SEASONAL FALL VEGETABLES

SEASONAL FALL VEGETABLES

I spent some time at one of the local green markets this Saturday and I was amazed at all the fall produce available.  The selection of different Potatoes, Beets, Squashes, Root Vegetables, Cabbages along with Onions were truly amazing.  On could build an entire meal around root vegetables alone.  Using this for inspiration, I thought I would provide a list of all the goodies available, along with tips on how to pick, and choose each vegetable and finally what cooking methods are best suited for each vegetable.  So go ahead and be daring and courageous and try something new for dinner.  I might just completely surprise you.

 Beets

Peak Season from September to October.

Inexpensive, these ruby reds hold a wealth of sweetened earth flavor. Garden beets may be magenta, golden yellow, or sliced open to reveal signs of pinkish red and white.  Whatever their color, the best-tasting beets will be the size of a golf ball or smaller and have smooth, firm flesh, with twine like tap roots still attached.  They are great for making salads, pickling and roasting on high temperatures.  Slices of deep garnet beets are excellent for canning and pickling, but they do not freeze well.

Cabbage

Peak Season from September to November

Both Cabbage and Brussels sprouts are treasures when cooked properly.  Of the many varieties these are the most common: Danish, Domestic Cabbage, Red Cabbage, and Savoy Cabbage.  Look for cabbages with heavy, solid heads and flawless outer leaves.  The best Brussels sprouts will be fresh, green and even in size. Cabbage can be used in stir fry’s,   or they can be stuffed and sauteed by itself.  Tightly wrapped and refrigerated, cabbages remain in good condition for two weeks or more.

Fennel

Peak Season from November to December

Fennel give cooks a way to infuse foods with refreshing crispness and subtle anise like flavor.  Its thick bulbous stem base and celery like stalks may be used raw, chopped into salads, or cooked.  Look for round white bulbs with fresh green stems and leaves.  Wrapped in the refrigerator life on this vegetable is not more than two days.

Kohlrabi

Peak Season from September to November

Few people know what a magical vegetable it is.  Although one would think this vegetable to taste like cabbage, it doesn’t copy the flavor of cabbage at all; instead it is full of surprises.  Raw, it tastes like a radish, cooked it tastes more like a turnip. Plant tops are the best indicator of quality; they should be young and green.  It is a good keep and wrapped tightly and in the refrigerator is will last about two weeks best when used roasted, or mashed like a potato.

Root Vegetables (My Favorite)

Peak Season from September to November.

Parsnips, Turnips, and Rutabagas are homely and rustic root vegetables and are often relegated to the background, in grocery stores.  These earthy ignored veggies can bring wonderful sweet flavors to the dinner table, and cost practically nothing at all.  They are surprisingly delicious braised, roasted, and mashed added to soups and stews, these vegetables will give you a huge bang for your buck.  When shopping for any of these vegetables, choose roots of small to medium size, larger than and they may be tough and pithy.  Always make sure to peel these vegetables before using them, they are often coated with paraffin to extend their shelf life.  Store covered or bagged in the refrigerator for up to a month.

Potatoes

Peak Season from September to November.

One of nature’s most perfect foods, potatoes are incredibly versatile, delicious seasoned and buttered and mashed, roasted, steamed, pan-fried, or deep-fried, in salads or simply baked whole in a hot oven. Whites, Reds, Yellows, and Sweet potatoes with so many varieties to choose from some are good for more than on type of cooking method.  The best potatoes will be plump, firm, and regularly shaped, store potatoes in a cool dry place with good air circulation up to a month.

ONIONS

Peak Season from September to October.

Many a tear has been shed over this root vegetable, but when used in a variety of different dishes they not only infuse the dish itself, but fill your kitchen with homey aromas.  The pungent-sweet flavor of common onion types is similar yet varies in intensity.  White onions, Yellow Onions, and Red onions have the reputation as the most universally eaten vegetable and an indispensable staple.  Look for onions that are firm and heavy, with dry, papery skins.  Avoid signs of softness, milder, and sprouting.  All onions types are lengthy keepers when stored in a cool, dry place with good ventilation.  Do not refrigerate, onions do not handle the cold well.  

Garlic

Peak Season from September to October

For such a small bulb, garlic has a gargantuan reputation.  This delightful herb contains medicine so powerful that it’s purported to cure everything from the plague to the common cold, and to make every dish it graces something wonderful. Garlic flavors range from warm and sweet to hot and heady, depending on the cooking Method.  When roasting whole cloves, it becomes sweet and buttery, minced it becomes pungent, simmered melts into sweet subtlety, and when sauteed becomes domineering and assertive.  Look for bulbs that are firm and heavy, with dry, papery skins.  Avoid signs of softness, mildew, and sprouting.  Garlic is generally a good keeper when stored in a cool, dry place with good ventilation.  Do not store garlic in the refrigerator.

Butternut Squash

Peak Season from September to November

Unlike other winter squash, which tends to be stringy and fibrous, butternut squash boasts sweet-tasting, finely grained pulp that provides a superb, sensationally silky mouth feel.  It can be cooked into both sweet and savory dishes.  It has a firm enough texture to hold its own, chopped and stirred into a risotto, and it also makes a fabulously creamy and smooth soup.  Choose sturdy, heavy fruits with unblemished skin.  Butternut squash will keep for a month or even more if stored in a cool, dry, dark, and well ventilated place.