Here are a few recipes that you can try using seasonal produce. Enjoy.

Eat Local Seasonal Chart

A handy resource guide to learn what’s seasonal and local each month of the year.

Eating Healthy on a Budget

This is a collection of healthy and easy recipes from the Urban Native Youth Association in Vancouver, BC.  This cookbook is divided into sections:  Food Guide; Basic Spices; Breakfast; Appetizers & Quick Snacks; Soups; Seafood; Vegetarian Dishes; Meat Lovers; Vegetables; Salads; Breads & Desserts. (12.2 MB) Many of these ingredients can be sourced locally from your local farmers market. For more information see http://www.unya.bc.ca/resources.

Seasonal Recipes

December

• Curried (Leftover) Turkey n’ Kiwi Wraps
• Winter Fruit Salad

November Recipes

• