Picking perfection

Peak season

Peaches: After a slow start -- both in terms of quality and quantity -- the peach harvest has really picked up in the last couple of weeks. Still, you may notice that prices are a little higher than they have been in previous years. That’s because between acreage reductions and tricky spring weather, this season’s harvest will be about 20% smaller than last year’s. The Elegant Lady variety is just wrapping up in the Central Valley but still being harvested farther south; meanwhile, you can find Summer Ladys and Zee Ladys aplenty. When choosing peaches, pay attention to color -- not the red blush, which is meaningless, but the background color, particularly around the stem. This will tell you whether a peach is ripe, and it can also give you a hint as to how sweet it will be. If there’s no green at all, such as the peach on the left, the fruit is nearly ripe and ready to eat. If you see some green, as with the peach on the right, it means the fruit is not ripe yet, but if you’ll leave it at room temperature for a day or two, it will ripen by itself just fine (don’t refrigerate a peach until it is fully ripe). You should also pay attention to the quality of the background color. Most peaches are creamy yellow; look for ones that glow an orangish gold -- they’ll be the sweetest and best-flavored.

Assorted vendors, $3 to $3.50 per pound.

-- Russ Parsons