Howdy folks,
This week’s newsletter is coming to you from sunny (and very dry) Central California. I’m here for work but am no stranger: After undergrad, I spent almost 10 years in Fresno. While I’m a Southern boy through and through, this is where I really fell in love with food, surrounded by near-endless orchards of stone fruit, almonds, citrus, grapes, pomegranates, and figs—along with a myriad of small restaurants representing an incredibly diverse population. This is where I learned to explore seasonal flavors, to photograph and tell stories, and to lean in to my curiosity.
Anyway, I could get sentimental here, but y’all didn’t subscribe to a newsletter about California. We’re keeping this issue short and sweet with a list of blueberry u-picks, a nod to peaches from the back of a van, and a recipe for an easy/favorite summer dessert.
Blueberries!
That late-season freeze back in February was hard on this year’s berry crop and a cooler spring means they’ve been slower to ripen, but blueberries are starting to show up at the farmers market, and u-picks are reporting that they’ll be ready to open soon—most within the next week or two.
Here are a few options for your bloob adventures—most places post updates to their Facebook pages, so check ahead to confirm that they’re open and for specifics like whether they allow pets or picnics. And don’t forget to bring cash!
Picayune Blueberries (Picayune, MS) - est. opening May 24
J&D Blueberry Farm (Poplarville, MS) - est. opening next week
Loblolly Ridge Farm (Amite, LA) - opening May 28
3D Blueberry Farm (Franklinton, LA) - est. opening May 29
Pearl River Blues (Lumberton, MS) - est. opening Memorial Day Weekend
Bachman Blueberries (Bush, LA) - est. opening late May
Blueberry Bluephoria at Toft Farms (Carriere, MS) - est. opening late May
Blue Tara (Poplarville, MS) - opening June 1
Sunhillow Berry Farm (Pearl River, LA) - est. opening early June
L & E Blueberry Farm (Franklinton, LA) - opening date to be announced soon
Ridemore Farm (Covington, LA) - picking by reservation only
Sawyer Farms (Lumberton, MS) - picking by reservation only
Peaches!
Early stone fruit is also starting to show up at the farmers market, which gets me very excited about peaches. More specifically: Alabama peaches sold out of the back of a rusty van parked along the side of Judge Perez Dr. in Meraux (the van was moved during the pandemic, but I’ll track it down and report back with more details).
I try to avoid speaking in absolutes, but these are the sweetest, most flavorful peaches I’ve found since leaving California, and I’m offering that as a challenge for you, dear readers, to point me to worthy contenders. I’m here for you, and I’m ready to do the research, y’all.
Cracker Pie
This recipe originally came from the wife of a Rotarian back when I lived here in Fresno (and was a Rotarian myself). It’s an easy go-to for the coming holiday and for gatherings and celebrations throughout the summer—but no judgment if you eat the whole thing at home/by yourself. Southern Living categorizes the base layer as a “desperation pie,” but it’s a far cry from settling—the crust has the airiness of a meringue/pavlova but the saltines give it a little more dimension and chew, kinda like the chewy edges around a pan of blondies. Then that gets topped with whipped cream and fresh fruit and drizzled in honey.
Ingredients:
20 saltine crackers
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 tsp. baking powder
3 egg whites
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. + 1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsps. powdered sugar
2 cups fresh fruit (berries, cherries, kiwi, and stone fruit all work well)
2 Tbsps. honey
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, crush the saltines by hand into small pieces. Stir in the pecans, then quickly toss the mixture in the baking powder.
Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites on medium-high until they form stiff peaks. Turn the mixer to low and slowly add the sugar, mixing until dissolved. Stir in 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract. Gently fold the saltine mix into the egg whites, then spread evenly across a buttered 9”x9” baking pan (or a pie plate) and bake for 30 minutes, until lightly browned around the edges. Allow the crust to cool completely.
Using a chilled mixing bowl, whisk the heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks are just about to form, then beat in the sugar and 1 tsp. vanilla. Spread evenly across the cooled crust, top with fresh fruit, and finish with a drizzle of the honey.
Note: The crust can be made ahead of time and kept frozen until ready to use. You can also use a 9”x13” baking pan to double this recipe.
Lagniappe
For readers outside of NOLA, the last couple of weeks have included a tornado, multiple flood advisories, a precautionary boil advisory, and seasonal termite swarms.
Why do we put up with all of that? Visit New Orleans has a few suggestions with this updated guide to summer and fall festivals.
In restaurant news, Fry and Pie has moved out of Hi-Ho Lounge and into their own spot in Arabi. Beth D’Addono has the full story, which includes owner Nick Gile’s perseverance through three cancer diagnoses.
Radical Joy Bakery has launched a crowdfunding campaign to help grow the business’s “potential in bringing delicious, creative, quality foods rooted in community, transparency, and equity to New Orleans.”
And PJ’s Coffee removed a local franchisee operating in the French Quarter after an inappropriate response to a Facebook post from Lebron James.
Up in NYC, Dirt Candy broke down the costs of a popular menu item, showing how they lose money on a $14 sandwich. It might be easy to dismiss some of that because, hey, it’s NYC, but there’s often a lot of speculation about restaurant costs without hard numbers to make a point, and here we have just that. I hope that we see more of this kind of transparency as the industry restructures from the pandemic.
Please be kind to service industry workers, y’all, and tip generously.
Thanks for reading—I’ll see you back here (and in NOLA) in two weeks!
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