Eat This Now for the week of September 6th, 2010 features: Bartlett Pears, White Flesh Nectarines, White Potatoes, Iceberg Lettuce, and Yellow Peaches.

1. Bartlett Pears

So sweet, so creamy – a ripe Bartlett Pear makes a fantastic chin-dripping snack. The next few weeks will be high time for Bartlett Pears with multiple growing regions hitting their peak harvest – California, Oregon, Washington on a large scale, plus local crops in the Mid-West, Mid-Atlantic and Northeast. I had some mega-flavorful Organic Bartletts this week from a Maryland orchard and all could say was, “wow.”

How do you know when they’re ripe? Bartlett Pears make it easy. The less green and more yellow the skin is – the riper and sweeter the pear. The fruit also becomes softer. Bartletts ripen quickest at room temperature, so only keep them in the ‘fridge if you want to eat them as a hard green pear or if you want them to hold for a while.

2. White Flesh Nectarines

Seriously sweet fruit that’s crunchy too. White Flesh Nectarines are picked with full sweetness and there is virtually no acidity to ripen out. Buy ‘em, then eat ‘em. The late season crop from California has been impressive. Oh, and if you find little white spots that speckle the red skin… you’re in luck! Those are sugar spots and that piece of fruit outta be great!

3. White Potatoes

The summer harvest of fresh dug White Potatoes is in from most growing areas in the US. That means great quality and affordable prices. For longer lasting freshness keep your White Potatoes in a cool, dry and DARK place like your pantry or basement. Light turns the skin green.

4. Iceberg Lettuce

Other lettuces have more nutrients. Other lettuces have more flavor. But no other lettuce packs the mouth-watering juicy crunch of good ‘ole Iceberg Lettuce. Quality on Iceberg Lettuce from Salinas, California is solid and prices are fair. Doesn’t a crisp Iceberg salad or BLT sandwich sound tasty?

Produce Lore: Iceberg Lettuce got it’s name from what East Coast supermarket receivers would call out many decades ago when a railcar of head lettuce would arrive from California. Ice was packed on top of the cases of lettuce and after a long ride it would often be frozen into big blocks. So they’d say, “The icebergs are here, the icebergs are here!”

5. Yellow Peaches

Last call for top notch Peaches! California is running a couple weeks late this year so great Organic and Conventional varieties are still hitting stores right now, plus PA, NJ and other eastern states have great fresh picked Yellow Peaches this week. Enjoy. But don’t wait around until the end of September since quality at the end of the season can go south fast.

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to fresh!

The Produce Geek,

Jonathan K. Steffy

Eat This Now for the week of August 30th, 2010 features: Early Apples, Prune Plums, Sweet Red Peppers, Broccoli, and Romaine Hearts.

1. Early Apples

Summer is still rollin’ along, but for those of you that need a preview taste of fall – you’re in luck! Early varieties of new crop apples are now available fresh off the tree from places like California, Washington, Michigan, Virginia, Pennsylvania and New York. So, head to your local orchard, farmer market or supermarket and look for these primary kinds of Early Apples:

• Ginger Gold: Sweet and spicy, rich flavor for snacks and salads
• Paula Red: Tart and crisp, great for a fresh snack or baking and applesauce
• Gala: Familiar sweet and crisp snacking apple, at the supermarket make sure the PLU sticker says “USA” so you know you’re getting firm new crop fruit.
• Honeycrisp: Hottest variety around has people clamoring for them, sweet and a little tart with a juicy and crunchy texture that will rock your mouth! PA has a some now, as September progresses and the nights cool – Honeycrisps will get better and better!

2. Prune Plums

Seriously. A late summer treat – no, not dried prunes or prune juice, but juicy-sweet, fresh Prune Plums. Round Red & Black Plum varieties that you find in the produce department from California all summer are mostly of Japanese decent. Oblong Prune Plum varieties, which are peaking now in Washington state and local orchards of the Northeast, are of European heritage. Blue-purple skin color with yellow flesh and small sizing is common in Prune Plums.

