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Monday 18 February 2019

February, time to celebrate five seasonal foods

It's hard to believe we are more than half way through February. I wonder have you been celebrating the best of seasonal produce by filling your meals with all the fruit and vegetables February has to offer. Hardy celeriac, a low carb favourite and turnips are both versatile and plentiful, making vegetarian cooking easy. Crisp chicory comes in delicate yellow or bold red varieties and is perfect for adding crisp crunch to winter salads. For sweeter treats, beautiful blood oranges and tropical passion fruit add vibrant colour to any grey winter days.




Blood Oranges
Bold blood oranges brighten up your kitchen brilliantly during their short winter season. Blood oranges range from a delicate blush pink to deep red, adding intense colour to classic citrus dishes. They are at their sweetest in January and February, when warm Mediterranean days followed by cold nights cause the brightest coloured fruit.
Orange, Mozzarella and Rocket (Arugula) Salad - see details here
Moroccan Orange & Cardamom Cake - see details here 

Celeriac
Don't be put off by its appearance – there's beauty beneath celeriac's imperfect skin. A variety of celery cultivated for its edible roots, celeriac has a tough, knobbly outer layer that hides creamy white flesh underneath. Once peeled it will discolour quickly, so submerge in a bowl of water with a squeeze of lemon to keep it fresh.
Great Grub Celeriac - see details here
Cream of Celeriac Soup - see details here 

Chicory 
Also known as endive, chicory has crisp, tightly packed leaves and a delicate, slightly bitter flavour. A forced crop, grown in darkness so it grows quickly in search of light, chicory has white leaves with pale yellow or red tips.
Chicken with baked chicory in a sage and Dijon mustard sauce - see details here
Parma ham, walnut and Roquefort salad with chicory - see details here

Passion fruit 
Passion fruit bring the sunshine to grey February days. These South American tropical fruits have a tough, inedible skin that is brown or purple in colour. Passion fruit skin shrivels as the fruit ripens, so for the sweetest flesh choose wrinkly fruit, or leave to ripen on a windowsill at home. 
Grilled prawns with passion fruit dressing - see details here 
Passion fruit jellies - see details here

Turnips 
Hearty turnips are a classic British winter veg that are in plentiful supply at this time of year. Winter turnips have a peppery flavour that is perfect in warming casseroles, stews and easy one-pot dishes.
Mustard Chicken with winter vegetables, including turnips - see details here
Turkey Soup, using a mix of vegetables, turnips if liked - see details here

You will find a variety of articles, studies etc. plus recent news/views and recipe ideas within this blog, we hope something for everyone to read and enjoy ... but please note, not all may be suitable for you.
If you may have any food allergies, or underlying health issues these must always be taken into account. If you are a diabetic and not sure how certain foods may affect your blood sugars, test is best, i.e. use your meter.

All the best Jan

28 comments:

Catarina said...

When I look at those, farmers' market comes to mind!

Tom said...

...many are not common for me.

mxtodis123 said...

I remember the first time I ate a blood orange. I was in shock when I cut it. Then, after researching it further, learned that it was indeed good to eat.

carol l mckenna said...

Sounds and looks delish ^_^

Happy Day to you,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)

Valerie-Jael said...

These are all foods I love. Valerie

Karen said...

My grandmother often served rutabagas, similar to turnips. I love vegetables. Have a wonderful week.

Christine said...

Lovely winter vegetables!

Susan Kane said...

Winter veg. are so delicious. My blood orange tree just produced it first oranges!

Crafty Green Poet said...

Excellent selection. I haven't eaten passion fruit for years

Lady Fi said...

Yes - some of my favourite foods!

This N That said...

3 out of 5!! not too bad for me..Hope all is well with you..

Miss Val's Creations said...

These are great additions to dishes. My husband and I recently tried our first passion fruit. We did our homework so we knew it need to ripen well which took forever. We were pleasantly surprised by how much we enjoyed it and all the things that the fruit can be used for.

happyone said...

I sure do like turnips.

Gloria Baker said...

Love passion fruits and is one of my favorites, always I m using , love it!
Love oranges too !

Martha said...

A lovely selection!

Iris Flavia said...

Oh,I do love chicory! But luckily summer for me right now!

aussie aNNie said...

oh yum, these are just a gorgeous variety, especially the passionfruit.x

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

I love celeriac, turnips, and blood oranges. Only had chicory once when it was served as a coffee substitute. It didn't substitute well for me.

Angie said...

Jan - OK, I am feeling like a vegetable (and fruit) delinquent - none of these are in our house right now! Time to get back to the store!

baili said...

my parents were fond of turnip so am i dear Jan!

thank you for sharing these wonderful information

all of them we find here either except passion fruit

i agree they bring colors and nutrition to diet

Sami said...

Don't see blood oranges here in the supermarkets and the celeriac is also not often available, but we are in Summer, so maybe the wrong season. Thanks Jan

mamasmercantile said...

There hasn't been an abundance of blood oranges here but several other varieties are available.

riitta k said...

Your photo is beautiful and inspires to try these. Blood oranges taste juicy and delicious right now!

Sandra Cox said...

Interesting. The only thing I knew about chicory was that it was used as a coffee.
Have a great one, Jan.

sheila 77 said...

We eat a lot of veggies but have never tried celeriac so thanks for the suggestion.
Little turnips are also great, must grow them again this year.

John R said...

Seasonal fruit and veg are great. They are so fresh and because they are in season they are reasonably priced. A win - win situation.

William Kendall said...

I've never had turnips.

Magic Love Crow said...

Thanks for the great list Jan! Big Hugs!