DEBORAH CROMBIE: You all know that I am a self-confessed food nerd, but will you just look at this gorgeousness?
This was the peach orchard stall at our farmer's market on the last Saturday of our peach season. This orchard has peaches from the first week in June through the first week in August so it's a long season. They plant several different varieties that ripen progressively, and they are all equally good.
Here are my last five peaches! (Now in the fridge. I have discovered that peaches keep really well in the refrigerator just in an uncovered bowl.)
I'm always sad to see the local peaches end. We can still get them from places like Kerrville further south in Texas but, honestly, having eaten peaches pretty much every single day for two months, I'm okay with stopping. I'll be thrilled when next June rolls around and the peaches are back.
We still have blackberries, though.
And local cantelope and watermelon and corn and tomatoes.
(Our blueberry season is short, boo, and finished by the first of July.)
But if I mourn the end of peaches just a bit, the figs have come in at Trader Joe's!!! This is one of the highlights of my year, as figs are one of the few things that are ONLY available in season. I suppose this is because they are too fragile to ship from other countries? Seriously, I am mad for figs, and I got ONE from my own fig tree this year. (That is a story for another post...)
Oh, and it's also Hatch chili season! We get them shipped in from the Hatch Valley in New Mexico (I consider this local enough!) and they are so fabulous. Some of our supermarkets have big roasters set up in front of the stores and the smell of the chilis roasting is just amazing. Do you get Hatch chilis in other parts of the country?
At least in the summer, I try to stick to local and in season produce as much as possible, although I do have to admit that the figs are cheating, too, because commercial fresh figs are only grown in southern California.
I don't buy apples at all in the summer, but will look forward to apples coming in from more northern states in the fall. We don't grow them this far south ( a fair trade-off for things like Hatch chilis and Texas peaches and grapefruit,) but we may get some Arkansas apples (delish!) in the farmer's market.
Where I fall down is on citrus. I can't do without citrus in the summer, even if it's not very good. And in the winter I'll cheat and buy blueberries if they come from Mexico, but not if they come from Peru, because I think those taste dreadful. Too long in storage, maybe?
I love reading historical fiction to see what people ate when they could only get what was in season. And of course so much of the history of world trade and development is based on people trying to get what they couldn't grow. (Think sugar cane, coffee, tea, etc., etc.)
What about you, darling REDs and readers? Do you try to eat local? If so, do you have out-of-season weaknesses, like me?
And for those of you who, like Rhys, write historical fiction, do you research what would have been available and when?
We eat local as much as possible but, as you point out, some yummy fruits have a very short season. Particular favorites? Blueberries . . . strawberries . . . . cantaloupe . . . corn . . . .
ReplyDeleteAll of those, Joan!
DeleteEating local was one of our favorite parts of being in France. We were there long enough to see cherry season come and go.
ReplyDeleteBack at home I have been lugging watermelons in my cart from the farmer’s market. Hopefully there will still be some this Friday.
Our local Long Beach grocery also does the Hatch chile roasting.
Hey Lisa, which grocery does the roasting. Maybe I can time my next visit to coincide.
DeleteThat was me, Paula B
DeleteLisa, I have a wagon! A red wagon! It folds up and I just keep it in the cargo hold of my car. Best thing ever. After the smell of roasting Hatch chilis, LOL
DeleteGelson’s - I assume their other SoCal branches do as well.
DeleteYes, this is peak local produce season in Southern Ontario, including Ottawa.
ReplyDeleteEnjoying Niagara peaches, local Quebec corn.
My balcony garden is finally providing lots of cherry & plum tomatoes.
I wish I could get Hatch chilies & eat them. I only found them when visiting in New Mexico.
I don't think they ship the Hatch chilis far out of state. Or country! But I'm sure you grow things there that we can't get here.
DeleteDrooling as I read about the yummy local food, Debs. And I love reading about food in historical fiction. In Rhys’ historical fiction set in south of France during World War II the food is rationed and people find creative ways to cook despite the restrictions of the rations.
ReplyDeleteIt’s the season for my favorite kind of tomatoes. I’m trying to remember when blueberries are available. It has been a while since I’ve shopped at the farmers market.
I was fascinated reading about the food in Mrs. Endicott's Splendid Adventure. What they ate in France and then how they had to deal with the rationing.
