Of course with all the imports from around the globe we are able to enjoy our favourite fruit and vegetables all year around. But what is in season now? There are fruits and vegetables that can be enjoyed for most of the year but then others that are coming into season, or are at their best now.
On the fruit front:
Apples
Damsons
Plums
Figs
Peaches
Nectarines
Tomatoes
Berries: Raspberries, Blackberries, Gooseberries..
Vegetables:
Aubergines
Beetroot
Broccoli
Cabbage
Carrots
Celery
When making food at home, fresh and from scratch or whether you are eating out, eating food that is in season tastes so much better. In fact the taste can be completely different to other times of the year.
Having an allotment and orchard means I am fortunate enough to have everything I desire at my fingertips. The ones listed above are what I would say are the most common and desired for a simple veg patch… of course there are other fruit and veg that are in season, if you would like a quick guide then BBC Food provide a more in depth description.
I have been busy this weekend using up the crop that is coming to its end and using the other crop that is well, um, in abundance!
I was making soup, a favourite of mine. Quick and simple- food prep heaven… batch making tasty soups that can be froze and whipped out when I need a quick fix! There are many days as you can imagine, coming home after a busy day and needing something to fill the gap without all the prep. Even last week when it was all wintery and I was feeling run down, I went to the freezer to grab my last premade soup! 😊
This week I was making hearty tomato soup, 100% tomato – it is fresh and packed full of flavour. Using the beef and cherry tomatoes creates layers of flavour, adding natural sweetness of course alongside the tomato was the standard seasoning to bring out the flavour, but I still decided it was lacking something? I had recently dried and grounded some fennel so added some of this to the pot, it lifted the flavour without changing its taste, Perfect!
Second up was getting rid of a few marrows. Something that always gets left until last in the household, I made a lovely detox soup last year and did a variation of it this year. Of course it had some chilli, my friends at Wiltshire Chillies gave me a Dark Habanero a few weeks ago and I was deciding how best to use it. Actually I made myself laugh when cutting it. The smell was overwhelming, the strength just took me back to the chilli eating contests! A dab of the chilli juice on my tongue actually set my mouth on fire! I have no idea how I eat them whole and in plenty! I did put my family through the paces too, they literally licked their finger, touched the chopping board then licked again… their mouths were on fire without actually eating any 😉 they went straight for the glass of water, I did chuckle!
So that is my food prep done… a few batches to keep me going for some meals this week and I will freeze a few for that needing day! 😊
