Holiday Fruit Spotlight
We are now deep into Autumn with the start of citrus season as well as some fruits traditionally served during Holiday Season. No matter whether you are gathering with others or enjoying the quiet and a good book, we hope the following items help pique your interest for a new dish, or encourage you to experience a new piece of produce. Don’t hesitate to call our live attended Customer Service Department 800-588-0151 with any produce questions or help ordering from Melissa’s on-line store, www.melissas.com.
Organic Sweet Pumpkin Persimmons
So named for a sweeter Fuyu variety persimmon with a pumpkin orange skin, appropriate for the Fall season. The variety may be enjoyed from firm to semi-soft. Tasty added to green salads with a mildly sweet vinaigrette and toasted nuts, grazing meat and cheese boards, roasted with apples, quince, pork or game meats, or allowed to fully soften and make morning muffins or coffee bread. For a quick review of Fuyu and Hachiya variety persimmons, please refer to October’s Spotlight. Available late October through November. USDA Certified Organic. Grown in USA, California.
Organic Cinnamon Persimmons
Also known as ‘maru,’ does not taste of cinnamon, but has brown spots reminiscent of sprinkled cinnamon. This persimmon is quite popular as it has the best characteristics of both persimmon species: it can be consumed crunchy or water ballon soft, and has no tannin, the natural occurring chemical that makes fruit terribly dry in your mouth. An added benefit: IT’S ORGANICALLY GROWN! Cinnamon Persimmons are a perfect all-around travel or on-the-go snack because the only waste is the green calyx at the top. This seedless fruit can be consumed out of hand apple hard, tomato semi-soft, or over the sink gushy water balloon soft. No matter what level of ripeness, you will find this Autumn fruit sweet and habit-forming. But get them while you can because this variety is a small crop. When firm, slice them for cheese boards (they pair well with manchego, parmesan, or semi soft cheese), and substitute tomato slices with semi-firm Cinnamon Persimmon for burrata salad or other tomato salads. Overripe, they create moist baked goods or luscious ice cream or parfait.
Select Cinnamon Persimmons that are firm with no punctures or bruises. Ripen at room temperature until evenly orange and still firm. Store unwashed, at room temperature in the pantry or on the counter. Wash before use and consume, once cut, within 2-3 days. Fruit may be peeled and frozen for later use, but will not retain its firm texture. Available late October through November. USDA Certified Organic. Grown in USA, California.
Organic Grapefruit
Grapefruit no longer has that squirmy sour flavor kids don’t want to eat. Nope. Through hybridizing, a non-GMO method of developing citrus varieties from University of California at Riverside, many grapefruit varieties no longer have that acerbic aftertaste (unless you’ve had a glass of milk beforehand), but rather, a mellow tart to sweet profile.
Melissa’s Organic Pink Grapefruit is not only pretty in pink but has great flavor and is loaded with juice. Grapefruit, believe it or not, pairs well with avocado for a lean yet nutritious salad paired with pomegranate arils and citrus vinaigrette. Pink grapefruit zest and juice added to quick breads and cakes are also quite tasty. And don’t forget about cocktails, virgin or spirited. Grapefruit is a source of vitamins A and C, as well as potassium. BE CAREFUL, however, and consult your physician if you take any medications as including grapefruit in your diet may result in drug interaction.
Select fruit that is heavy for its size and feels springy when pressed. Store grapefruit at room temperature up to one week, or refrigerate up to two weeks. USDA Certified Organic. Pink Grapefruit is available late October through April. Product of USA.
Organic Crimson Gold Apple
Festive with red and green-to-yellow highlights, this smaller-than-golf ball-sized heirloom apple variety is a sweet-tart member of the crab apple family. Include in live arrangements with holly or pine fronds and a big holiday bow to make the arrangement complete! Roast them with the Holiday bird stuffing or ‘put up’ as jam for glazing pastries, ham, or slathering on toast. Add a bit of kick with a bit of fresh chile pepper. For the kiddies or noshers, dip Crimson Gold apples in chocolate for an easy two-bite treat or set on a grazing board for color and to help cut the richness of cheeses and salted meats.
Select Crimson Gold apples that are firm and heavy for their little size. Avoid bruises, soft spots. Store unwashed at room temperature for up to one week, or refrigerate for up to three weeks. USDA Certified Organic. Available November to January. Product of USA. California grown.