DeleteThat was me above
ReplyDeleteI'm lucky because I eat local most days since there's a MacDonald's right down the street.
ReplyDeleteVery funny, Jerry! I will now consider it eating local if we can get to it in the golf cart.
DeleteGreat plan and execution, Jerry! Elisabeth
DeleteToo funny, Jerry!
DeleteToo funny, Jerry. There are McDonald's places in residential areas and the residents could walk there. Hope there are farmer's markets available too.
DeleteThere is no question that local produce tastes better. There is nothing as delicious as farm stand fruits and vegetables, especially corn and tomatoes. We used to go strawberry picking an June and blueberry picking in July and apple picking in September every year when the kids were little. We used to have big family picking days with our cousins every summer and I have the photos of laughing faces between the bushes.
ReplyDeleteI rarely go berry picking now although when I do, I pick a lot. I hardly ever go to the farmer's market anymore. Our regional grocery store carries produce from local farms all summer. Most of the time it is labeled with the town and the Connecticut or Massachusetts farm it came from.
But I buy fruits and vegetables out of season and I won't apologize. Sometimes you just want to eat an orange in July or blueberries in February.
Yeah, our growing season is so short (June-October) here. So if I want to eat fresh produce, I have to buy imported fruit & veggies for most of the year.
DeleteI'm always reading that it's better and healthier to eat frozen fruits and veg when they are out of season, but somehow I've never got the habit. I keep some peas and corn in the freezer, and sometimes spinach, but that's about it.
DeleteAnd, Judy, I go to the farmer's market as much, or maybe more, for the fun and social interaction.
DeleteHATCH CHILES! Deborah, I discovered these when I first traveled to New Mexico to visit one of my dearest friends, who just happened to grow up in Hatch! She taught me the fine points of roasting them. And then I discovered that one (and ONLY one) of our local grocery stores brings them in, roasts them on the sidewalk (OMG, the aroma is heavenly) during two weekends each year, and sells them. They also sell other Hatch Chile creations. The first few years, they sold Hatch Chile apple pies. Now, this may not sound good, but let me tell you, it was the best apple pie I've ever eaten. Sadly, whoever worked in the bakery and made them must've retired because the store hasn't had them lately.
ReplyDeleteHi All, Paula B here, So last month I read Badlands by Preston and Child which takes place in New Mexico. I scared me so royally that I don’t ever want to go to the “badlands” of NM even for chilies. Isn’t it amazing how well written books can affect even our eating. BTW, it’s an excellent book that couldn’t be put down until the end. And since I feel a spoiler coming up, I’ll close. Chili lovers enjoy the harvest and roasting.
DeleteAnnette, our grocery does things like Hatch chili poppers but I've never seen Hatch apple pie! I think it sound delicious! Maybe someone has a recipe?
DeleteHi Paula! And, yes, reading about a place can seriously color our perceptions of it, good and bad!
DeleteI am sick with envy over the Hatch chiles! We don't have anything like that in CT as far as I know. Debs, prepare for a visit from the reds! Annette, that pie sounds amazing. I try to eat local as much as possible--from our garden (curse the deer and the voles this year!), the weekly farmers market, and Bishops, home of the absolute best peaches ever.
ReplyDeleteIs Bishops an orchard, Lucy? The big orchard whose peaches are shown in the first picture is called Winona Orchards. Lots of the farms have some peach trees, but Winona is a real orchard. They grow blueberries as well as peaches and the blueberries are the best I'll eat all year.
DeleteWow - roasting chiles at the supermarket: not up here on the Canadian prairie. What a wonderful smell that must be! We are eating seasonal -- peaches from Ontario -- and very local -- green beans from our own garden. Tomatoes are slowly ripening and always worth the wait. Yum.
ReplyDeleteYou are really making the best of a short season, Amanda!
DeleteI scarf down as much local produce as I can at this time of year. The weather here turned sharply cooler this week, which has the taste of fall, and I could feel my summer produce grieving already beginning! I've never had a Hatch chile nor seen one here in New England.
ReplyDeleteIt's fascinating to look into how people ate when it had to be local. Imagine at the end of a long, snowy winter and you are so very sick of stored potatoes, turnips, and carrots, stewed peaches, canned tomatoes, and pickled beans. That's why all the preservation techniques developed, including fermentation, so you could put food up and keep it without more than the refrigeration of a cellar.