Let the fruit set at room temperature until firm-ripe (a tiny bit of give), then enjoy in a compote or baked dessert, fresh as a sweet snack, or dehydrate them to make homemade dried prunes. Or you could do what the guy does who I give about half my tree harvest to – make Slivovitz – oh my…

3. Sweet Red Peppers

California Sweet Red Peppers (the elongated ones) are outstanding at this time. Watch for ad promotions the next couple weeks. And, yeah, they really are sweet!

4. Broccoli

Need some green veggies to make it back into your summer-fruit-heavy diet? Organic and Conventional Broccoli (with stalk) and Broccoli Crowns (without the long stem) are very affordable, plentiful and of high quality as we speak. Plus, California is not the only growing region, as eastern Canada, Maine and Pennsylvania are harvesting too for local markets.

5. Romaine Hearts

Grilled heart of romaine with Balsamic or Vinaigrette? Homemade Caesar salad? Fresh chicken salad in a Romaine Heart fillet? Go for it – because Romaine Hearts from the Salinas Valley of California are really nice right now. Here’s a picture from my visit (a little over a week ago) to the largest grower of Romaine Hearts in the country, D’Arrigo.

Interesting Stuff: Romaine Hearts are simply the center leaves of a normal head of Romaine Lettuce. In growing, the only difference between regular Romaine and Romaine Heart fields is that they plant the Romaine Heart rows with more heads across the width to make the heads grow tighter and less open leafed. At harvest, the outer dark green leaves are trimmed off to leave only the crisp heart.

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to fresh!

The Produce Geek,

Jonathan K. Steffy

Eat This Now for the week of August 23rd, 2010 features: Green Grapes, Plumcots, White Flesh Peaches, Celery, and Baby Greens.

1. Green Grapes

Just a little heads-up… Some of the best quality of the year is here on Green Seedless Grapes! The Princess and Thompson varieties are top notch from California – crisp and surprisingly sweet. Look for advertised and in-store specials the next few weeks.

I had the opportunity to visit some of Dulcich’s beautiful vineyards in Delano, CA this week. Wow – they have some the gorgeous fruit hanging on the vines. Shown here is the Princess variety Green Seedless Grape, known for it’s large berry size and oblong shape. When they are grown with the best cultural practices like the Dulcich family uses and allowed to fully ripen on the vine, this variety is also very sweet!

2. Plumcots/Pluots

Thanks to the generous hospitality of the Jackson family of Family Tree Farms in Reedley, CA I was able to study briefly this week at their Flavor Tech University, tour their orchards and taste-test fruit. Their Plumcots rock! Pluots and Plumcots are definitely worth a try right now – packed with natural sugary sweetness and intriguing flavor. I know you’ll love ‘em!

Interesting Stuff: As if keeping track of new fruit varieties isn’t hard enough… Did you know that Pluots are proprietary-branded hybrids of Plumcots? So: Kleenex is to Facial Tissue as Pluot is to Plumcot. Plumcots, are hybrids, not GMO’s, that have 2/3 Plum and 1/3 Apricot parentage. There are many colors, sizes and flavor profiles – keep trying new ones like the Fruit Punch or Dapple Dandy or Flavor Grenade since varieties come and go about every two weeks through late September. Oh, and that powdery coating you often find on the fruit is not spray residue or something else cryptic – it is called bloom, the natural protective wax on the skin of the fruit. That’s why they shine up so nice when you rub that bloom on the skin.

3. White Flesh Peaches

Beautiful red skin color and large sizing is what I saw, and tremendous sweet crunch is what I tasted on White Flesh Peaches this week at Family Tree Farms in CA.

Interesting stuff: White Flesh Peaches are highly prized in Southeast Asia, and the very biggest ones are hand-packed then air-shipped to Taiwan for a premium. The extra large and large fruit will stay in the US and Canada. White Flesh Peaches are picked ready to eat. Leaving them out at room temperature will soften them, but not sweeten them. Avoid the 39-50 degree range (aka your refrigerator) since the cell structure of Peaches begins to break down and the fruit loses favor and texture.

4. Celery

When’s the last time you had a low calorie snack that was crunchy, juicy and freshly delicious? I can tell you that nothing tastes quite like freshly harvested celery – a simple pleasure. Celery and Celery Hearts are high quality and plentiful right now – go for it!

