Wintertime in Kauai is playful, lush and wet. Thousands of humpback whales migrate to the coast. They are seen from the shoreline, sending plumes of water into the air, breaching, or slapping their fins on the water. From the majestic Na Pali coast, to the vegetation along the highway, everything is a vivid green. It’s as if you’re in a movie, and the colors are turned way up.

And it rains.

A lot.

This morning offers signs of hope. A pale yellow sun peaks through the grey sky, the birds chirp, and our view of Mount Makaleha is obscured by silver clouds. There is not a drop of rain. The last few weeks have brought heavy downpours, and hail. Flooding, and damage to nearby roads and fields have closed some farmers markets, especially those on the North shore. Sinkholes and landslides topple transformers and demolish homes. The grounds in front of Coconut Marketplace are still a lake. Construction crews rebuild collapsed roads, and clear felled trees and debris. More than a few farms have been completely washed out.

Paul and Jude Huber at their farm in Moloaa. Daniel Lane photo.

Hole in the Mountain Farm has seen some damage, but not enough to stop them from selling at their regular markets. Paul and Jude Huber sell extra fancy dessert fruit grown on 38 acres in Moloaa. That means sweet, juicy and mildly acidic white pineapple, and big, fat, juicy rambutan.

The first time I saw Jude Huber was at the Kauai Community Market in Lihue. She loves to surf in the early mornings, at dawn, when it’s quiet and still. I didn’t know this at the time, I just noticed her physique. She’s lean and muscular, her arms ripple with strength as she holds a pineapple body in one hand, the top in the other and with a swift twist, separates the two. Dan bought a topless pineapple for one dollar less. Jude cuts the top into sections, and plants them in her fields.

Jude holding a cluster of rambutan at the market. Daniel Lane photo

On Kauai, Rambutan season begins in October and runs through March. At market, Jude deftly wrenches off the top half of the fruit. In a loud, clear voice she announces, “Get your rambutan here!” and hands passerby a sample. The bright red fruit hang from tightly clustered branches. Small clusters sell for $5, large $10.

Folks gravitate to the fuzzy balls with soft spiny hair, but they’re not quite sure what to do with them. Apprehensively, they take one from Jude’s outstretched hand, and pop it into their mouth. The sweet and juicy flesh win them over and they buy a cluster or two.

Paul and Jude's rambutan, fresh off the tree. Daniel Lane photo.

Rambutan is one of our favorite fruit. We love to chill them, and have them for dessert. I’m not as strong as Jude, so I use a knife to cut the pliant skin and free the fruit. It has a large stone in the center, and I carefully nibble the flesh away from the seed. Sometimes, I use the bottom half as a holder. But more times than not, the fruit comes out of the shell with the first bite. With the whole thing in my mouth, I slowly free the seed.

You can find Paul and Jude’s fruit at the Monday market in Koloa, Wednesdays in Kapaa, Fridays at Vidinha Stadium in Lihue, and Saturday at Kauai Community Market. Click here for a list of locations and times. Last Saturday, Jude told me she should have white pineapple next week. Take a look at their farm by watching this video Hawaii Stream made for the Kauai Grown website.

If you’re like Dan and I, you like fresh fruit cocktails. So I’ve included a recipe that ran in MidWeek Kauai. If you click on this link, you’ll learn more about rambutan including storage tips, and health benefits.

Rambutan Martini

Colorful branches are beautiful in vases, whole fruit make bright arrangements on the table, and the muddled flesh is excellent in this pre dinner cocktail. Serves 2.

1 cup rambutan, peeled, seeded and roughly chopped
1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger, cut into 1/4 cubes
3 ounces vodka
1 ounce Cointreau
2 ounces club soda
ice

Place ginger in a martini shaker and lightly muddle, add rambutan and thoroughly muddle. Add the rest of the ingredients and give it a good 20 second shake, until the outside of the shaker gets cold. Strain into two martini glasses and enjoy.