Welcome to Spring! This is always such a wonderful time of the year as we emerge from the cooler, shorter months and begin to embrace warmer, longer days. Spring is always a delicious season of abundance with many new vibrant flavors coming to life.

What is in season this Spring?

Asparagus
Artichoke
Apples
Avocado
Bean Sprouts
Bananas
Broccoli
Garlic
Grapefruit
Kale
Leafy Greens
Lemons
Leek
Mushrooms
Mandarines
Peas
Radishes
Rhubarb
Pineapple
Silverbeet
Spinach

Why Eat Seasonally?

Eating seasonally about knowing when certain fruits and vegetables grow naturally in your climate, and then eating them in those seasons. Shopping at a farmer’s market inherently lends itself to eating in season, as the majority of the produce there is grown nearby and picked at its peak. It gets a lot trickier at the grocery store, however, where fruit and vegetables are shipped in year-round from all over the world. Today it’s so easy to transport food long distances that we take it for granted that we can eat fresh berries or have avocado toast every day! Many people don’t even know anymore what fruits and vegetables are in season where they live.

Consuming fruits and vegetables in season has an impact on the food’s nutritional value- you get the maximum amount of nutrients the produce has to offer when it’s naturally picked at its ripest. In a study monitoring the vitamin C content of broccoli, it was found that broccoli grown during its peak season had a higher vitamin C content. When foods are grown out of season, they aren’t able to follow their natural growing and ripening rhythms.

There’s no doubt about it that eating produce when it is in season simply tastes better. The goal of large commercial farms is to produce a volume of product to meet high demand. Unfortunately, quantity and appearance override taste. Selective breeding favors uniform ripening and shelf life over flavor, leading to lacklustre tomatoes and tasteless strawberries. On the other hand, naturally ripened fruits and vegetables grown and picked in season are typically full of flavor and nutrients.

Another bonus- eating fruit and vegetables in season means they are abundant and therefore are often available at a lower price. For example, summer is berry season, so that’s why strawberries and other berries are so cheap during the summer. A great tip for saving money on healthy food is to buy in-season produce.

With apples and rhubarb in season in Spring, here is a delicious crumble recipe to try at home. The good news is, this recipe can be easily adapted to whatever fruit is in season- try berries or stone fruit in the warmer months or pear and apple through winter.

Enjoy!

Apple and Rhubard Crumble

FILLING

4 medium-large apples sliced
2 large sticks of rhubarb finely sliced
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1-2 tablespoons coconut sugar
½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 pinch nutmeg

TOPPING

1/2 cup gluten-free rolled oats
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup spelt flour
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/4 cup almond flakes
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup melted coconut oil

METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees
Mix the filling ingredients together in a bowl then place into a baking dish
Mix the topping ingredients together and then sprinkle on top of the filling
Bake for 30 minutes until the fruit is tender and the topping crisp
Serve with coconut yogurt or ice scream for added deliciousness!