What is in season to cook and eat this October?

It’s October and it is synonymous with pumpkins and Halloween, however pumpkins aren’t the only things that is growing right now. Everything and everywhere seems to be saturated with pumpkins, and I fall victim to it and give into to the craze. Just yesterday I bought to cans of pumpkin puree from Trader Joe’s because I wanted to make pumpkin bread. If you haven’t noticed how many items at your local supermarket or Trader Joe’s has pumpkins, take a look at this video where this young lady and her friend, tastes everything pumpkin infused or enhanced form Trader Joe’s so you don’t have to. The video is funny, it might even inspire a trip to TJ’s.

So you know it is not only pumpkins in season right now, you can check out the info gram below to see what is growing for the season.

October

According to The Seasonal Guide “Seasonal food is fresher, tastier and more nutritious than food consumed out of season.”

I know you have definitely heard the term “farm to table”. Loosely, it means that the food you are consuming can be traced back to a local farm, or came straight from a local farm, with minimal transportation or having to be bought from a retailer. The farm-to-table drive has come about more or less with people’s concerns about food safety, food freshness, food seasonality, the disappearing of the small farms and the general welfare of the planet along with the carbon foot prints we are leaving behind.

Here is my short list of why to eating seasonally:

1.       It saves money. Supply and demand, if it is in season, there is more produce to go around so it is less expensive. Out of season food must be shipped from other parts of the county and the world and that along with limited qualities, drives cost up.

2.       It supports your local economy.

3.       Variety is the spice of life. Every season there is an opportunity to try something new, cook something different mix it up. You should aim to eat the rainbow, no, not skittles (although tasty). Eating different color foods allows you to get important nutritional value each food has to offer.

Use the info gram above to shop your supermarket. If you can’t get to a farm, the farmers market in your neighborhood or town can provide you with seasonal options. If you can’t find one look here, it has directories to help you.

Eating in season helps to promote eating healthy, tastier foods, fresher foods, supporting local farms and reducing our carbon foot print. Here is my disclaimer, I am no way suggesting you not eat out of season, I for one can’t fully practice this, my son loves strawberries, they are a constant in my fridge all year round. If you like something or your health requires something not grown in season, by all means do what makes you and your body happy.

If you are looking for ideas on what to make with your seasonal produce, google recipes or check this out.