Apricots

Good apricots are precious—sweet and tart, with silky skin and a dense but succulent interior. Get your hands on them and you’re in for a real treat. But a perfectly ripe, juicy, and flavorful apricot is hard to find, even if you live where they’re grown (now mostly California).

Preparing: Not much to it: tear or cut it in half and remove the pit. Or just bite into it. I don’t bother to peel apricots but you can: Plunge them into boiling water for about 10 seconds, then slip off the skin. Soak or cook dried apricots in liquid to soften. Dried is the most accessible form to use in both sweet and savory dishes. Sauté fresh apricots along with the aromatics and let them melt away into the dish, or add dried at the last minute.

Other fruits you can use: peaches, nectarines; for dried apricots, any other soft dried fruit like raisins, prunes, dates