Each year, the food service industry places more emphasis on local, seasonal produce, and for good reason. Using seasonal fruit costs less, tastes fresher, and leaves a more positive mark on the environment. Better still, since customers share these industry values, seasonal fruit and other environmentally-friendly produce give you a beautiful advertising opportunity. Supplement your menu’s year-round favorites with fruit-filled ice cream dishes, pies, and other adaptable fresh choices to keep your clients satisfied in every season.

Plan Ahead with a Commercial Freezer

Revamping all of your fruit selections may not be feasible. Introduce change gently by preserving most of your current options. Any fruits that freeze well should have a place in your reach-in commercial freezer. This holds true especially for perennial favorites with a fairly limited season, such as blueberries. You can enhance year-round recipes with touches of seasonal fruit by inventing intriguing blends. Experiment with combinations like bananas with blueberries or strawberries with apricots until you find something your customers love and won’t find anywhere else. Remember to adjust the amounts of sugar or honey in the dishes based on the sweetness of the in-season products.

Develop Connections at the Farmers Market

Local produce, especially fruit, presents several advantages. Many fruits are not harvested at the optimal time due to shipping time constraints. Citrus fruits are the exception since travel does not affect them as much, but they still offer better results in season. Just like a restaurant supply vendor, your local farmers market provides enormous prospects for networking, saving money, and pleasing your clientele. With this concept in mind, make room on your menu for a line directing diners to ask their server for the day’s special. Once you have established relationships with vendors at the farmers market, you will be able to boast amazing prices for the freshest fruit possible. Whichever fruit you can obtain for the best deal that morning, you can feature in a pie, cake, or other dessert.

Keep your creativity flowing and refrain from inserting seasonal fruit into the same old pie crust. More exotic options exist, such as flan, which can be adapted to a plethora of delicious fruits. If your customers enjoy elegant simplicity, compose syrups and sauces to complement certain fruits, which you can then serve without other costly ingredients. Accomodate both your customers’ tastes and your budget with seasonal fruits.

Filed under: Resource Central • General • Food Quality

Tags: commercial freezer, farmers market, ice cream dishes, restaurant supply, seasonal fruit