Organic Arkansas Black Apple
Another heirloom apple, but standard size, this apple is named for its peel that turns a very dark, almost black color. Imagine the dark red apple in Snow White, but without the curse. A juicy apple initially used for making cider, it is also perfect for baking pies early in its season or apple sauce later in the season. USDA Certified Organic. Available November – January. Product of USA. Grown in California.
Fresh Cranberries
Now is the time to stock up on these vitamin C-packed, festive fresh berries. Very tart and tannic when fresh, but packed with loads of pectin, a natural soluble dietary fiber that thickens sauces when heated. Adding a sweetener and a squeeze of citrus (blood orange sounds tasty) to brighten the flavor makes cranberry sauce, or simply pulse the same ingredients until ‘chopped’ into a salsa. Add a bit of fresh seeded jalapeño or serrano pepper for kick! If not making sauce, a few cranberries added to sparkling water and a twist of lime is a festive refresher, or add them to a sweet quick bread with nuts. Go creative and chop well, then add to softened unsweetened butter for dinner rolls or toast, grilled cheese, or roasted sweet potatoes. Available November- January. Conventional or USDA Certified Organic. Product of USA.
Dried Cranberries
Dried cranberries are plentiful year- round, and amp up nutrition, flavor, and chewy texture by tossing into mixed green salads, quick breads, stuffings, garnishing side dishes, or a texture and flavor change from cheese on grazing boards. Improve their appearance and complement their flavor by hydrating in heated water, juice, or juice and a bit of liqueur. Drain (and save the juice for a later use), pat dry and add to your dish. Pair with roasted Brussels sprouts or sautéed greens, top baked squash purées, add to quick breads, yeasted breads and rolls, butter and chocolate cookies, and top morning yogurt or steel-cut oats. Available year-round, Conventional or USDA Certified Organic! Product of USA.
Blood Oranges
Something festive and colorful with a tangy raspberry-orange flavor, blood oranges provide a bit of exotic flair to recipes. Use them the same as regular oranges, but expect to have a beautiful bright raspberry-to-maroon red juice with raspberry-orange flavor. Beautiful in Holiday Ambrosia, as a curd in mini merengue pies or Linzer cookies, added to mixed fruit salads, in a white wine sauce for chicken, a twist to duck a l’orange, citrus orange salads and vinaigrettes. Don’t forget to use the peel with its beautiful color and essential oils. Product of Australia through November, then USA December through June.
Melogold Grapefruit
A hybrid developed at University of California at Riverside of pummelo and grapefruit resulting in a lower acid or ‘melo’ in acid and mildly sweet, and ‘gold’ for its bright yellow rind. It is the sister to Oro Blanco grapefruit. Melogold pairs well with mild fish and scallops. Add the juice to cocktails for the underlying flavor, or as a sorbet. Grapefruit is a source of vitamins A and C, as well as potassium. BE CAREFUL, however, if you take any medications as including grapefruit in your diet may result in drug interaction. Melo Gold variety grapefruit is available late October through April. Product of USA. California grown.
Oro Blanco Grapefruit
A sister of Melogold, Oro Blanco grapefruit has a thicker rind with whiter flesh, symbolic of a low-acid grapefruit. Both varieties contain seeds and may have drug interaction. Please check with your physician before consuming. Available November- April. Product of USA. California grown.
Seedless Lemons
What could be most efficient and least bothersome during the busiest time of cooking but seedless lemons? Melissa’s Seedless Lemons were discovered as a mutation in Australia many decades ago and are now California Grown. They are non-GMO and more trees were developed by way of the budding method since this variety has no seeds to regenerate. Budding is a grafting method where a lemon bud is taken from an existing tree and transplanted into root stock.
The peel/rind has perky and aromatic essential oils for cocktails, beverages, baking, marinades, and dressings, and the flesh has loads of juice. Simply wash, then roll the lemon on a clean, hard surface to break some of the juice cells inside. Zest the fruit, if your recipe requires, being careful to avoid as much white pith as possible. Pith, though loaded with pectin for canning jams, can be quite bitter. Once the fruit has been zested, slice the lemon across its equator and squeeze away! You’ll be surprised how much time is saved when you no longer have to pick out or strain seeds!