I know! It is absolutely fascinating. I've never canned anything (not sure making marmalade really counts) but I have done a bit of fermenting. And made yogurt, although not recently. I've read that you can make good yogurt in the Instant Pot but I haven't tried it. Also sourdough bread, although I'm afraid I've neglected the starter so long that it will be dead.
DeleteMarmalade definitely counts, Debs!
DeleteEdith, I thought of you the other day. I accidentally planted garlic - but I don't know when or how to harvest it or store it! Any tips?
DeleteHatch chilies sound wonderful! I’ve never had them. Another reason to visit New Mexico! We buy from local farm. Stands all
ReplyDeleteMy fingers aren’t working this morning. We buy our fruit and vegetables and greens from local farm stands all spring and summer and fall. Strawberries, Blueberries, Raspberries, tomatoes, tomatoes, corn, and peaches! It’s peach season now and oh, they are so, so good! This month, for the first time in a long time our two local ice cream places have had peach ice cream! Debs, I will try peaches in a nice bowl, uncovered, in the fridge. I love reading about meals in books. Especially when the books takes place in areas of the US not my own, and in other countries. And sometimes there are recipes in the back!
DeleteI bought my daughter a basket of the last peaches and she made ice cream! I haven't had a chance to ask her how it turned out. Yum!
DeleteFresh sweet ("peaches and cream") corn and tomatoes which both peak here in August are my favorites. I especially love husking corn from the Farmers Market and discovering the ears are all small white kernels; i.e., Silver Queen variety, which is both very sweet and tender. What a treat! And who can resist the basic sliced tomato sandwich on white bread with mayo (I can almost hear nutritionists shudder :-) ) which is at its best at this time of the year where I live. My husband loves watermelon season which I dread because it needs to be sliced or chopped into bite size pieces right away. Otherwise it takes up most of a refrigerator shelf.
ReplyDeleteMy husband, too, Evelyn. I drag home a quarter melon every Saturday and have to immediately cut it up and then try to stuff the containers in the fridge. I don't eat much watermelon myself--too sweet, hurts my teeth-- but my husband likes to have some after dinner every night.
DeleteJust finished the blueberries from my nephew's bush. Yes, one bush, but lots of berries this year!!We are surrounded by generational farm markets here--upscale ones and ones with a cooler by the stand and you grab your produce and put your money in the box! Best time of the year!
ReplyDeleteSounds like heaven, Flora!
DeleteI'm not so good about eating local, although I do enjoy in-season berries and peaches from the Farmers Market, and of course nothing beats a fresh tomato from my friend's garden. The peach season should continue for another few weeks here.Then the wait begins for next year's Hood strawberries! I do eat imported berries and bananas year round.
ReplyDeleteI envy you the neighbor with the garden! We have lovely strawberries here in June.
DeleteAnd speaking of the things we cannot grow, I just had an email from the coffee vendor at the farmer's market, saying they will no longer be using Brazilian beans---tarifs.
Ohio is all about apples. I love going to the produce market and checking out the twelve-plus varieties of local orchard apples, listed on a large chart for "best eating, best pies, best baked, best applesauce". And local apple cider!
ReplyDeleteI LOVE all the different varieties of apples! One of our local farmer/vendors brought in a half dozen varieties from Arkansas last fall, all apples I'd never heard of. I hate to see the varieties lost to commercial apple growing. (Red delicious, anyone?)
DeleteWere any Arkansas Black? I got some of those at an orchard out here.
DeleteYes, they were!!
DeleteLisa, Arkansas Blacks are my favorites! There's an orchard in nearby Indiana that brings several varieties to a couple different farmer's markets, and they grow them.
