The crazy colors of a California winter

Chipotle peppers: These smoked jalapenos are wondrous things, even when they come from a can. But take good peppers that have been ripened slowly in the Paso Robles sun, then smoke them for a couple of days over a mixture of almond and apple wood, maintaining a steady 120- to 160-degree temperature so they retain their fruit flavor, and you’ve got something very, very special. That’s what Bill and Barbara Spencer do at Windrose Farm. And if you love those -- there’s no way you can’t -- you’ll also want to try the Spencers’ smoked tomatoes.

Windrose Farm, 5 for $1 or $40 per pound

Carrots: Novelty is a wonderful thing and nothing attracts good cooks like a variety of fruit or vegetable they haven’t seen before. So why do you find so many chefs hovering around Maryann Carpenter’s carrots? Sure, they come in a rainbow of colors, but the thing that really brings ‘em in is the taste. These carrots have a deep, rich, sweet flavor. That’s true whether you’re talking about the Purple Haze, Scarlet, Nantes, Cream Delights or Belgian Whites. Carpenter says she loves them all, but her absolute favorite for eating raw is the plain old orange Nantes.

Just in

Coastal Farms, $2 per bunch

Romanesco: Take a head of broccoli, tint it lime green and decorate it with spires and minarets and you’ve got Romanesco. So distinctive-looking is the Romanesco that its structure has been studied by avant-garde architects for new models of buildings (it’s sometimes called fractal broccoli). Actually, Romanesco isn’t really a broccoli at all. It’s a cauliflower. The confusion is understandable -- the two families have been crossbred for so many centuries that they are largely indistinguishable. But recent DNA testing has revealed Romanesco’s true heritage. Someone could have just asked a cook -- Romanesco definitely tastes like cauliflower and benefits from the same preparations. Cook it briefly to emphasize the grassy, vegetal aspects of its flavor; cook it longer and a subtle, earthy sweetness emerges.

Two Peas in a Pod, $3 a head

[email protected]