Spicy Pancetta Grape Pizza

Imagine what would happen if your Hawaiian pizza took a trip to Italy… Meet the Spicy Pancetta Grape Pizza. The sweetness of bright, juicy red grapes balance out fiery Calabrian chilies and salty pancetta in this Italian twist on Hawaiian pizza. 

 

Watch us make this pizza on YouTube or Instagram!

 

What you’ll need:

1 uncooked pizza crust

1/2 cup pizza sauce

2-3 tbsp calabrian chili paste

8 oz shredded cheese

2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

1.5 oz thinly sliced pancetta

1 shallot, thinly sliced

5-6 oz sliced red grapes

parsley, finely chopped

Overhead shot of pizza, surrounded by grapes, striped towel, brown bottle, bowl of shopped parsley and bowl of sauce

Instructions:

  • preheat oven to 450°
  • prepare dough on baking sheet
  • mix chili paste with sauce to taste
  • spread sauce on dough & top with cheeses, pancetta, and shallots
  • bake pizza for 12-15 min until nearly done (light golden crust)
  • add grapes, bake 3-5 more min
  • Garnish with parsley

Click here to download our recipe card!

McClarty Family Peach Cobbler Recipe

It’s the last day of National Peach Month, and we’re finally sharing our family recipe for peach cobbler with all of you! This has been a family favorite for many years, and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do. We may or may not eat it for breakfast.

Ingredients:

  • 3lbs of HMC Farms peaches
  • 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
  • 1 cup pancake mic
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted

Instructions:

  • Preheat oven to 375°
  • Toss peaches with brown sugar in a greased 9″ square baking dish
  • Combine pancake mix, sugar, and cinnamon
  • Stir egg into the dry mixture until it becomes crumbly
  • Top peaches with crumble mixture and top with melted butter
  • Bake for about 45 minutes, until topping is a golden brown

Hand written recipe for peach cobbler on a white piece of paper

Plumsicle™ Ice Cream!

If you’ve tasted our proprietary HMC Farms® Plumsicle™, you already know that the flavor is unlike any other piece of fruit. The taste reminds us of a frozen treat from the ice cream truck on a hot summer day, and we were inspired to create our own version of that creamy, frosty goodness in our farm kitchen to get us through this heat wave. We know it’s hard not to eat Plumsicles when they’re right in front of you, so grab an extra bag to snack on while you make this Plumsicle ice cream.

 

We used our home ice cream maker for this recipe. You may need to adjust the portions depending on the size of your ice cream maker.

Ingredients: two bottles of milk, bowl of cut plums, 3 brown eggs, bowl of sugar, bowl of vanilla, salt grinder on white marble surface

Ingredients:

  • 1 bag of HMC Farms Plumsicle, pits removed (about 2lbs)
  • Half and half – ¼ gallon + 1 cup
  • 1 cup sugar
  • Splash of vanilla
  • Pinch of salt

 

Start by rinsing off your Plumsicles and carefully remove the pits. We like to leave the skin on for little pockets of extra Plumsicle flavor, but if you can’t come to terms with the skin in your ice cream it’s okay to remove it. Place all of the ingredients in the blender and blend until smooth. If you want some Plumsicle chunks, try blending all of the other ingredients first, and then adding Plumsicle and using the pulse blend option to leave some chunks. Pour the mixture into your ice cream maker and use the manufacturer’s instructions. That’s it! An easy path to homemade Plumsicle ice cream that will make you look like a seasoned confectioner.

Waffle bowl containing two scoops of pink ice cream on multi-colored striped background, purple towel and 3 plums in frame

Watch us make this recipe here.

 

Don’t have an ice cream maker, or looking for a dairy-free option? Check out this recipe for Plumsicle ice pops and wine pops from The Produce Moms!

For more information on Plumsicle, visit our dedicated website!

Thanksgiving With Grapes

Thanksgiving is quickly approaching, which kicks off the holiday season. Holiday traditions often revolve around food, and if we’re being honest, food is one of the things we look forward to most throughout the holiday season. At HMC Farms, we eat what we grow, and that means that our Thanksgiving table includes plenty of HMC Farms table grapes! In the spirit of our farm table, we’ve gathered some ideas for you to add to your own Thanksgiving table. Let us know if you try any of these by tagging us in your photos on social media, or leaving a comment here on our blog.

