Stone fruit season is coming. Here’s a primer on some of our favorites.

Stone fruit that is woven into the pit is called “cling.” Fruit that has less fiber woven into the pit is called “semi-cling.” And fruit that is free of the pit is called “free-stone.”

White Peach
Peaches and nectarines are from the same family – genetically they’re the same except that nectarines have a recessive gene that makes them fuzz-less. Peaches come to us from China, via the Persians, along the trade routes of the Silk Road. The Chinese believed that peaches could confer immortality but the FruitGuys only promise that they’re high in antioxidants Vitamin A and C.

Yellow Peach
To remove peach skin you can drop peaches in boiling water for 10-15 seconds then quickly remove them and dunk in cold water. The skin will almost “slide off” if you peel it after this process. Of course the skin of stone fruit in general is where many of the nutrients lie and, especially in certain plums, where the mix of sweet and tartness combine. Red color on peaches is an indication of more sunlight and thus more sugar in the fruit.

Saturn or Donut Peach
These squat, white-fleshed peaches are called by many names nowadays. You may hear them referred to as Donuts, Saturns, Saucers, or even Frisbee Peaches (actually I just made that one up but you can use it if you’d like.) They generally run up to 3 1/2 inches in diameter with a flat, round look that draws down and in at the center. The skin will be a pale yellow with a red blush. You can judge ripeness on this peach from both touch and smell. The aroma will increase as it nears perfection and the skin will yield when you squeeze it. I find that you don’t want to let this fruit get too soft but should eat it when it begins to give to your touch but still has some firmness. These unique white peaches will be succulent and sweet.

White Nectarine
Peaches without the fuzz! Actually, nectarines ARE peaches but with a recessive gene that makes them a little sweeter and with a smooth skin. Cut down the seam, twist and separate.

Yellow Nectarine
Yellow nectarines tend to have more acid while white do not – thus the difference in the taste.

Mango Nectarine
Mango Nectarines have a wonderfully unique texture and taste. When ripe it is rich and soft like a mango that melts on your tongue and lingers with a demure honey-perfumed flavor. They are best when they begin to soften to the touch. The Mango Nectarine is believed to be a cross of two old-variety pale nectarine sports. Early California nectarines were green-skinned and white-fleshed. They were small but produced sweet-tasting varieties like the John Rivers, Gower, and Quetta. The look of the modern red-skinned nectarine came about in 1942 when Fred W. Anderson of Le Grand, Calif., introduced the Le Grand Nectarine. Since then, nectarines have been grown for deeper red color and larger sizes.

Apricot
The white apricot is a hybridized cross between a Moroccan and an Iranian apricot. It has a very pale-yellow skin color with a slightly-speckled and nearly peach-like blush at the top. The fruit inside is so juicy and refreshing that it tastes like some impossible combination of warm-apricot sorbet. When ready to eat, it has the juiciness and smooth texture of a perfectly-ripened peach but with a unique and indelible lightness.

Aprium
Apriums are 2/3 apricot and 1/3 plum. You should eat them when soft to the touch but don’t let them get too soft or mushy as they will quickly move past their prime. Apriums look like apricots but also have a sweet/tart tart bite to them like early plums.

Red Plum
The red plum variety has a unique appearance with sweet, juicy red flesh.

Pluot
Pluots are a cross hybrid of plum and apricot, exhibiting more plum-like traits. They usually exhibit purple skin and dark red flesh.

Cubing the mango:

• Stand the mango up on a cutting board stem-side-down, and hold in place.
• Place your knife about 1/4-inch wide of the centerline and cut down all the way through the mango (you’re trying to miss the pit).
• Repeat on the other side. The resulting ovals of mango are called “cheeks.” Score the inside of each mango cheek about 1/2-inch deep with a sharp knife, but do not cut through the skin.
• Turn the mango cheek “inside out,” separating the cubes, and scrape the squares off with a knife or spoon.

Slicing the mango:

• With a sharp, thin-bladed knife, cut off both ends of the fruit. (Note: always be careful when using sharp knives!)
• Place fruit upright on its wider flat end and cut away peel from top to bottom along curvature of fruit.
• Cut fruit into slices by carving lengthwise along the pit.

Summer squash are soft skinned with small seeds. In fact zukes and their compatriots crookneck and pattypan are really immature versions of winter squash. Sliced, diced, half-moons cooked or raw, summer squash is the easy one.

By Heidi Lewis

An old children’s classic, The Story of the Root-Children, tells of how, in spring, Mother Earth awakens the sleepy little root babies that live underground and sets them to sew new clothes and clean and paint the beetles and bugs. They emerge from their underground home dressed in new rainbow capes and pointed caps and run off to play in the ponds and meadows.

Wintertime carrots can offer a glimpse of a springtime rainbow. Since most of us grew up with orange carrots, it may surprise you to learn that the first carrots cultivated (likely in Afghanistan) thousands of years ago were thought to be purple or yellow. Throughout the ages there have been white and red carrots as well. It was the Dutch who, in patriotic allegiance to the House of Orange (the Dutch Royal family), propagated the bright orange variety that is commonplace today.

Rainbow carrots offer a wide spectrum of micronutrients: orange is the signal flag for beta-carotene; red carrots wave the carotenoid lutein banner; and purple carrots signal the presence of the antioxidant anthocyanin. So it’s not just the wonderful dose of vitamin A (more than 400% of the recommended daily value per cup) you’re getting.

If these jewel-toned carrots look too pretty to cook, consider that they’re sweet enough for a kaleidoscope of crudités. Or coating them lightly in olive oil and roasting them with salt, pepper, and a dash of cumin is a fine way to cook them but retain their color. When boiled, the rainbow colors will fade. These colorful carrots will certainly inspire adults and kids alike (root children or not) to eat their colors.

Preparation: Wash thoroughly and gently scrub—keep the peel for maximum nutrient benefits. Delicious raw on their own; sliced or grated and added to salads and slaws; or roasted, steamed, stir-fried, grilled, boiled, baked, or braised. And don’t forget about carrot juice and carrot cake.

Storage: Tightly seal unwashed carrots in a plastic bag and refrigerate for up to a few weeks. They can also be blanched and frozen.