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Yellow Peaches

PEAK SEASON | BEST FLAVOR | VALUE PRICED

August brings us hot weather, humidity and thunderstorms. It also brings the very peak of the season for glorious Yellow Peaches! I judge Peaches on their “chin-drip” factor, a very scientific observation that can be easily measured on young children’s shirts as they eat a Peach. High “chin-drip” means a juicy, and likely sticky-sweet eating experience. My favorite! States like New Jersey and Pennsylvania are known regionally for great Yellow-flesh Peaches – real chin-drippers, particularly when allowed to ripen longer on the tree. And gorgeous Peaches from California are plentiful right now too.

Local Peaches in August. Rated by the “chin-drip” factor.

Select Peaches that appear to have been handled with care. Yellow-flesh Peaches have more acid than White-flesh, and thus, taste more sweet as the fruit softens, allowing the acid levels to ease and the sugars to shine through in balance. Peaches should be stored at room temperature until the fruit gives gently to thumb pressure. At that softness level the Peach is ready to eat or use in a recipe, or it can be kept at that ripeness in the refrigerator for a few days. Red skin blush varies from variety to variety and is not an indicator of ripeness.

Freedom! Another great part about peak season for Yellow Peaches in August is that most all varieties that are being picked, like Red Havens, are “free stone” – where the fruit easily separates from the pit.

Vine ripe tomatoes!

Local Vine Ripe Tomatoes. Because they TASTE like Tomatoes.

Slightly acidic, slightly sweet – thick, meaty and perfect for slicing – it’s Vine Ripe Tomato time! Sandwiches, salads, salsas! Slice away, friends, because peak of the season is here for local Vine Ripe Tomatoes from New Jersey and Pennsylvania – tomatoes that TASTE like… like, well, Tomatoes!

Why is it that Tomatoes are often more flavorful at your favorite supermarket during August? Two words: Vine Ripe. Here’s the deal. Tomatoes soften as they ripen and the longer growers leave them on the vine to become ripe, the less time they have to ship them to stores and the less time stores have to sell them without many of the Tomatoes going bad. So during most of the year a large percentage of Tomatoes are picked at maturity, but are still green and hard to allow for long shelf life needed to over-come shipping time and distance. Those are referred to as “Mature Greens.” Time, warmth and ethylene gas ripen the Mature Greens to a dark pink to red color, but the fruit is still firm and lacks flavor.

True Vine Ripe Tomatoes, on the other hand, are picked from the vine when the Tomato is almost full red in color and quickly turn dark red. Vine Ripes are delicate and have short shelf life, but man, is the flavor worth it!

Public Service Announcement: NEVER Refrigerate Your Tomatoes (unless you’ve sliced them) because temperatures under the mid-50s make for poor texture and kill flavor.

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