DeleteFood and local in very eastern Canada (Nova Scotia – zone 5 – 51/2). Source – usually my garden. Yesterday – first tomatoes – tasty but very small as the drought has affected the size of the fruit. More to come later, and since we had a bit of rain 2 days ago (first since June 1), they might pick up. Peas maybe later this week, first cuke is picked, zucchini starting, beans – few but ok, test broadbean patch – they were all right but so much work to prepare. Not worth the effort, so deleted from garden roster. Fruit – strawberries – delicious and bountiful just finished eating them about a week ago, blueberries – same drought problem, so few. Blackberries – dehydrated on vines. Squash for some reason are giant – these are a water-loving plant, so what goes here? Sour cherries – bountiful for no reason what soever, but I am not complaining. Even the Ninjas could not eat them all (Cedar Waxwings – cute, elegant but bane of our existence – up there with Grace’s squirrel on the APB poster).
ReplyDeleteFruit – went shopping last week for groceries for a month and came home with baby watermelon (USA), cantaloup (don’t know), sweet cherries (fat and delicious from British Columbia), peaches (think Ontario – they were nicely ripe), pears – Bartlet – don’t know, maybe Ontario, bananas – definitely not Canada in spite of some labels reporting so, pineapple (unknown), coloured peppers (don’t know), new potatoes (PEI). All but 3 of these items were on the second hand rack, so labels are often not there when they put on the markdown price. Real corn will be available to us about the end of the month – fresh from the field. Citrus is only available from outside the country, so just buy as needed, although I recognize it is better in the winter, but since many stores are not buying produce from the US (sorry about that, but you know why), we just take what we get.
Now as for those figs – see me drooling…They are not a thing that we ever see fresh in our store. I bought two new trees this year (small, very small). I plan to bring in the one that I planted in a pot on the deck, but am running a test (always a challenge in gardening), and will leave out for the winter the one in the Pollinator Garden to see if it survives the winter. Testing a Bay Laurel as well. (In other garden testing projects, we are going to try hydroponics. Think we will try some field strawberries… anyone apparently can grow lettuce!)
HA! I do wonder if your cedar waxwings eat your larger veggies? SATAN the black squirrel & his kids often take a few bites of Asian eggplant that are longer than their entire body or plum tomatoes & leave the remains on my balcony for me to find!
DeleteGrace, the dog and cats have put the boot to our Satan's, and the Ninja's apparently are not found of tomatoes, however they seem to be plagued by ants this year. Who knew?
DeleteSomething, I think it's grasshoppers, has eaten four of my eight tomatoes, my Italian parsley, and my eggplant and pepper plants down to stubs. So frustrating!!! At least whatever it is doesn't seem to like basil...
DeleteMargo, I didn't realize you were in such a drought!
DeleteyES, there has been a fire ban since the beginning of august. No one allowed in woods, no fires, period. Water is rationed in some places, wells are dry - we may as well live in Phoenix. Fire ban will come off in October or if we have significant rain. Do you hope for a hurricane - no as the rain will be too much, too fast and the earth will not be able to accept it. Luckily (knock on anything), we have a drilled well, and so far all is good for us. That being said, we are conservative, but I do spot-water the garden. We also take showers which is my reason to keep on living - no shower - crabby as all get out!
DeleteNot to plant a downer, but Update on my sister in case anyone wants to know. She had the Car-T therapy and at the 100-day mark was fine. A week later the bone marrow showed 20% invasion. She is on the clock – 3 weeks to 6 months. She feels and looks fine so it is a shocker! She has decided to go on the immunotherapy which made her so sick the last time. To quote her: F*, F*, F*. She called and ordered a load of wood for the winter…
ReplyDeleteHugs.
DeleteOh, hugs, Margo. That's so hard.
DeleteMargo, I'm with your sister: F*, F*, F*! Hugs incoming from northern Ohio....
DeleteMargo, I am so sorry. You’ve all been through so much. As Debs said, hugs. — Pat S
DeleteMargo, wishing you all the strength and grace you need for your days, especially the hard ones. Elisabeth
DeleteMARGO: Such sad news, so sorry.
DeleteThank you everyone for your kind wishes. We (hopefully) have a bit of time left, so shoulders back, smile on everyone's face, and no need to put names on your inheritance items yet, and writing the obituary! Coincidently, I am reading "I See You Called in Dead" - luck of the ON Hold draw!
DeleteF*, F*, F*, indeed. These next few weeks will be hard, so keep that famous sense of humor handy, Margo.
DeleteI just listened to I See You Called in Dead two weeks ago. You will love it.
Geez. F*** cancer! I'm so sorry. And I love your attitude, Margo.
