A little freshness and lightness needed?

One thing I love about the summer is all the fresh fruit at the Farmer's Market. Just walking through it seems to bring me some relief from heat and humidity and gives me a feeling of freshness.

Fruit does help us cool us down too. This is why we don't eat it much in the winter. Apart from the fact that it is not accessible locally in the winter of course.

Fruit belongs to the summer. We can make a meal out of fruit when the weather is hot. The watery sweet substance is like nectar to our soul.

Now let's make sure we keep it that way. Here some tips about how to keep your summer fresh and fruity.

The Good and the Fresh, the Local and the Organic.

We always want food that is as fresh as possible, especially when it comes to fruit. Local sources are preferred as this means it has traveled less miles, less time in a warehouse and on trucks. The fruit has had the opportunity to mature for longer in nature, which equals higher nutrient levels and more antioxidants. These are easily damaged by heat and light, which makes handling important.

After you buy it, the best way to handle fresh fruit is to not wash it until you are going to eat it. This helps prevent mold growth.

Great Summer Choices

Watermelon: High in lycopene. The yellow ones have the most beta-carotene.
A ripe one has a creamy white or yellow spot where it rested on the ground while growing. Leave it out, not in the fridge, up to 5 days after purchase as that helps it increase the lycopene and beta-carotene levels up to 175%. Once it is cut open, cube and store the leftovers covered in the fridge.

Grapes: The darker the more resveratrol, which is the heart protective compound also found in red wine. And the darker the higher the quercetin, a potent antioxidant. When purchasing, check the stem for mold and soft spots. Keep the bunch intact on the stem. Loose grapes shrivel faster and loose antioxidants. To keep them crisp, store in the fridge in a breathable container.

Blueberries: Choose the ones that are deep blue with a silvery tone, which is the natural protective coating of the berry. Make sure they are not bruised and "wet" but can "move freely". They can last up to a week in the fridge. Remove the bruised and molded ones and keep them so that air can circulate.

Peaches: Go for the yellow ones, they have more beta-carotene than the white ones. A ripe peach will feel slightly soft to a gentle squeeze and have a nice scent to it. Put them loose in the crisper drawer of the fridge, but away from other produce. They release a gas that speed decay of other fruit and vegetables. Best eaten at room temperature. Makes them more juicy.

Cherries: Select the most dark red almost black. Check that you can bend the green stem without breaking. They are best stored in the fridge in a paper towel or the crisper drawer. They can last for up to three weeks when properly store.

The FRESH and LOCAL in NEW YORK right NOW = Lat July, Early August
Apples
Blueberries
Peaches
Raspberries
Rhubarb
Sour Cherries
Melon

OTHER PRODUCE AVAILABLE IN BORDERING STATES:
Apricots (Vermont)
Asian Pears (Vermont)
Blackberries (New Jersey)
Boysenberries (Vermont)
Cantaloupe (Connecticut, Pennsylvania)
Cantaloupes (Massachusetts, Vermont)
Cherries (Connecticut, Vermont)
Gooseberries (Vermont)
Nectarines (New Jersey, Vermont)
Pears (Conneticut, New Jersey)
Plums (Connecticut, New Jersey)
Raspberries (New Jersey, Massachusetts)
Strawberries (Massachusetts)
Watermelon (Pennsylvania)

Frequent Fliers
Food shipped by air really racks up global warming emissions. Here's a hotlist of commonly air-freighted foods and their country of origin. Try to get these at a local farmer's market when they're in season. (They'll taste a lot better, too).

Asparagus (Peru)
Bell peppers (Netherlands)
Tomatoes (Netherlands)
Blackberries (Chile)
Blueberries (Argentina)
Cherries (Chile)
Raspberries (Chile)
Peaches (Chile)
Nectarines (Chile)
Papayas (Brazil)

To see a full list of all produce by state and season - go to: NRDC

The Organic Musts.

The following is the list of "must choose organic". These fruits contain the highest multiple pesticide residues, partly because they are sprayed more, partly because they absorb more. The problem with these toxins is that they are stored in our tissue and our organs, which leads to disease.

Can you just wash it off?
To some extend yes, but pesticides seep through skin of the fruit. Some fruit, especially for supermarket distribution, is also sprayed with fungicides post harvest. If you go to the Farmer's Market instead you will find local fruit and you can ask them how much spraying they use. Some use very little as they are not big producers and do not need to use as high levels. Nor do they want to, as they live on the farms themselves. Factory farming if for pushing the harvest to the greatest gain so, -they spray the most. This of course is also what makes the fruit less expensive, but lets face it, -in the long run your health is what makes it expensive or not.

These are the non-organic fruit results, these are the ones you want to make sure you buy organic.

Apples
The USDA tests found 98% of apples had residue.
Apples can be fournd to be sprayed up to 16 times with 36 different pesticides.

Strawberries
Imported strawberries are especially high in fungicides. Many are also color
enhanced with a fungicide. USDA tests show 93% of strawberries had residue. 39 different residue of pesticides were found.

Nectarines
Are sprayed heavily and have absorbent skin. 97% in tests found with pesticides.

Pears
High absorption of pesticides and heavily sprayed.

Raspberries
Heavily Sprayed and pesticides stay in crevasses.

U.S. Cherries
Domestic have more pesticide residues than imported.

Imported Grapes
Sprayed heavily and often with chemicals that are banned in US.
All grapes, both imported and domestic, were tested over 6 years and averaged 75% with residue. Chilean grapes averaged 92% detection rates compared to 65% for domestic grapes.

Mexican Cantaloupes
Multiple pesticides found.

And for dried fruit : Raisins
Multiple residues found. Methoxyfenozide on 75.0% of tested.