DA-LE RANCH | SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA RANCHING AT ITS BEST

Tucked away (way, way, waaaay away!) in the hills near Lake Elsinore, California is a little gem of a ranch owned by two very lovely people who I have been fortunate enough to get to know over the past year. Their names are Dave & Leslie, and their ranch is Da-Le Ranch. (Dave = Da, Leslie = Le... get it?!) Every Saturday, Dave makes the 60-mile trek out from their ranch to SoCo Farmers' Market in Costa Mesa, which is where we met.

Dave & Leslie of Da-Le Ranch with their adorable llama, appropriately named 'Kisses'!

My husband Tim & I have become Da-Le Ranch 'addicts' over the past year - to say that the meat that Dave & Leslie produce is delicious is putting it mildly. Everything from steaks to ribs to sausages - pork, beef, chicken, lamb, rabbit, duck - you name it, they sell it. And it is Da-Le-Licious! It's clear that this meat is coming from some very happy animals. So, when they very kindly invited us out to visit them for the day earlier this month, Tim & I jumped at the chance.

Left: Da-Le Ranch | Right: My husband, author Tim Watson, on our off-road tour of the property with Dave

We loved every second of our day at Da-Le Ranch - it's not often that Tim & I get to venture off the beaten path and spend a day relaxing while getting to 'meet our meat'! It was so wonderful to see firsthand how Dave & Leslie promote sustainable farming and natural & organic concepts in living. And, personally, it made me so happy to see how the animals that Tim & I choose to eat are given such happy, healthy lives at Da-Le Ranch.

Below is a small tour-through-photos of our day with Dave & Leslie. And if you're in Orange County, be sure to check out the Da-Le Ranch booth on Saturdays at SoCo Farmers' Market, and Sundays at the Newport Beach Farmers' Market. And, you can also pick up eggs & meats during the week in OC at the Anais+Raya storefront on 17th in Newport! For all the latest news, be sure to follow Da-Le Ranch on Facebook.

Dave with 'Kisses' the Llama

ANAIS+RAYA CULINARY COLLECTIVE | NOW OFFERING PRIVATE DINNERS + MONDAY & WEDNESDAY FARMERS' MARKET MEALS

This Summer here on the Anne Watson Photo Blog we shared with you a photographic feast of the new Anais+Raya Culinary Collective that was launched in July by Chef Raya Belna & Special Eats OC's Anais Tangie. And while their weekly Sunday Farmers' Market Feasts have continued to thrive as a fantastic option for home-cooked, farm-to-table Sunday evening meals, even more dining options have been added to the Anais+Raya repertoire in recent weeks that were too cool not to share.

Both Anais & Raya have been up to things - creating culinary masterpieces that showcase each of their talents. Chef Raya has launched the new Wildcraft Elixir Bar along with Diviana Alchemy's Julia Corbett. Located inside the Anais+Raya Culinary Collective, this Superfood Elixir Bar offers RAW Vegan lunches & snacks, superfood juices & smoothies and much more. We'll have a full blog on Wildcraft coming up shortly. (I am currently on Day 2 of a Wildcraft 3-Day Fall Juice Cleanse and can't wait to share photos of these beautiful juices & tell you about this amazing experience!)

Meantime, I have also had the pleasure of experiencing Anais' culinary talents in recent weeks, and... WOW. In addition to Sunday Farmers' Market Feasts and Private Catering, Anais is offering evening Farmers' Market Dinners on Mondays & Wednesdays from 5-8pm that are available for dine-in or take-out, no reservation required. And, she also offers Private Dinners at the Culinary Collective that can be prepared & served for up to 15 guests by reservation only. It is perfect for an inviting, intimate dinner party - all the delicious, farm-fresh SoCo Farmers' Market food you can eat while you sit back & enjoy with your guests.

