Soapbox: the strawberry waiting game has started
The hardest part of Spring is waiting for produce
Warning: this is a bit of a rant / PSA. I’m very passionate, okay?
It is officially Spring, and it feels like it. In the middle of a rainy cold spell we are having two sudden, glorious Spring days here in Berkeley. It’s over 70°? I turned on my fan for the first time this year? I have abandoned my plans to make chicken noodle soup??
Such transcendental weather heralds the beginning of the biggest test of the year: the Spring/Summer produce waiting game. You can just SMELL, TASTE, IMAGINE a fresh tomato, but it will still be quite the wait until you can get your hands on one actually worth eating. One so good you will eat it at your counter standing up, straight out of the paper bag, not even bothering to cut it or sprinkle some flaky salt on it……….
On a beautiful sunny day like today, you may be tempted to buy a tomato. DO NOT GIVE INTO TEMPTATION! It will be mealy and taste like water and you will NOT BE SATISFIED!
On a beautiful sunny day like today, you may be tempted by the strawberries that have been popping up at both the farmers’ market and the bowl.
But I will warn you, they will NOT be good. For quite some time. They will be flavorless. They will be disappointing. They will most likely be from Driscoll’s… absolutely not.
My friends, I beg of you. Wait a month. Or even two months. Wait until genuine, bona fide Springtime before you even think about purchasing a strawberry.
It is WORTH IT to wait for a really, really good piece of fruit.
The same goes for the stone fruit (??? it’s way too early !!!) that I have seen at Bbowl. I just saw these Larry Anne plums and Peacharines at Oregon St and while it’s tremendously exciting to see any sort of stone fruit at all, I can guarantee that these will NOT satisfy your stone fruit craving. Even if “Peacharine” is admittedly a pretty gorgeous name, I refuse to be seduced by a false promise.
The early bird might get a worm but it will NOT get some delicious juicy fruit. The smart, patient bird (you) waits to eat the really good stuff. Just hold out for a few months and you’ll be able to buy something from Frog Hollow. Okay, maybe it will be more than a few months. But I vow to keep you posted.
AN ASIDE: If you’re actually serious about doing things right, do yourself a favor and sign up for the mailing list at Andy’s Orchard in Morgan Hill. They do stone fruit tastings in the summer and it’s positively bacchanalian. They have a Cherry Tasting on June 15th (see the calendar here). I’ve been and it’s 1000% worth it. It’s $25 to try out a mind boggling selection of cherry varieties.
In good news, alliums are popping up. I don’t know about you, but the appearance of garlic scapes gets me really, really excited, because they’re a little appetizer for the main dish, the greatest of all alliums, RAMPS.
They may be imported, yes, but you can get garlic scapes at both West and Oregon St!
Need some allium inspiration? I just made this panade recipe using green garlic, spring onions, and a two day old country loaf from Morell’s, and it was so ridiculously decadent and amazing.
Make some variation of a scallion pancake! If you are daunted by batter (I definitely am), try out Queens’ Buchim Garu Pancake Mix. It’s gluten free! Use as little batter as possible for a light, allium centric pancake. It’s the best way.
Okay well that’s all for now! Thanks for reading!
in this household we ABHOR driscoll's and their dubious labor practices and discrimination, as WELL as their lackluster perennial strawberries!!!