The Market Report: Nopales

There's nothing more beguiling than food that speaks of place. At Truss & Twine in Palm Springs, chef Michael Beckman gets hyper-local with nopales from the Santa Monica Farmers Market that he uses to make a cactus confit that he pairs with goat cheese dusted in dehydrated bougainvillea powder. Farmer Mario Trevino of Trevino Farms in Lompoc, California, says his hearty succulents may be prickly, but nopales aren’t picky about the soil they’re grown in. The paddles grow year-round but are the most tender in the springtime. He uses the cactus pears that come in during the fall to make agua fresca. Find a recipe for Beckman’s cactus confit on the “Good Food” blog.