Nourish Naturally Seasonal Recipes

Our health and vitality is largely dependent on the nutritional content of food. Eating seasonally – eating foods that are available and grown locally – means getting the best flavour and nutritional value from fresh food. It’s cheaper and cleaner as fewer chemicals are required for storage and shipping. Eating crops you've grown yourself can't be beaten for ultimate satisfaction.

Each month, you will find three favourite seasonal recipes, based on key foods in season, noting their health benefits.

August

Local produce in August is plentiful as fruit and vegetables ripen in the heat of the sun. Courgettes, leeks, tomatoes and sweetcorn ripen while early wild mushrooms, apples, blackberries, pears and plums are ready to be eaten.

Think salads and smoothies, lighter dishes full of fresh and some raw food for active enzymes to ease digestion.

Pick your own or take advantage of the cheaper prices at markets. Get the kids involved during the school holidays - growing, picking, preparing or cooking dishes. Not only for an educational perspective but to increase their taste experience.

Well, we can all but hope for a hot, dry Summer anyway...

Scallops with pea and mint puree

The little pea is a legume and grows inside pods.As with all types of legume, their sugars start to turn to starch as shortly after they're picked, so they are best eaten just-picked. Frozen peas are put on ice very soon after being picked (within three hours) and the flavour can be superior to that of fresh peas harvested a couple of days previously. But spending an afternoon podding peas on a sunny day with a glass of crisp white wine shouldn’t be underestimated either!

Just one cup of boiled green peas provides over 51% of the required amount of vitamin K, 42% of your daily manganese, 40% of the daily requirement of vitamin C and over ¼ of your body's daily requirement of vitamin B1 (thiamin) plus over 1/3 of your daily fibre. Peas support healthy kidney functioning and thereforeassociated cardiovascular complications like stroke and high blood pressure.

This recipe makes a quick but impressive looking starter. Tastes good too and scallops are still in season.

250g frozen peas

25g butter + a bit to fry

chicken stock fresh, cube or concentrate, made up to 50ml

a small bunch of mint, roughly chopped

12 scallops

½ teaspoon groundcumin

sunflower oil

winter salad leaves, to serve

balsamic vinegar

1. Put the peas, 25g butter and stock in a pan and season well. Simmer for

     about 3-4 minutes (you want the peas to stay bright green) then put in a

     food processor or blender with the mint and whizz to a purée. Put back in

     the pan and keep warm.

2. Season the scallops with a little cumin and salt. Heat a non-stick frying

     pan to very hot with a little oil and butter. Sear the scallops for about 1

     minute each side (you want a nice caramelised colour on them).

3. Serve 3 scallops per person on a bed of the pea purée with a few leaves

     dressed with balsamic.

Serves 4             Ready in 20 mins                High protein

Crayfish and grapefruit salad

Boiled crawfish is a low fat food, having 1 gram of fat per serving and no saturated fat. It does, however, contain about 120 milligrams of cholesterol. There are 14 grams of protein in a 3 ounce serving of boiled crayfish and no carbohydrates and is thus considered a high quality protein source because it contains all 9 essential amino acids. It also contains 165 milligrams of the essential fatty acid omega-3 and 76.5 milligrams of omega-6, a good ratio.

Arguably more flavoursome than lobster, crayfish is a very good source of selenium, manganese, copper, phosphorus and vitamin B12. Crayfish meat is considered more easily digestible than other types of meat due to its short muscle fibers. Crawfish included in the diet may offer some of the health benefits ascribed to seafood in general, including protection against Alzheimers, stroke, cancer, asthma and heart disease.

This dish is perfect for Summer. Light, tasty and zingy. Please note to refrain from adding the dressing until the last minute, to avoid the acidity of the citrus juice from further “cooking” the crayfish and salad leaves.

1kg crayfish

2 oranges

2 ruby grapefruit

1 large shallot (or 2 small ones), peeled and finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon English mustard

Zest of 1 unwaxed orange

200ml extra virgin olive oil

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 large firm but ripe avocado

200g mixed salad leaves

1. Gently poach the crayfish in a pot of salted water for 3-4 minutes until the

     shells have turned an orangey brown. Remove and plunge into a bowl of

     iced water to refresh, then drain and extract the flesh from the shells.

2. Slice off the tops and bottoms of the oranges and grapefruit using a

     sharp, serrated knife. Cut away the remaining peel and pith, then cut

     along the membrane of the fruit to release the segments, holding the fruit

     over a sieve set on a bowl to catch the juice. Squeeze out the excess

     juice from the core of each fruit before discarding.

3. Whisk together 6 tablespoons of the citrus juice with the chopped shallot,

     mustard, orange zest, olive oil and seasoning to taste.

4. Peel, stone and slice the avocado into neat slivers. Place into a bowl and

     gently toss with the citrus segments and crayfish tails – use your hands.

5. Divide the mixture among four serving plates, then top with a neat pile of

     salad leaves in the centre. Spoon over the citrus dressing and serve

     immediately.

Serves 4             Prep 30 mins            Cook 5 mins       Low sat fat

Peach cremolata

Originally from China, peaches are sweet, juicy and fragrant, covered with a velvety down, and most commonly have a red-blushed yellow skin and golden yellow flesh. White peaches have a pink-blushed cream skin and pinky white flesh. A ripe peach will have a fragrant aroma, and will be yellow around the stem. It should feel firm but will yield slightly when it's gently squeezed. Slightly underripe peaches will soften if stored at room temperature, but won't get much sweeter.

Tough skin can be peeled off with your fingers, or drop the peach into boiling water for around 15 or more seconds then plunge immediately into cold water. The skin should then come away easily. If you are not going to eat cut peaches straight away, brush the cut sides with lemon juice or acidulated water to prevent them going brown.

Peaches are rich in a variety of nutrients like vitamin C, absorbable iron and fibre. But they are particularly high in potassium. A shortage of potassium can lead to fatigue, anxiety, muscle weakness, skin problems, poor memory, hypertension, cardiac arrhythmia, congestive heart failure or heart deterioration and vibration in your ears. Carotenes lycopene and lutein, as well as beta-carotene give colour to the peach and can help prevent macular degeneration, cancer and heart disease.

10 ultra ripe peaches , peeled, stoned and sliced

1 tbsp sugar (optional)

1 large pot Greek 100% fat-free yoghurt

1. Put the peaches in a large bowl. Taste them for sweetness and sprinkle in

     some sugar if you think they need a little extra. Crush the fruit to a pulp

     with a fork or a potato masher.

2. Put the bowl into the freezer for 45 minutes then take it out, stir, and

     crush the fruit again. Return the bowl to the freezer for 20 minutes at a

     time, repeating the stirring and crushing, until the crushed fruit looks and

     feels like sherbet, which will take about 1 to 1½ hours.

3.   Softly whip the yoghurt. Scoop the cremolata into bowls, top with the

      yoghurt.

4.   For added texture top with crushed amaretto biscuits.

Serves 6            Prep 20 mins + freezing                Gluten-free