Below is a lil' peek-through-pictures of an incredible private dinner that Anais catered for myself and a handful of our friends in August. It was a fantastic experience - the wine flowed while we feasted on gorgeous SoCo Farmers' Market produce & outta-this-world Da-Le Ranch sausages, Ribeye steaks & bacon. Visit www.anaisandraya.com now to make your reservation. Bon appetit!

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Left: A refreshing Brazilian Batida cocktail made with SoCo Farmers' Market Stone Fruits | Right: Anais Tangie of Special Eats OC, SoCo Farmers' Market & the Anais+Raya Culinary Collective

Da-Le Ranch Sausages with Whole Grain Mustard | Basil Pesto Dipping Sauce with Fresh-baked bread

So simple & delicious - this was one of the tastiest salads I've ever eaten. Heirloom tomatoes topped with sprouts tossed in a lemon-herb vinaigrette.

Michael Harris works some delicious, buttery Spaetzle magic...

Holy Spaetzle, this was incredible!

GORGEOUS Da-Le Ranch Ribeye Steaks, getting the perfect sear

Dave Lieberman whipped-up some honey-vanilla whipped cream to top-off Anais' grilled peaches for dessert. Yum!

Farm-Fresh Dessert = Healthy & Delicious

MASTERING THE ART OF BBQ | RANCHO A GO-GO + DA-LE RANCH COOKING DEMO AT SoCo FARMERS' MARKET

Anybody can grill. But, it takes talent and years of practice to truly master the art of Barbeque.  And if there's one thing that Owner & Pitmaster Chris of the Rancho A Go-Go Barbeque gourmet food truck knows, it's how to do real, authentic, "Low & Slow" Bb-Q.  Combine Chris' knowledge of the grill with the beautiful, farm-fresh, all-natural meats from local farmer Dave of Da-Le Ranch in Lake Elsinore, California, and you have a match made in heaven. These two paired up for a first-ever Bb-Q Cooking Demo at SoCo Farmers' Market this past Saturday, and crowds gathered to watch the magic unfold before their eyes, noses & tastebuds.

Chris of the Rancho a Go-Go Barbeque Truck (left) and Dave of Da-Le Ranch Meats (right) wow the audience with their amazing Tri-Tip Cooking Demo at SoCo Farmers' Market this past Saturday 1.28.12.

The smell of smokey Tri-Tip filled the air as Chris slowly barbequed throughout the morning hours leading up to the demo.  By the time the meat was taken off the grill, a crowd had gathered who were hungry for both some Tri-Tip sandwhiches & some Bb-Q knowledge. And they weren't disappointed!

After tasting how amazing the Tri-Tip was and what a difference it makes to source local, fresh, farm-raised meats, many were like me and immediately flocked over to the Da-Le Ranch booth to pick up a lil' something to try on the barbeque at home.  My husband is a certified Bb-Q fiend, so I knew he wouldn't pass up the opportunity to smoke some of Da-Le Ranch's babyback pork ribs (one of my personal favorites!).  And, oh dear God. They were some of the best ribs I've ever tasted - tender, juicy, fall-off-the-bone amazingness.

Time to try it at home: Passin' the time with a beer as the Da-Le Ranch babyback pork ribs smoke to perfection.

After tasting these ribs, I know I'm going to be a regular customer of Dave's. The ribs are just the tip of the iceberg of what's available... pretty much every cut of meat - including organ meat, marrow bones, fats, sausages, you name it - Dave has on-hand. You can catch both the Rancho a Go-Go Barbeque Truck and Da-Le Ranch Meats almost every Saturday at SoCo Farmers' Market in the parking lot of the SoCo Collection / OC MartMix in Costa Mesa from 9am - 2pm.

Also - a quick side-note - Dave is looking for help with developing his Da-Le Ranch web site. Any web-savvy folks out there who would like to help out a local farmer in exchange for meat (What better form of payment can you think of?! Yum!), please contact him at dave@da-le-ranch.com.  Thanks, and happy Barbequing!

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