Last Chance Foods

Last week, former Lutece chef Eberhard Müller noted that when he first moved to the United States in 1982, “nobody ever had heard of...chervil or mache or cranberry beans — you couldn’t get fresh cranberry beans to save your life.”

For the rest of the summer, we’ll be revisiting previous episodes of Last Chance Foods. 

Eberhard Müller’s voice rose to a fever pitch as he spoke about local, seasonal food recently with WNYC’s Amy Eddings.

“You’re doing yourself a favor, you’re doing the environment a favor, by eating locally and by eating a product that’s really, really in season,” said the former chef at Lutece and Le Bernardin. His voice lowered as he reigned in his passion for seasonal food. “We don’t eat potatoes in January or February. We don’t eat basil in January or February. It’s not right. It isn’t meant to be.”

Bitter melon: It’s ugly and has a dauntingly aggressive taste. So, of course, it’s super healthy. Only nature would have such a twisted sense of humor.

We are, of course, talking about squash blossoms.

For the rest of the summer, we’ll be revisiting previous episodes of Last Chance Foods. 

“Purslane is a succulent weed,” explains Amy Chaplin, a former chef at the long-established vegetarian restaurant Angelica Kitchen. While “succulent” and “weed” are not words generally associated with edibles, purslane is a wild green that grows rampant through the summer and makes for a lemony, peppery salad green.

Like Brad Pitt is to Hollywood, the Alphonso mango is to tropical fruit. Considered the “King of Mangoes,” the variety first became legal to import to the United States in 2007. Since then, every spring, it’s all Alphonso, Alphonso, Alphonso. While the buzz may be justified, there are plenty of other delicious varieties of mangoes that also deserve time in the spotlight — and have the added benefit of being available through the hot, sultry summer months.

In honor of Independence Day, Last Chance Foods focuses on the red, white and blue — and we're not just talking about that favorite summer confection, the Rocket Pop. WNYC's Amy Eddings spoke with Serious Eats market reporter Ben Fishner about what's coming in at the green market just in time for the holiday.

Illegal or not, bee and honey enthusiasts have been tending apiaries in the city for years. This March, however, they got their moment in the spotlight when the Department of Mental Health and Hygiene lifted the ban on beekeeping in the city. These newly legal kept-bees spent the short spring months gathering nectar. So now is the time to enjoy the fruits of their labors — spring honey.

Like an invasion of pink alien celery, rhubarb has been piled high at greenmarkets recently. Don't take its presence for granted, however: Rhubarb and its popular companion strawberries are just about done for the year.

Searching for the next big thing might as well be the official pastime of New York foodies. From Gastronauts gathering in secret locations to the citywide Malaysian Restaurant Week — there's always reason to fear missing out when it comes to cuisine in New York City.