Posted Nov 6th 2009 11:00AM by Hanna Raskin (RSS feed)
Filed under: Farming, Fruit, Southern States
Growers in the nation's southernmost commercial apple-producing region are fighting a change in crop insurance law, which they claim could wipe out a 200-year-old industry.
Henderson County, N.C. -- a stretch of Southern Appalachia where the first apple trees were planted by a Loyalist on the run from the Revolutionary Army -- today generates about $24 million in annual apple revenue, representing 85 percent of the state's apple crop. But the
region's 150-plus growers have been hard hit in recent years by calamities including frost, wind and hail.
"You name it, it's happened," sighs
Agricultural Extension agent Marvin Owings.
Owings credits the
Federal Crop Insurance Program, which reimburses growers for lost apples at a rate of $9.25 a bushel, with keeping area orchards solvent. He's worried a new proposal to significantly lower disaster payouts for lesser-grade apples could prove devastating.
Continue reading N.C. Apple Growers Protest USDA Proposal
Posted Nov 2nd 2009 4:00PM by Hanna Raskin (RSS feed)
Filed under: Fruit, Southern States, New Products, Winter
After spending more than two decades in development, a mandarin hybrid that some fruit experts are calling "the best thing they've ever eaten in the world of citrus" is now on the market, albeit in limited quantities.
"Oh man, it's dynamite,"
University of Florida plant breeder Fred Gmitter says of the
Sugar Belle. "Spoken like a father, huh?"
When Gmitter joined the Florida faculty in 1985, he discovered his predecessor's experimental citrus groves had been destroyed. Only a block's worth of trees remained, and most of those were "ugly to look at and horrible to eat." But among the duds, he found a tree growing superb orange fruit. He and his colleagues used that tree to create the university's first-ever cultivar.
Since citrus breeding is slow going, the introduction of new varieties is relatively rare. But Peter Chaires, executive director of
the company that holds licensing rights to the Sugar Belle, says the fruit could mark the start of a citrus golden age.
"This is the first one out of a long pipeline," Chaires says. "We have some interesting things coming, including an easy-peel mandarin. We'll see varieties for fresh consumption, varieties for the juice market and a lemon-lime hybrid."
Continue reading Citrus Growers Sweet on Remarkable New Mandarin
Posted Oct 23rd 2009 10:00AM by Alexa Weibel (RSS feed)
Filed under: Fruit, Feast Your Eyes, Fall
These visibly sweet and sticky Glazed Apple Bars reinterpret the traditional apple pie in hand-held form. Crispy and crumbly, they taste delicious savored on their own or indulgently paired with vanilla-bean ice cream and topped with caramel, as blogger Sweetnicks relished them.
And the best part? The recipe uses only pantry staples, requiring but a few apples, flour, butter, vanilla, sugar, salt and cinnamon. So get baking, and celebrate fall with this luscious seasonal recipe.
Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot at having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes.
Posted Oct 20th 2009 5:15PM by Slashfood Editor (RSS feed)
Filed under: Fruit, Comfort Food, Slow cooking, Fall, Winter
The mercury's dropping which means it's time to break out that trusty crock pot for set-it-and-forget-it cold weather cooking.
Move over pot roast -- did you ever think of making
cobbler in a slow cooker? The ice cream on top might be worth the extra wintry chill down your spine. Try replacing the blueberries in this recipe with frozen or canned peaches.
Posted Oct 19th 2009 11:15AM by Slashfood Editor (RSS feed)
Filed under: Fruit, Comfort Food, Fall
It's Apple pickin' season. So what to do with the orchard's abundance of apples? Simplify the iconic apple pie by making an apple crisp -- it's the flavor of fall without the fuss.
We rounded up a few of the best apple crisp recipes spied elsewhere on the Web..
Good Morning America offers a
recipe for slow-cooked apple crisp in a crock pot.
"America's Test Kitchen" Host Chris Kimball
upgrades this fall fruit favorite.
This
apple crisp via The New York Times is topped with
tortoni and macaroons.
The Washington Post dishes up lunchbox-friendly
apple-crisps -- the "s" makes all the difference in interpretation.
Posted Oct 16th 2009 10:00AM by Alexa Weibel (RSS feed)
Filed under: Fruit, Feast Your Eyes
Though at first glance one might assume these vibrant cups to be brimming with chopped melons and strawberries, upon further inspection they are actually pieces of pitahaya, or, as it's more commonly known stateside, dragon fruit.
Described as tart-sweet crosses between everything from kiwis to melons to pears,
varieties of dragon fruit can range in color from pale to hot pink. Most frequently eaten chilled and chopped -- or scooped directly out of the skin, the fruit is also often used as flavoring for drinks and pastries. Native to Central and South America, the cacti-grown fruit provides fiber and copious amounts of vitamin C, and lowers blood glucose levels. Red-fleshed fruits even contain lycopene, a natural antioxidant known to fight cancer and other diseases.
According to popular legend in Asia, the fruit was purported to have been created by fire-breathing dragons, who would produce the fruit instantly at the end of their fire-breathing bouts. The fruit -- fit for a king -- was gifted to the emperor as a treasured item and sign of victory.
