Market Report - UK seasonal update 16 June 2014
This is the latest in a series of seasonal Market Report updates.
It’s the longest whack of daylight more commonly known as the summer solstice on Saturday.
Spring treats are fading, but summer delights are stepping up to the mark.
Wild Mushrooms
Mousseron cling on from Bulgaria.
It’s all about the mighty girolle in June & July however. Its garnish friendly small bloom and
Crops are currently coming from the Balkans, but we could see a switch further north any day to Poland and the former Soviet Union.
The unbeatable Scottish girolle which travelled to Caledonia on imported trees normally kicks off by mid July.
Truffles
Another bumper crop of Summer truffles from Italy this year. It’s close to the point where quality is at its best, which heralds the time to make preserves.
Fruits
Call me an impatient old food buyer or even worse if you fancy it, but it happens every year.
Just as the stone fruit start to get edible I crave for a hard to find variety which only appears in August.
Vine or blood peaches have an ugly furry coat which conceals a delicious blood red interior when properly ripe.
They are known as vine peaches in France, as vineyards grow them alongside precious grapevines as an early warning system against disease and insects.
Gooseberries aka groseille a maquereau in French (due to their perfect pairing with mackerel) are up and running in both green and red forms.
Here’s a bullet point tour of other cash worthy crops.
- Apricots
- Gariguette strawberries
- Venezuelan mangoes
- White & yellow nectarines & peaches
- Fresh cherries
- Genuine French aromatic Charentais melons
- Tomatoes galore. (My fellow buyer really has excelled himself in this category this season).
- Wet green almonds in their fleeces
- And heaps more exotic and basic European fruits than you would care to list in a snappy weekly update such as this.
Vegetables
Fresh peas and broad beans are coming from our green and pleasant land. Unlike the football ground at Manaus these summer faves need no assistance from green paint.
As above I will not indulge myself in any more detail, but here’s a list of vegetables in great form.
- Green, white and purple asparagus from England
- Rock & marsh samphire
- Jersey royals
- Beets a plenty
- Box fresh baby veg
- Coriander scented chive lookalike sea arrowgrass from Scotland
- And more additional veg than you would need to keep a football stadium of dieticians happy
Ambient Corner
Fresh apricots are mighty fine, but our crispy nuggets of Sosa freeze dried apricot crispies cannot fail to excite a jaded diner.
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