Interesting Stuff: Hard-working harvesters hand-pick the entire Celery field in one sweep, separating each celery bunch by size and packing them into sleeves and cartons. The smallest bunches are taken to a Celery Heart machine that washes and trims the Celery into hearts-sizing right out in the field. At Dole in Salinas, CA, where I visited this week, I learned that they continue to improve their varieties to have a sweeter and less stringy stalk of Celery.

5. Baby Greens

Spring Mix, Mesclun or Baby Greens – no matter what you call these blends of miniature lettuce greens, one thing you have to call them is flavorful. Bold, spicy, tangy, nutty, earthy – there are flavors galore. Now is a great time to top your sandwich or start a salad with Organic or Conventional Baby Greens, plus they’re frequently on ad in bags or clamshell containers.

Interesting Stuff: Each type of green is grown in separate field plots since the varieties don’t have the same maturity rate, plus if there is a growing or pest issue with one type of green the others would not be affected. At my visit to Earthbound Farms in Salinas, CA I got to see the amazing harvester machine that cuts the greens with precision, vacuums them up, separates out any debris or dirt-covered greens and fills bins which are rushed off to the packing facility where they are cooled, washed, blended and packaged.

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to fresh!

The Produce Geek,

Jonathan K. Steffy

Eat This Now for the week of August 16th, 2010 features: Honeydew, California Cantaloupes, Cauliflower, Plums, and Variety Peppers.

1. Honeydew

Sweet, juicy, luscious… If you eat one Honeydew all year – make sure to do it between now and early September because the season’s peak is upon us!  And when Honeydew Melons are at their best even non-melon-eaters can love them – they’re just that awesome.

End of the summer harvests in California net large, sweet Honeydew – no crunchy, cucumber tasting fruit here.  For maximum deliciousness, allow you Honeydew to ripen at room temperature until the skin color fades to show a bit of light tan/yellow color.  It will also start to feel waxy, smell sweet and give just slightly to thumb pressure.  Do not be afraid of a few hard brown vein-looking things on the outside as they’re often an indication of high sugar contents.  I hope you’re blown away!

2.  California Cantaloupes

Need a color compliment for that crazy-yummy Honeydew in your melon bowl?  California Cantaloupes will fit the bill.  They taste good, have firm, dense flesh and are extremely plentiful – and plentiful equates to Ad Prices and cheap in-store specials the next two weeks.  Just in time too, because Athena-style Cantaloupes from the Mid-Atlantic and Mid-West are on the wane from their peak run.  California Organic Cantaloupes are available too – at a higher price.

3.  Cauliflower

Look for deals on Organic and Conventional Cauliflower right now.  There’s plenty of supply on quality product, but not much demand.  So if you need a break from Sweet Corn (no way!) or something flavorful to add to your veggie – Cauliflower is the way to go this week.

4.  Plums

Are you a fan of fresh Plums?  Well, go get your Plum on, because there is a flush of jumbo-sized, juicy Red and Black Plums from California hitting stores and markets across the country.  “Red” and “Black” refer to the skin color, the flesh will be yellow with tinges of pink on most varieties this week.  Prices will be affordable and quality is nice.  If Plums just aren’t consistently sweet enough for you, upgrade to Pluots.

5.  Variety Peppers

Peak of the local season is here for many parts of the country on Variety Peppers – what better time to enjoy old favorites and experiment with new ones than now! How well do you know your Chili’s?  Here are some you might find at your local market:

• Cubanelle: aka Frying Peppers, crooked-cone shaped, lime green, thin-walled and mild – great for stuffing and frying
• Banana: sweet, yellow-green – make sure they’re sweet banana instead of hot yellow wax
• Poblano: aka Pasilla, dark green, wide-flat cone shape, mild, great for Tex-Mex and stuffing
• Anaheim: green, red when mature, shape = Chili’s restaurant symbol, mild to medium heat, ideal in Southwest cooking and salsa
• Long Hots: long, slender, crooked, dark green, medium heat but hot when you get to the seeds (these were served whole, raw to me at a business lunch with Italian Hoagies in NYC once – I’ve been a fan ever since)
• Hungarian: aka Yellow Wax, hot stuff
• Jalapeno: small, dark green, immediately spicy; perfect for salsa, pico de gallo and kicking anything up a notch
• Serrano: like Jalapeno’s, except lighter green, thinner and hotter
• Scotch Bonnet and Habanero: Holy Cow! you better know what you are doing with these green, red or orange little gnarled-cone shaped mega-hot peppers – Watch out!