Though by no means a household name yet, the fruit is becoming increasingly available in the United States, from fresh bulbs at farmers' markets in
Los Angeles and elsewhere, to dried varieties at
Trader Joe's and other specialty-food stores.
Have you tried dragon fruit? Tell us in the comments where -- and in what forms -- you've encountered it.
Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot at having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes. Posted Oct 8th 2009 2:00PM by Jennifer Lawinski (RSS feed)
Filed under: Fruit, North America, Food News
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Black widow spider. Photo: Ian Waldie, Getty Images.
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Talk about sour grapes!
Toronto resident Brett James was reaching into his refrigerator to grab his wife a snack when he found a black widow spider lurking under the bag of grapes he'd purchased at the local
Whole Foods Market, the
Toronto Star reports. He thinks the poisonous spider came in with the grapes.
"When I lifted the bag, the spider was underneath, just sitting on top of another bag in the refrigerator," James tells Slashfood. "I wasn't sure exactly what it was, and I had heard stories before, so something was in the back of my head that it could be serious."
He lifted the spider out of the fridge on a paper towel and put it in a plastic container. After poking around on the Internet, he said he identified it as a
black widow, a spider whose venom can cause
muscle cramps, tremor and chest pain.
Continue reading Black Widow Spider Found in Grapes by Toronto Man
Posted Oct 1st 2009 10:00AM by Alexa Weibel (RSS feed)
Filed under: Fruit, Condiments, Comfort Food, Feast Your Eyes, Fall
In this effortlessly elegant breakfast fix, pear butter replaces uninspired butter and jam. Warmly spiced with pear cider, ginger, allspice and cardamon, Coconut & Lime's concoction also works well wherever you'd usually dab butter (pancakes, waffles, muffins, etc.) -- and is even more versatile, deliciously swirled into the likes of yogurt, cottage cheese, hot cereal and more.
Cooked for 10 to 12 hours in a slow cooker, the condiment will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two months -- though we'd be surprised if it lasts half as long as its shelf life permits.
Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot at having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes.
Posted Sep 25th 2009 10:00AM by Emily Farris (RSS feed)
Filed under: Fruit, Feast Your Eyes, Fall
We've started watching the leaves change to all different shades of red, brown and yellow. Fall colors also abound in apples. But with all of the options out there, which variety is one to eat while watching the trees' brilliant transformations? Well, if you're is a fan of consuming crisp fruit in crisp weather, Honeycrisps are definitely the way to go.
Based on the status updates of food lovers all over Facebook, it seems many were lucky enough to get their hands on Honeycrisps over the weekend, including blogger
Happy in Bag who managed to hold off biting into this one long enough to snap a picture.
[Via
Happy in a Bag]
Posted Sep 14th 2009 10:00AM by Alexa Weibel (RSS feed)
Filed under: Fruit, Feast Your Eyes, Fall
Often overlooked and underrated in other seasons, apples as vibrant and crisp as these reign supreme every September. In these two complementing shots, one can't help but crave the inimitable crunch of an autumn apple. Fine-grained or sweet, sprightly or tangy, with hundreds of varieties -- from the juicy Acey Mac to the nutty Zabergau Reinette -- apples have flavors as variegated as their purposes.
And though we'll never pass up a traditional piece of gooey apple pie or a tart cup of apple cider, we poked around the Internet for more unique inspiration. With options as appealing as 101 Cookbook's Apple Zucchini Crostini, Martha Stewart's Apple Pie with Cheddar Crust, Michael Chiarello's Butternut Squash and Apple Soup, or -- for the truly ambitious -- Bon Appetit's Herb-Roasted Turkey with Apple Cider Gravy, we're hungering for apple-picking season.
For the season's ultimate farm-to-table experience, locate an orchard near you at allaboutapples.com.
[Via Flickr]
Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot at having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes.
Posted Sep 11th 2009 1:30PM by Sara Bonisteel (RSS feed)
Filed under: Science, Vegetables, Fruit, Food News
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New laser labels. Photo: ARS/USDA.
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Goodbye sticky labels, hello tattooed fruit.
The
FDA is expected to approve laser-etching of fruits and vegetables in the next month or so, paving the way for produce "tattooed" with product information to hit store shelves, an official with the USDA tells Slashfood.
"We figure maybe next month or the month after it will get FDA approval," says Jan Narciso, a research microbiologist with the USDA's
Citrus and Subtropical Products Laboratory in Winter Haven, Fla.
But will these new labels affect the taste of your fruits and vegetables?
Continue reading Laser Labeling Coming Soon to Fruits, Vegetables
Posted Sep 11th 2009 1:00PM by Jennifer Iserloh (RSS feed)
Filed under: Recipes, Fruit, How To, The Skinny Chef
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Concord grape pie. Photo: Jennifer Iserloh
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Grapes have become my latest post-workout snack because they are water-packed and also help to curb my hunger when I come out of the yoga studio with serious munchies.
But don't limit grapes to snack food -- you can also make surprising, gorgeous desserts with them.
Concord grapes have a short season, but their flavor is unique and honey-kissed. Search them out at a local farmer's market.
Continue reading Concord Grape Pie
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