Fall is here! Fall flavors will dominate the tastiest dishes this fall. Utilizing seasonal, local produce will ensure the highest quality ingredients and freshest flavors in your food. Look for these fall ingredients to use this month! Sweet corn, apples, asian pears, broccoli and rapini, chicories including endive and radicchio, dates, grapes, pomegranates, sweet potatoes, wild mushrooms, winter squash including pumpkin and butternut. Please note; it is especially important to choose organic when selecting apples, grapes, and pears, as these are some of the highest sprayed fruits in the market.
Support your local farmer’s markets. More than 6000 farmers work to bring us fresh produce in San Diego County. Many of them operate small, family farms, which have a reputation for higher quality, higher-value specialty crops. Buying and eating this produce, rather than industrially farmed produce, supports farmers who care and practice sustainable agriculture, not to mention food that tastes great!
February 2007 Aphrodisiacs- The science, the lore, and fun cooking with them.
“Every culture has its own magical foods. In America, chocolate, champagne, and oysters lead the pack of well-known aphrodisiacs. But whether it’s something inherent in the food or the power of the mind believing in the food’s qualities is something science has been unable to prove.” Context, lore, and attention to detail all play an important role in using foods as aphrodisiacs. Here are a few suggested “love foods” to throw in the mix this month- in the name of Cupid, of course!
Choose Recipes that Utilize Local Seasonal Produce to Ensure Optimal Flavor and Freshness in your Cuisine
Apricots - May and June are the best times to eat apricots. Look for bright colored ones with a red blush; they will not continue to ripen after picking, so avoid greenish or hard apricots.
Artichokes - Actually edible buds from a prehistoric looking bush. Baby Artichokes are actually buds that grow lower on the bush, therefore smaller. Whereas the larger chokes have three distinct parts, the smaller ones can be braised or sauteed and eaten in their entirety.
Summer Produce - Taking Advantage of Local Produce
Freshness & great taste is guaranteed when you eat with the seasons!
Avocados - One of California’s treasures; eat alone, dressed with lime juice and salt, or in salads, Latin dishes, or Chef Julie’s family favorite, on toasted English muffins for breakfast!
Berries - Check out ChinoFarm’s French Strawberries and Golden Raspberries or some of the most decadent natural treats you can imagine!
Corn - Again, Chino’s is a must for best corn in America. Grill it, boil it, cut the kernels off and saute it. Add to soups, salads, succotash, and casseroles. Eat corn as soon as you can- the sugars begin turning to starch as soon as it is picked.
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