Charcuterie board with grapes, salami, cheese, pomegranate, crackers, and nuts

Holiday charcuterie

Charcuterie boards are popular for a reason, and we love the versatility of a block of wood piled up with all of our favorite snacks. We used a variety of cheeses, fruit, and other snacks in this charcuterie board-see the list below. Vegetarians or vegans can easily adapt this to their dietary specifications by ditching the salami, and swapping out the cheese for dairy alternatives. Nut allergy? Swap out the nuts for more crackers or some veggies. As long as you keep the grapes, we approve!

Here’s what we used on our holiday charcuterie board:

HMC Farms red seedless table grapes

Aged white cheddar

Habanero & jalapeño cheddar

Two types of salami

Pomegranate

Almonds

Pistachios

Fig crisps

Sprigs of rosemary for greenery

 

Stuffing in an oval dish with grapes mixed in. A bunch of grapes on the left, a napkin and ceramic pumpkin on the right

Stuffing with roasted grapes

Tired of the same old boring stuffing with that turkey? Try mixing it up with the addition of roasted grapes! This is a winning choice because you can keep the same exact recipe (or box of mix) you always use, and just stir the roasted grapes in at the end. An additional bonus here is that roasting is a great option for grapes that are getting a little wrinkly or soft. Roasting grapes is as easy as plucking them off the stem, rinsing, tossing them in olive oil and a little bit of sea salt on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and popping them in the oven. The process is very simple, and you can up the ante a little bit here by adding thyme or rosemary when tossing the grapes in olive oil.

Looking for more on roasted grapes? Check out this guide from our friends at The Produce Moms.

 

Round dish with rectangles of feta cheese, topped with roasted grapes. Crackers to the left, bottle of olive oil to the right, and a string of lights around the edge. Background is dark wood.

Baked feta with roasted grapes

Yes, we are recommending two dishes that contain roasted grapes because they are really that good. If you haven’t tried roasted grapes before, you are truly missing out on a versatile topping or ingredient that can fit into many savory or sweet dishes. If you are a feta fan, you’ve probably tried the trendy baked feta pasta, and we don’t blame you. Quick and easy recipes are perfect to include in Thanksgiving, since you’re already spending plenty of time and effort on everything else. Rather than the main course, this is a great appetizer or side dish, or even the perfect centerpiece for your charcuterie board. Serve it with crackers or rustic bread and thank us later. You can find our recipe for baked feta and roasted grapes on our Instagram page or check out the similar recipe that inspired us on the Grapes from California website.

Halloween Snack Ideas From HMC Farms Grapes

The crispness of fall is finally in the air on our farms, and that means we’re cooking up all of our fall favorites in our farm kitchen! One of our favorite holidays around here just so happens to be Halloween, and we’ve got some ideas for healthier Halloween treats featuring grapes from HMC Farms! These treats are kid and adult approved, so gather the whole family and swap out sugary sweets for nature’s candy!

Bowl of green grapes with candy eyes surrounded by black cloth

Looking for the perfect snack for your favorite Halloween movie? Whip up a bowl of these monster eyes! This almost-too-cute-to-eat snack is simply HMC Farms green seedless grapes topped with candy eyes (trust us, the plastic googly eyes don’t taste good, so please don’t eat them). To stick the candy eyes to the grapes, use a small dab of your favorite nut butter or icing. Get the monster eye look by just adding candy eyes to the top layer of grapes, it’s tough to keep them stuck to the grapes on the bottom layer. 

Round wooden serving board with a variety of snacks on top: grapes, chips, pretzels, almonds, cheese, and candy bones. Board is surrounded by colorful beaded necklaces on top of black fabric, and topped with plastic spider rings

Having a full on Halloween movie marathon or party? Try this Halloween snack board! We used the bowl of monster eyes for the center, and surrounded them with HMC Farms red seedless grapes, ghost & bat veggie chips, string cheese ghosts, cheddar jack-o-lanterns, pretzels, almonds, and candy bones. We achieved the string cheese ghost and cheddar jack-o-lantern looks by using a permanent marker on the plastic wrappers. If you want to draw directly on the cheese, be sure to use a food-safe marker! You can easily add some spooky salami to this board, or swap the cheddar rounds for mandarins, but the monster eyes are a must!

