So I was in NYC last week, and on my way there, I sat between a young man in his 20s and a man perhaps a decade or so older than me.
During the course of our brief get-to-know-the-person- whose-personal-space-you'll-be-in-for-the-next- two-hours conversation, the younger man, Matt, mentioned that he was an artist. I've heard that before, but, wow. When he pulled out his sketchbook I almost fell out of my seat (which would have been an amazing feat, considering how bloody small those plane accomodations are!). Talk about talent. Matt, I'll say it again: if you see this blog post, drop me an email. And if you ever read my books, I'd love to see your renditions of the characters. The guy is really talented.
The older man, whose name I don't think I ever got, was the produce manager for a small chain of upscale grocery stores in Brooklyn. He'd been traveling to Michigan for the day to check out some upscale grocery stores here to see what the trends were in organizing the produce department.
Since I love food, in particular fruits and vegetables, I launched into a whole slew of Q&As (after all, what else can you do during a flight?) about storage and prep of those goodies.
I was right in most cases as far as whether to refrigerate or not…but there were a few that surprised me.
So, without further ado, here's a list of dos and don'ts in regards to produce:
Don't ever refrigerate tomatoes. (This is something I'd learned years ago.)
Don't refrigerate mangoes, bananas, pears, apples (something my Music Man and I argue about–he likes them cold "like they are when you pick them in the fall" and I don't), lemons or limes.
You can refrigerate berries, peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, and most other vegetables. Not potatoes, or onions, of course.
Don't wash mushrooms, just wipe them off with a paper towel before cooking. And when refrigerating them, make sure there are little holes in the plastic wrapping so they can breathe.
To eat a tamarillo (which was a fruit my daughter had suggested I buy at the store recently, and when she bit into it she thought it tasted horrible), cut it open and just eat the flesh–not the peel or the black seeds.
He explained to me the mystery of the mango pit–which, if you aren't aware, is the oddest, most inconvenient pit I've ever come across–and how to effectively navigate around it to get the most of that wonderful fruit.
And we waxed rhapsodic over one of my favorite fruits–the Asian or Korean pear. He also called it something else, but I can't remember. Love those crisp, juicy fruits.
And then I landed in NY and had a whirlwind two days there, attending the reading at The Happy Endings Lounge (where Colette, Jane, Elizabeth, Megan, Kent, and I met a thick-lashed black male bouncer named Shannon Shamiq), and then found a diner in the Village where we had to eat something to dilute the martinis we'd enjoyed earlier.
So, there you have it. I'm back and on deadline for Gardella Four (so will probably be very quiet for awhile), and should have ARCs of The Bleeding Dusk to give away very soon. So stay tuned for contest winners (I haven't forgotten about the Meatball Contest and the Readers Ask contests…winners announced soon).
Finally, Twisted Kingdom contacted me about a new contest for readers of The Gardella Vampire Chronicles–a fan-fic/fan-art contest. So get your creative juices flowing, and I'll give you the heads up when they post it.
And last but not least, 'fess up: Do you refrigerate tomatoes? Apples? Have you ever had an Asian pear? What's your favorite "exotic" fruit?
…but I've been loving me some McDonald's lately.
Ye-ess! It's that time of year again. Holiday (or in my house, Christmas) baking. 
Steffi Berne's Hazelnut Lace Cookies
