Bella Viva News & Events
Find out what is happening in the Bella Viva Orchards

• The yard is getting full of fruit!
  We are still going non stop out here on the farm. We've been drying peaches and nectarines like mad and they are delicious! It seems like the season is flying by. We have no more apricots to harvest and the last time I walked outside they were slicing pears to dry. I wish I could have got the dried pears in this email for you but they caught me by surprise and I still need to take pictures of them. The dry-yard is a sea of yellow, orange, and white and the dehydrators are stacked to the top with trays of natural dried organic peaches and nectarines.
  
  
• Why is natural dried fruit dehydrated?
  When fruit is dried without any preservatives it can be damaged by oxidation and mold in the drying process. Oxidation will take away the fruit's color, taste, and even nutritional benefits such as vitamins and beta-carotene. To reduce the amount of time a slice of fruit has to oxidize, it is quickly dehydrated. Dehydration improves the quality, appearance, and nutritional value of the organic dried fruit. When you are at the store buying organic dried fruit, always try to find the fruit with the most color, it is the fruit that has retained the most nutrients.
  
  click here to see the Peach & Nectarine harvest