How to pick, store, and use Stone Fruit:
Stone Fruit gets its name from the hard “stone”-like pits in the fruit’s center. Their peak season is from June to September, making them the perfect summer treat. Knowing how to pick, store, and use stone fruit will ensure you are getting the best value and the freshest product.
Peaches
Pick-Choose peaches with the most saturated skin color and avoid any green around the stem, as that indicates it has more ripening to do. Lightly squeeze them to find ones that are not too hard, and not too soft.
Store-Keep fresh peaches out of the refrigerator, on a counter, stem down to continue the ripening process.
Use-Peaches are great for pies, grilling, homemade ice cream, or eating them on their own!
Nectarines
Pick-Choose nectarines with an orange or gold undertone. These will be the sweetest.
Store-Keep nectarines on your counter until you are ready to use them unless they are as ripe as you want them. Then, they should be stored in the refrigerator.
Use-Nectarines are great for salads, jams, grilling, pies, and sorbets.
Plums
Pick-When choosing a plum, hold it in the palm of your hand. It should be heavy and firm, but not hard. You can buy them hard and put them on your counter in a paper bag to soften. Due to a chemical reaction that takes place when plums are picked, they will not get sweeter as they ripen.
Store-Like peaches and nectarines, plums should be stored on the counter until they reach desired ripeness, then can be stored in the refrigerator.
Use-Plums are good for baking into a pie or galette or for combining with other berries.
