Since local and seasonal food is such a hot topic at the moment, the time is right to ‘go herbal’ and get down and dirty with the seasons.
Over the course of the year, I’ll take you through what’s going on in relation to all things seasonal, with a recipe or two thrown in. These will of course vary throughout the country according to weather, therefore the produce chosen is an average of what’s in season.
It’s not that eating seasonal food is necessarily more ‘healthy’ for our bodies, indeed some would argue that eating completely seasonal food is less healthy due to decreased variation in the diet. It is however, most definitely more healthy for the environment - less of those devastating food miles to destroy air quality.
We’re all too used to buying what we like, when we want it - blow the consequences. Or perhaps we don’t even think of consequences. But, little by little, we can incorporate changes in our daily diet, without there being too much hardship. Every little bit helps.
Throughout the country, many groups have popped up addressing the subject of seasonal food - there are allotments, co-operatives, fruit & vege swaps. However, although London does have allotments, they’re not plentiful and access depends completely on where you live. The closer to the inner city you live, the less available is an allotment. Which makes farmers markets all the more important.
So, let’s get cracking. We start with October …