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to fresh!

The Produce Geek,

Jonathan K. Steffy

Eat This Now for the week of August 9th, 2010 features: Heirloom Tomatoes, Organic Peaches & Nectarines, Bartlett Pears, Champagne Grapes, and Variety Watermelons.

1. Heirloom Tomatoes

Ugly food is often beautifully delicious. Peak of the year Tomato time is here for the next few weeks, and the best part is that Heirloom Tomatoes are plentiful almost anywhere that people care passionately about good, real food. Author and farmer, Tim Stark who grows Heirloom Tomatoes here in Southeastern PA, talks about “character” in this video:

“Heirloom” is a catch-all term for non-hybrid Tomato varieties, many of which are quite old. They come in all sorts of fantastically interesting shapes, colors, sizes and flavors – from earthy to sweet, from robust to smooth, from massive to tiny. Seek out Heirlooms at farmer markets and produce-centric supermarkets. German Queen is my favorite! All Heirloom Tomatoes tend to be soft and have a short shelf life, plus they just look weird with characteristics that would normally be referred to as imperfections. But if you care about flavor, you’ll find those imperfections to be beautifully delicious indeed!

2. Organic Peaches & Nectarines

If you’ve been curious what Organic Peaches and Nectarines are like this year, then now is the time to buy some. California, Oregon and Washington are harvesting some outstanding quality Organic fruit right now, and volumes are good so expect better than usual prices.

3. Bartlett Pears

Been a while since you had a good Pear? Sweet, creamy Bartlett Pears are back. The fresh crop is coming from California now, both Organic and Conventional. Let them ripen to a golden yellow color maximum sweetness and juiciness.

4. Champagne Grapes

Break out the bubblay! Well, not exactly. Think “snack bubbling with flavor” instead of “French region famous for bubbly wine.”

California Champagne Grapes are miniature, amber-colored, snacking grapes with thin, tender stems – stems so tender that you can actually eat a cluster vines and all, if you’re an impatient fruitivore like me. This seasonal delicacy is available now Organically and Conventionally in 1lb containers at specialty food stores and upscale grocers.

5. Variety Watermelons

It is peak of the season for Watermelons in the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and Mid-West, along with other parts of the country. YumYum! So now also is the best time to look for Variety Watermelons at farmer markets and stores that support regional farmers. Here are a few types to keep an eye out for this week:

• Sugar Babies: dark green skin, round, crisp flesh that is very sweet – there are both seeded and seedless varieties
• Yellow Dolls & Yellow Seedless: look like normal watermelons until you cut them open to reveal the sweet yellow flesh
• Orangeglo: rich orange flesh

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to flavor!

The Produce Geek,

Jonathan K. Steffy

Eat This Now for the week of August 2nd, 2010 features: Pluots, PA Peaches, Vine Ripe Tomatoes, Cabbage, and Red Grapes.

SPECIAL NOTE TO READERS

We’re turning ONE! Thank you to all of our E-Newsletter subscribers, Twitter followers, Facebook fans and loyal website visitors! I am honored that you are interested in my passion for fresh produce and hope you find the information helpful. You’re the best! I would also like to acknowledge Justin Reber, a lifelong friend, skilled designer and the guy who turns my words and pictures into something pretty darn cool to look at each week – you ‘da man!

In celebration of 1 year of updates on what fresh fruits and vegetables are best each week, ProduceGeek.com will be GIVING AWAY a copy of Melissa’s Great Book of Produce.

Email us your favorite summertime fruit that we’ve written about by 08/09/10. A winner will be chosen at random from the responses – good luck!

1. Pluots

If you try one fruit this summer you’ve never tried before – make SURE you try Pluots! Why? Lemme just tell you, friend, you are in for a treat!

