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 What's in the box this week?
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Greetings!
The spring holidays have been celebrated--the Peeps have
been squished, the eggs dyed, the last crumbs of matzoh swept up-and now a last
spate of April showers is soaking the ground and giving our trees a great head
start on their spring growth.
 Last month's lavish pink and white blossoms are beginning to
give way to the first tiny fruits, especially on our early-season apriums,
apricots, and cherries. It's always exciting-and a little nerve-wracking-- to
see the season's first fruit set. This year looks bountiful, in part due to our
new commitment to establishing more habitat for native pollinators in addition
to our longtime home honeybee colonies. It looks like we'll be on target to
start our first stone fruit harvests in mid- to late May. Can't you taste those
first sweet-as-honey apriums and glossy Brooks cherries?
Until then, we'll be introducing the Minneola Tangelo, a
hybrid between a tangerine and a grapefruit.
This reddish orange citrus fruit is wonderfully blessed with an
abundance of juice ready to run down your arms as you attempt to peel the
stubborn skin from the flesh. You'll
also find the Ruby red grapefruits from Southern California that can brighten
your breakfast table. And yes, we listened to your concerns about including
Texas fruit in your boxes last year. These grapefruits are grown in the warm,
fog-free orchards of Southern California, where plenty of sunshine gives them
just the right balance of sweet and tart.
The fan shaped Hayward Kiwi makes a sweet and colorful
addition to any fruit salad, while buttery Hass avocados make any sandwich or
salad more delicious. A happy spring to all of you as we gear up for the farm's
busy summer ahead!
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Recipe of the Week
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Minneola
Tangelo - Buttermilk Scones
Makes 20 scones
- 4
3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
- 1
tablespoon baking powder
- 3/4
teaspoon baking soda
- 2
teaspoons coarse salt
- 1/2
cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 8
1/2 ounces (2 sticks plus 1 tablespoon) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch
cubes
- 1
1/4 cups buttermilk
- 1
tablespoon finely grated Minneola tangelo zest
- 6
medium Minneola tangelos, peeled, segmented, seeded, and chopped
- Heavy
cream, for brushing
- Fine
sanding sugar, for sprinkling
Preheat
oven to 400 degrees. Line 3 rimmed baking sheets with parchment. Whisk flour,
baking powder, baking soda, salt, and granulated sugar in a bowl. Cut in butter
with a pastry cutter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add buttermilk,
zest, and chopped tangelos, stirring just until dough comes together (some
butter should be visible).
Turn
dough out onto a floured surface, and knead a few times to bring together.
Gently pat it into a 6-by-15-inch rectangle, 1 inch thick. Using a paring
knife, cut dough into 20 triangles (3 inches each). Flip each triangle over
onto a baking sheet, spacing each 2 inches apart. Cover, and refrigerate until
cold and firm, at least 2 hours (or overnight). Brush tops with cream, then
sprinkle with sanding sugar.
Bake
scones until tops are golden brown, 22 to 25 minutes. (If bottoms are browning
too quickly, place another baking sheet underneath the first.) Transfer scones
to a wire rack, and let cool slightly. Serve warm.
from
Martha Stewart Living,
January 2009
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