Fun fact: Did you know that Fullerton’s Wednesday Farmers Market was the first one in Orange County? It opened in August of 1981.

“At that time it was on Orangethorpe,” recalled Anita Moreno of JM Citrus in Riverside, who with husband Jimmy manage the market now. “People started realizing how big this trend is, and one opened in Costa Mesa and Pasadena, and it grew from there.”

The market has changed locations several times, but now is located behind the Fullerton Community Center on Commonwealth Avenue.

“It’s certified,” added Anita, “meaning that everything is locally grown. The produce is picked from the tree and brought here. Supermarket produce is brought in from different states, and they have to extend the shelf life.”

JM Citrus grows avocados, grapefruits, lemons and oranges. Anita’s husband, Jimmy, had me taste the red and white grapefruits. I bought both!

“The red has more antioxidants and is better for your immune system,” he said. “The white is sweeter and better for your palate. It has the lowest acid of all the grapefruits.

“The navals are finishing in five weeks,” he said. “Then the Valencias will start.

“It’s a fallacy to say that Valencias are just for juice,” he said. “Navels like cold and hate heat and have a thicker skin. You can freeze the juice up to a year with no sugar loss and no nutritional loss. Navels are good to eat and you can juice them; Valencias are good to juice and can also be eaten.”

The season for navels is November to May or June. Valencias start in May or June.

“In two weeks. May 18 or the week after that,” he said, “we will have cherries, grapes, peaches, plums, and pluots.”

Beautiful strawberries caught my eye at Suarez Farms from Perris. I asked Jazmine Buenrostro, daughter of the owner, Luis Suarez, why supermarket strawberries can be so “woody.”

“The ones you find in supermarkets have been picked a little before their time and spend time in warehouses and then being packaged,” she explained. “These strawberries are at the peak of the season. We grow three varieties. They all grow at the same time, but some give more at one time than another.

That day they had Albion.

“These are my favorites,” she said. “They’re smaller and juicy and always sweet.”

I love Swiss chard and both red and green were available.

“The flavor is similar, but the red stains the soup,” said Buenrostro. “The green won’t do that. It won’t have you in a panic.”

I couldn’t resist the gorgeous Brussels sprouts, which she said are in season all year round. I like to cut them in half and roast them with a little oil, salt and pepper at 500 degrees for eight minutes.

I spied another of my favorites, fresh beets. I sauté the greens and roast the beets and pickle them. Those will last for weeks – well, if I dole them out.

There is much to choose from at the market, which runs from 8:30 to 12:30 on Wednesdays. Besides fresh fruit and vegetables, you’ll find honey, plants, orchids, bread, freshly roasted peanuts and eggs.

Ha’s Apple farm in Tehachapi, Kern County, sells chicken and duck eggs.

“Our eggs are very fresh,” said Kwang Roe. “We raise our own chickens and ducks to get eggs. We have 4,000 hens and 450 ducks.”

Fullerton’s Judy Bart Kancigor is the author of “Cooking Jewish” and “The Perfect Passover Cookbook.” Her website is cookingjewish.com.

Refrigerator Pickled Beets

Here is a recipe to try for using those beets from the Bellyfull blog. Find it at Bellyfull.net
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I added sliced large green onions and 1 tablespoon canola oil.

Ingredients:

4 medium roasted  beets, cooled, peeled, and sliced
1 cup cider vinegar
1 cup water
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon (dry) ground mustard
5 whole black peppercorns

Method:

Bring vinegar, water, sugar, salt, and mustard to a boil in medium saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Simmer a few minutes; take off heat and allow to cool a bit.

Add peppercorns and beets to clean glass jar with tight-fitting lid. (Will fit nicely into a 1 liter jar.) Pour brine in, covering all the beets.

Cover and set aside several hours (or up to 24), then transfer to refrigerator. Will keep for six weeks.