HELLO FALL!
Late summer produce is starting to wind down and now is the time of year to start making room for the wonderful bounty of Fall. Exciting new fruit is starting to arrive weekly including a variety of pears and apples, kiwi berries, jujubes, California Keitt mangos are at the tail end of the season, and the sub-tropical Passion Fruit and Dragonfruit! Jujubes are crisp and refreshing, with a delicate fig-and-caramel flavor. Fresh jujubes provide more vitamin C than your average citrus fruit.
California Bartletts and Golden Bosc are eating fantastic and coming out of the Sacramento Delta and Lake Counties. The Warren Pear from Frog Hollow is prized by chefs for its juicy and buttery flavor. It is a great storage pear and is fantastic for baking as well as eating out of hand. Asian Pears are crunchy like an apple and juicy like a pear. Add slices of Asian pears act as a tenderizer when added to your favorite marinade. Out of the Pacific Northwest Concorde, Abate Fetel and the pretty red Starkrimson are sweet and juicy. The Abate Fetel softens quickly so be sure to enjoy this variety while still slightly firm. Add a pop of color to your display with red pear varieties.
California Stone Fruit is done. Recent rain knocked out all remaining yellow peaches in the central valley. However, growers will still have plenty of black plums. Out of the Pacific Northwest Moonlight is still harvesting fruit. We will see a shot of white peaches. Yellow nectarines will be available through the end of the week and yellow peaches will go through the beginning of October. Buyer beware of quality of late season stone fruit! Fruit has a shorter shelf life and is more susceptible to shrivel, mold, decay, bruising and other quality issues.
Cuyama is now harvesting fresh crop Gala, Sweetie and Honeycrisp full sized and soon snackable Lady apples. Cuyama Orchards is nestled in the uppermost reaches of the Cuyama Valley in a rugged mountainous corner of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties in California. The orchards are surrounded by towering peaks and National Forest land. At 3300 feet in elevation, Cuyama Orchards enjoys the ideal microclimate for growing sweet, crunchy, juicy apples that are bursting with flavor. The warm days late into the fall along with cool crisp nights allow them to harvest their fruit with full flavor at the peak of ripeness. Gala apples are a “summer apple” that ripens ahead of, just about, all other varieties. Cuyama Gala are sweet, crisp, and fragrant. Great for a snack. Cuyama Honeycrisp are ridiculously sweet, tart, crunchy, and bursting with flavor. The Sweetie is Gala’s sweeter, crunchier, juicier progeny. Sweetie harvest in the summer, just after its parent - Gala, and yet has the exceptionally firm texture and keeping qualities of its other parent, Braeburn. Join us in celebrating California apples and pears!
We are getting into more of a California lemon profile. DOC lemons have started up out of the desert with very nice quality. We are starting to see some Mexican fruit come on. Valencias are winding down out of California and the Mexican Valencia season won’t start up until November.
Maywood Figs are winding down and fruit is sizing up smaller. Enjoy Black Mission, Brown Turkey and Kadota while they last.
On the grape scene, Concords are done and Thomcords will be done soon. It is peak California grape season. Don’t miss Sunview’s new red and green seedless grapes in recyclable cardboard.
The new Homegrown “Prankster” Kiwi Berries are here. Grown in Oregon, kiwi berries have all the flavor of a kiwi in a poppable snack. They are ready to eat when they soften up. Pomegranates are starting up next week and Fuyu Persimmons are arriving soon after.
Chanterelles
Now is a great time to try wild foraged mushrooms out of the Pacific Northwest! Wild foraged Chanterelles are special and available in bulk and clamshell through January. The Golden Chanterelle is commonly found after the fall and winter rains growing amongst oak trees. Chanterelles boast a complex flavor profile, with a delicate balance of earthiness, nuttiness, and a slight hint of fruity apricot. A great treat or addition to a dish when sauteed with some butter, salt, and garlic. Chanterelle mushrooms offer various health benefits, acting as a good source of vitamins D and B, minerals like potassium and copper, and fiber. These nutrients contribute to a boosted immune system, improved bone and heart health, and enhanced energy production.
California tomatoes are eating great from Heirloom Tomatoes, to Early Girls and cherry tomatoes. Tutti Frutti benefits from cooling ocean breezes letting the fruit ripen up slower and stay firmer.
Tutti Frutti Mixed Hard Squash bins are available on your next delivery, as well as cases of all your favorites- Butternut, spaghetti, acorn, kabocha, red kuri, sweet dumpling and delicata . Coming soon from Dwelley, Orangetti hard squash. Developed in Israel, Orangetti squash is a close relative of the yellow spaghetti squash and is a heavy bearing plant producing smaller fruits with a deeper rind and flesh color. You can find Earl’s Hard Squash Guide here.
Follow Earl's Buyer's Notes each week for seasonal updates and follow the flavor. Ask your Earl's Sales Rep how we can help with Fall produce display.