Pluots are special hybrid crosses between Apricots and Plums. There are a boat load of varieties that have emerged in recent years with fun names like: Yummy Giant, Dapple Dandy (Dinosaur Eggs when branded), Flavor Grenade and Big Daddy. Pluots come in various skin colors and patterns, flavors and flesh hues, but here are the common traits: Juicy, Rich Flavor, Smooth Plum-like Skin, EXTREMELY Sweet.

Expect to pay more for Pluots than for Plums, but also expect them to kick Plum’s butt in the flavor department. August is peak of the season for California Organic and Conventional Pluots – try every type you can. Most supermarkets will have a Speckled variety in stock. Upscale stores will have a Yellow, Red and Black skin variety on the counter too. I hope you can find Mango Tango and Raspberry Jewel varieties somewhere this summer – those are my favorites!

2. PA Peaches

Take a big bite and let the sugary juice drip down your chin… oh, they’re soooo good! August is National Peach Month. How is the local fruit at farmer markets near you?

I am extremely biased to my home state when it comes to Peaches. I’ve eaten Peaches from all over the country, but in my opinion the very best come from Pennsylvania. Typically, PA Peaches are left on the tree just a bit longer so they have very little shelf life but tons of juiciness and sweetness. I picked my own tree this past week and have been enjoying fruit from nearby Preston Orchards. White, Yellow and Donut Peaches just don’t get better than this for me – hurry up and load up while Peaches are at their peak!

3. Vine Ripe Tomatoes

If you don’t have Vine Ripe Tomatoes to harvest from your own garden right now, you’re in luck. Farmer market and even supermarkets are likely to have really good, meaty and flavorful Vine Ripes right now from places like NJ, TN, AL, CA and more. BLT time!

4. Cabbage

The local summer crop of fresh Green Cabbage is here in most of the Mid-Atlantic, Northeast, Midwest and Pacific Northeast. It’s cheap, grown near you and tasty. Time to make some homemade cole slaw. Anyone have a good recipe to share?

5. Red Grapes

Crunchy and sweet – the ultimate Grape combo. Organic and Conventional Red Seedless Grapes from the current growing region of California got – it – going’ on!

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to fresh – and local, if you can get it!

The Produce Geek,
Jonathan K. Steffy

Eat This Now for the week of July 26th, 2010 features: Athena Cantaloupes, Sweet Corn, Grape Tomatoes, Blackberries, and Jazz Apples.

1. Athena Cantaloupes

Local ‘lopes, man! Here In Pennsylvania, the rest of the Mid-Atlantic and also Mid-Western states, the next few weeks will be peak of the season for Athena-style Cantaloupes (some might call them muskmelons) grown on farms big and small. So stop by your local roadside stand, farmer market or grocery store that supports regional farmers and take part in this seasonal delight. But be sure to use these sugary-soft-flesh melons quickly, they won’t last in your refrigerator or on your counter nearly as long as regular Cantaloupes.

Wanna know how to find a good, ripe one for maximum enjoyment?

LOOK FOR:

• Straw-yellow colored rind with a lot of webbing
• Ripe melons will give slightly to thumb pressure at the end opposite the stem
• Melons that give off a tropical aroma
• Heavy for their size – no matter how big or small

AVOID:

• Large smooth patches and green rind color
• Melons with the stem or portions of it still attached
• Open cracks around the stem area no matter how good the rest looks
• You shouldn’t be able to stick you finger through any part of the melon (that one’s a duh)

2. Sweet Corn

This has gotta be America’s favorite summertime veggie – I know it’s mine. Tender, creamy, sugary, juicy and delicious – when it’s that good and fresh you just want to attack one cob after another! Sweet Corn is now hitting peak of season, heck peak of the year, at farms throughout the East and Mid-West. So, Carpe Diem and Carpe Granum – Seize the Day and Seize the Corn!

Have a favorite variety or place to get your Sweet Corn? Share it with us in the comments section below.

3. Grape Tomatoes

Cheap. Plentiful. Local (for many of you). Tasty – both Conventional and Organic. A great buy at supermarkets and farmer markets! ‘Nough said.

4. Blackberries

The summer crop of Organic and Conventional Blackberries from California is here – big, bold and flavorful. Keep an eye out for local Blackberries at roadside stands and farmer markets too in many parts of the country.

