Grape Expectations: When You Need a Little Help from Your Friends
This episode takes a different approach to the idea of joy as I recently met unexpected heartache. I explore grapes as an analogy for community and ask some tricky questions: What is the role of community when we are facing something hard? What can our approach to...
Fruit Confessions: A Love-Hate Melonfesto
In this episode I rant about the sneaky unwritten rules that sometimes hold us back from fully embracing what we love. Plus – I reveal my ultimate fruit nemesis, and spill all the juicy details. This is also the first fruit to receive a rating on sound. Let's dive...
The Cherry on Top: What the Hell is Joy?
How much do words matter and what happens when we define and reclaim them? This episode defines joy, happiness and enjoyment, while diving into the fascinating stories around the naming of the Black Republican Cherry and the Balaton Cherry. Plus the lickability...
Unleashing the Inner Dragonfruit
What are you supposed to do when you realize you’ve put yourself into a box and are silencing the very voice you want to have? Can you go full Game of Thrones and pretend to be Khaleesi, the Mother of Dragons, and burn it all to the ground? What happens when you...
Picasso Melon: Painting a Path to Joy
How do you figure out what you love? And can a Picasso Melon help? If you lose your sparkle, can fruit help you get it back? Find out in today’s episodes where I tell the story of how fruit was the unexpected starting point for finding joy.
Grape Expectations: When You Need a Little Help from Your Friends
This episode takes a different approach to the idea of joy as I recently met unexpected heartache. I explore grapes as an analogy for community and ask some tricky questions: What is the role of community when we are facing something hard? What can our approach to...
Fruit Confessions: A Love-Hate Melonfesto
In this episode I rant about the sneaky unwritten rules that sometimes hold us back from fully embracing what we love. Plus – I reveal my ultimate fruit nemesis, and spill all the juicy details. This is also the first fruit to receive a rating on sound. Let's dive...
The Cherry on Top: What the Hell is Joy?
How much do words matter and what happens when we define and reclaim them? This episode defines joy, happiness and enjoyment, while diving into the fascinating stories around the naming of the Black Republican Cherry and the Balaton Cherry. Plus the lickability...
Unleashing the Inner Dragonfruit
What are you supposed to do when you realize you’ve put yourself into a box and are silencing the very voice you want to have? Can you go full Game of Thrones and pretend to be Khaleesi, the Mother of Dragons, and burn it all to the ground? What happens when you...
Fruity Recipes
Salty Peanut and Blueberry Snack
Oh my my. I was just about to shower and decided to stop in the kitchen for a snack, when this combination jumped out at me. No joke--I took a few bites, ran upstairs, got the camera, snapped photos and came right to my desk to tell you about it. Yes, I kind of stink...
Peanut Butter and Jelly Kiss Cookies
These cookies make me happy. I like most cookies anyway, but these just captivate me. There is a fruit surprise inside! What could be better than that? The little notes catch my eye and make me smile even if I know that I wrote those very notes myself. It's like I...
Hi! I'm the Fruit Maven.
Fruit as Art: Patterns, Shapes and Colors
Exploring Patterns: Ogee, Paisley, Scroll
Have I mentioned lately that fruit inspires me? Perhaps this is obvious since I write a website about fruit, wrote a children's book about fruit and spend my free time traveling to farmer's markets, university citrus collections and foraging neighbor's trees....
Exploring Patterns: Polka Dot Fruit
Is it just me or do polka dots provide a little burst of instant happiness? As if fruit wasn't delightful enough, these little beauties also have spunk and style -- particularly that dragon fruit. Being a slightly freckly girl though, I must admit I'm a bit partial to...
Exploring Color: Green
One reason I love discovering and trying new fruit is something I call the Willy Wonka factor. There are so many colors, shapes, textures, patterns and of course flavors to be found in natural fruit. Many of the simple concepts we take for granted can be found in the...