Three glass jars on black cloth. Jars are filled with grapes, string cheese decorated like ghosts, salami & cheese skewers, and ghost-shaped chips. Topped with spider rings.

If you look at our Halloween snack board and imagine your children fighting over the same string cheese ghost, or if the thought of other people’s hands touching your food haunts your dreams, try a charcuterie assortment! This is a perfect way to offer snacks to a skeleton crew, or a whole mob of zombies in your backyard. It’s also a great way to have the kids help put snacks together – let them wash and dry their favorite color of HMC Farms grapes and fill up their jar while older kids or adults create the salami & cheese skewers and strong cheese ghosts. 

The jarcuterie is perfectly portable for a treat yo-self moment in your bathtub with a glass of wine, or for watching your favorite celebrities learn to dance on television.

If you’re using HMC Farms grapes in your Halloween snacks, be sure to tag us on Facebook and Instagram!

Graphic with header "grape monster eyes" and a photo of a bowl of green grapes with candy eyes. HMC Farms logo at bottom

Graphic with header "Halloween snack board" and photo of snack board with grapes, ghost and jack-o-lantern cheeses, almonds, ghost & bat chips, pretzels, and candy bones

Graphic with header "Halloween jarcuterie" featuring image of three jars filled with grapes, ghost string cheese, salami & cheese skewers, and ghost chips. HMC Farms logo at bottom

Peach Crisp Recipe – gluten and dairy free!

Something you may not know about HMC Farms is that one of our family members has severe food allergies. Because of this, we are constantly inspecting ingredients on packaging, adjusting recipes, and toting allergy-friendly food along to events. We recently had a visitor who was gluten intolerant and allergic to dairy, so we quickly got to work in our farm kitchen to ensure that the guest would have a dessert just as good as the pies we ordered from a local baker. What we came up with was a tasty peach crisp, which happens to be vegan and gluten free. Most importantly, it doesn’t taste vegan and gluten free. This recipe can also be adjusted to be free of added sugar by swapping the sugar in our recipe for monkfruit or stevia.

The peaches coming out of our orchards are delicious right now, so we may start eating this peach crisp for breakfast every day until the end of the season. For a fun twist, try using nectarines or plums in place of the peaches, or mix them all together! If you’ve tried this recipe, let us know what you think and if you made any adjustments.

Peach crisp in white bowl with spoon - oats and peach slices scattered on wood table

What you’ll need to serve 6-8 people:

6 HMC Farms peaches (if you use plums, bump this up to 7-8 pieces) Tip: it’s better to use fruit that’s slightly soft, so you may want to leave it out on the counter for a day or two before baking.

1 Tbsp sugar (raw, granulated, or coconut palm would all work here or sub for monkfruit or stevia to remove the added sugar)

1  Tbsp cornstarch (add a pinch more if you like a thicker base)

1 ½ tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 ½ tsp vanilla extract

¾ cup rolled gluten free oats

¾ cup almond flour

½ cup brown sugar (sub coconut palm if desired, or swap for monkfruit/stevia to remove added sugar)

1/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

2/3 tsp cinnamon

1/3 tsp salt (we like to use sea salt)

1/3 cup solid coconut oil, plus 1 tbsp for the pan (if your coconut oil has liquified and turned clear, try putting it in the fridge or freezer for a few minutes to solidify)

Pan with peach crisp inside on wood table, red towel on the side

Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees F. Grease the inside of your pan or oven-safe skillet with 1 Tbsp of coconut oil.

Slice the peaches – for clingstone varieties, place the fruit with the stem down and the seam facing you. Slice carefully straight down on wither side of the pit, and then rotate and repeat. You can then slice these chunks into smaller pieces.

Mix the peach slices, lemon juice, vanilla extract, cornstarch and sugar (or sugar replacement) in a large bowl until ingredients are combined. Set to the side for at least 10 minutes.

