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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.
July
July means Summer! Fruit and veggie patches are really starting to look exciting.
Superfruits like juicy cherries, strawberries and raspberries plus sprigs of redcurrants and blue berries are perfect for summer pudding or making into a light fruit salad. Beans – runner, broad and French – are abundant as are cucumbers and fennel. Great food for picnics on a hot Summer weekend day in a park or area of outstanding beauty.
Pea and artichoke houmous
Artichoke is one of the ultimate super foods as it has the highest context of antioxidants of all vegetables. Some of these include are quercetin, rutin, anthocyanins, cyanarin, luteolin and silymarin. Artichokes are a fantastic digestive aid – the Cynarin and silymarin in particular are very beneficial to the liver. Studies have found they may even regenerate liver tissue. Try the leaves as a healthy alternative to a hair of the dog! The pulp of the leaves can stimulate bile flow, raise good cholesterol (HDL) and reduce low cholesterol (LDL).
Studies done with artichoke leaf extract have found that to induce apoptosis (cell death) and reduce cell proliferation in many different forms of cancer, including prostate cancer, leukemia, and breast cancer.
There are ways to cook an artichoke, such as steaming or braising, so that the entire thing, stem and all, can be consumed. However, even eating just the meat of the leaves and the heart will provide benefits. This is a summery twist on chickpea hummus - the lemon and cumin are a lovely combination. It is very easy to whip up and a good use of cupboard ingredients.
140g frozen petits pois
100g artichoke hearts from a jar or can
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tbsp lemon juice
small handful mint leaves
1. Add peas to a pan of boiling water and cook for 3-5 minutes. Drain and tip
into a food processor.
2. Add all the other ingredients and seasoning to the processor and pulse to
make a rough purée. Blend longer for a more smooth consistency, less
for a more chunky option.
3. Spoon the mixture into a small bowl. Cover with cling film, chill until ready
to serve with crostini or oatcakes.
Serves 6 Prep 10 mins Vegetarian Low sat fat
Chicken, chorizo and aubergine
Also known as eggplant, aubergine is actually a berry and is best from mid-July to September. Look for smooth, unblemished, and glossy skins. The flesh should also feel firm and the aubergine weighty to the touch. They'll keep for around 4-6 days in the fridge. Asian grocers are good places to pick up unusual varieties.
Aubergines are a good source of fibre, folic acid and potassium. The skin contains anthocyanins, which are high in antioxidants, which can help the body fight off illness and protect brain cells. Research also shows them to be effective in treating high levels of cholesterol, benefiting heart health. On the down side they can aggravate arthritis and digestive systems which are susceptible to the nightshade family.
Aubergines pair well with rich, full-bodied ingredients such as ripe tomatoes, garlic, olive oil and peppers. Toasted fennel seeds add an intriguing flourish to casseroles. They also work well with cheese, pulses and meats. Or thinly sliced and lightly oiled before searing on the BBQ. This summery recipe is perfect for a relaxed weekend lunch.
For the chicken
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1 large organic chicken, jointed into 8 pieces
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110g/4oz chorizo, peeled and sliced
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3 red peppers, cut into 2.5cm/1in squares
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1-2 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
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2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
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For the spiced aubergine
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handful basil leaves, torn
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1 tablespoon pine nuts, lightly toasted in a pan
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1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas4.
2. Season the chicken pieces with salt and black pepper. Heat two
tablespoons of the olive oil in a large frying pan and brown the chicken on
both sides for 4-5 minutes. When all the chicken pieces are golden-brown,
remove them from the pan and set aside.
3. Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in the same frying pan and cook
the chorizo for 2-3 minutes. Add the peppers, garlic, sage and thyme to
the pan and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Tip the chorizo and peppers
into a roasting tin and place the chicken pieces on top.
4. Spread the lemon zest and juice from half a lemon over the chicken. Bake
in the oven for 30-40 minutes, turning the chicken pieces halfway through
the cooking time, or until the chicken is cooked through.
5. Meanwhile, for the spiced aubergine, put the aubergines in a colander,
add about ½ teaspoon of salt and leave to drain for half an hour.
6. Heat 35ml/1fl oz of the olive oil in a pan and fry the red onions for five
minutes, or until softened. Add the tomatoes and cook for a further five
minutes, or until the tomatoes have broken down into a thick sauce.
7. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then remove from the
pan and set aside.
8. Add three tablespoons of the olive oil to the pan and fry half the
aubergines for 4-5 minutes, or until tender. Remove the aubergine pieces
and set aside to drain on kitchen paper. Add the remaining three
tablespoons of oil to the pan and fry the remaining aubergine pieces for
4-5 minutes, or until tender.
9. Return the aubergine and tomato and onion mixture to the pan and stir in
the red wine vinegar, cumin, basil and coriander. Season to taste with salt
and freshly ground black pepper and sprinkle over the pine nuts.
10. To serve, spoon the aubergine onto a plate and place the chicken on top.
Serves 4 Prep 30 mins Cook 30 mins - 1 hour Low fat
Crunchy granola with cherries
One of the delights of the summer, cherries are a popular fruit - succulent and flavoursome. There are hundreds of varieties to choose from, providing sweet or sour juicy flesh. My grandfather used to buy my grandmother a bag of cherries on the first day of the season every year. In the last 50 years the UK has lost 90% of our Cherry orchards and now imports around 95% of the Cherries we eat.
Buy plump, shiny cherries that have their stalks attached and look for fruit that is dark red, firm but not hard. Generally, pale cherries are sweet and dark cherries more acidic. Sweet cherries are suitable for eating, sour cherries are great in tarts, pies, crumbles and sauces. To maintain their longevity, Keep unwashed cherries in the fridge for 3-4 days and wash them just before serving. Cherries also freeze well.
Emerging evidence links cherries to many important health benefits – from helping to ease the pain of arthritis and gout, to reducing risk factors for heart disease, diabetes and certain cancers. Cherries also contain melatonin, which has been found to help regulate the body’s natural sleep patterns, aid with jet lag, prevent memory loss and delay the aging process. A recent study from the University of Michigan found that a cherry-enriched diet lowered total weight, body fat (especially the important “belly” fat), inflammation and cholesterol-all risk factors associated with heart disease.
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175g mixed nuts (pecan halves, walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts)
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450g rolled oats
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50g sesame seeds
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50g sunflower seeds
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2 tablespoon sunflower oil
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2 tablespoon runny honey (try one of the lightly flavoured flower ones)
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half a 170g packet dried berries and cherries
1. Preheat the oven to 190C/Gas 5/fan oven 170C.
2. Halve some of the nuts, leave some whole. Mix with oats, sesame seeds,
sunflower seeds and a pinch of salt in a large bowl. In a jug, add the oil
and honey to the mixture. Stir together with a fork to break up any big
clumps of oats.
3. Pour on to a large baking tray with sides, preferably non-stick, in a thin
layer. Bake for 12 minutes, stirring well after 6 minutes, until golden.
4. Transfer to a large bowl and leave to cool.
5. Mix in the berries and cherries and serve with plenty of chilled milk or
yoghurt.
6. Store for up to 1 month in airtight container.
Serves 12 Prep 10-20 mins Cook 12 mins Low fat
Happy cooking and tell us if you made any useful alterations:
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