No forbidden fruits �� or vegetables: how to get out of that same-old, same-old produce rut - includes a list of uncommon fruits and vegetables

Taking a stroll the aisles of even the most modest grocery store's produce section today is like taking a walk in the Garden of Eden -- where everything is edible and nothing is forbidden. The bounty that greets us is inspiring. And more and more markets offer organically grown produce. Thanks to overnight air freight, bins and stalls are stocked no matter what the season with exotic produce from all over the world.

Unfortunately, many modern Adams and Eves seem to purchase, prepare and eat the same fruits and vegetables day in and day out. Are you one of them? To find out how many different kinds of produce you eat, keep a one-week diary, simply jotting down the produce you buy for home use and the produce you eat outside the home. If you find you're filling your shopping cart with the same items week after week, you're passing up delicious, healthful and affordable choices.

People avoid trying new produce items for simple and sundry reasons: Some are rejected because they are exotic and unfamiliar. What's a kabocha squash anyway? And caramba! -- what is a carambola? Many would-be consumers pass on the unfamiliar because they don't know how it tastes, how to choose it or how to use it. And much is rejected because it is too familiar and old-fashioned. Your great-grandmother bought celery root (celeriac), but does that mean you should? In Elizabeth Schneider's benchmark compendium, Uncommon Fruits & Vegetables: A Commonsense Guide (Harper & Row, 1986), the author lists 100 different fruits and vegetables, starting with arugula and ending with yuca. An amazing number of these items can be found in ordinary supermarkets today, and the rest are available in ethnic or specialty markets.

To get started on a culinary adventure in the fruit and vegetable kingdom, try buying the 12 favorites we have picked, some exotic and some old-fashioned. If you have questions about an item in your grocer's produce section, ask for the produce manager, who may be able to give you information about taste, preparation, use and even recipes.

FABULOUS FRUITS

Asian Pear also known as Nashi, the japanese word for pear; apple pear, sand pear, salad pear, Chinese pear, Oriental pear or pear apple. Crisper MAN the crispest apple and juicier than the juiciest pear, this apple-shaped fruit offers the best of both worlds. Usually round, ranging in color from light green to russet brown, and in size from as small as a little pear to as large as the biggest apple, Asian pears can have smooth or slightly textured skin. They are outstandingly crisp and juicy with a sweet (but not overly sweet) taste, mild flavor and low acidity. Their seeds and core are small and most of the fruits is edible. They are in season from late summer through early winter. Some varieties may be imported, but most are domestic. Choose firm, unblemished fruit. They are quite hard even when fully ripe. Exceptional fragrance is a key to flavor and quality. They can be refrigerated and keep longer than apples. Use them raw, whole or sliced paper thin. Like other pears, they can be poached or baked and the flavor becomes more pronounced when cooked. There are a few subtle differences, however between regular pears and Asian pears: Asian pears take longer to cook and their texture remains firmer.

Blood Orange Also known as pigmented orange. DON'T BE FOOLED by the outside, which looks like a small or medium-sized orange with either smooth or mottled skin. Inside, the flesh ranges from solid or flecked ruby red to russet to purple. If the orange is a good one, the flavor is superb: richly citric and wonderfully sweet. Blood oranges are in season beginning in December but may be available as late as june if they are imported. Blood oranges are domestically grown, mostly in California and also imported from the Mediterranean region. Choose fruit that is heavy for its size with no soft spots. Store refrigerated. Use this dramatic fruit raw as you would any orange -- in sections, in rounds, in salads and fruit medleys. The juice and zest is wonderful in salad dressings, and the juice makes exceptional drinks and sorbets. In cooking, blood orange juice creates tantalizing sauces, and the fruit makes fabulous dessert mousses and tarts. It also makes jewel-like chutneys, jams, jellies and marmalades.

Carambola (KEHR-ahm-BOH-lah) Also known as star fruit, five-angled fruit or Chinese star fruit. Aptly named, this oval fruit has five deep ribs that form a star when sliced crosswise. The skin is thin and green when unripe and shiny yellow or almost white when ripe. It needs neither peeling nor seeding. The flavor? Here's the catch. There are sweet and tart varieties of carambola. Both are delicious; however, the tart varieties are best for cooking, the sweet for eating fresh in salads or desserts. In general, the white varieties are sweet, as are yellow ones with thicker ribs. Carambolas with thin, sharp ribs are usually tart. (Ask the produce manager: sweet or tart?) Look for carambolas in the fall and winter. Buy firm fruit, 2- to 5-inches long with no browning or shriveling. If you buy a green fruit, let it ripen before using. Store at room temperature if you plan to use them within 24 hours; store for longer periods in the refrigerator where they keep for about two weeks. Use them fresh as you would use any sweet or tart fruit. Tart carambola slices can double for lemons or limes. In cooking, tart carambolas lend themselves to savory sauces. Sweet ones make fabulous mousses, tarts, sorbets and ices.