DeleteOh Margo, I am very sorry. F*, F*, F* indeed.
DeleteMargo, I’m so sorry. Hugs to you and your sister
DeleteBad, bad news. I'm very sorry. Thinking of you and your sister.
DeleteYes, local produce is one of the great joys of summer here in Ohio. I am eager to get out and get us some local corn, as it was really just beginning to come in before we left for Japan. My big non-local indulgence is cherries. We get those in from the Pacific Northwest around the beginning of July and I always enjoy about two big bags of them during their short season. Hubby isn't into them, so that's two large bags I enjoy all by myself. Because of the timing of the season, I somehow associate them with the 4th of July celebrations.
ReplyDeleteOh, cherries. We don't grow them here and I meant to buy some while they were in season. I think Trader Joe's still had them last week?
DeleteI get local produce from the farmer's market.
ReplyDeleteIs it a neighborhood market or a big one?
Deleteit's a neighborhood market
DeleteGreat post Debs! We have a local farmers market that we go to occasionally on Sunday mornings, and one of the stalls is manned by a long time family owned local organic farm that I really like. But they don't grow everything so I have to check around for citrus, corn, etc.
ReplyDeleteI go every Saturday! We have (supposedly) one of the best farmer's markets in Texas and it is a treat. Although I go as much for the human connections as the produce--and to look at all the dogs:-)
DeleteIt is such a cool community vibe. A great chance to see people out walking or rolling around rather than locked anonymously in our cars.
DeleteSO gorgeous! Seasonal weaknesses? TOMATOES!! But -anyone have the same experience--they are not good yet. Why?
ReplyDeleteHANK: Our Edible Ottawa gardening FB group has been discussing this! Many still have green tomatoes. It has been TOO HOT. When temperatures are in the 90s, tomato plants "shut down". The tomatoes ripen better at temperatures in the mid 70s-low 80s.
DeleteHank, I never have any luck with big slicing tomatoes. We usually get a good early summer crop of the little ones, but even they struggle when it gets really hot. But as soon as the temperature drops a llttle (yesterday was the hottest day of the year so far) they will start producing again.
DeleteMine have also been slow to ripen, except for the Sun Gold. And now it's too cool for them. Maybe in a couple of weeks?
DeleteI'm not a fan of heat and humidity so, in general, summer isn't my favorite time of year. But, the fresh produce certainly does help make it bearable. We have a small farmers' market in town that is new this year so it's not very big yet, but I've enjoyed everything I got there. And we have roadside stands for corn everywhere.
ReplyDeleteMy mother used to spend hours every year canning peaches, pears, tomatoes, chili sauce and pickle relish; and she made jams, usually strawberry and peach. As a kid, I loved having the fruit, especially the peaches, throughout the winter. I canned tomatoes for a couple of years and it made me realize just how hard Mom worked to be sure we had that good food.
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DeleteSo much work!!! I can't imagine doing all that. But I'm drooling just thinking about all those things. I know how lucky we are that we can buy fruits and veg almost anytime of the year, but it's not the same. That reminds me that I just bought some pickled okra from one of my friends at the market and it's so good! Not too salty, crisp and crunchy. Of course you have to like okra!
DeleteThat was it, Debs. They canned, dried, preserved for the off seasons!
DeleteOh, Deborah, you and I would be a good pair for peaches. I LOVE their aroma, but don’t like the taste and texture. If you were my neighbor, I stop by at least once or twice a day just for breath of peach air! Or even buy peaches to smell so that you could come and get them to eat. Elisabeth
ReplyDeleteI wonder about the quality of the peaches? This is why I only eat them when they are local and in season. These taste as good as they smell.
DeleteThanks for wondering…my not liking them is age old so have been through many kinds in many places. Stone fruit in general is not a favorite. Elisabeth
DeleteI went to a local Farmers’ Market in June for the first time and had such fun seeing the variety of fruits and vegetables being offered. Apparently I made an impression on my husband because some local realtor put a flyer in the mailbox that listed all the Farmers’ Markets in San Diego and he made a point of presenting it to me instead of recycling it immediately. He even said that we should check out a few. At the grocery store two days ago, there was a in sign saying they are going to be roasting Hatch chilies. I didn’t know what that was but after reading so many positive comments, I think I will check it out! — Pat S
ReplyDeleteA warning on the Hatch chilis--they can be very hot. Our grocery usually has some that are labeled mild but they are not always as advertised!
