Carrots

What it is: While not as luscious as a home-grown tomato or a perfectly ripe peach, a summer carrot, fresh from the field, is a very sweet thing -- a far cry from the orange roots packed in plastic bags at supermarkets. That variety is usually Imperator, a long, tapered carrot prized by large-scale farmers for its high yields, long storage potential, and rugged greens. They're also tough enough to withstand the tug of harvest machines. A local farm's carrot is likely to be a smaller variety such as the almost round Thumbelina or the cone-shaped Chantenay, both crisp and sweet, chosen for their good looks and nuanced flavor, and likely harvested by hand. Lately, enthusiastic carrot growers have been bringing carrots to market in colors ranging from the whitest white (White Satin) to bright yellow (Yellowstone) to deep, dark purple (Purple Haze).

Where to find them: Look for firm carrots with smooth skin at farm stands and wherever local vegetables are sold. The tops, which should be bright green, are a good indicator of freshness, but once home, carrots keep better with most of the greens removed (leave 2 inches of the stems intact). The smallest summer carrots should be served within a few days of their harvest, unpeeled. Larger carrots keep for at least a week. In New England carrots are available and at their best from July through the fall.

How to use them: Summer carrots are good on their own, just boiled and buttered, or tossed with other summer vegetables in salads, rice dishes, and brothy soups. With young carrots, trim all but 1 inch of the stem; it's edible and makes any dish seem a little bit brighter. Carrots go well with just about anything, but cilantro, cinnamon, cumin, butter, and thyme have a way of bringing out their sweet qualities and earthy taste. In the fall, carrots make braised dishes livelier and round out the deep flavors of hearty stocks and soups. -- JONATHAN LEVITT