Select Melissa’s Seedless Lemons that are firm, with bright yellow skins, no soft spots, scars, or discoloration. Lemons may be kept at room temperature and juice easiest this way, but are best kept refrigerated after three days and up to two weeks. If you have excess lemons, the peel and juice may be frozen for future use. Remove the peel in wide strips with a veggie peeler, then lay single layer on a sheet pan and freeze. Once frozen, place in sealed container/bag with as little air as possible. Juice all the lemons then pour into a clean ice cube tray. Each traditional ice cube port is about one ounce of juice. Once frozen solid, transfer cubes to a labeled bag for future reference and use. Available year-round, depending on Mother Nature. USA grown.
So named for a sweeter Fuyu variety persimmon with a pumpkin orange skin, appropriate for the Fall season. The variety may be enjoyed from firm to semi-soft. Tasty added to green salads with a mildly sweet vinaigrette and toasted nuts, grazing meat and cheese boards, roasted with apples, quince, pork or game meats, or allowed to fully soften and make morning muffins or coffee bread. For a quick review of Fuyu and Hachiya variety persimmons, please refer to October’s Spotlight. Available late October through November. USDA Certified Organic. Grown in USA, California.
Also known as ‘maru,’ does not taste of cinnamon, but has brown spots reminiscent of sprinkled cinnamon. This persimmon is quite popular as it has the best characteristics of both persimmon species: it can be consumed crunchy or water ballon soft, and has no tannin, the natural occurring chemical that makes fruit terribly dry in your mouth. An added benefit: IT’S ORGANICALLY GROWN! Cinnamon Persimmons are a perfect all-around travel or on-the-go snack because the only waste is the green calyx at the top. This seedless fruit can be consumed out of hand apple hard, tomato semi-soft, or over the sink gushy water balloon soft. No matter what level of ripeness, you will find this Autumn fruit sweet and habit-forming. But get them while you can because this variety is a small crop. When firm, slice them for cheese boards (they pair well with manchego, parmesan, or semi soft cheese), and substitute tomato slices with semi-firm Cinnamon Persimmon for burrata salad or other tomato salads. Overripe, they create moist baked goods or luscious ice cream or parfait.
Select Cinnamon Persimmons that are firm with no punctures or bruises. Ripen at room temperature until evenly orange and still firm. Store unwashed, at room temperature in the pantry or on the counter. Wash before use and consume, once cut, within 2-3 days. Fruit may be peeled and frozen for later use, but will not retain its firm texture. Available late October through November. USDA Certified Organic. Grown in USA, California.
Grapefruit no longer has that squirmy sour flavor kids don’t want to eat. Nope. Through hybridizing, a non-GMO method of developing citrus varieties from University of California at Riverside, many grapefruit varieties no longer have that acerbic aftertaste (unless you’ve had a glass of milk beforehand), but rather, a mellow tart to sweet profile.
Melissa’s Organic Pink Grapefruit is not only pretty in pink but has great flavor and is loaded with juice. Grapefruit, believe it or not, pairs well with avocado for a lean yet nutritious salad paired with pomegranate arils and citrus vinaigrette. Pink grapefruit zest and juice added to quick breads and cakes are also quite tasty. And don’t forget about cocktails, virgin or spirited. Grapefruit is a source of vitamins A and C, as well as potassium. BE CAREFUL, however, and consult your physician if you take any medications as including grapefruit in your diet may result in drug interaction.
Select fruit that is heavy for its size and feels springy when pressed. Store grapefruit at room temperature up to one week, or refrigerate up to two weeks. USDA Certified Organic. Pink Grapefruit is available late October through April. Product of USA.
Festive with red and green-to-yellow highlights, this smaller-than-golf ball-sized heirloom apple variety is a sweet-tart member of the crab apple family. Include in live arrangements with holly or pine fronds and a big holiday bow to make the arrangement complete! Roast them with the Holiday bird stuffing or ‘put up’ as jam for glazing pastries, ham, or slathering on toast. Add a bit of kick with a bit of fresh chile pepper. For the kiddies or noshers, dip Crimson Gold apples in chocolate for an easy two-bite treat or set on a grazing board for color and to help cut the richness of cheeses and salted meats.
Select Crimson Gold apples that are firm and heavy for their little size. Avoid bruises, soft spots. Store unwashed at room temperature for up to one week, or refrigerate for up to three weeks. USDA Certified Organic. Available November to January. Product of USA. California grown.
Another heirloom apple, but standard size, this apple is named for its peel that turns a very dark, almost black color. Imagine the dark red apple in Snow White, but without the curse. A juicy apple initially used for making cider, it is also perfect for baking pies early in its season or apple sauce later in the season. USDA Certified Organic. Available November – January. Product of USA. Grown in California.