5. Jazz Apples

Definitely NOT local, and rather expensive. Nevertheless, there are some readers that could care less about Peaches, Plums and Nectarines (whaa? – yea, seriously) and just wanna know what fresh Apple is recommended right now. If you can find ‘em New Zealand grown Jazz Apples are at the top of my list. Hard, crisp, sweet and tangy – this Braeburn and Gala cross is an exciting snack… if you must have an Apple in the dead of summer.

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to fresh – and local, if you can get it!

The Produce Geek,
Jonathan K. Steffy

Eat This Now for the week of July 19th, 2010 features: Green Bell Peppers, Yellow Peaches, Blueberries, Eggplant, and Variety Eggplant.

“Buy Fresh – Buy Local” right?

The term “local” will not be defined here, that is for you to decide based on what is grown near you and your access to it. No matter what you idea of “local” is, it’s hard to argue its benefits – connection to your region and community, less food miles, supporting your area economy and agriculture, plus the freshness factor.

In my neck of the woods, New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania local fresh produce is coming on strong. This week I took a trip to southern New Jersey to do some tours of farms that sell to the produce wholesaler I work for. We visited a peach grower and packinghouse in Glassboro; two blueberry growers in Hammonton, one of which grows organically; and a vegetable grower in Vineland. The day was full of fun, sand, mud, sun and some serious rain too – here is some of what I saw:

1. Green Bell Peppers

Most of Bob Flaim’s Green Bell Pepper crop survived the dramatic 4th of July heatwave and is now looking good. As the plants continue to grow, they are trellised up with string – another foot taller is expected. The Peppers have thick walls and a mild flavor. Look for prices at farmer markets and grocery stores to get nice and affordable in the next few weeks.

2. Yellow Peaches

I’ve been to a lot of orchards, but never in a rain deluge – oh my! From what I could see (which wasn’t very far in front of me at the time) the peak of summer Red Haven varieties of Yellow Peaches are sizing up well. Field bins are brought to the packinghouse where the Peaches are graded by hand, machines sort them by skin color and size and add PLU stickers, and finally the fruit is packaged into boxes for shipping.

3. Blueberries

I LOVE New Jersey Blueberries – mm-mm-mmmm! So it was a wonderful treat to listen to two different growers talk about their farms while snacking on Bluecrop and Elliott variety berries right out in the fields. The scale and scope of what it takes to pick and pack fresh Blueberries is incredible. Even with all of the fruit we saw on the bushes, the overall NJ crop is winding down and much of it will go to processing. If you can’t find NJ Blueberries – don’t worry, Oregon, Washington and Michigan are rockin’ with their harvests right now.

4. Eggplant

For those of you that have grown Eggplant in your garden before, you’d have been impressed with the shoulder-height trellised Eggplant plants at Flaim Farms! Peak quality and great availability is upon us – Parmesan anyone?

5. Variety Eggplant

Into Asian or Italian cuisine? Like experimenting on the grill? Keep an eye out for Variety Eggplant like the ones Bob Flaim grows on his farm: small Italian, fancy White, dark purple and slender Japanese, ribbed Indian, miniature striped Fairytale, thin White Fairytale, thin lavender Neon, round lavender Sicilian, striped Graffiti and even unnamed Green Variety Eggplants.

Other regions are harvesting summer vegetable and berries too – like Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Oregon and Washington, British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec. ProduceGeek.com has readers throughout he US and even parts of Canada. Post comments on what’s good at local farms where you live!

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to local!

The Produce Geek,
Jonathan K. Steffy

Eat This Now for the week of July 12th, 2010 features: Rainier Cherries, Black Mission Figs, Green Squash, Yellow Squash, and Apricots.

1. Rainier Cherries

Splurge. Every now and then it is nice to treat yourself to something that’s extra special, out of the normal routine, something memorable and delightful. Rainier Cherries are just that type of truly seasonal treat, and now is the time to indulge.

Big, plump, juicy golden-fleshed fruit with red-kissed skin, Rainier Cherries, also called Gold or White Cherries, are sweet, sweet, SWEET! Yes, they are more expensive than regular Cherries, but they are not… regular Cherries. If you’re buying my hype, then you should buy some Rainier Cherries while the Washington State crop is at it’s peak the next couple of weeks. ‘Cause before long – poof – the season will be over.

