The Savvy Girl's Guide to: Shopping In Season

Today most fruit and vegetables are available all year round, made available by importing from the US and other overseas countries or through greenhouse growing and specialised storage.

But while it may be nice to eat nectarines in the middle of winter, something to consider is how far the food has travelled. Food miles, the distance food travels from field to plate, is a way of indicating the environmental impact of the food we eat. We are lucky here that almost all of our produce is locally grown. Eating in season will help make sure you minimise your carbon footprint.

Eating in season also ensures you get the freshest, tastiest and most nutrient rich produce.

Here’s a selection of what’s in season in June..

Broccoli is a nutrient powerhouse, providing high levels of antioxidants, vitamin C, fibre and folate. It is also a source of calcium, iron, vitamin A and E and potassium. Broccoli is also rich in phytochemicals, one of which has been found by scientists to inhibit the development of certain types of cancer

This vegetable is an excellent source of Vitamin C and contains Vitamin K, which is essential for blood clotting. Cauliflower is also a source of fibre, contains B vitamins and small amounts of calcium. It is a rich source of phytochemicals.

Leeks are a good source of vitamin C and folate and also contain B vitamins, vitamin E, copper, potassium and iron. Nice with cheese sauce and in a stir fry.

Of most significance, pumpkin contains high levels of Vitamin A in the form of pro-vitamin A carotenes. These carotenesare converted in the body to Vitamin A. The brighter the colour of the pumpkin, the higher levels of carotenoids it will contain.

1 pumpkin, cut into small pieces and deseeded and peeled.

1 onion

2 cloves garlic

½ teaspoon curry powder

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon of vegetable stock powder

½ can low fat evaporated milk

 

Cut the pumpkin up into chunks and place in a pot of boiling water. Add the chopped onion and cook until the pumpkin is soft. Drain the water. Chop the cloves of garlic and add to the pumpkin with the curry powder, nutmeg and vegetable stock powder. Blend with a stick blender in the pot until smooth. Add the evaporated milk, mix well and heat the soup until warm and ready to serve. If the soup is too thick, add some hot water and mix in.

 

1 Broccoli

1 tablespoon olive oil

Juice of one lemon

¼ cup pine nuts

Handful of parmesan cheese shavings

 

Cut one broccoli into small sized pieces and steam until lightly cooked (still bright green and slightly crunchy to bite). Place in a dish and mix through pine nuts. In a small bowl mix the olive oil and lemon juice. Drizzle over the broccoli. Sprinkle over the parmesan shavings and serve immediately.