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The holiday treat that suits everyone on your list is ripe and being picked. Citrus growers say it's a great crop and urge early shopping.
By WAVENEY ANN MOORE
© St. Petersburg Times, published November 8, 2000
Thanksgiving has yet to arrive, but some exacting folks already have eased into Christmas. So say those who ship baskets and crates of fragrant citrus gifts to climes north and countries oceans away.
Actually, to ensure Christmas delivery, shippers are urging gift-givers to place their orders early in December. That, for those already too harried to notice, is only a few weeks away.
The good news for everyone, procrastinators and organized alike, is that this year's citrus crop is being praised as both bountiful and beautiful. If that's not enough, prices promise to be good.
"We've got one of our better crops this year," says Dennis Broadaway of Haines City Citrus Growers Association, a cooperative of 175 Florida citrus growers.
"We began harvesting about five weeks ago," Broadaway says. "It's a nice crop. Good eating fruit, and it's also going to look nice on the shelf. We have a plentiful supply of all varieties, and I think that the consumers are going to find a great value this year."
For those who want to share the bounty, gifts of Florida's ruby red grapefruit and navel oranges will be the most popular, says Jim Guedry, president of the Florida Gift Fruit Shippers Association.
There are ways to share other varieties that will not mature in time for holiday delivery. Guedry recommends sending gift certificates for new year's enjoyment of specialties such as honey tangerines and temple oranges.
Florida citrus makes foolproof gifts for the most finicky people on your list, he says.
"It's something they wouldn't put in the closet," jokes Guedry, owner of Citrus Country Groves in Wesley Chapel.
"And they are fresh. We have an average delivery time of four days. When they get them, they're only about five days old."
Gift fruit, he explains, is picked, packaged and shipped within 24 hours, while supermarket selections can be at least four to five weeks old.
Besides citrus, Florida growers are harvesting other fall crops this month. Shop for the season's first sweet corn as well as snap beans, cucumbers, peppers, squash, tomatoes, okra and yes, says Bob Blankenship of the Florida Department of Agriculture, even watermelons from the Ruskin and Immokalee areas.
Produce: In season this month are apples, broccoli, avocados, snap beans, brussels sprouts, cranberries, cabbage, cauliflower, cucumbers, grapes, kumquats, lettuce, oranges, grapefruit, tangerines, pears, persimmons, pomegranates, peppers, tomatoes, okra, sweet corn, quince, spinach, carambola (starfruit), sweet potatoes and winter squash.
Shopping tips: When shopping for citrus this month, look for these varieties:
Sunburst tangerines. A hybrid of two tangerines, these are medium in size and have few seeds.
Fallglo tangerines. These are large, sweet and juicy.
Robinson tangerines. This fruit has few seeds and is medium to large in size.
Tangelos. A hybrid of grapefruit and tangerines, tangelos have a tart/sweet flavor and are available through January.
Stone crab season, which opened last month, has begun with a less than auspicious harvest. Still, said Don Leak, owner of Mid Peninsula Seafood, a market and restaurant at 400 49th St. S in St. Petersburg, "Prices are not bad."
Plan to pay about $9.99 a pound for medium stone crab claws and $14.99 a pound for large, he said. Leak added that he is hopeful prices will dip with an increase in the catch.
"We're looking for a winter storm to get the crabs moving," he said.
Grouper prices also are high.
The news is no better for Florida lobster, which is having what Leak calls "a weak season."
He added, "There doesn't seem to be whole lobster available because they're selling them as tails to make more money. Tails (weighing about 8 ounces) are now about $22 a pound."
With that in mind, it appears that kingfish, at about $3.99 a pound, may be one of the best seafood bargains this month.
2 medium Golden Delicious apples (about 14 ounces)
2 medium Granny Smith apples (about 14 ounces)
2 medium Fuji apples (about 14 ounces)
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
Peel, core and thinly slice apples. Place apples in large microwave-safe bowl. Add 1/4 cup water to bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave on high 10 minutes. Stir apples. Continue to microwave, uncovered, until apples are very tender, about 5 minutes longer. Using large fork, coarsely mash apples. Mix in sugar.
Applesauce can be prepared 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Makes about 31/2 cups.
Source: Bon Appetit, December 1998.
2-3 pounds white turnips, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick
2-3 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter
1-2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh tarragon leaves
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup grated imported Parmesan cheese
1 cup bread crumbs
2 cups heavy cream
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 3-quart casserole.
To blanch the turnips, bring a large pot of water to the boil. Add the sliced turnips and cook 5 minutes. Remove them and drain thoroughly.
Gently combine the turnips and sweet potatoes. Place a layer of the vegetables in the casserole and dot with half the butter. Sprinkle generously with tarragon, salt and pepper and cover with half of the Parmesan. Make another layer. Top with the bread crumbs and pour the cream around the sides. Dot with the remaining butter and Parmesan. Bake until the vegetables are soft but not mushy, 1 to 11/2 hours.
The gratin can be made ahead several days or frozen for up to 3 months. Let defrost in the refrigerator and reheat for 30-45 minutes in the oven.
Makes 10 to 12 servings.
Source: "Nathalie Dupree's Comfortable Entertaining" by Nathalie Dupree (Viking, 1998).
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon dry Coleman's mustard
1 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Worcestershire
1 teaspoon A-1 Steak Sauce
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons milk
Salt
Place 1 tablespoon dry mustard in mixing bowl and add mayonnaise. Beat for 1 minute. Add Worcestershire sauce, A-1, cream and milk and a pinch of salt and beat until mixture is well blended and creamy. If you like a little more mustard bite, whisk in 1/2 teaspoon more dry mustard until well-blended. Cover and chill sauce. Serve in small cups with cooked and cracked stone crab claws.
Makes about 1 cup.
Source: http://www.about.com.