Market Outlook

Lettuce: 

The lettuce market is moving up a few dollars. We continue to see good quality on inbound.

Leaf: 

Romaine and romaine hearts are up slightly for next week. Green leaf is moving up $3.00 or so and red leaf markets are steady to up a few dollars depending on shipper. We are seeing mostly good quality on inbound.

Broccoli:

The broccoli market is steady and remains near the bottom for next week. Plenty of supplies are available from multiple growing areas.  Quality has been good on inbound.

Cauliflower:

The cauliflower market is steady at lower levels. Quality has been very good.

Carrots:

The carrot market is steady out of Canada with excellent quality.

Celery:

The celery market is about steady. We are seeing good quality on inbound.

Strawberries: 

Markets are about steady from last week. Quality has been good.

Potatoes:

The Idaho potato market has leveled off now for next week with plenty of new crop potatoes available. Trucks are a bit tight due to holiday. Quality has been good on new crop.

Onions:

The yellow onion market is about steady, as we are in full swing with product out of Idaho and Oregon. Prices have leveled off now and product has been very nice.

 Citrus:

The California lemon market remains very strong, with supplies very short. Quality on the fruit has been good to very good. We have good quality Mexican fruit available. California oranges are in pretty good supply on large sizes, but small fruit is tightening and costs have moved up with schools starting. We are seeing good quality on inbound. The Lime market is steady from last week. We are seeing mostly good quality on inbound.

Cucumbers:

The cucumber market has tightened up rather quickly. Costs are way up and availability is down out of all areas.

Peppers:

The green pepper market is steady with good supplies, not much change in the pepper world.

 Tomatoes:

The round tomato market is up a few dollars for next week. Very few quality tomatoes available in the East. Grapes are higher as well, with product coming up short. Virginia and Maryland are slowing up fast. Cherry tomatoes are about steady. The Roma market is up by a few dollars.

 

 

Feature of the Week

This week Primo is featuring heirloom tomatoes. Heirlooms are so-called because the seeds have been handed down over generations, and they are open-pollinated, meaning they produce seeds that resemble the parent plant, not always the case with commercial hybrids, which are bred for durability rather than taste. There are 100-plus kinds of heirloom tomatoes growing on vines these days, and most have names — Sun Golds, Green Zebras, Black Krims — as unique as their looks. Explore the flavorful and diverse world of heirlooms, and you’ll be a true believer!

Recipe of the Week

Ricotta Pizza with Fresh and Roasted Tomatoes

Ingredients

1 cup whole-milk ricotta

1 cup grated Parmesan (4 ounces)

Salt and pepper

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 pound pizza dough, thawed if frozen

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided

2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes

1 large tomato, preferably heirloom, cut into half-moons

2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves, for serving

Directions

Step 1

Preheat oven to 500 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Combine ricotta and Parmesan, season with salt and pepper, and stir in egg. On a baking sheet, drizzle pizza dough with 2 tablespoons oil and stretch or roll into a 16-inch-long oval. Spread ricotta mixture on dough, leaving a 1-inch border.

Step 2

On a rimmed baking sheet, toss cherry tomatoes with remaining 2 tablespoons oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake cherry tomatoes on bottom rack and pizza on top rack until tomatoes are soft and skins have burst, 15 minutes. Remove tomatoes and bake pizza until crust is deep golden brown, about 8 minutes more. Toss cherry tomatoes with sliced tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Transfer pizza to a cutting board and top with tomato mixture and oregano.

Fun Facts of the Week

• For the wolves? The scientific term for the common tomato is lycopersicon lycopersicum, which mean “wolf peach.”
• While tomatoes are perfectly safe and healthy to eat, their leaves are actually toxic.
• When the tomato was introduced to Europe in the 1500s, The French called it “the apple of love.” The Germans called it “the apple of paradise.”