DeleteI love that your husband listened! Hope you have fun checking out the markets.
DeleteThanks, Debs and Lisa. Yes, I was surprised he paid attention! — Pat
DeleteHere in northern CA, we're actually enjoying almost the same thing. Our peach season is just about over and I have almost a dozen going into the refrigerator today. There are two fig harvests but the first is the best because the trees have all that stored up fecundity and there are plump and perfect. Now, it's the second harvest, good but not as good. The farmers markets are filled with corn and tomatoes, all kinds of berries, summer squash, vine vegetables, greens. I'm almost sorry I'm leaving for Paris next week! Almost.
ReplyDeleteBon voyage, my dear! So envious! Keep us posted on your trip!!!
DeleteThe corn is great here (Illinois) but we don't grow citrus so Texas grapefruit is a big yes for me :)
ReplyDeleteYou know, I didn't see any Texas grapefruit in the stores last winter. I will be really looking out for it this year. It's so good.
DeleteFresh Texas peaches! The ones in your photo look divine. There was always a bowl of fresh fruit on the table in my mother’s kitchen. Now that bowl is in my kitchen, full of seasonal fruit.
ReplyDeleteI always have fruit in a bowl (bowls) in the kitchen, often more than I can eat!
DeleteJust thinking about the historical availability of foods makes me wonder if that's why artists were so fascinated by still lifes?
Interesting observation. My guess is that you’re right!
DeleteI am not a fan of summer. I hate the heat. But, I am a fan of the locally grown tomatoes during this season of swelter. I so look forward to bacon and tomato sandwiches all summer long. I'm not sure when we quit putting the lettuce on the BLT, but it just seemed like the lettuce was getting in the way of the good stuff. Fresh blueberries are also delicious here in the summer, but as with most others here, our blueberry season is short. The fresh peaches are yummy, too, but I think there's a window of optimum taste for them, and I'm not quite sure what it is. However, I bought some around the first of July that were delicious. I have a friend who used to freeze the fresh blueberries and said they still delicious, but I've never tried that. Oh, and let me not forget the scrumptious strawberries. Philip and I love them. Now, some years ago I froze corn, after cutting it off the cob and cooking it. My mother-in-law is the one that was the corn freezing Queen, as she did lots of it. It was really nice having that corn for Thanksgiving and Christmas and other times in the winter. I also love zucchini, green peppers, and red peppers, but no chili peppers for me. I used to look forward to my parents-in-law growing green beans. I remember many a day sitting on their breezeway snapping and stringing green beans. Fixing them like my mother, in a pressure cooker with a nice glob of bacon grease and a tiny toss of sugar, would produce a pot of green beans I couldn't get enough of. You could, if you wanted, throw in some of the little potatoes with them. And, one more thing. I always thought it interesting that I grew up on and still have to have blackberry jelly, but I don't like eating blackberries.
ReplyDeleteWell, understandable, I think. They are very seedy! I love them but I hate getting blackberry seeds stuck in my teeth!
DeleteI was happy to snap and string bean in June and July but now they're not very good. One thing that is consistently good all summer here is okra, and I've discovered that we loved it grilled. Sliced, tossed in olive oil and salt and pepper, thrown in the grill basket until it just begins to char a bit. Delish!
If you have the freezer space to do it, the blueberries are great. Just spread them out on a baking sheet, then bag them up. I love eating the frozen ones as a cool summer treat to beat the heat.
DeleteI've been freezing fresh-picked blueberries since 1989, and I no longer freeze them on a baking sheet. They do find bagged in a freezer-quality ziplock with the air sucked out of it. I got five bags from my own bushes this year!
DeleteKathy, we've had great corn and tomatoes this year. This summer has been brutal, not just for us, but also for the farms (ours is located in Crestwood).
DeleteDebs, that's what I don't like about the blackberries, the seeds, but since the blackberry jelly is seedless, I like that. Lisa, I had heard you spread the blueberries out on a baking sheet first, but it's good to know that do good your way, too, Edith. Beth, I've worried about the farms around here with this intense heat and no rain. It was supposed to rain last night, but we didn't get it.
