MR. GREENS "FRESH TIPS"
July 6, 2001
Our last PRODUCE MAN PUZZZZLE dealt with summer stonefruit: What do the Friar Plum, Fantasia Nectarine, Fairlane Peach and Flame Seedless Grape have in common? We should have given you a hint. All of these summer fruits have the same city of origin. These fruit varieties all originated in the same city. By accident? Oh, no. There is a USDA research facility in this city, breeding new varieties of peaches, plums, nectarines and grapes. Every new variety which is released for commercial growth begins with the same first letter as the first letter in the name of the city. Each one of these summer fruit varieties begin with the letter "F" because these research scientists are very proud of the city in which they work: Fresno, California. This week's PUZZZZLE still deals with summer stonefruit: What is the original name of today's Donut Peach? See next week's "Fresh Tips" for the answer.
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THE HEAT IS ON: If President Harry Truman was in the produce industry,
and was being interviewed by a reporter about recent heat, Truman would
probably say, "Plainly speaking, heat is hell on produce." When temperatures soar to triple digits, there's nothing - people, plants or animals - there's nothing that likes that kind of heat. Excessive heat causes dramatic affects on crops. The first thing heat does is to cause a heavier requirement for water, which leads to higher irrigation costs, and higher prices for crops. Heat also causes "evapo-transporation." That's a fancy word for wilting. You will notice more wilted greens and lettuce leaves. You will certainly notice more tip burn on the leaves of greens.
There
may be some reduction in yields, manily because harvesters are close trimming
the lettuces to get rid of as much outer leaf tip burn. This kind of excessive
heat also causes growth to slow or stop. That could limit sizes on some
products. Most heat-related quality damage to produce is usually culled
right in the fields. You may not see the tremendous heat damage, but you
will notice the price increases. Scorching heat puts plants into stress, and that certainly can affect the quality of the fruit produced by that plant. Scientifically, heat causes leaves to drop from a plant, a vine or a tree. Leaves are where food is produced for the plant. If leaves drop, then there is less food for the plant, and that limits food for the production of fruit, which can lead to poor sizing or poor quality.
Under heat stress, all plants, trees and vines will go into survivor mode. To protect itself, the plant will cut food supply to blossoms or to fruit being produced. Nutrients which would normally feed a blossom or a piece of fruit, is retained to protect and preserve the plant itself. This can cause blossoms and fruit to drop off the plant. In the San Joaquin Valley, depending on when the heat hits, growers call this kind of drop a "June drop" or a "July drop." This year, growers were even faced with a "May drop" with May coming in as the hottest May on record. Each dropped blossom is a piece of fruit that won't mature, whether that's a strawberry, melon, cucumber or squash.
When weather causes disruption in growth patterns, that will always affect harvest patterns. We could see some gaps in supply or quality later on in the summer. On the bright side, there are a few items which do love the heat: Jicama, Chili Peppers and Okra.
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ZESPRI GOLD KIWIFRUIT: There's a gold rush going on, not
in the gold mines, but in Kiwifruit vineyards of New Zealand. Zespri is
one of the largest growers of Kiwifruit in the world today, and is producing
a golden variety of Kiwifruit. And it's fuzzless, too! Kiwifruit originated
in China, where it was originally known as "Yang Tao" to the great Khans
of China. They eventually became known as a "Chinese Gooseberry." In the
1950s, at the height of the Cold War, it was difficult to market anything
with the word "Chinese" in it. So the name was again changed to Kiwifruit.
Today, there are still around 65 different varieties of Chinese Gooseberries
still in China. One of those gooseberries had a beautiful golden flesh color,
was fuzzless, but the fruit was too small in size to sell. So Zespri crossed
this golden colored fruit with the larger Hayward variety that we know today.
What they came up with was a larger fruit, with golden color and with no
fuzz. Gold inside. No fuzz outside. The flavor is more intense than regular
emerald-green Kiwifruit. Supplies are limited still, but should be available
now through July. YOUR PRODUCE MAN'S
Olympic Recipies
By Executive Chef Charles Connell
Double Tree Hotel
| 2 ea | Eggplant (thinly sliced) |
| 1 ea | Red Bell Pepper (cut in half) |
| 1 ea | Yellow Bell Pepper (cut in half) |
| 2 ea | Zucchini Squash (thinly sliced) |
| 2 ea | Yellow Squash (thinly sliced) |
| 8 spear | Asparagus |
| 2 cup | Spinach (julienne strips) |
| 2 TBS | Oregano (chopped) |
| 1/4 cup | Basil (chopped) |
| 8 oz | Mozzarella Cheese (sliced) |
| 4 oz | Mozzarella Cheese (shredded) |
| 2 oz | Romano Cheese (grated) |
| 3 ea | Shallots (chopped) |
| 8 slices | Tomato (about 1/4" thick) |
| 1/2 cup | Olive Oil |
| 2 TBS | Olive Oil |
| 1/2 cup | Balsamic Vinegar |
| salt to taste | |
| pepper to taste | |
| 3 clove | Garlic (chopped) |
Instructions:
- Put all vegetables in a bowl, except the tomatoes. Toss them with ½ cup Olive Oil, ½ cup Balsamic Vinegar, ½ the amount of Chopped Garlic and Shallots and 2 TBS of Oregano. Season with salt and pepper. Make sure all the vegetable slices are coated.
- Grill the vegetables. Set aside to cool.
- When cool, julienne cut the Red and Yellow Bell Peppers.
- In a saute pan over medium heat, put 2 TBS Olive Oil. When pan is hot, saute the remainder of the Garlic and Shallots with the julienne cut Spinach. When the Spinach becomes wilted, take pan off the heat and cool.
- Lightly grease the bottom of a sheet pan with Olive Oil. Now you can build four individual Lasagnes.
- First put down one slice of Grilled Egpplant, then a layer of Spinach, then a layer of yellow squash, then a layer of sliced tomato. Then 3 slices of Mozzerella, then another Eggplant. Two of the Asparagus goes next along with the julienne Peppers. Sprinkle Basil on top at this point. Continue building your masterpiece with 1 oz of Shredded Mozzerella, then add Zucchini Slices and top with the last of the Eggplant slices. Top with more chopped Basil and Romano Cheese.
- Bake at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes.
- Serve on a plate with Red Pepper Sauce and Kiwi Salsa (see those recipes below.)
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