Feature Spring Produce: Oro Blanco Grapefruit

With summer just around the bend, the South Pasadena Farmers’ Market has never felt more alive and vibrant. If you’re like me, you may be finding it difficult to simply grab your groceries and go as the urge to be outdoors hovering around booths and sampling nibbles begins to kick in Thursday nights.

On , I was definitely not alone in my desire to linger at the market. Meridian and El Centro were lined—almost shoulder-to-shoulder—with happy market-goers who listened enthusiastically to a lively mariachi band as they shopped for produce beneath the warm, setting sun. With new fruits and veggies gracing many of our favorite vendors’ booths, the realization that a change in seasons was upon us seemed to excite everyone. Even I felt the stress of my day melt away as I concentrated on choosing from an attractive bunch of artichokes at the and caught up with my friends at .

As eager as I am to start chowing down on strawberries and stocking up on asparagus, my commitment to eating seasonally (or at least trying to) requires that I wait just a bit longer for those goodies to be at their peak. After stumbling upon new vendor Spencer Enterprises, an avocado and citrus grower based in San Diego, I thought I’d give one of my favorite springtime fruits a last go-around before I wholeheartedly embraced summer. I give you: The Oro Blanco Grapefruit.

“Oro Blanco” grapefruits are a unique variety of a well-known citrus fruit. Harvested from late-October through May, their name means “White Gold” in Spanish, and they are the result of the cross-pollination of a seedy, grapefruit variety with an acidless pomelo variety. The result is a less-tart, seedless, pale yellow, variety of grapefruit that is far sweeter. One whiff of the outside of an Oro Blanco Grapefruit, and you’ll be hooked.

Chef and author Alice Waters’ light and fresh salad makes a perfect almost-summer meal while remaining true to Mother Nature’s seasonal flavors. Partnered with our good friend the avocado, this salad is filling enough to stand alone. Yet it's simple enough to be eaten alongside an elaborate meal. Enjoy with a cold, crisp glass of Pinot Grigio, and toast to the end of spring and beginning of summer.

Grapefruit & Avocado Salad
Adapted from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters

Ingredients:
2 ripe Oro Blanco grapefruit
2 ripe Hass avocados
3 cups arugula
4 Tbsp. juice from grapefruit
2 tsp. white wine vinegar
4Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
Salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste

• Peel the grapefruit and separate the wedges.
• Combine grapefruit juice, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Whisk in olive oil.
• Taste and adjust the acid and salt.
• Dress arugula with half of the vinaigrette.
• Peel avocado halves and cut into ¼ inch slices.
• Arrange the grapefruit wedges and avocado slices on top of arugula and dress with remaining vinaigrette.