In another bowl, mix almond flour, oats, cinnamon, nuts, brown sugar, and salt. Once ingredients are mixed well, work in the remaining coconut oil. Work together with a spoon or your hands until evenly coated.

Pour the peach mixture into the bottom of your pan, then top with the oat mixture.

Bake for approximately 25-30 minutes, depending on your oven and how browned you like the topping.

Let sit for 10 minutes before serving – use caution when tasting

Peach Crisp Pinterest graphic - close up of peach crisp in white bowl with spoon

Stone Fruit Swaps: Replace tomatoes with your favorite stone fruit!

Anyone who grows backyard tomatoes knows that tomato season means fresh salsa, caprese salad, and BLT sandwiches all summer long. We’ve got some news for you… stone fruit is a great replacement for fresh tomatoes in many recipes! That’s right, HMC Farms peaches, plums, nectarines, and plumcots can replace tomatoes in some of your favorite dishes. We’ve assembled some of our go-to stone fruit swaps for you. Let us know your favorite ways to replace tomatoes with stone fruit in the comments!

White bowl filled with peach salsa, surrounded by limes, peaches, jalapenos, and cilantro

Swap #1: Peach Salsa

Okay, peach salsa is fairly mainstream at this point, but it’s just so delicious that we had to mention it. While some people mix tomatoes and peaches to make peach salsa, we prefer to completely replace tomatoes with chopped peaches. Something about the combination of peaches and jalapeños makes this sweet and spicy medley perfect for chips, but it’s also really delicious on top of chicken, pork loin, or grilled fish. You can find our go-to peach salsa recipe here.

Oval dish holding layers of nectarine slices, fresh mozzarella cheese, and basil. Floral print tea toel in back, whole nectarine on right, spoon and basil blossoms on the left.

Swap #2: Nectarine Caprese Salad

Fresh mozzarella slices, basil, and… nectarines? Yes! If you’re looking for a fresh twist on a classic appetizer, look no further than nectarine caprese salad. The sweet-tart flavor of tree ripened nectarines, combined with buttery fresh mozzarella and basil plucked right from the garden is a flavor combo that rivals the original. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic glaze, and sprinkle with sea salt, freshly ground pepper, and crushed red peppers (if you like a little kick) for a treat that looks as good as it tastes. Rearrange this into little stacks on individual plates for low-contact meals, and your guests will feel extra special.

Stacked sandwich with lettuce, bacon, and plums. Sliced and whole plums on left and crumbled bacon in front.

Swap # 3: Bacon Lettuce Plum Sandwiches

It may sound strange, but trust us on this one. You won’t be sorry if you ditch the tomatoes in that BLT and replace them with plums or plumcots. Crisp, savory bacon and sweet, juicy plums come together in a way that’s truly unexpected and tasty. Stack the plums, bacon, and lettuce on your favorite bread, and thank us later. Any type of plum or plumcot makes a great BLP sandwich, including Plumsicle™!

Pssst… Not a fan of pork? Turkey bacon is a great alternative, or you can swap for a plant-based bacon replacement to make this a vegetarian or vegan dish.

Poolside Peach Salsa Recipe – From The Produce Moms and HMC Farms

This recipe was originally posted on The Produce Moms® website.

Long days spent poolside are what summer dreams are made of. But when hunger strikes a dreamy day can quickly turn into a nightmare. Growling bellies turn happy swimmers into little sharks.

To keep everyone happily swimming and splashing, moms know great poolside treats are a must! Peach salsa is a perfect pool day snack. It’s light and refreshing. It’s sweet without added sugar or sweeteners.

Overhead shot of white bowl filled with peach salsa and surrounded by tortilla chips - peaches on left and right side

Peaches are a good source of vitamins A and C. They also contain fiber, potassium, niacin, and vitamins E and K. One medium-sized peach contains less than 60 calories. You can always feel good about eating a peach!

Take tortilla chips for a dip. Serve peach salsa with either chips or crackers.

Grilling out? Peach salsa is excellent served on top of grilled chicken or fish. If you have extra peaches, throw a few on the grill for another sweet poolside treat!

