Now that we're well and truly into spring, it is much easier to eat with the season, particularly as this is the most abundant time for fruit and vegetable production. Yum - there's so much variety!
Are you wondering what's so important about eating seasonally? Well, for one thing it supports sustainability and for another it forces you to have variety in your diet - a very important part of healthy eating!
Where do you think out-of-season fruit and vegetables come from? They're usually flown over from the other side of the world (where they are in season) and/or picked early and stored in cool rooms until it's time to put on the supermarket shelves. Over time this produce will be depleted of important nutrients and flavour ... not to mention racking up the food kilometers taken to get to you!
Did you know that fruits and vegetables tend to appear in seasons for which they're best suited nutritionally? Think of those heavy winter staples (e.g. root vegetables) that are perfect for warming soups and stews; or those leafy greens and refreshing fruits that go perfectly in cooling summer salads.
Let's give you an idea of what's in season now - lucky for all of us this time of year provides plenty of choice!
FRUIT |
VEGETABLES |
Apples Cumquats Lemons Grapefruit Mandarins Oranges Pineapples Pawpaw Strawberries Blueberries (just about!) Raspberries (just about!)
Soon it will be time for all those lovely summery stone fruits and even more berries to start filling up the market stalls - here in the clinic we can't wait!
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Broccoli Cauliflower Cabbage Asian greens e.g. Bok choy, Pak choy, Tat soi Rocket Lettuce Spinach Green beans Avocado Sweet corn Artichokes Carrots Beetroot Spring onions Asparagus Mushrooms Zucchini |