Fava beans are delicious and so simple to make - and their season will soon be over!

When choosing fava beans, choose pods that are smaller and crisp with green beans inside. Avoid the large pods that have yellowing beans, if possible.

Shell the fava beans, and discard the pods.

Cook the fava beans in boiling water for just a couple of minutes, until tender. Drain and plunge them into cold water to cool.

When cool, pop the beans out of their skins. (Hold them between your thumb and forefinger and push. The beans should come out whole). Discard the skins.

Place the favas onto decorative salad plates, drizzle with a nice olive oil, sprinkle with fleur de sel (coarse sea salt) and finish with a little Meyer lemon zest. For a decadent touch, add some burrata or fresh goat cheese.

Heirloom tomatoes and sweet white corn are in peak season right now. Here is a link to one of my favorite summer recipes: Heirloom Tomato, Corn and Basil Salad with Champagne Vinaigrette Dressing.

This salad is tasty enough to easily stand on its own. However, for a special treat, try it with Pan-Roasted Local Halibut, too!

Fig season (the first of two each year) is upon us, and the figs are so sweet this year!

Try my easy but very tasty recipe for Roasted Figs with Goat Cheese and Serrano Ham.

As you might have noticed, June brought a beautiful array of fresh vegetables and fruits to the local markets in Northern California.

Some of my favorite vegetables this time of year are fresh corn, fava beans, okra, artichokes, peas and summer squash. And we are starting to see great tomatoes, too!

My favorite fruits right now are apricots, cherries, nectarines, peaches, plums, plumcots, strawberries, blackberries and raspberries. Pretty soon, we will start to see fresh figs, too!

Think about making some intensely-flavored jams or at least buying some sweet, ripe fruits for snacking. Don’t be afraid to ask for samples at your local farmers markets!

Visit the What's Fresh section on my website for recipes and ideas on how to use your fresh produce!

Cherry season is in full swing right now. Here are a few tips on choosing cherries:

First of all, buy cherries that are either organic or at least pesticide free, if possible.

Look for a nice, dark color and a firm but plump texture. Choose carefully to get the most flavorful cherries into your basket.

Make sure that the stems are fresh and intact. When the stems are removed, that opens the skin of the cherry and makes it susceptible to mold and decay.

Make sure that the cherries are cool to the touch. You don’t want cherries that have been sitting in the sun, as the flavor and the texture will start to break down quickly.

Cherries will store well for up to a week in the refrigerator. Just store them loosely packed (but unwashed) in a plastic bag.

I'm up in Napa Valley today, and the weather is gorgeous! I'm planning to treat myself to a nice lunch at Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen in St. Helena. Have you been there? These are my menu favorites:

Roasted Artichokes with Roasted Meyer Lemons

Roasted Piquillo Peppers (stuffed with braised flank steak)

Crispy Backstreet Flatbread (cheeses, morels, truffle oil)

Mushroom Tamales (grits and mushrooms wrapped in Swiss chard and covered with a light tomato sauce)

Pollo Loco (wood-fired oven roasted chicken with roasted stuffed green chilis)

Warm Pineapple Upside Down Cake (with rum caramel & toasted pecans) - A MUST!

The food tastes even better on a nice warm day when sitting outside under their fig tree!

Lilacs

Strawberries

Swiss Chard

Good Mother Stallards dried beans from Rancho Gordo

Ezekiel 4:9 Organic Sprouted 100% Whole Grain Flourless Golden Flax cereal from Food for Life

Fleur de sel caramels with chocolate from Recchiuti Confections

Valrhona Guanaja 70% bittersweet chocolate

Roasted banana ice cream from Bi-Rite Creamery

Piave Vecchio cheese

2005 Summers Charbono Napa Valley wine (great with pork!)

As I was walking through the market this morning, I could smell the heady fragrance of the beautiful narcissus (daffodils).  They are a sign that Spring is here!   

Buy strawberries that are in season locally.  Look for organic or at least pesticide-free. 

When it comes to strawberries, bigger is usually not better.  I really like the small berries that are packed with flavor. 

Choose berries that are fresh-looking, firm and glistening-red.  The green top should still be attached. 

No white shoulders!  Look for berries that are uniformly red.  I have found that berries that are white around the top usually lack flavor. 

Make sure there is no sign of mold or mildew.  Look through the bottom of the container to make sure all of the berries are fresh. 

Enjoy! 

I just picked up some California organic brown rice from Massa Organics.  Greg Massa and Raquel Krach are former tropical biologists who wanted to get involved with sustainable, organic farming and started brown rice production along the Sacramento River near Chico. 

Brown rice has valuable antioxidants, B vitamins, vitamin E, magnesium, iron and fiber.  In addition, eating whole grains has been shown to reduce the risks of heart disease. 

This particular brown rice has a nice fresh flavor.  I used the leftovers to make rice cakes for breakfast, as suggested on their brochure.  Definitely a winner!