Persimmon

These Luscious, smooth-skinned, orange fruits only make your mouth pucker when they are not ripe. And one variety called Fuyu, grown extensively in japan, and Israel, is not sour at all, even when unripe. That being said, there are many varieties grown in America, most originally from their native China and from Japan. These are the ones we find in our markets. So it's ironic that we call this fruit by its Native American name. In the Algonquin language, the small, native persimmon, rarely found in markets today, was called pessemin. The most common variety is the Hachiya -- large, with a tapered end. When ripe, this sensual fruit is sweet, juicy and messy. Its flavor is a cross between plums and pumpkins. Persimmons are in season from late fall through winter. Those found at other times are probably imported from Chile. Except for the Fuyu, do not buy hard, firm persimmons. Look for soft fruit, treat it gently in transport from store to home, and eat as soon as possible. If all the persimmons are unripe, you can ripen them, stem side up, in a dosed brown paper bag in the company of an apple or a banana. Aside from eating in their natural, unadorned state, persimmons can be used in cooking. American recipes were written for the small, sweet native persimmon, which is hard to find today. The large Asian persimmons are best pureed for sweetened, uncooked sauces or else peeled and sliced for salads.

Plantain (PLAN-Tihn)

Despite Appearances they are not for eating raw. Plantains are best used for cooking, which is just how they're used in Cuba, the Caribbean and most of Latin America. Baked, fried, frittered or grilled plantains take the place of mealtime starches such as rice or potatoes. A plantain looks like a banana only larger. Its skin can be green, yellow, yellow with black spots or almost black. All these variations denote its passage from unripe to fully ripe. The flavor changes, too, from bland when unripe to sweet and fragrant like a banana when ripe. Unlike a banana, the plantain's flesh is firm at all stages and holds its shape during cooking, and unlike the banana, they cannot be simply peeled and eaten. Plantains are available year round especially in supermarkets that cater to a large Latin American clientele. Do not refrigerate them unless they are at a stage that you want to use them. Try cooking them at all stages of ripeness. Peel, slice and saute them. Sprinkle them with a little brown sugar, or powdered sugar, if desired. They can be simply baked in their skin, scooped out and mashed like potatoes. They can be deep fried, like french fries, potato chips and with the addition of batter, fritters. You can even add them to soups and stews as you would potatoes.

Quince

Once upon a time the fragrant quince, which grows all over the world, was found in most American kitchens, where it was cooked into perfectly delicious jellies, jams, conserves, marmalades, candies and pies. Then suddenly, it fen from favor. What a shame! Although the quince cannot be eaten raw, its fragrance, flavor and peachy color when cooked is incomparable, a cross between an apple and a pineapple. The quince ranges in size from as small as a large lemon to as large as an apple. Its skin may be smooth like an apple r fuzzy like a peach. Quinces are in season at summer's end throughout the fall. Although ripe quinces come in a range of colors from yellow, like a Golden Delicious apple, to yellow-brown like a pear -- you can be certain they are ripe when the flesh is ivory-colored. Pick fruit that is free of bruises or blemishes and tore at room temperature or for longer periods in the fridge, wrapped individually to prevent bruising, and refrigerated. Peel and cook, lightly sweetened, in the following ways: sliced and baked, poached or stewed (wonderful for dessert), added to pies and cobblers along with other fruits or pureed like applesauce. Quinces make extraordinary jams, jellies, preserves and marmalades. And, unlike apples, they don't lose their shape during cooking.

VEGETABLES WITH VERVE

Broccoli Rabe Also known as Rapini, Brocoletti Di Rape, Chinese flowering cabbage or Choy Sum. It's the same color as broccoli but smaller, leafier and looks as if has failed to develop a head and started to flower instead. Broccoli rabe is an assertive, bitter vegetable greatly prized in Italian and Chinese cooking and increasingly used by American chefs. It is available all year round but plentiful from fall to spring. Choose it like any green vegetable, testing for crispness, firm texture and, in the case of broccoli rabe, searching for bunches with as few opened flowers as possible. Cook it as you would broccoli, just long enough to make it tender. Broccoli rabe can be boiled, sauteed, steamed, stir-fried and braised. It is wonderful in a stir-fry dish with sweet red peppers, onions, garlic and firm tofu. It is equally fine sauteed in extra-virgin live oil and sprinkled with fresh lemon juice and freshly ground black pepper or boiled and drizzled with vinaigrette. Its assertive flavor gives otherwise bland rice dishes a lift. Once you acquire a taste for it, you'll wonder how you lived without it.