2. Black Mission Figs

OK, so you’ve had Fig Newton cookies before. But have you ever eaten fresh Figs? Now is a great time to try ‘em! Most supermarkets and specialty stores are now stocked with the Black Mission variety of fresh Figs from California, and organically grown ones are available too. Black Mission Figs have dark purple to black skin and reddish, gooey flesh. Their flavor is rich, earthy and very sweet when soft ripe. Learn why chef’s and foodies love Figs: http://californiafreshfigs.com/index.php

3. Green Squash

A farmer market find! Locally-grown conventional and organic Green Squash (aka Zucchini) is likely to be fresh and plentiful in most of the US. What is your favorite recipe for this versatile veggie?

4. Yellow Squash

Believe it or not, Yellow Squash (aka Summer Squash) doesn’t always peak at the same time as Green. But this week, they’re both a hit!

5. Apricots

Delicate flavor, juicy and sweet – Organic and Conventional Apricots are rockin’ right now. The late varieties and orchards from California and new crop fruit from the slopes of Washington State make fresh Apricots a sweet, seasonal buy. Yum!

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to fresh!

The Produce Geek,
Jonathan K. Steffy

Eat This Now for the week of July 5th, 2010 features: Variety Melons, Dark Sweet Cherries, Plums, Saturn Peaches, and Haitian Mangos.

1. Variety Melons

If you like Honeydew and Cantaloupe, you just might love the interesting shapes, colors, textures and flavors of Variety Melons. All Variety Melons are sweet and juicy. Some are sweeter, softer or crisper or denser than others, but they’re all fantastic in fruit salads or just by themselves for breakfast, snack or dessert. The first kind I had was a luscious, perfectly ripe Sharlyn Melon on the front porch of a bed and breakfast at the beach almost a decade ago. Which one will you try first?

The best way to learn about Variety Melons is to experience them for yourself. And now is a great time since Variety Melons are plentiful from California and will continue through the summer. The most popular types include Casaba, Crenshaw, Canary, Orange Flesh, Galia and Santa Claus. That’s an incomplete list, so go on your own Melon discovery trek. You’ll keep finding good kinds to taste like the Golden Kiss and Sugar Kiss Melons I tried last week – crazy sweet!

2. Dark Sweet Cherries

The weather has not been kind this year to the sensitive Cherry crop in Washington State (where most Cherries come from) and growers now expect to harvest a lot less fruit than last season. That’s the bad news. The good news is that the flavor and firmness is delightful on the Dark Sweet Cherries they are able to pick right now, and the peak harvest is yet to come this month. Stay tuned.

Photo courtesy of Jay Pflanz - http://www.flickr.com/photos/27825065@N02/

3. Plums

Red and Black varieties of Organic and Conventional Plums are getting tastier and more affordable each week as California season progresses. Allow your Plums to soften slightly at room temperature to bring out the sweetness and juice.

4. Saturn Peaches

Outta this world! The flat, saucer-shapped Saturn Peach got it’s name for obvious reasons – and it’s aliases: Donut, Doughnut, UFO and even Bagel Peach. Like other White Flesh Peaches, the Saturn Peach has low acidity and is quite sweet – in season now from California. The skin is less fuzzy than other varieties. Plus, it can be eaten quickly without a mess by holding the center with your thumb and forefinger and eating around the pit. Mmmm… dohhh-nuuut.

5. Haitian Mangos

Times are desperate in Haiti; more than ever, it’s a country in need. Most trees in Haiti have been cut down to make charcoal – a quick way to raise cash; except for the Mango Trees. Francine/Francis variety Mangos are a key agriculture export for this Caribbean nation. Support their economy – buy Haitian Mangos at ethnic and specialty retailers while they’re in season. But they’re worth spending extra money on for another reason: even though they’re not always pretty on the outside, Haitian Mangos are sweet and have a rich flavor that finishes with hints caramel popcorn.

Forward this to a friend if you think they’ll like it – Here’s to a fresh 4th!

The Produce Geek,
Jonathan K. Steffy