Red cluster tomatoes – Yellow wax beans – Sunchokes – Stonefruit – The Specialties Report

The Specialties Report

Specialty Veggies- Red cluster tomatoes have gone up in price radically as the Florida freeze drives up the tomato markets. Mixed heirloom tomatoes seem to be a decent buy as some serious producers out of Baja and mainland Mexico are shipping product. Yellow wax beans are very tight and all specialty beans are expensive. Baby Zucchini is a great buy right now, we
are seeing unseasonably low prices. Baby Brussels sprouts are looking good, reasonable priced. Peeled baby carrots with tops are slowly coming down in price, supplies are steady. Sunchokes are available as a ‘non glycemic’ tuber, good for people on low carb diets. The carbohydrate levulose in this food is not converted to sugar but it feeds the intestinal flora strengthening your digestion.
Seasonal Items- Chilean Stonefruit is fully rocking with Bing cherries, yellow & white peaches, nectarines, apricots and plums. They are available, just remember that they pick them a bit green so they can make the trip from the other side of the world. You need to be able to give them time to ripen out of the cooler unless you are cooking with them. Chives are still a challenge as we are still in the middle of winter with a plant that goes dormant. There are a few producers who have a bit here and there but the prices are ridiculous. Snap peas have come way down and are a great winter ‘fruiting’ vegetable. French breakfast radishes are good for a salad or for pickling.
Local- Organic Citrus is in full swing this month with Sage View’s Blood Oranges, Pixie-like Tangerines and Oro Blanco Grapefruit. We have Stehly Farms Organic with an array of goodies such as Meyer Lemons, Navel Oranges, Bacon and Hass Avocados, and green garlic (early).

Tags: Produce Reports