Fruit and News of the Week: August 11th

THIS WEEK’S FRUIT

Flame Seedless Grapes

Frog Hollow Farm, Brentwood, CA

Firm, large and sweet the Flame Seedless grapes are one of the most popular varieties in North America. Enjoy these out of hand or try them in a variety of salads. Store in the crisper of your refrigerator or eat within 1-2 days from counter.

Cal Red Peaches

Frog Hollow Farm, Brentwood , CA

The beloved Cal Red is in a class by itself and is the “Oh my God” peach! A relatively new variety and a California native, the Cal Red was bred by Uni versity of California botanist Claron O. Hesse in the mid 1960s. Aptly named for the Golden State, the Cal Red is a beautiful golden peach marked with a gentle, sun-kissed blush.

August Fire Nectarine

Frog Hollow Farm, Brentwood , CA

The August Fire is elegantly shaped and rich in flavor, with deep red skin and warm orange flesh.It’s taste and texture bring our nectarine season to a close beautifully.

Flavor King Pluots

Frog Hollow Farm, Brentwood , CA

The best pluot variety we grow! A dark-skinned pluot with red flesh, it has an intense rich flavor combined with sweet, spicy tones that are reminiscent of the Santa Rosa. A nice acid bite and firm texture that softens beautifully as the fruit continues to ripen, the Flavor King is amazing out of hand and equally good for baking.

Dapple Dandy Pluots

Frog Hollow Farm, Brentwood , CA

Playfully called the “dinosaur egg” pluot, the Dapple Dandy has marbled pink and green skin over delicate white flesh threaded with rose. Kids especially love this pluot for its distinctive coloration and the lack of tartness in the skin.

 A NOTE FROM FARMER AL & CHEF BECKY

Green Tomatoes 

Dear CSA Members,

All around our orchard is land planted in corn, tomatoes, and this year, garlic. We are accustomed to the small cannery tomato plants, the helicopter sprays, and the dust the tractors kick up. During tomato harvest, about 1 1⁄2 weeks, the sound of the picking/packing platforms that sound like a squeaky, rusty wheel run all through the night.

Last week, we noticed something different about the tomato harvest; they were picking them green. Instead of harvesting at night, mechanically, they are pick- ing by hand into picking totes and then dumping them into large gondolas, pulled by a semi, about 25 feet long and 4 feet deep that holds 25 tons of toma- toes. The tomatoes will be sent to a holding facility where they will be held in CA (controlled atmosphere) storage. Controlled atmosphere manages ethylene production and the amount of carbon dioxide and oxygen the fruit is exposed to. There, they will be ripened for about 2 weeks and when ready, packed and sold to the fresh market (at a very low price).

Imagine all the resources and money involved in bringing a fresh tomato to market in this system! The trucking, the labor, the fuel and electricity! Even though this process goes against what I believe about how food should be grown and distributed, I also have to admit that I marvel at it. The goals of this factory farming system are to maximize profits for retailers, wholesalers, proces- sors and farmers. Scientists have figured out how to accomplish that by devel- oping a tomato variety which can be picked green and hard, then handled with mechanical systems delivering to stores a red tomato. The color red is hard- wired into humans’ brain, flavor and sweetness.

This is all very marvelous but not very good for the environment or our health. The unknowledgeable consumer gets a tomato lacking in flavor, but especially lacking in nutrition. The environmental costs of industrial farming are not cal- culated, but hidden. In the end soils are depleted and yet more CO2 emissions are released into our atmosphere contributing to global warming.

This system was designed to distribute food to people in densely populated urban areas who have no access to soil or to farms. As a CSA member you are rejecting that system and supporting our efforts to grow great tasting fruit, while building a healthy soil, and sequestering carbon. A win-win

~ Chef Becky and Farmer Al 

Posted in Newsletter, Uncategorized

Recent Posts

  • Recipe: Pork Chops with Apples and Onions

    Pork Chops with Apples and Onions
    via Martha Stewart

     
    Ingredients:
    6 bone-in pork chops (loin or shoulder), cut 3/4 inch thick
    Coarse salt and fres…

  • Farm Focus: The Buzz with Bees

    Spring is synonymous with blooming flowers and where there are blooming flowers there are bees! And while most people think  of European honey bees, we  w…

  • Fruit & News of the Week: April 9, 2018

    This Week’s Fruit:
    Minneloa Tangelos
    Twin Girls Farm, Dinuba, CA
    The Tangelo is a cross between a mandarin and grapefruit. Its skin is easy to peel and its f…

  • Recipe: DIY Orange Soda

    Via Food52

    Ingredients:

    4 oranges
    1 lime
    1 cup granulated sugar
    Lemon lime seltzer water

    Method:

    Zest the oranges and the lime and add all o…

  • Farm Focus: Jim Churchill of Churchill-Brenneis Orchard

    Jim of Churchill-Brenneis Orchard, never imagined himself becoming a farmer, though he grew up walking through friends orchards on weekend trips from LA. His pa…