The last couple of weeks at the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market have been super exciting.  It is finally coming into spring and the produce and flowers are becoming more and more vibrant with color every week.

Last week we couldn’t resist these awesome artichokes for our BBQ with Neil and Julie in town.

And this week I was so excited to get some cherry tomatoes with really great flavor.  Tomato season is my favorite, and now that we have gigantic tomato plants growing in our urban garden, I’m sure you can expect all kinds of tomato dishes in the coming months.

I noticed as I was taking my usual pictures of our market goods that I had what looked like a color wheel of produce.

Strawberries, blueberries, carrots, tomatoes, spinach, beets…  I could make a rainbow with all of the springtime produce we bought for the week.

I have also discovered something new at the Farmer’s Market this month.  While cruising around with my Kitchen Manager, Liz, she handed me this strange piece of fruit.

I had never seen it before and was already confused by how to go about eating this thing.  Then she broke it open and split it up between me and the guys.

This is a chirimoya, a fruit mostly grown in Southeast Asia, South and Central America.  Liz’s grandfather used to have a Chirimoya tree and she ate them as a child.  None of us had ever seen them before.

Th fruit inside looked like pieces of sea bass and had the texture almost of a sherbet or gelato.  It was super sweet and delicious.  (It is also known as a Custard Apple.  Go figure.)

I bought two to take home.  Liz told me to wait until they ripen (or “they feel like a firm boob” – her grandfather’s quote) and make sure to spit out the giant, super hard seeds.

Brad and I ate one yesterday as a mid-day snack.  Still not exactly sure what else you would do with them, its a fruit that Mark Twain called “the most delicious fruit known to men”.  If you can get your hands on one, you should give it a try.

Always learning something new…

xoxo