Celeriac (seh-LER-ay-ak) Also known as celery root, knob-celery or turnip-rooted celery. It's an old-Fashioned vegetable with an ugly-duckling appearance and a beautiful swan flavor. In appearance, it is more or less round, as small as an apple or as large as a small cantaloupe. It has stems with celery-like leaves, usually cut off, and dozens of roots at the bottom and partway up the sides. It looks brown, bumpy, disorderly and often has dirt clinging to it. But oh, what a flavor. Celeriac has a taste that's a cross between fresh celery and parsley. You have eaten it in authentic French bistros as celeri remoulade, shredded and napped with a rich mustardy mayonnaise. But your great-grandmother also fixed it in dozens of ways -- from pureed and mashed to soups and stews. Celeriac is in season from fall to early spring. Choose smaller ones because they are easier to peel. If you don't plan to use it immediately, it can be wrapped and store in the refrigerator for up to two weeks. fresh celery smell means good flavor. Us celeriac grated or shredded and raw in salads dressed with mayonnaise or vinaigrettes. When peeled, it should be put into cold water with lemon juice to prevent browning. Cook it by boiling or baking. It can be mashed or pureed and added to mashed potatoes, turnips or rutabagas or added to soups and stews. Celeriac also makes a great sauteed side dish or main dish casserole when baked in a white sauce flavored with nutmeg and topped with cheese or bread crumbs.

Fennel. Also known as FINOCCHIO, anise or Florence fennel. This light-green vegetable with a bulblike base, celery-shaped stalks and feathery dill-like tops has a delicate, anise-like flavor that stands alone and also enlivens vegetable combinations. Fennel is in season from fall through spring. Look for fennel with a sheen. It should not be brown, split or dried and it should still have its green, feathery tops. If you are not going to use it right away, cut the stalks from the bulb and store, wrapped separately, in the refrigerator for up to three days. Both parts can be used raw, sliced or julienned, in salads with lettuce and ripe tomatoes. It is also a great accompaniment to Parmesan or goat cheese. Cook it by blanching, stir-frying, sauteing, braising and baking or simmered in soups and stews. You can also fire up the grill, brush it with oil and lemon and grill it. A simple salad of blanched, drained fennel with a lemon-olive oil vinaigrette offers a nice change of pace from lettuce.

Jicama (HEE-kah-mah) Also known as yam bean, Mexican potato, Ahipa or san got. The JICAMA is a tuber native to Mexico that has spread to Latin America, the Philippines and Asia, not to mention the United States. It is brown and thin-skinned, ranging in size from less than a pound to six pounds. Its flavor is mild and faintly sweet, and its texture is crisp and juicy. Look for it all year round and store it refrigerated but unwrapped. Pick jicamas with unblemished skins with no dark, dried or oft patches. Peel jicama before use. Jicama be used raw or cooked. Use raw in salads or grated and dressed as a salad on own. Thinly-sliced jicama pieces are good, low-calorie substitutes for crackers and chips with dips, especially because they do not discolor. Shredded jicama is a great addition to cole slaw and to fried potatoes. It also lends itself to fruit salads It can be substituted for water chestnut in stir-fries (It's a good thing because fresh water chestnuts are rarely available) an can also be braised and sauteed.

Kabocha Squash (Kah-BOH-Chah) An Oriental squash with deep green with lighter green streaks and a slightly flattened drum shape, kabocha has a fine-grained, non-stringy texture more like baked russet potato than squash. And it flavor, while pumpkin-like, is sweeter than squash. It ranges in size from one to seven pounds. It is available throughout the year. Choose as you would any squash. It should be heavy for its size and be free of soft spots. The stem should be intact and not blackened. When raw the skin is very hard to cut. So steady the squash on a cutting board, incise with a sturdy knife (a "French" knife with a sharp point and curved blade works well). Then tap the of the knife with a wooden or rubber mallet or a hammerhead wrapped with a towel to split it. Scoop out seeds. Then steam, bake or microwave. When cooked, that same hard skin is soft and edible; however, some people prefer just the flesh. Kabocha can be cooked the same way you would cook winter squash or pumpkins.

Kohlrabi (Kohl-RAH-Bee) Also known as cabbage turnip. Another Old-Fashioned vegetable that is sadly neglected today, kohlrabi is knob-by with green or light purple bulbs and collard-like leaves -- if they haven't been cut off. The edible part of the vegetable is the large knobby stem; it is not a tuber or root. It has a crisp texture and tastes like a sweet mixture of cucumber, radish and mild broccoli. The juicy vegetable available year-round but in best supply summer. Pick kohlrabi that are small and firm. To store, cut off leaves and refrigerate both leaves and bulbs separately and wrapped. The leaves will keep few days, the bulb up to a week. Leaves can be chopped and added to soups and stews. The business end of the kohlrabi, its bulb, can be shredded raw for salads, blanched, boiled, sauteed, braised and baked. It lends itself to strong flavors such as extra-virgin olive oil, lemon garlic and to cheeses such as cheddar and goat.

Try Us, You'll Like Us

Here's a list of uncommon fruits and vegetables that are now making their way to grocery stores. The produce manager can give you the lowdown and perhaps even recipes.

Fruits

Cape Gooseberry (Physalis) Guava Kumquat Mango Papaya Passion Fruit Pummelo (Chinese grapefruit) Ugli Fruit

Vegetables

Boniato (White sweet potato) Bok Choy (Chinese cabbage) Chayote Horseradish (fresh) Jerusalem Artichoke (sunchoke) Long Beans Okra Parsnip Rutabaga Tomatillo Salsify Sorrel Swiss Chard Wild Leek (Ramps)

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