DeleteDebs, I do try to eat local, but I have to admit, although I wouldn't want your extreme weather, I am green with envy over the produce available to you! Decent peaches are an import, like Lucy's mangos, and as for figs! The only place I've ever seen one fresh was in Italy! They're only available here dried, but having tasted the real thing, oooo. I'm getting sent to Houston for my book tour this November; obviously I need to get something published to coincide with fresh fig season!
ReplyDeleteYou will be out of luck, I'm afraid, Julia. Houston is further south but I imagine their local fresh figs are July/August, and I imagine they get California figs the same time we do, which is August into September.
DeleteI so wish you were coming to Dallas!!!!
Maybe I can talk Kayti into making an overnight trip with me to see you at MBTB....
DeleteJulia, we have fabulous peaches in Amesbury, only an hour and change south of you. Are you sure there isn't a farm near you that grows them?
DeleteWe do try to buy local as much as possible. We've been enjoying the production of our little garden: way too many green beans, but the lettuces did better than expected. Our bell peppers - red and green - are coming in. The squirrels and birds got all the strawberries, boo. But we did something wrong with the cucumbers. They vined and blossomed then... nothing. Too much full sun? We also did not get the bumper crop of peaches we like we did last year, but we read that was normal for fruit trees. The peaches we did get were big and delicious, though. We've got loads of apples on the trees and we're looking forward to them ripening in September so we can figure out what we have. LOL
ReplyDeleteI do research the foods that would have been in season when I write my Homefront mysteries. Not just so I know what people would have in their gardens, but what would be available in the markets. Plus, I need to know what was being rationed during the period and what people would use as potential substitutes.
So fascinating, Liz!
DeleteTexas oranges, from the Rio Grande Valley, are the juiciest oranges. They get sold to the canning companies for the juice, altho’ big bags of oranges can be picked up at the farmers’ markets & roadside stands in s.Tx. (the home of the Ruby Red grapefruit.) We lived among the orchard growers, so the fruit was plentiful. Winter Texans will take home a stash of citrus when they head north. The RGV lemons are 2-3 times bigger than average, w/ a thinner skin, & the avocados are tasty, too. 🍊🍋 In October we head to Illinois for the large variety of apples. And the apple cider donuts, of course. 🍎🍏
ReplyDeleteHmm, I wonder if any of those oranges make their way to north Texas... I would love to try them!
DeleteI've been thinking about commenting all day, but kept getting interrupted--in a good way! My daughter in Greece called twice, lucky me!
ReplyDeleteLocal, in season produce is best, something I had not really internalized until after going to Europe in 2001 with a friend who was very particular about produce. She kept pointing out all the seasonal offerings on menus and the light went on. Up until then, Steve--who eats a banana a day, wants a salad almost every night, and who routinely eats oranges and apples as snacks--bought his favorites around the calendar, regardless of the tomatoes being rock hard and flavorless. But if I'm the one buying the produce it is usually in season, and as local as we can get it, for most things. Citrus, cherries, bananas--fuggedaboudit. Although my Michigan daughter will bring me their local cherries if she's coming here, frozen if necessary.
We are lucky to have wonderful farmer's markets here, as well as a couple really good produce stores that buy mostly local fruits and veggies, including local hydroponic greens year-round. But I also feel lucky to have the ability to grow much of our produce myself. All garlic, lettuce, kale, chard, herbs, asparagus, and squash of the year come from my garden. If the lettuce isn't growing outside, it's inside in one of my hydroponic planters. I keep trying to grow potatoes, which is like beating my own head on the pavement. The onions didn't do well this year at all, either. But...does anyone want some horseradish? It's taking over!
This year I didn't buy any strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, black raspberries, or blackberries; they all came from my "food forest". Debs, I canned all but the blackberries as jam. I also made black currant jam, red currant sauce, and just made elderberry syrup last night. (It's not very syrupy, I might have done something wrong.) My fig tree is loaded with figs for the first time, so fingers crossed on a potential fig pig! My sour cherry trees had fruit, but also a blight, and we didn't even get a handful of fruit. The Nanking cherries had a single cherry, so I'm hoping for more next year. The gooseberry had fruit, in its second year. But I wasn't sure when to harvest them--or how: they have thorns an inch long! So I didn't get them before the critters did.
