The fruits on display in American grocery stores today are sweeter than ever, and getting a little more so all the time. While super-sweet hybrid cultivars like the Sumo Citrus and cotton candy grapes contain more sugar than their traditional counterparts, even regular store-bought oranges and grapes are sweeter than they were once were.
Name brands like Driscoll’s Sweetest Batch berries exist thanks to the science of selective breeding, popular demand and profit motive. They cost more, and people are willing to pay. But what gets lost in this race to sweetness at all costs?
Here & Now‘s Scott Tong speaks with baker and writer Kate Lebo about embracing bitterness, complex flavors, and why baking with ultra-sweet fruit doesn’t make for better pies.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
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