WE LIKE TO FOCUS ON STUFF YOU CANT FIND IN YOUR AVERAGE FARMERS MARKETS. HERE ARE SOME FAVORITES FOR 2019
HABANADA PEPPER
The Habanada is a pepper that has the same seductive tropical fruit flavors of a habanero but without any of the heat. It literally is no hotter than a sweet red bell pepper. Roux Dumaine makes the best habanero hot sauce we have ever had with these. They add heat by using some regular hot habaneros but the tropical fruit flavors shine through in an incendiary way.
YELLOW BIRD BEAK PEPPERS (YELLOW BIQUINHO)
The yellow bird beak hails from Brazil and is a very mild version of its spicy red sister. These peppers are very small and have a martini glass shape to them with a bit of a curve on the tip (like a bird beak). They have a wonderful snap to them with a little bite balanced with a touch of bitter. They are delicious pickled and served as a garnish to a martini. It was actually the first way I had them
LEMON DROP PEPPER
The Lemon Drop pepper comes to us from Peru where it is widely used. It has a very citrusy flavor to it with a nice bit of heat. If you have wondered why your Ceviche is missing a little something it is this pepper. The citrus flavor of the Lemon Drop reinforces the citrus flavors used to cook the fish. It also makes a head spinning fermented hot sauce that pairs beautifully with grilled fish like King Salmon.
THe mini love watermelon
Wataermelon can take up a lot of space in a garden so it’s a real luxury to grow them. But this new hybrid “personal” sized watermelon is an exception. It is easy to grow and has vines that are no longer than 4 feet. Combined with the fact you get 3-4 watermelons per plant and can be easily trellised it’s a no brainer to include. Once you have a watermelon grown in your own garden you will immediately notice how dehydrated store bought ones are. The Mini Love has seeds so it will stimulate those child hood memories of spitting them out but don’t!! Watermelon seeds when dried and toasted make a highly nutritious and yummy snack or add a nice crunch when added to salads.
The only squash worth eating - Costata Romanesco
I don’t particularly like Zucchini Squash. It’s a mostly tasteless watery substance that takes up valuable space and has little benefit to grow yourself over buying it in a market. There is one exception: Costata Romanesco, which is a Roman/Italian heirloom that represents the Platonic form of Zucchini. So why would you bother with any other variety? It is everything other forms are not: It has a firm flesh, a rich nutty flavor, is great for grilling and is not an out of control producer. It also produces tons, TONS, no TONS of male flowers which are useful for making quesadillas or stuffing. Because it’s the only one we grow we collect seeds for the following year. You can get seeds here: https://www.rareseeds.com/costata-romanesco-/
