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Early Summer Fruits (Mid-June through Early July)
Blueberries
Recipes
- Blueberries appear at markets as early as July, although the very first ones may not yet be the ideal of ripeness. The color of a blueberry isn't necessarily an accurate gauge. After they take on the proper color, blueberries must still be
allowed to mature for about 10 days on the bush before being harvested.
- The pigment that makes blueberries (and many other fruits and flowers) purplish-blue is called "anthocyanin". It is credited with having numerous health benefits for such problems as eye diseases, blood clots, diabetes, and inflammatory joint
disorders. Anthocyanin is also believed to enhance the ability to see at night. During World War II, British pilots in the Royal Air Force ate jam made from bilberries, the closest European relative to the blueberry, in order to improve their vision for
night missions.
- Blueberries are native to North America. They were an ingredient in the early Native American foodstuff pemmican. This is made by pounding and compressing dried buffalo meat, berries, and fat into a cake.
- Blueberries store fairly well in the refrigerator for five or six days, as long as they are kept dry. For this reason, don't wash them until just before they're used.
- Berries that are marketed as wild blueberries are "lowbush" varieties of blueberries, meaning that they grown on bushes that are little more than a foot tall. The berries, though smaller, have a more concentrated flavor than more cultivated
types.
- Look for blueberries in fresh fruit tarts, fruit salads, and of course in muffins, pies, and jams. Cream or sour cream is probably the best accompaniment to a bowl of fresh blueberries.
Related Site: http://www.blueberry.org/bberry/ (The North American Blueberry Council)
Currants (red, white, and black) and Gooseberries (green, pink, and red)
Recipes
- For reasons that aren't entirely clear, currants of the genus Ribes got their name by transference from the other fruit known as currants -- that is, the dried, tiny Greek grapes that are still popularly used in cooking. The word, "currant," is
a corruption of Corinth, where those grapes originally grew.
- Currants and their close relatives, gooseberries, are comparatively rare in the United States, although they are both quite popular in Europe. One reason for this is that they spread a disease known as "blister rust" that affects white pine
trees, so they are not allowed to be grown in some states. However, they are available in many parts of the country, especially the Pacific Northwest, where the climate is ideal for them.
- Gooseberries were first cultivated in the Caucasus and North Africa and then brought to Europe. Most gooseberries found in America are hybrids of European and native new-world varieties, because the pure European strains have never done well
here. European gooseberries are significantly sweeter than their American counterparts -- sweet enough to eat fresh.
- Gooseberries come in translucent green, pink, or red varieties. The most famous dish made with them is fool, a compote mixed with cream. In France, they are so associated with mackerel, for which they are traditionally used to make a sauce,
that gooseberries are called groseilles-maquereau (currants for mackerel). A gooseberry sauce, however, will complement other fish or game dishes, for example, trout or duckling.
- There are red, white, and black currants. The black ones are famously used to make creme de cassis, a currant-flavored liqueur. All varieties are found in fruit tarts, preserves, and sorbets.
Plums
Recipes
- There are dozens of varieties of plums, and they come in many different colors. To name only a few examples: Greengages are golden or green fruits, especially good for eating. Tiny mirabelles come in shades from yellow to ruby red and are used
for cooking and to make eau de vie. Damson plums are oblong, with dark blue skin and pale yellow flesh; they are considered cooking plums. Japan is the source of many plums cultivated in America. These fruits, which come in all hues, are usually large,
round, and suitable for eating fresh or cooked.
- Prune plums have a very high sugar content, which allows them to be dried whole without fermenting. California produces most of the world's prunes, using a French variety of prune plum (La Petite d'Agen). It was brought to California in 1856 by
a Louis Pellier, after his attempt to cash in on the Gold Rush had failed.
- Like peaches, plums come in both clingstone and freestone varieties.
- Dried plum paste (or lekvar) can be substituted for up to 50% of the fat in many recipes for baked goods such as brownies, cookies, and cakes. Apparently the combination of pectins, sugars, and malic acid contained in lekvar retain moisture and
enhance flavor, the way that fat does.
- As dessert, plums appear in nearly every variety of baked goods, and they add a rosy glow to fresh fruit tarts. Prunes are also a popular dessert ingredient. They combine well with chocolate, armagnac, and cream. Prunes are often included in
savory meat dishes, especially pork chops, game, and stews.
Raspberries
Recipes
- The raspberry is a composite fruit rather than a true berry, a cluster of drupelets all connected to a central hull. (A drupe is a thin-skinned fruit that surrounds a single seed -- plums and cherries, for example.)
- The ideal, ripe raspberry is hollow. It must mature on the bush, all the while loosening its hold on the hull of the fruit, which remains on the stem after the raspberry is picked. This makes raspberries quite fragile and perishable.
- There are Old World varieties of raspberry, but most of the fruit sold here comes from native North American stock. Although the red raspberry is by far the most popular, yellow and deep purple varieties exist.
- Raspberry jams and sauces abound, but the best thing to do with fresh raspberries is serve them raw. They go very well with cream, of course. And the complex, tart sweetness of the raspberry makes it a natural partner for bittersweet chocolate.
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