White bowl of peach salsa, surrounded by peaches, limes, tortilla chips, and cilantro

Poolside Peach Salsa
 Course Snacks
 Cuisine Gluten-Free, Kid-Friendly, Vegetarian
 Prep Time 10 minutes
 Servings
servings
INGREDIENTS
  • 4 cups peaches diced
  • 1/2 cup pineapple diced
  • 1/2 cup red bell pepper diced, seeds removed
  • 1/2 cup red onion minced
  • 3 tsp jalapeno minced, ribs and seeds removed
  • 2/3 cup cilantro chopped
  • 2 limes juice only
  • salt to taste
Poolside Peach Salsa
INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Place ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before serving.
RECIPE NOTES
  • Pineapple is optional.
  • For more heat, leave in some of the jalapeno seeds.
Need to keep kids busy as you whip up a snack? Entertain them with these peachy activity sheets!
Overhead view of peach salsa in a white bowl surrounded by tortilla chips - The Produce Moms logo with peach salsa as the caption

Roasted Grape and Ricotta Crostini Appetizer Recipe

Grapes are a go-to choice when making a fruit salad or charcuterie board, but they are so much more versatile than that! One of the most surprising things about grapes is how great they are when roasted. This super easy recipe using HMC Farms grapes is a great way to elevate your appetizers and small plate offerings from home gatherings to catered events.

What you’ll need for about 16 pieces of crostini:

  • 1 bunch of HMC Farms red seedless table grapes
  • Fresh ricotta cheese
  • 1 medium-sized loaf of rustic bread
  • Fresh thyme or rosemary
  • Olive oil
  • Salt and pepper
  • Optional: honey, balsamic glaze, or walnuts

Steps to roasted grape crostini bliss:

  • Start by preheating the oven to 450 degrees. Rinse the grapes and let them dry. Tip: We chose to use HMC Farms sliced grapes, but you can choose whether to slice the grapes in half or leave them whole.
  • Spread the grapes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Top with thyme or rosemary sprigs, sprinkle with salt, and drizzle with olive oil. Toss the grapes a bit on the pan and then place in the oven for about 8 minutes, checking after 5 minutes.

    Tip: It’s okay for the grapes to split or wrinkle up, but avoid letting them burn.

 

  • While the grapes are in the oven, slice the bread to desired thickness (we prefer about ½”), brush one side with olive oil, and grill in a pan or on a griddle. Brush the other side with olive oil and flip. Remove from the pan when both sides look lightly toated.
  • Remove grapes from the oven and set the pan out to cool.
  • Spread fresh ricotta on one side of each piece of toasted bread. Add 4-5 grapes to the top of each piece, and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and thyme or rosemary.

Tip: These are great just the way they are, but there are also lots of options for additions to top off the appetizer. Try drizzling a little honey, olive oil, or balsamic glaze over the top, or even adding a few chopped walnuts!

 

Caramelized Peaches Recipe

We love homemade ice cream! We actually love it so much that we occasionally make it at the HMC Farms office. Something about homemade vanilla ice cream on a hot day just makes everything better, but we like to elevate our ice cream just a bit with the topping we can’t live without: caramelized peaches.

This recipe is enough for about 14-16 bowls of ice cream.

What you’ll need:

  • 8 large HMC Farms peaches
  • 1 stick of unsalted butter
  • 2/3 cup of packed light brown sugar
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Start by slicing or chopping your HMC Farms peaches, discarding the pits. Place the peaches in a bowl and mix in the fresh lemon juice, sea salt, and cinnamon.

Melt the butter and brown sugar in a skillet on medium heat. Once the butter has melted and combined with the sugar, add the peaches and increase to medium-high heat. Stir occasionally to prevent scorching.

When the juice from the peaches, butter, and sugar have reduced into a thicker consistency, remove the pan from heat and let it stand a little before serving.

Tips:

Depending on the size of your pan, you may need to split this into 2 different batches, the peaches should not be more than 2 pieces deep when putting them in the pan to cook.

Warm peaches are delicious, but if they are too hot they will melt the ice cream rapidly. Let the peaches stand a bit to cool before using them as topping for your ice cream.

Peaches straight from the pan are hot! When taste testing, let the peaches cool slightly to avoid burning your mouth.

If ice cream isn’t your thing, caramelized peaches can also be added to yogurt.