This year's local corn is excellent (I do not grow it). My tomatoes are just now producing, for some reason, and the slicing ones didn't make it, so I've been buying them. Very strange year for them, as Hank said. No idea why. Steve hauls home a watermelon at least once a week, which takes up half the fridge. A friend suggested getting a second fridge. For the six weeks of watermelon season. I think I will just put up with it! LOL
I love food forests! In my kitchen, all the blueberries, garlic, lettuce, and cukes are homegrown, and most of the tomatoes. My Asian eggplants didn't make it this year, between the woodchuck and I don't know what else, alas.
DeleteUsually the bugs eat my eggplant before they can even bear fruit. This year they got a slow, slow start, which seems like it made a difference.
DeleteSweet. I'm just about to head to my favorite produce stand for peaches and watermelon and whatever else appeals, maybe some kale for kale chips. I already made yogurt with my Salton from college. ;-) It's a true luxury to have fresh produce all year, not relying on canning and storing in a root cellar. -- Storyteller Mary
ReplyDeleteIt is, and I think about that a lot!
DeleteSorry I didn’t chime in earlier. Chiropractor visit for neck! I’m always mindful of what my characters can and can’t eat based on the season. Sometimes it’s annoying! I read diaries and have restaurant mendues. They seemed to eat a lot of celery. Creamed celery shows up as the vegetable
ReplyDeleteInteresting, Rhys! Easy to grow most of the year? And you've reminded me that I love celery soup and haven't made it in years.
DeleteWe eat local as much as possible in Kentucky (CSA, organic); no local peaches I have access to, but plenty of watermelon. There's so much hot weather lately that our "baskets" haven't had that many vegetables, and no greens. Looking forward to cooler weather. Speaking of food... I just reread Deborah's A Bitter Feast. Coincidentally, we spent a week in the Cotswolds in June, in Blockley and environs. On the day of our arrival we stopped at Daylesford farm shop, mentioned by Deborah, where Addie had picked up some foods for lunch. Daylesford was unlike any other farm shop we have visited, both in its size and its "energy." A real experience, especially on jet lag. Definitely worth a visit.
ReplyDeleteHi, Beth! Dayslesford is something else, isn't it? Unfortunately I was staying in hotels and not in someplace with a kitchen, so I didn't get to try much.
DeletePeaches and cherries are my favorite fruits and berries so you're speaking my language, Debs. Our peach season ends at the end of May, but I'm on my second peach tree (first one died tragically after crazily giving us hundreds of peaches year after year) . The new one gave me eight peaches last year. I am raising her as protectively as if I birthed her and my fig tree is flourishing but no figs yet...sigh. AZ is lucky as most things things are in season all year round. When I shop in New England and see the produce prices, I have to go lie down for a bit to recover.
ReplyDeleteOur fig tree froze down to the ground in the horrible winter of 2021 here. It came back, and this year produced the best crop so far. The squirrels and birds ate the green figs before I could pick them.
DeleteOur cherries are gone now, but I ate them almost every day while they were in season. Now we're in the middle of eating small purple plums--my mother always called them prune plums. In German they're Zwetschgen. I eat them as is and bake them into pies. Like yours, Debs, my biggest out-of-season weakness is blueberries!
ReplyDeleteLast summer I froze a lot of our good orchard blueberries, but somehow this year I didn't manage. Your plums sound delicious, Kim. That's something I don't usually think to buy.
DeleteIf you want a taste of Hatch chilies, try Unexpected Cheddar Cheese Spread with Hatch Chilies from Trader Joe's.
ReplyDeleteOh wow!!! How did I not know about this? Going on my list for next trip to TJ. And I love Unexpected Cheddar. I never buy any other.
DeleteYes! We only eat organic fruits and veggies. We shop at a local organic farm for their seasonal produce. Tomatoes are now in their prime as well as melons. It is still too early for corn which is number one on my list. We have friends in Nova Scotia Canada who are harvesting their blueberries right now. We don’t have Hatch Chilies here! So happy to hear about real food here as I worry so much about all of the processed food consumed!
ReplyDeleteYes, me, too, Alicia. We are very much "shop on the outside aisles." Except for my husband's potato chips and Cheerios. Sigh.
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