Best if Used By 06/14/10

Eat This Now for the week of June 7th, 2010 features: Red Grapes, Tomatoes On-the-Vine, Green Beans, Ataulfo Mangos, and Green Bell Peppers.

First a quick housekeeping note

We’ve had several requests to get our produce info to you earlier in the week. We very much appreciate the feedback and moving forward, we’ll be updating the “Eat This Now” list on the website, and sending the newsletter out on Monday.

Interested in more? More updates, more recipe links, more fresh pictures and more conversation? Follow @TheProduceGeek on Twitter or Like “ProduceGeek” on Facebook. You’ll find great content at our Twitter and Facebook locations that might not be mentioned in our normal weekly updates. Thank you all and be sure to spread the word!

1. Red Grapes

CRUNCH! That sure is a wonderful sound to hear and feel when biting into a fresh grape. And CRUNCH is exactly what you’ll get right now with new crop Flame variety Red Seedless Grapes from Mexico and southern California. Round, crisp Organic and Conventional Red Flame Seedless Grapes have thick green stems, are lightly sweet and have great texture at this time. When that combo of CRUNCH and just enough sweetness is on, Red Grapes are like potato chips for me – “bet you can’t eat just one!” You?

Insider Tips: Find the Country of Origin label on the bag or container before you buy Red Grapes. You want the fresh and crunchy stuff from Mexico and California now. Avoid old-season Grapes from Chile – they’re still around at some stores but they have very little shelf life and they’re soft and mushy. Green Grapes are mostly the early and not-so-sweet Perlette variety right now – stay tuned for when they’re really good. Like Cherries, those bags that Grapes are sold in weight between 1.5 to 2.5lb, so you should double the per-pound sale price for yourself. That way you don’t get sticker-shock at the register.

2. Tomatoes On-the-Vine

Supply and demand: when it’s out of whack, things get a little crazy. Right now there’s tons of field-grown Round Tomatoes in Florida and they’re cheap. That has forced the prices down on nice quality, greenhouse-grown Tomatoes On-the-Vine from Canada. Take advantage of these depressed prices to grab premium produce at discount prices.

3. Green Beans

Fresh Green Beans from the Southeastern Coastal States are in a flush! Keep your bargain-eye open for affordable pricing on good quality beans.

4. Ataulfo Mangos

If you like a good Mango – I’m talkin’ delicious!, if you like sweet tropical fruit, or if you’re that foodie who likes to eat things that most Americans don’t know about yet – then you’ve got to try Ataulfo Mangos (sometime branded as Champagne Mangos). They have a rich and creamy texture, are lusciously honey-sweet, and finish with a familiar sticky-tropical flavor. Mmmm! Ataulfo’s are light green when unripe, golden yellow and soft when ready to eat. But don’t dilly-dally, find these tropical candies at gourmet markets, ethnic foods stores and progressive groceries soon before the Mexican Organic and Conventional season ends for this variety.

5. Green Bell Peppers

Florida and Georgia are pumping out the Green Bell Peppers right now – mediums, larges, XLs, jumbos, and even tasty Suntans (Suntans are starting to turn red in spots). Flavor is consistent, Pepper walls are thick, and oh yea, the price should be good too! Fired up? Try out your favorite Green Bell Pepper recipes on the grill.

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

The Produce Geek,
Jonathan K. Steffy

Best if Used By 04/19/10

Eat This Now for Tuesday April 13th, 2010 features: Red Grapes, Mini Watermelons, Grape Tomatoes, Chard Greens, and Cantaloupes.

1. Red Grapes

Two weeks ago Eat This Now featured Green Seedless Grapes.  Now there is a flush of Red Seedless Grapes from Chile, the Crimson variety to be precise.  Like what happened with Green Grapes, the supplies of Crimsons started backing up because supermarkets had removed Red Grapes from their ad promotions following logistics issues from the late February earthquake in Chile.  Though with all of these Crimsons arriving now, look for reduced prices on Chilean Red Seedless Grapes where you shop for the next few weeks.

Crimsons are a late season variety of Red Seedless Grape that is oblong and usually has dark plum coloring at the bottom and a just little light green by the stem.  Lately Crimsons have been sweet-tart and mildly crunchy, still totally snack-worthy.  Give them a try if the bags are dry and you think they’re worth the price.

About a week before that earthquake some good friends of mine that import fresh produce took a trip to visit the Chilean growers they work with.  Check out this cool video of their Grape, Pear and Apple field tours.

2. Mini Watermelons

Can’t wait for summer to arrive?  Get a preview taste with Mini Seedless Watermelons right now, also called Personal Watermelons.  These babies can range from 3lb to 6lb, have a thin rind and are just right for you to gobble as a snack or to share with a few others for dessert.  The very sweetest Mini Watermelons are from Mexico, while melons out of Central America are OK to good at this time.

3. Grape Tomatoes

Grape Tomatoes were another casualty of the January Florida Freeze.  With their small size they are among the first of the new tomato plantings in Florida to ripen up.  Get ready, ’cause they’re back!  These little snacking ‘maters are going to be plentiful now through May.  If you have the choice, go USA; Florida-grown Grape Tomatoes are running crunchier and richer in flavor than product from Mexico.

