Well, well, well… usually we can never tell when winter is around the corner… but IT’S HERE EN FORCE! Cold temperatures and full days of rain sure are beautiful to see and do feel refreshing. But of course, this weather has made it somewhat challenging for California growing areas of Brussels and broccoli, yet perfect for root vegetables. More details below…
CALIFORNIA GROWN PRODUCTS: Anise, celery root and leeks are coming in from local sources and are all outstanding! Coke Farms celery root is packed in 25# sacks and is a MUST USE right now. So many great applications for this winter time wonder. Other root vegetables loving the cold temperatures include parsnips, turnips and carrots and are tasting extremely sweet. Carrots bunched with the tops or peeled, take your pick we have a variety of different California grown options and colors! Another special highlight- check out our colorful baby bunched carrots from Babe Farms in Santa Maria, Ca! NOW is an excellent time of year for carrots.
TOP QUALITY HIGHLIGHTS: Kales including curly and dyno are exceptional right now. Chards also are at peak quality. We are having these items shipped to us multiple times a week from Happy Boy and Coke Farms, so they are as fresh as can be! Other beautiful winter highlights are some locally grown salad options, which include bunched spinach, escarole, Castle Franco, radicchio and Treviso. All are used in our wonderful winter salad blend as well! A fantastic batch of organic persimmons is in the house now. Make sure you get your persimmon on before they start to fade out of season. Some say they typically finish as the Christmas lights go up…but let’s hope they mean the procrastinator’s timing for this year.
NEW IN STOCK: Winter citrus is underway as well. Kumquats are starting to flavor up week by week making for fun salad and bar options. Meyer lemons are now California sourced as well as blood oranges and cara cara oranges- all tasting great! Texas and Florida grown grapefruits are also full of flavor. TRUFFLES… yes you read that correctly! We are finally seeing some truffles with the rain soaked ground. Winter black truffles available $635 per pound. Pre order please!!!
ITEMS TO WATCH: Mixed color cherry tomatoes. We are currently only bringing in organic sugar plum tomatoes to use in place of the mixed color option. Currently, the flavor of the yellow pear and yellow cherry tomatoes is unfortunately terrible and not worth having in the mix so we are not offering it. We are continuing to bring in a case a week for a taste test because the color is missed, but the yellow has not been up to our standards. Brussels sprouts supply has tightened up just in time for the holiday season… With the limited supply due to heavy rains and no crews working to harvest and a huge pull on Brussels for the holiday season, the market has jumped. Quality remains great, but the price is not. California strawberries rained out over the last weekend and this week. Fruit is not full color and has poor flavor, we recommend using something else instead. Grapes, apples, pears and tangerines are perfect fruit options right now.
DEAL ALERTS : Cauliflower and green zucchini are a great vegetable value right now as Brussels, beans and asparagus are experiencing higher mileage of traveling from growing regions farther away or limited supply. There are a good number of berries from Mexico on the market. Deals are available on conventional and organic options.
ARTISANAL CHEESE NOTES: We have jersey cow mozzarella and stracciatella coming in weekly and delivering to our chefs Thursdays. Please let us know if you would like to jump on the weekly order and add this CRAZY GOOD cheese to your menu. Samples are always available, please ask! Also in stock and ready for you is our Valbreso feta tubs! 16# tubs this 100% sheep milk from France is pure goodness. The feta is made using traditional methods and matured in brine adding to its flavor and texture.
Thank you for reading and getting a taste of what we have to offer. We hope everyone is enjoying an excellent holiday season. As always, thank you for the business and opportunity to service you. We are looking forward to next year and all that it may bring. Please let us know if you’d like samples or have any questions. Happy holidays to all!
