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Researchers' experiment yields tasty new apple
Honeycrisp apples.
STORY TOOLS 
More from FoodSummer is about to turn into fall, a season that brings with it an apple for every purpose: Braeburns for storing, blush-pink Cameos and Fujis for snacking, green-skinned Granny Smiths for slicing into salads, and red-tinged Winesaps for tarts and galettes.
But upsetting the apple cart is the Honeycrisp, a green-and-pink (see photo), crisp-as-advertised variety that is attracting bakers and raw-fruit eaters alike as fans.
Developed by the University of Minnesota from a Macoun and Honeygold cross, the Honeycrisp was introduced in 1991 by way of a planting at an experimental orchard near Sturgeon Bay, Wis. The apple gradually made its way to California, where it can be found in such climate-appropriate locales as Paso Robles. There, it is grown by Fair Hills Farms, which sells all of its organic apples — Braeburns, Cameos, Fujis, Honeycrisps, Pink Ladys, Granny Smiths and so on — for $2.75 per pound at farmers markets in Ventura County and beyond.
Also in the markets: soybeans, $3 per basket; shelled lima beans, $4.75 per bag; Valencia oranges, $3 per 3 1/2-pound bag; Adriatic figs, $3.50 per paper tray; Asian pears, $2.50 per pound; and Golden Nugget tangerines, $1 per pound.
Finding the markets: Camarillo: 8 a.m. to noon Saturdays, 2220 Ventura Blvd. 482-1507. Ojai: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sundays, 300 E. Matilija St. 698-5555. Oxnard: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursdays, Plaza Park at Fifth and C streets, 483-7960, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sundays (includes a fish market), Channel Islands Harbor, 643-6458. Simi Valley: 3 to 7:30 p.m. Fridays, Simi Valley Town Center. 643-6458. Thousand Oaks: 2 to 6:30 p.m. Thursdays, 403 W. Hillcrest Drive. 529-6266. Ventura: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesdays, Pacific View mall, and 8:30 a.m. to noon Saturdays, Palm and Santa Clara streets, 529-6266.
— Lisa McKinnon
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