FreshPoint

Everyone needs friends, including rhubarb

Good on its own, but better with friends. This could pretty much be the anthem of rhubarb, and life. There seems to be a dearth of recipes calling for simply prepared rhubarb, highlighting the spring seasonal freshness of this vegetable. Or is it a fruit? Technically speaking it is a vegetable, but here in the...

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Morel Mushrooms: How do you clean them, and what’s the best way to eat them?

The spring season is often thought of as a time for re-birth and shedding the cold and dark of the long winter season. Marked by the vernal equinox on March 20th or 21st, many people begin looking for what I consider to be the Spring Trilogy: Morel Mushrooms, Fiddlehead Ferns and Ramps. Let’s start by looking...

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People, Passion, Produce, and Peas

Whoever said, “Like two peas in a pod” to describe people as being so similar as to be indistinguishable, or nearly so, really sold the English pea short. A good pea pod worth its weight in chlorophyll will have five to eight peas in it. Seven if you’re lucky! With their bright green color and...

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Florida blueberries and more anthocyanin

Blueberries have not always been a traditional Florida crop. It was the University of Florida who developed the cultivars, building research on some early experimental work done in the 1990s.  Generally speaking, there is a blurry line of demarcation in the center of the state somewhere between Lake City and Ocala.  North of this line,...

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Video: Blueberries–super quick facts about this superfruit

Chef Dan tells us some super quick facts about blueberries: the superfruit.   Let’s talk a little bit about blueberries. The blueberry crop starts in Florida, works its way up the eastern seaboard into Georgia, the Carolinas, New Jersey, and finally finishing in Michigan. Southern blueberry production isn’t without its challenges, though. Low yields, typically...

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What is the annual produce field transition?

Around November and April, the major growing areas in Yuma and Salinas alternate, and it’s a big deal in the produce industry. Entire harvesting and processing operations pick up and move–from the equipment to the hard working harvesters. It’s a monumental operational and logistical feat, but don’t worry, our growers have got it down to...

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Video: How do they grow white asparagus?

Chef Dan talks to us today about asparagus   Hi, I’m Chef Dan with FreshPoint Central Florida and I wanted to talk to you about my favorite spring vegetable. It is is one of the world’s oldest and most ancient crops. The first recorded harvest was in 3,000 BC in ancient Egypt. The ancient Romans prized...

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So, what makes stinging nettles sting?

Stinging Nettles are as ancient as they are misunderstood. Loathed by many as an irritating and often invasive plant, others look for the annual nettle crop as a harbinger of spring.  Used by the ancients as a medicine, a food source and a fiber source, the nettle continues to be prized in many cultures today. ...

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How Do They Grow White Asparagus?

Asparagus is a true harbinger of spring, though these days, it is available year-round. Related to the onion, this member of the lily family has been grown for thousands of years, in fact, we have historical records of it being grown and eaten in Ancient Egypt as far back as 3000 BC.  It was so...

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Video: Mushrooms, a simple ingredient–but packed with umami flavor

Chef Dan talks to us today about mushrooms.   Hi, I’m Chef Dan with FreshPoint Central Florida. I wanted to talk to you today about mushrooms. I’ve brought along two of my favorites. I’ve brought along the original button mushroom, the cremini. This is the original commercially-cultivated mushroom. It later mutated into what we know...

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Video: Blood oranges and Cara Cara oranges

Dan and Francy talk to us today about Blood oranges and Cara Cara oranges.   I’ve brought along two varieties of oranges that I really love today. Blood oranges and Cara Cara oranges. The first one is the pink flesh Cara Cara orange. First discovered in Venezuela on a farm, in 1976. This was the accidental...

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Avocados: from relatively unknown superfruit to menu super star

Avocados are the.hot.item. There is even a restaurant called Avocaderia, dedicated to all things avocado. So, it’s no surprise that for Game Day, avocados are flying off the shelves. We’re talking, a record-breaking $50 million in sales for 2017. Along with wings, no Game Day party is complete without a huge bowl of guac. But...

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Blood oranges, anthocyanins, and…juggling…(yes juggling)

I grew up eating oranges off the tree in my Florida backyard, but it wasn’t until I was a first block culinary student at The Culinary Institute of America when I learned about blood oranges. I was instantly fascinated and enamored with their beauty and uniqueness.  And instantly horrified at the tale another student told...

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Video: The Tangelo–It’s Big on Flavor

Chef Dan from FreshPoint Central Florida talks to us today about the Tangelo. I wanted to talk to you a little bit today about my favorite member of the citrus family. We all know the orange and grapefruit, as well as tangerine, but the Tangelo is the unsung hero. I’ve brought with me today the...

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The remarkable story of KAOAE Farm Bananas

Farmer Andy Sheaffer lost a lot of trees and banana plants during California’s historic Thomas Fire, but the family’s house was not harmed and his family and farm team are all safe, so he’s feeling grateful. But now comes the rain; it’s too much for recently burned terrain to absorb. Road closures are everywhere around...

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Looking for prosperity in the New Year? Try some of these traditions.

Much like Christmas, the New Year’s holiday has a wide and varied food tradition around the world, but most have a common theme involving prosperity in the New Year — and many are centered on produce items. The symbolism of many revolve around money or wealth that are hoped for in the coming year, or...

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The importance of produce in holiday food traditions

The winter holiday season has numerous festive holiday food traditions, many steeped in the religious and cultural histories of the season. Some may be familiar, such as the fruitcake, some may not be. Produce plays a prominent role in many of these holiday food traditions, so let’s take a look at some of these traditions...

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Video: A quick guide to pears, and the best way to use them

Hi, I’m Daniel Snowden, and today I want to talk to you a little bit about pears.   I brought along some of my favorite ones. I have an Asian pear. These are prized for their crisp texture and honey sweet flavor, best used raw. They’re fully ripe when picked and ready to go. We...

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Chestnuts: How one tree wiped out an industry

Few food items are as linked to a holiday as are chestnuts. I suppose the association began in 1946 when Nat Cole recorded The Christmas Song, with the verse, “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire Jack Frost nipping at your nose…” However associated chestnuts have become with the holiday season, they have been a food...

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The technology of beautiful greenhouse tomatoes in the winter

As you sit in the comfort of your home, have you ever eaten a perfect tomato on a salad or a burger and wondered the journey that has taken that tomato from field to fork? Or in the case of Mastronardi tomatoes, greenhouse to fork? Recently, members of the FreshPoint team had the pleasure of...

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