4. Chard Greens

Vibrant. Bold. Impressive.  If you’re a healthy-food aficionado then you’re probably already in the know about Swiss Chard Greens and all of their health benefits.

If you’re into delicious food and fresh cooking then you need to find a good recipe that features Green, Red or Rainbow Chards.  Flat-out-gorgeous quality on Organic Chards is coming out of Florida and California.  The best Conventional Chards right now are from Texas.

5. Cantaloupes

“What’s Best Right Now” can mean a lot of things, but in this case ‘best’ describes value more than flavor.  Cantaloupes from Central American countries have been expensive and limited the past month or so due to some crop losses caused by an insect issue.  The good news is that volumes are rebounding and prices are falling fast.  Look for ads and in-stores specials the next couple weeks.  These ‘lopes won’t blow your hair back from the flavor and sweetness side, but you’ll likely find decent piece of fruit at a decent price.  Stay tuned – we’ll keep you posted on when the best-tasting domestic Cantaloupes are in.

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

The Produce Geek,
Jonathan K. Steffy

Best if Used By 02/08/10

Eat This Now for Tuesday February 2, 2010 features: Red and Green Grapes, Sweet Red Peppers, Idaho Russet Potatoes, Roma Tomatoes, and Hass Avocados.

1.  Red and Green Grapes

There’s good news, all ye snackers!  Grapes have been available from Chile for several weeks, but this week starts a two month run of promotable volumes as the summer grape season hits it’s peak in the Southern Hemisphere.  What does that mean for you?  This healthy snack food will be affordable and yummy!  Starting now, Green and Red Seedless Grapes will frequently be on sale at $.99 to $1.99 lb. at stores across the country.  (Those bags weigh about 2lb by the way, so don’t be surprised at the register.)  Look for Grapes with no wetness in the bag, and feel free to ask the produce clerk or manager for a sample.

Green Seedless, also called White Seedless, are running with decent firmness and fresh-sweet flavor.  Red Seedless are coming in with good sweetness and a crisp-juicy pop.  Think of all of the processed snacks you could replace with Grapes at lunch, for dessert, after school.  Heck, buy one less bag of tortilla chips this week for the Big Game and instead spend that money on some fresh, wholesome Grapes!

2.  Sweet Red Peppers

Ohhhh yeaah…  So surprisingly sweet, so jam-packed with jaw-drooling tangy flavor – when they’re good, like they are right now out of Mexico, I eat them like apples.  That’s right, I’m talking about a pepper: Sweet Red Peppers.  The current harvest flush is on Extra Large size, field-grown, Sweet Red Peppers that are easily identifiable by their elongated shape.  There will be promotions at $.99 to $1.99lb this week (half the price of Greenhouse Colored Bell Peppers), so buy some and try out some new recipes.

Cut out the stem, seed cavity and white membranes – the rest is sweet bliss, loaded with Vitamin A and ridiculous amounts of Vitamin C with only 46 Calories per 1 Cup chopped.  Sweet Red Peppers are perfect for sauteing with onions to top hot sandwiches, add to pastas or serve with chicken, beef or tofu.  For the Big Game, brighten up your veggie tray with Sweet Red Pepper strips.

3.  Idaho Russet Potatoes

February is Idaho Potato Lovers Month.  You’ll see hot pricing, great quality and maybe even some creative displays on Russet Potatoes from Idaho the next four weeks.

DO: Make gourmet potato recipes for your Valentine. http://www.idahopotato.com/recipes
DO NOT: Give him/her a 5 or 10lb bag of Idaho Potatoes for Valentines Day.  I know it’s a wicked-awesome value, but…
DO: Make homemade Potato Skins for your Bowl party. http://www.idahopotato.com/football
DO NOT: Buy pre-made frozen appetizers.  Go with fresh ingredients – then everybody wins.

4.  Roma Tomatoes

You may have heard about the freezing temperatures in mid-January that devastated much of the Florida vegetable crops including Round, Grape and Cherry Tomatoes.  The impacts from this crop loss will be felt by all in terms of high price points and shaky quality on Tomatoes all this month.  So what to do about that fresh salsa you were hoping to make for the Big Game this weekend?  INSIDER TIP: Mexico is exporting high quality Roma (Plum) Tomatoes to the US and prices are reasonable.  This week and next, Roma’s are the way to go.

5.  Hass Avocados

More Hass Avocados will be consumed this weekend than any other of the year.  Guacamole galore!  Avocado topping everywhere!  High quality Organic and Conventional Avocados are readily available from Mexico, Chile and California.  Shop early this week so you have time to ripen your Hass Avocados for use this weekend.  Big Game Recipes: http://www.avocadocentral.com/

No ripe Avocados on display at the last minute?  Try fresh Guacamole in vacuum packs.  They can be found in the convenience refrigerated case in many supermarkets.

Enjoy the game!

Do you have a recipe for any of ingredients that you’d like to share or a comment about what you’ve read here?  Email us or post a comment at www.producegeek.com.  Thank you for reading.

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

The Produce Geek,
Jonathan K. Steffy