My grandma Bunny died more than 20 years ago, but my memory still holds a detailed image of her kitchen. The sink was under the windows on the left side of the room. The stove and wall oven were in the rear corner. And on the passthrough counter to the right of the entrance was where the covered plastic fruit bowl sat.
In summer, the bowl would hold ripening peaches or apricots. In winter, persimmons would be tucked under the domed lid. Just about any time of year, a few Meyer lemons from her backyard would join the rest of the fruit. Often, there’s also be a honeydew melon perched nearby (they so rarely
Recently, I got an email from the nice folks at Fante’s (a fabulous, family-owned kitchenwares store here in Philadelphia) asking if I might be interested in trying out their fruit ripening bowl. One look and I realized that it was just like the bowl that Bunny had used. I was sold before I even had a bowl in my hands.
The way it works is that the bowl helps retain and circulate the water vapor, ethylene gas, and carbon dioxide that the ripening fruit naturally release, helping improve and speed ripening. I’ve used it on several batches of fruit since having it in my kitchen and fine it particularly useful for softening rock hard avocados (tucking a banana in the bowl helps).
I have three of these handy bowls to give away this week. Here’s how to enter.
- Leave a comment on this post and share how you’d use the Fante’s Fruit Ripener.
- Comments will close at 11:59 pm east coast time on Saturday, August 15, 2015. The winner will be chosen at random and will be posted to the blog on Sunday, August 16, 2015.
- Giveaway is open to US residents only (and is void where prohibited).
- One comment per person, please. Entries must be left on the blog, I cannot accept submissions via email.
Disclosure: Fante’s provided the fruit ripening bowl you see pictured here at no cost to me and are also providing the giveaway units. No additional payment has been provided and all opinions expressed are my own.
I’d use this for those early green tomatoes I accidentally picked! …while green tomatoes are good, ripe ones are sometimes better…
I would use it for stone fruit.
As an organic gardener, I relish all the fresh fruits and vegetables that I grow (as do my family, friends and neighbors). One problem is the birds and squirrels that are always taking bites of my heirloom tomatoes before they get a chance to ripen on the vine. So this would be perfect to help ripen those tomatoes that are picked before full ripeness to save them from the critters.
An added bonus would be to use it as a proofer for our home baked bread doughs.
I would use it for avocado’s – so I could buy them unripe and on sale….
Definitely useful for peaches and tomatoes
First time poster, but I love your website. I just started canning last year, and you were my go to book and website for learning. Thank you!
I would love to more quickly ripen my tomatoes so that I have a batch to can at once, instead of some going bad while waiting for the others to ripen. Also would be great to contain all of the fresh fruit that roams around our counters 🙂
Avocados! They’re not local here and so we get them rock hard. A unknown number of days later, they’re gone bad. Hopefully a fruit ripening bowl would get them to ripe in a reasonable amount of time.
Definately avocados and tomatoes
to ripen my tomatoes
I would use it for whatever fruit/veg I have that might need a day or two to be delicious to eat.
My neighborhood, built on the best farmland in the world, is full of pear trees, and I would use this bowl to ripen this abundance.
i remember my grandmother using a similar fruit ripener when I was growing up. It would be great to have one for ripening avocados and pears when my store is out of the ready to eat fruit.
I would use it to ripen pears!
I would love to ripen avocados in this!
I’d use it for all kinds of fruits, but a week or so ago, we received a lot of wind and they knocked over some of my potted tomato plants. When the pots fell, a bunch of green tomatoes became dislodged from the plant. i would use it to ripen those babies that are still sitting on my countertop!
i would definatel give the avacados a shot. they are always too hard from the store and almost always ruined while i wait for the to soften
I would use it for stone fruits. They are soo hard at the store and I like plums, peaches, and nectarines but don’t buy them because of that. And I don’t have the patience to bring them home to ripen. If this ripener ripens faster, that’s great! Sign me up!
I would use it for peaches, pears,and avocados. Would it would keep the fruit flies away? If I don’t win one I will buy one!
I would use it to ripen avocados since I am incapable of finding ripe avocados at our grocery store. Love your blog!
Gotta be for the avocados! And probably stone fruit too. Don’t want to miss that perfect ripe moment!
Avocados & plums!!