Your guide to what’s in season – and exactly what to cook with it

As much as it may become colder, many crops endure the cool nights to make some of your favourite vegetables and fruits out of the year

WINTER often portrayed as a time when there is a lack of food. However, there are many fruits and vegetables on offer during the colder months.

Many crops endure the cool nights to make some of your favourite vegetables and fruits. These fruits and vegetables have their own set of properties that keep our bodies healthy, they help us not just survive but thrive in any given season and are packed with natural remedies for seasonal health problems. The team at Life is a Garden said vegetables available now included the brassica family that needed cold conditions to bear fruit.

“Brassica family consists of cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts. Oriental vegetables perform better in cooler conditions as they do not ‘bolt’ as fast as in summer. Certain lettuce varieties are able to withstand extreme cold conditions, for example, butter lettuce. However, most of the ‘head’ varieties will turn to mush after a heavy frost. Celery is another winter favourite, with mature plants taking a heavy frost. Peas are also a great plant for colder conditions, along with leeks.”

VEGETABLES that are available now include the brassica family which needs cold conditions to bear fruit mass, as well as a shorter day length. | SEBASTIAN COMAN | Pexels

Ripe fruits this season include apples, avocados, bananas, lemon, naartjie, oranges, pawpaw, kiwi, grapefruit, granadillas, and gooseberries.

CITRUS is the main fruit available in this period as they require a shorter day length, as well as cool temperatures to produce flowers and fruit. JESS LOITETON Pexels

“Citrus is the main fruit available in this period as they require a shorter day length, as well as cool temperatures to produce flowers and fruit. Again, if these are to be purchased out of season, they will cost more due to the fact that fruit will be imported. Certain varieties of avocado are also in season now. Apples will be classed as in season now, although they would have been harvested in the last two months.

"Fruit trees are rarely forced to produce, and are rather imported if out of season. Pineapples are an important export for South Africa, which are harvested twice a year, one of which is about now. The demand for fruit in warmer times of the year is higher because of the availability, but also because the idea of eating cold fruit in winter is not that appealing whereas cooling down in summer with cold fruit is very appealing”, they added.

Dietitian Shani Cohen also recommended the below for a healthy and energetic winter.

Mushrooms

Mushrooms are a great addition to any winter diet. Studies show that during winter our vitamin D (also known as the sunshine vitamin) levels drop because we spend more time indoors than outdoors in the sun. Mushrooms are a particularly great source of vitamin D.

MUSHROOMS are a great addition to any winter diet. | POLINA TANKILEVITCH Pexels

What is even better, is that you can further enrich your mushrooms with vitamin D naturally by exposing them to sunlight for about 15 minutes before cooking. You can mix them into sauces, stir-fry or add them as a side to your eggs for breakfast.

Vegetable soup

To satisfy our body and mind, we should be seeking out healthy comfort foods that make us feel full, warm, and satisfied. We tend to often skip out on salads because they seem unappealing in cold weather, which means it is quite common to eat fewer vegetables than we should during winter. However, soup is a great way to get more fibre-filled vegetables into your winter diet. Soup is winter’s perfect food. You can toss just about anything into a soup pot. To save on unhealthy fats and calories, choose to make a homemade soup. Storebought soups, whether fresh or tinned, tend to be quite high in salt and often have cream added.

Make a batch of soup on a Sunday for the week, and portion it out into individual servings. The soup can then be frozen and defrosted on the go as a quick snack, lunch, or even dinner.

Legumes

Legumes, like beans, lentils, and split peas are healthy and inexpensive protein-rich ingredients for winter recipes. They contain important nutrients like fibre and supply an impressive array of vitamins and minerals like iron, B vitamins, zinc, and magnesium. Legumes are a great plant-based protein for those who are vegetarian, vegan, or those who simply want to include more plantbased foods in their diet.

They have a hearty and meaty taste – include them in soups, stews, and curries. Try to buy the dried option of legumes which you can boil, instead of tinned ones as they are often preserved in salt water.

LEGUMES, like beans, lentils, and split peas are healthy and inexpensive protein-rich ingredients for winter recipes.| DAVID ABBRAM Pexels