When Farmer Lee picks the first tomatoes of the season, he admits that he will “plunk that very first handful into my mouth.” And, as the juice dribbles down his chin, he shares that this experience absolutely screams summer to him. “As I smell the tomato leaves as I walk towards the vines,” he says, “and as I smell the soil and feel the sun on my back, the experience is purely spiritual. It’s about that miracle, the miracle that happens when God gives us a seed and then it turns into such a majestic, glorious gift.” (Farmer Lee Jones, during the summer of 2018)

We’re Sowing the Seeds of Summer Crops

Chef Matt McMillin is constructing a bacon, lettuce and tomato sandwich with the tenderness and care it takes to swaddle a newborn.

In 2018, tomatoes are being used in creative cuisines around the world in unique and delicious ways. And, as we once again enter the long-anticipated summer tomato season, we thought we’d take a more in-depth look at this incredible crop.

“Peas and carrots,” Farmer Lee Jones mused just a few days ago, “go together like a sock and a shoe.” That’s hard to debate and we quickly realized that his mind was on the best of the summer crops. So, we asked him to share what fresh vegetables he’d put on his 2018 summer crops list. The first? Petite carrots! The second? Mixed snow peas. Here’s more.