I love stone fruit season, and we’re in the (early) middle of it right now.
Brook and Index cherries are mostly gone, but Bings are coming in. (Rainiers too, but local Rainiers rarely seem to be a good as those from Oregon/Washington.)
Apricots have been available for a few weeks, and really good for the last two weeks, but this week they’re just plain wonderful–especially an apparently-unknown variety that two Pleasanton farmers’ market vendors had (both, I think, from Stanislaus County, but they’re neither the Patterson nor the Modesto variety). We have a LOT of apricots at home now, and they will get eaten with great pleasure.
Pluots are still early–mostly FlavorRosa–but there should be many more varieties to come. Also some plumcots, peachcots, apriums and, maybe, the rare apricot/plum/peach combo.
Not to forget nectarines and peaches (esp. saturn/donut peaches)…
These are all fairly local (within 150-200 miles, and the apricots within 90 miles or so). mostly organic, all from farmers’ markets. It’s extremely rare to find supermarket apricots with the depth of flavor of good farmers’ market cots: I’m guessing that the varieties that ship and store well just aren’t as potent. (See tomatoes…)
I’m guessing that, no matter where you live, there’s a farmers’ market within 20-30 miles offering some really good local produce. Take advantage of it! [At least where we are, farmers’ market vendors have signs saying where they farm and have certification that it’s all California produce, with separate certification if they’re organic. Most also have “we grow what we sell” signs.]
[I did a thought experiment for what it would mean to “eat local”–everything grown/produced within, say, 150 miles. Here, of course, the Bay Area is unusually blessed. I’d have to give up coffee, chocolate, and pineapples, and that’s pretty much it. ]
