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THIS WEEK’S FRUIT
Warren Pears
The Warren is to our pears as the Cal Red is to our peaches and the Flavor King to our pluots. This is Frog Hollow Farm’s signature pear and for good reason. Too difficult to grow for most farmers to consider it’s never caught on commercially but Farmer Al has never shied away from putting the time and effort into a fruit that tastes so good. It has a classic European texture, very soft and juicy with a silky sweetness that avoids the typical grittiness found in most pears. Pears are great sources of Vitamin C which, fights free radicals. They are also an excellent source of fiber. Eat the skins! Research shows that the skins contain three to four times as many antioxidants and anti-inflammatory flavonoids as the flesh. Doctors also recommend pears for introducing babies to solid foods because they are low in acid and will be easier on babies tummies.
Golden Russet Bosc Pears
The Bosc is a strikingly decorative pear that’s reputed to have first sprung to life as a wild seedling in the mid-18th century. It was introduced to the US in 1836 and has also been known as the Kaiser Alexander. The Golden Russet is true to its name with a yellowish-white flesh and a uniformly russet skin. It has the classic Bosc shape of a long elegant neck. Excellent for cooking, the Bosc’s texture holds up very well in pies, tarts, and for poaching.
Pink Lady Apples
A cross between the Golden Delicious and Lady Williams, the Pink Lady is a crisp and juicy apple with a tart finish. A creamy white colored flesh that resists browning makes this an excellent apple for salads and slicing. Also a modern day favorite for eating out of hand. The apple a day adage may be spot on. Recent research has shown that apples are associated with lower risk of heart diseases and strokes. They are also an excellent source of fiber and a good source of vitamin C.
Black Pendolino Olives
Native to Tuscany, Pendolino trees have a beautiful weeping form and leaves with a stunning silver undeside. They produce a good quality oil for pressing and make excellent table olives. Cured olives hold a host of health benefits. They are high in iron, copper, and vitamin E, which is a fat-soluble antioxidant that neutralizes damaging free radicals,They do contain fat, but it is a monounsaturated fat, seen to be a healthy fat.
Clementines
Olsen Organic Farms, Lindsay, CA
Clementines are the smallest variety of mandarin oranges. They are a cross between a sweet orange and a Chinese mandarine. Clementines are very sweet, juicy, easy to peel, and usually seedless, making them very popular with children and adult alike. Clementines are rich in potassium, vitamin C and vitamin B-complex minerals like niacin and thiamine.
A Note from Farmer Al
Olive Traditions
Dear CSA Members,
Today is our final day of olive picking, and it is for me a very happy day. Mother Nature has been beneficial and bountiful for us this year in all of our crops, but none so spectacular as our olive harvest. Not only in quantity (this year’s total volume exceeds our previous best year by 25%), but also in the quality of the oil. It is greener, more pungent and piquant, than any previous year.
Every year, Becky’s Great Uncle Tony, cures olives the same way his Spanish father and mother would cure them. Every November they were cracked and put in water. The water was changed several times before they were brined and brought out at Christmas for everyone to eat. Uncle Tony the last surviving sibling, at 99 years of age, emailed us to ask when the olives are coming this year. Today, I am happy to say, we are sending Uncle Tony 5lbs of green olives.
Please join us in celebrating this bounty by participating “hands on” in the ancient procession of processing this noble fruit. We hope that you will create your own traditions around the olive harvest.
To learn more about the ancient lore and Mediterranean traditions of the olive, there is a great book to read if you can find a copy; “OLIVES” by Mort Rosenblum. It is a great read. One of the few books I read over and over!
