This Week’s Fruit

Cal Red Peaches  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 University 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. Summer Fire Nectarines The Summer Fire has a firm meaty flesh that isn’t as juicy as some of our other varieties but is packed with a red wine intensity that makes it a memorable and desirable nectarine. Often with a deeper reddish hue than the Fantasia, the Summer Fire is a variety that’s worth the extra effort it takes to slice and pit a clingstone: its warm yellow flesh is streaked beautifully with red near the pit. Flavor King Pluots 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. Emerald Beaut Plums The Emerald Beaut is a delicate green that turns golden with a hint of blush. It has a firmer texture than the Santa Rosa with a crisp almost crunchy mouth- feel. One of our most hardy fruit, the Emerald Beaut just gets sweeter and sweeter without losing texture as it ages. Flame Seedless Grapes Firm, large, and sweet the Flame Seedless are one of the most popular varieties in North America. Enjoy these out of hand or try them in green salads, chicken salads, or fruit salads. Storage Recommendations During the summer season, we recommend keeping two – three days worth of fruit out on the counter top and storing the rest in the fridge to be enjoyed later in the week.

A Note From Sarah

Warren Pears 2013

Dear CSA Members, This year we have a record crop of our Warren pears. So much so that we had to rush out last Thursday and Friday and buy 180 bins to pick into because we didn’t have enough on hand! And still, as hard as we tried to get them all picked and into bins for cold storage, we still lost 20% of the crop onto the ground because we had too many bases to cover. Welcome to August on the farm. We had ripe Cal Reds, ripe plums, pluots and nectarines all of which needed to get off the tress and into homes asap! So, the Warrens had to wait. But you know the age old saying, “Good things come to Those Who Wait”… Many of you are familiar with our Warren Pears, some of you who are new to our CSA may think “I don’t like pears”. That would be only because you haven’t tasted our Warren’s. Most of the pear varieties you can buy in the stores are “gritty” in texture and flat in taste. I know you’re all thinking, “here they go again” and yes, again, “Ours are different!” Yes, I said it. Again. And they are. The Warren Pear is smooth and buttery in it’s texture and chuck full of delicate pear flavor in each bite. They’ve made Oprah’s Favorite list, so that tells you something about the quality. They should start showing up in your shares mid September. Other goings on here on the Farm this week? We are out of ripe fruit! The demand for our fruit has been so good this year Friday afternoon we were out of fruit to ship to our wholesale customers. Monday morning bright and early the crews started picking and packing with a feverish pace. Still we had to postpone one truck and all the deliveries on it because there was no way we could get enough fruit picked and packed to fill all the orders! I guess it’s a good thing, but it doesn’t feel good to have to call stores and say, “Sorry, we’ve had to delay your delivery until tomorrow.” We got lots of “Oh NO! We’re out of fruit!” Our reply was, “So are WE!” Have you all noticed the changes in the air? The shadows are longer, the afternoon light has taken on a more golden hue, the days are shorter. Fall is just around the corner. For most of you your schedules will return to “normal” with kids heading back to school (some of you parents are thankful) the days of swimming, running barefoot, camping in the back yard and mid week sleep overs are coming to a close. With the pear harvest ending the pace on the farm shifts too. We don’t stop until they are all sold, usually after Christmas, but the chaotic pace of summer is slowing and becoming more humane. I love Fall. Remember to add on extra fruit for those school lunches! That is one thing I do not miss during the summer; packing a lunch M-F for my 7 year old! However, the one thing I can count on her eating? FHF fruit! Farmer Al, Becky and their girls are on a brief (very), well deserved break in Tahoe and the Farm is humming along in their absence. Don’t be fooled, many, many calls from Farmer Al’s cell phone have been received, by everyone, not sure how much of a break he ever takes!

Sarah