I know that summer has really come to Seattle the first time that I spot this old yellow pickup truck in the parking lot at the corner of Queen Anne Avenue and McGraw. I first saw the truck, with its handpainted signs advertising Alberg Farm Cherries, a few weeks after we moved to Seattle in 1999. The lovely blond teenaged girls who sold me cherries that day spoke with pronounced Scandinavian accents. I learned in subsequent years that they were Mr. Alberg’s Swedish cousins, spending part of the summer helping with the harvest and practicing their (already very good) English. Last year, for the first time, I met the current Mr. Alberg, a wiry, deeply tanned, cobalt-eyed man about my age. His family has raised cherries on their Washington farm for over 100 years.
Yesterday, I was delighted to see the Alberg Farm truck… and surprised to find that the young woman selling cherries was Asian. I’m curious about the change. Has Mr. Alberg run out of young Swedish relatives to help with the harvest, or is bringing them here too expensive? As I frequent the cherry truck regularly during the short season, I’m sure that I’ll find out.
There’s no question, however, about the cherries. These beautiful, heart-shaped Lamberts are as sweet and rich as ever. They taste like sunshine and summer.
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They do SO taste of sunshine and summer..don’t they?
Lovely post..thank you.
And Michele sent me…
what a cool pic - love the old truck and signs…;~))
Nice Place!!! You’re making my mouth water. Here from Michele’s.
I could just fall into that box right now. My, but they look heavenly. I’m sure they’re best devoured out of hand, but if you’re looking for a little something extra, I found a recipe for cherry tarts in Cooking with Pomiane by Eduard de Pomiane (this recipe was also reprinted in a Sophie Grigson cookbook), in which you take some leftover bread dough — or make a small batch of bread dough — line a tart pan with it, embed black cherries into the dough, strew them with sugar, and bake in a medium oven until the cherries and sugar bake into a syrup and the crust is golden. To pit or not to pit the cherries is totally up to you; pitting is a bit of a pain but it does mean not having to warn your guests before they bite into the tart!
Have I mentioned lately that I love what you’ve done with the place?
Oh I hope they are still there in late July! We have missed them the last two years, and it is such a treat to buy them on the corner rather than in the store. And Tom really enjoyed the Swedish cousins when they were here. Love, Barbie.
Oh, they do look delicious. Here in NC, peaches are what say summer to me more than any other fruit.
I love your new look!