Heather Rockwood is a food science junior and Mustang Daily food columnist.
May is here and the rain keeps falling. Whatever happened to April showers bringing May flowers? Well, if the raindrops and weather are clouding your vision this spring, take a bite into a fresh apricot to help your eyes see the light of summer.
This yummy little fruit is caught somewhere between a peach and a plum, but is in no way lost or confused. When apricots start popping up on trees, showing up at farmer’s markets and making their way into my fruit bowl, I know summer is just around the corner.
Their presence alone reminds me that the summer sun is making its way back to the Central Coast and that the beaches will soon be filled with barbecues, bonfires and burnt cherry red faces, but this reminder of the joy of summer is not all they bring. Apricots have the goods within them to help you enjoy the beauty of all the summer sun shines upon.
These little guys are full of beta-carotene (provitamin A) and vitamin A. These nutrients play a vital role in the health and protection of eyes. Beta-carotene is converted to vitamin A within the body and vitamin A has proved itself to be one eye-catching warrior.
Vitamin A protects the eye through a group of antioxidants that battle free radicals as well as help create a surface that is resilient against harmful bacteria and viruses. The daily consumption of vitamin A has also been linked to the decreased risk of macular degeneration and cataracts.
With benefits this great, there has to be a catch, right? Apricots must not taste very good, or maybe they are outrageously expensive, or maybe they are hard to cook. On the contrary, apricots are quite tasty and reasonably priced, and are as easy to eat as an apple. Let’s take a moment to explore.
How do apricots taste? Despite the fact that everyone has different taste preferences, overall apricot is a widely accepted and admired taste. It is sweet with a faint tartness. Often, it is described as having a musky taste.
Are they expensive? Luckily, as residents of California, we get some of the best agriculture prices around. There are more than 400 apricot growers in the San Joaquin Valley, and more than 95 percent of the United States’ apricot crop comes from California. This means that as Californians, we don’t have to pay the high transportation costs tacked onto the price of the fruit. Thus apricots are quite affordable. It also means we are getting extremely fresh produce and supporting our local Californian farmers.
Are they hard to cook? You don’t even need to cook them — just buy them, wash them and bite in. They have a pit in the middle, so don’t swallow them whole, but if you cut the fruit in half and give a nice firm twist — you can easily pop the pit right out and enjoy both halves.
Apricot season is fairly short — May through August — so be sure to make the most of it. Perhaps you can even try the confused children of the apricot and plum: Plumcot (50 percent plum plus 50 percent apricot), Aprium (75 percent apricot plus 25 percent plum) or Pluot (75 percent plum plus 25 percent apricot). Whatever you decide, just remember that the rich golden apricot has finally arrived to offer the Central Coast a taste of the warm golden sun of summer that is not far away.
HINT: Like an ostrich, this veggie keeps its head planted deep under the sandy soil — almost a whole foot under!
Filled and Grilled Apricot Bites
Ingredients:
– 1/3 c. cream cheese
– 2 Tbs. mascarpone cheese
– 2 Tbs. honey
– 1 lemon
– ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
– 2 Tbs. coarsely chopped nuts (walnuts, pralines, almonds)
– 10 small apricots, halved and pitted
– Chopped fresh mint
Directions:
– In a bowl, combine cheeses, honey, 1 tsp. lemon juice (from fresh lemon) and cinnamon, stirring well. Stir in walnuts. Let chill 1 hour.
– Squeeze remaining fresh lemon juice equally over all apricot halves.
– Place all apricot halves flesh side down on the grill. Grill for 3 to 5 minutes until tender and with grill marks.
– Take apricots off grill. Allow fruit to cool slightly. Top with cheese mixture and fresh mint. Enjoy!