ability to allow for vegetable production in the winter! I am grateful for the opportunity to serve the community in this way and to learn from the plants, as they are always good teachers.”
If you would like to sample these locally grown vegetables and freshly prepared meals, stop by the community cafe at 451 Hot Springs Blvd M-Th to dine in or M-F grab n go. All ages welcome. Please make your reservation for lunch by 9 am each day by contacting us at 970.264.2167.