Summerset peaches. Photo courtesy Frog
Hollow Farm.

“Before I started working with Frog Hollow Farm,” says Pearl, I would carefully inspect each individual piece of fruit and select what I believed was the sweetest and most ready-to-eat—only to go home and find out how off the mark I was!”

She now shares her “insider tips” on how to select peaches.

HOW TO BUY PEACHES

There are three main characteristics help to identify a sweet, juicy, ready-to-eat peach: color, touch and skin texture.

The real color you want to look for is not the rosy blush but the background color of the fruit. It should be deeply golden, not pale yellow.

The rosy red color is deceptive: Our brains are genetically evolved to think that the color red implies delicious and sweet. As a result, peach growers have bred the red color into their peaches. It doesn’t ensure superior fruit.

You can tell if a peach is ripe by a gentle yet firm squeeze with your fingers (not hard enough to bruise it). If there’s a little bit of a give, it means that the fruit is almost ripe—but not quite.

Leave that peach on the kitchen counter for another 2 to 3 days, until it is soft to very soft.

Skin Texture

This is the most telling of all three characteristics, and the one least known.

You can tell that a peach is ready to eat by looking for signs of shriveled skin around the stem end. Those wrinkles indicate a really ripe peach.

The wrinkles develop during ripening, when water starts to evaporate from the fruit’s porous skin. As the peach starts to dry up, the flavors intensify.

Now you’re ready to head out and pick out some peaches.

When you get them home, here’s a grower’s tip: Always store fruit on your kitchen counter in such a way that no two pieces of fruit are in contact with each other.

In other words, it’s better to line them up on the counter than have them touching each other in a fruit bowl.

A final suggestion:

Pearl’s favorite fruits from the farm are the O’Henry peach and the Flavor King pluot. So keep checking the website and when you find them, treat yourself to a box.

It’s easy to make a special July 4th drink. Just “heat up” a pitcher of cold lemonade with bright red jalapeño slices. Toss in a few blueberries and you’ve got a red, white and blue theme.

For less heat, remove the seeds and the white connective tissue.

Don’t want any heat? Replace the jalapeño with bright red cherries.

Start with a can of frozen lemonade, or make your own with fresh lemons (there’s a link to the recipe below).

Try this homemade lemonade recipe. It’s so much better than store-bought.

Or, take advantage of peach season to make this yummy peach lemonade recipe.
 
  

The fledgling company didn’t make it; and since then, the hummus category has exploded even more. You can find hummus in dozens of flavors, mixed with other Middle Eastern specialties like babaganoush, tabouleh and yogurt.

The only thing missing: shelf-stable hummus. Hummus that you can keep in your locker or desk drawer, in your glove compartment, in your gym bag, for a protein-packed, better-for-you snack or light lunch.

Pacific Foods has risen to meet the need, with three flavorful varieties of shelf stable—Classic, Roasted Garlic and Roasted Red Pepper. They are made from the highest quality organic ingredients, including chickpeas, lemon juice, tahini, a touch of garlic and a pinch of sea salt.

How does shelf stable hummus compare to refrigerated or freshly made hummus?

Two of the three flavors of shelf-stable hummus (no refrigeration required). Photo courtesy Pacific Foods.

In our own office test, our favorite refrigerated varieties (including Tribe) won out, but Pacific was deemed more than worthy, with bonus points for convenience.

And according to the manufacturer, Pacific’s Classic Hummus has “one-third fewer calories and 40% less fat than the refrigerated hummus category leader.”

Look for them where you’d find the shelf stable salsas, in the chip aisle. They’re rolling out at Whole Foods Markets, and at other stores that carry the Pacific brand of organic products.

Priced at $3.39 to $4.29 (based on the individual retailer)per 12.75-ounce container, these convenient little boxes are begging to accompany you wherever you go.

Don’t forget a plastic spoon plus optional chips and veggies.