Now is the time to stock up on these vitamin C-packed, festive fresh berries. Very tart and tannic when fresh, but packed with loads of pectin, a natural soluble dietary fiber that thickens sauces when heated. Adding a sweetener and a squeeze of citrus (blood orange sounds tasty) to brighten the flavor makes cranberry sauce, or simply pulse the same ingredients until ‘chopped’ into a salsa. Add a bit of fresh seeded jalapeño or serrano pepper for kick! If not making sauce, a few cranberries added to sparkling water and a twist of lime is a festive refresher, or add them to a sweet quick bread with nuts. Go creative and chop well, then add to softened unsweetened butter for dinner rolls or toast, grilled cheese, or roasted sweet potatoes. Available November- January. Conventional or USDA Certified Organic. Product of USA.
Dried cranberries are plentiful year- round, and amp up nutrition, flavor, and chewy texture by tossing into mixed green salads, quick breads, stuffings, garnishing side dishes, or a texture and flavor change from cheese on grazing boards. Improve their appearance and complement their flavor by hydrating in heated water, juice, or juice and a bit of liqueur. Drain (and save the juice for a later use), pat dry and add to your dish. Pair with roasted Brussels sprouts or sautéed greens, top baked squash purées, add to quick breads, yeasted breads and rolls, butter and chocolate cookies, and top morning yogurt or steel-cut oats. Available year-round, Conventional or USDA Certified Organic! Product of USA.
Something festive and colorful with a tangy raspberry-orange flavor, blood oranges provide a bit of exotic flair to recipes. Use them the same as regular oranges, but expect to have a beautiful bright raspberry-to-maroon red juice with raspberry-orange flavor. Beautiful in Holiday Ambrosia, as a curd in mini merengue pies or Linzer cookies, added to mixed fruit salads, in a white wine sauce for chicken, a twist to duck a l’orange, citrus orange salads and vinaigrettes. Don’t forget to use the peel with its beautiful color and essential oils. Product of Australia through November, then USA December through June.
A hybrid developed at University of California at Riverside of pummelo and grapefruit resulting in a lower acid or ‘melo’ in acid and mildly sweet, and ‘gold’ for its bright yellow rind. It is the sister to Oro Blanco grapefruit. Melogold pairs well with mild fish and scallops. Add the juice to cocktails for the underlying flavor, or as a sorbet. Grapefruit is a source of vitamins A and C, as well as potassium. BE CAREFUL, however, if you take any medications as including grapefruit in your diet may result in drug interaction. Melo Gold variety grapefruit is available late October through April. Product of USA. California grown.
A sister of Melogold, Oro Blanco grapefruit has a thicker rind with whiter flesh, symbolic of a low-acid grapefruit. Both varieties contain seeds and may have drug interaction. Please check with your physician before consuming. Available November- April. Product of USA. California grown.
What could be most efficient and least bothersome during the busiest time of cooking but seedless lemons? Melissa’s Seedless Lemons were discovered as a mutation in Australia many decades ago and are now California Grown. They are non-GMO and more trees were developed by way of the budding method since this variety has no seeds to regenerate. Budding is a grafting method where a lemon bud is taken from an existing tree and transplanted into root stock.
The peel/rind has perky and aromatic essential oils for cocktails, beverages, baking, marinades, and dressings, and the flesh has loads of juice. Simply wash, then roll the lemon on a clean, hard surface to break some of the juice cells inside. Zest the fruit, if your recipe requires, being careful to avoid as much white pith as possible. Pith, though loaded with pectin for canning jams, can be quite bitter. Once the fruit has been zested, slice the lemon across its equator and squeeze away! You’ll be surprised how much time is saved when you no longer have to pick out or strain seeds!
Select Melissa’s Seedless Lemons that are firm, with bright yellow skins, no soft spots, scars, or discoloration. Lemons may be kept at room temperature and juice easiest this way, but are best kept refrigerated after three days and up to two weeks. If you have excess lemons, the peel and juice may be frozen for future use. Remove the peel in wide strips with a veggie peeler, then lay single layer on a sheet pan and freeze. Once frozen, place in sealed container/bag with as little air as possible. Juice all the lemons then pour into a clean ice cube tray. Each traditional ice cube port is about one ounce of juice. Once frozen solid, transfer cubes to a labeled bag for future reference and use. Available year-round, depending on Mother Nature. USA grown.
