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My birthday is in December. All I have ever wanted for my birthday breakfast is to have Cheerios with strawberries on top—my favorite breakfast of all. And every time I try to have it, it’s terrible. Because you know what? Strawberries don’t grow in Maryland in December. They’re not supposed to. And the strawberries hauled in from South America, grown for stable shelf life and to survive shipping, taste terrible.
So now, when strawberry season begins, I drive to the Eastern Shore, crossing the Bay Bridge and buying pounds of them—at least two of which I eat before I get back on Route 50.
Eating fruits and vegetables that are in season means eating better and, in many cases, more healthfully. Tomatoes that are grown on the vine and eaten soon after harvested have more lycopene, a beneficial antioxidant; strawberries that grow naturally, fed by the sunlight (and not some lamp) have more vitamin C. Moreover, seasonal vegetables are cheaper and, if you buy them locally, are much better tasting.
Stephanie Selmer and her husband Chris, of Takoma Park, use a CSA from a farm in Shepherdstown, W.Va. to supply their spring, summer and early autumn vegetables. Since they don’t get to choose what veggies show up every week, “you learn to roll with it,” she says. “I mean, in the spring, it’s literally a giant bag of greens,” some of which are rather uncommon. “So you go to the Internet and look it up, and see how to make it.”
“Local, fresh produce is something we like,” continues Selmer. “And it comes to us every week, so that makes it easier.” They don’t just depend on their CSA for seasonal vegetables, though—they use both their local farmer’s market and conventional grocery stores. “We’re not stuck on eating locally. If we want asparagus and the only asparagus is from California or Chile, we’ll buy it. But most of our dollars are spent locally. But you don’t have to give anything up.”
Late summer
It’s time to gorge yourself on summer tomatoes—it’s the best way to say goodbye before the only options available are hard, tasteless, mealy things. Simple is best when it comes to summer’s best: this recipe is easy and goes well with almost anything.
Tomato Confit
From The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters
Serves 4
Preheat the oven to 350. Peel four medium tomatoes by plunging into boiling water for one minute and then immediately submersing in ice water—the skins should come off easily. Core the tomatoes using a sharp knife.
In the bottom of a baking dish just large enough to hold the tomatoes snugly, scatter a few fresh basil sprigs. Arrange the tomatoes core side doen on top of the basil. Sprinkle with salt. Add about ½ cup olive oil. Bake for about 50 minutes. The tomatoes are done when lightly browned on top and completely tender. Remove them carefully when serving. The oil left behind can be saved to add to a vinaigrette or other sauce.
Autumn
Cabbage spends its summers in coleslaw, but come autumn it takes on a whole new role. Sweet and tangy, red cabbage makes a great side dish for pork, chicken or duck. Adding apples makes the dish more palatable to kids.
Red Cabbage with Apples and Honey
From Braise by Daniel Boloud
- 4 cardamom pods
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- ½ cup honey
- 4 cups apple juice
- 1/3 cup white wine vinegar
- 4 ounces smoked country bacon, cut into 1-by-1/2-inch strips
- 2 medium onions, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 head red cabbage, quartered, cored and thinly sliced
- 2 Granny Smith apples, cored and diced
Put a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 300.
In a space grinder or clean coffee grinder, finely grind the cardamom and coriander seeds. Bring the honey to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the ground spices, apple juice and white wine vinegar, bring to a boil, and reduce the liquid by half. [Editor’s note: I have also used ground coriander and cardamom (since I don’t own a spice grinder) and it was fine.)]
In a medium cast-iron pot or Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until translucent, 5-7 minutes. Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes more. Add he red cabbage and apples and cook, stirring, until softened, about 15 minutes. Pour the reduced honey-apple mixture over the cabbage and toss to coat. Cover the pot and transfer it to the oven.
Braise for 2 hours, or until the cabbage is very tender
Winter
Winter is the best time for long, slow-roasted dishes. You can camp out on the couch watching movies while dinner makes itself, steaming the whole house up with good smells. Instead of paying more for out-of-season produce, embrace those vegetables that are at their best when the cold rolls in—dark, leafy greens like kale and swiss chard and the incredible array of squashes. Squash is cheap, nutritious and tasty (no, really.)
Whole Roasted “Cricket Ball” Squash
From Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver
Serves 4
- 4 gem or small acorn squash
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- 1 level tsp. coriander seeds
- 1-2 dried red chilis, chopped, to taste
- a pinch of ground cinnamon
- 8 sun-dried tomatoes in oil
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- a large handful of arugula, washed and spun dry
- extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ a lemon
- 9 ounces crumbly goat’s cheese or feta cheese
Preheat your oven to 350. Slice off the top part of the squash, where the stalk comes out, leaving you with a lid for each (like taking the top off a boiled egg.) Please do this carefully—no slipping! Scoop out the seeds and discard them. Crush up all the herbs and spices in a pestle and mortar or Flavor Shaker until ground to a powder. Drain the sun-dried tomatoes, reserving the oil. Drizzle a little of the oil into each of the squash and use your fingers to smear it round the insides. Season the inside of each squash with salt and pepper, followed by a sprinkling of the spice mixture. Finely chop up the sun-dried tomatoes and add those to the squash, giving each one a little mix around. Place the lid on top of each squash. Place in a baking dish and roast in the preheated oven for around 45 minutes to an hour, until the flesh is soft.
Take your squash out of the oven. I like to let them cool down for a little while while I simply dress the arugula with a pinch of salt and pepper, a drizzle of good extra-virgin olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice. Place a whole squash onto each of your four serving plats. Cut up the goat’s cheese and place some on each plate. Serve with the dressed arugula and a teaspoon for scooping out the incredible flavors.
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