Seasonal Grapefruit Mandarines Oranges Lemon Limes and Kiwi are all high in vitamin C to help keep colds and flu at bay.  They also add zest and flavour to wintery stews.  We traditionally see Valencia, Navel an Seville oranges in Sydney although blood oranges are becoming more readily available late in the season.

It wouldn’t be winter without pears in the fruit bowl and rhubarb in the fridge.  Eat them in crumble, poached atop your morning porridge or in bread and butter pudding.  There are plenty of Peckham and Nashi pears on the shelves right now.  Keep an eye out for Beurre Bosc which are perfect baked - be sure to choose firm fruit with undamaged skin.

Also in season are great winter warming root vegetables Sweet Potato, Swede, Celeriac and Turnip.  Eggplant, Brussels Sprouts, Fennel, Leek, Onions, Silverbeet, Whitlof and Cavolo Nero.

Carrots are another year-round staple but are at their best in winter.  Along with pumpkin, they are high in immune-boosting beta-carotene.

Cauliflower season runs from April to October.  You can also find green and purple and romanesco which is a hybrid of cauliflower and broccoli.

Chestnuts, Walnuts and Almonds high in Omega 3s and antioxidants.

Ginger:  look for think papery skins to represent freshness, the skin becomes thicker as the root becomes older.

Herbs:  Coriander, fresh peppercorns, marjoram, oregano, thyme.

Seafood: Blue grenadier, Bream, Flathead, Ling, Mud Crab, Oyster, Prawns, Red Emperor, Sea Mullet, Snapper

Pears are plentiful. William pears are still available along with new season Packham and Beurru Bosc pears.  Select firm, mature pears and ripen at room temperature or cook while still firm.

There is a great selection of crisp, new season apples now available ranging from Bonza, Granny Smith, Golden Delicious and Jonathon,

Other early Autumn fruits include Persimmons Pomegranates Quinces Rhubarb Banana Grapefruit Grapes Kiwifruit Figs and Lemon.

Try new season fennel raw, finely sliced and tossed with olive oil, lemon juice, salt and black pepper.

Most mushrooms are farmed in climate controlled sheds but you can still find full-flavoured wild varieties at markets.  Better still, learn where and how to forage for your own via the Oberon Visitors Centre 6329-8210.  Remember though, if in doubt, throw it out!                                                                                                                    

Also keep an eye out for fresh  Artichoke Silverbeet/Swiss Chard celeriac Olives Pumpkin Beanshoots Broccoli Carrot Cauliflower Potato Turnip

Guinea Fowl Hare Partridge Pheasant

Almonds, Chestnuts & Walnuts all of which are grown in our own Blue Mountains. Chestnuts have a sweet taste and can be boiled, baked, grilled or roasted. Choose those that feel heavy for their size.

Easter traditionally marked the start of spring - in the northern hemisphere at least - where festivals honoured fertility and a time of rebirth of nature.  Pre-Christian Saxon’s glorified their goddess of dawn, Eostre, in spring rituals; her animal was the hare.

Adopted by the early Christian church to celebrate the death and resurrection of Christ, Eostre herself was “reborn” in England around the 5th Century AD taking the modern English, Easter.

The date of Easter Sunday is governed by the seasons and falls on the full moon following the northern Spring Equinox.  Originally calculated by Egyptian astronomers around 200AD, it now marks the end of the Christian Lent and Jewish Passover.

The egg has become a symbol of  renewal and rebirth.  There are a few theories for this.  The end of winter and the lead up to spring is traditionally a time of fasting for many cultures.  During this time the eating of animal products, including eggs and milk, is forbidden.

For Christians, Lent commences following the much celebrated Pancake Tuesday, when all remaining diary and eggs in the household would be used up. For Orthodox Christians, the larder would be cleared before commencement o f their fast, known as Clean Monday.

Chickens of course continued laying.  The eating of precious eggs - now in abundance - became a celebrated part of breaking the fast.  Some eggs would have been hard boiled or pickled to help prevent spoilage.

The earliest Easter eggs were decorated hen, duck or goose eggs we still sometimes see today. By the end of the 17th Century, various materials were used to mimic nature, from cardboard eggs filled with treats and gifts tot he famous jewel encrusted Faberge Eggs made for the Czar of Russia.

The first chocolate eggs appeared in France in the early 1800’s and quickly spread to the rest of Europe.  Made from ground roasted cacao beans, they were originally solid.

Modern chocolate making processes and mass manufacturing methods allowed for the moulded chocolate eggs we know and love today.  It might surprise you to know that these have only been popular since the 1960’s.

A recent study from the University of California tells us that the cacao found in dark organic chocolate is rich in flavonoids, which not only exhibit a cancer-fighting antioxidant effect, but also promote a healthy cardiovascular system. It also makes you feel good both by stimulating production of endorphins and the fact it contains serotonin.

But why must if be dark and organic?

@     Dark chocolate contains up to 80% cacao.  Milk chocolate may contain as little as 10% ground cacao, the rest can be anything from cocoa butter, milk and milk solids, sweeteners, natural or artificial flavours and emulsifiers. White chocolate contains none of the healthy cacao.

@     In order to keep up with the world’s demand for chocolate, cacao is now generally grown in commercial plantations.  When grown in its native rainforest, the local plants and insects provide a complex but natural system of pest management.  Plantation growers, however, heavily rely on expensive chemicals to do the job and it is one of the heaviest sprayed crops consumed today.

@     Fair trade organic chocolate companies support the growing of environmentally sensitive cacao including no clearing of virgin forests and no use of pesticides and fertilisers.

So, this Easter rather than reaching for the usual mass-produced chocolate-like treat… why not try the heart and earth healthy, feel good dark organic fair trade option.

Stone fruit remains in season through March but berries become scarce as the weather cools.  We do however gain early season apples along with other autumn season treats.  What’s in season? … read more

February Fruits - Berries, grapes, nectarine, peaches, pears, plum, strawberries, tomatoes, watermelon and banana .