Candy Stripe Figs, Peppers and Tomatoes

Each year, for a very brief period, one of the vendors arrives at the with a special item—candy stripe figs, which have just come into season at Capay Organic.

“We will only have the candy stripes for a three-week period,” said Daniel Martinez, who operates the Capay Organic stand.

The light green figs are streaked gold and green. The inside is the color of raspberry jam and has a tart flavor. The texture is enhanced by the presence of tiny, crunchy white seeds.

Capay Organic is a certified farm in the Capay Valley near Sacramento. It’s one of the favorite stops of market shoppers due to its constant colorful selection of fresh fruit and vegetables.

“When the Barnes family bought the farm in 1976, the farm already had three of these fig trees,” Martinez said. “Now they have 10 acres of them.”

Candy stripe figs are also called tiger or raspberry figs because of their streaks and the jam-like texture of the flesh. There’s such a demand for them that most are pre-sold to high-end restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area where they appear on gourmet menus. I urge you to get to the market early before the figs sell out.

This time of year, Capay Organic is also harvesting a selection of summer sweet peppers that come in a variety of colors such as purple, white and yellow. It also has Padron peppers, the small, green Spanish variety in which one pepper may be spicy hot and another sweet as sugar, even though they grow from the same branch. You don’t know until you bite into one. They’re usually served roasted with cheese on a tapas plate with a chilled glass of beer.

If you’re looking for hot peppers, then head over to Tapia Brothers Produce, or T&D Farms where they now have several varieties such as Anaheim, Banana Wax and the traditional green jalapeno. I also found an unnamed Italian-style red sweet pepper over at the Kenter Canyon stand.

As fall rears its head, don’t forget to stock up on tomatoes. Nothing enjoys the recent wave of intense summer heat as much as this vine fruit. It’s because of the heat that the tomato develops its flavor, according to Philip McGrath, the owner of McGrath Family Farms, an organic produce farm located in Camarillo. This week the farm stand was overflowing with ripe heirloom tomatoes.

September is also “Tomato Month” at the market. To celebrate, it is sharing a tasty recipe for chilled gazpacho soup.

Gazpacho

Ingredients:

4 large, ripe tomatoes, peeled and diced

1 large cucumber, peeled and diced

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 green bell pepper, finely chopped

1 small clove of garlic, minced

1 cup tomato juice

1 tablespoon wine vinegar

3 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

(To add fire, dice jalapeno or dash of hot pepper sauce)

Instructions:

Combine tomatoes, cucumber, onion, green pepper, tomato juice, vinegar, oil and garlic. Season to taste with salt, pepper and hot pepper sauce, or jalapeno. Mix well and chill. Add a slice of lime when serving.

I invite you to join me each week as I explore the magical world of the Beverly Hills Farmers’ Market. Please feel free to share stories and recipes of the items you find interesting at the market. If you see me strolling about, please say hello.

See you next week at the market!

Next Week at the Market: Kid Zone with Pony Rides and Petting Zoo returns along with Cookin’ Kids, where children get to taste and make recipes from ingredients found at the market. Live entertainment will be provided by Masanga Marimba in the cafe area.

The Beverly Hills Farmers' Market is held every Sunday (rain or shine) from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at the 9300 block of Civic Center Drive. There are more than 60 farmers and vendors offering a wide variety of organic and conventional California-grown seasonal fruits and vegetables. There are also prepared food kitchens with menu items to take out or enjoy at the small on-site cafe.

Parking is available on the neighboring side streets or in the garage attached to the City Hall and library. The market supplies free shopping carts to use and they are located there. If you have any stories or recipes from the market that you wish to share, please contact the site editor at mariec@patch.com.

David De Bacco is a writer living and celebrating life in Los Angeles. He has worked for some of the world's most famous chefs and restaurateurs, and along the way he became a little savvy about food and wine. He has published articles and cookbooks for Shibata Publishing Co. in Tokyo and is a contributing writer for Edge Publications. He is also the creator of the Cookin with Mama blog, a meeting place to share recipes from our mothers.

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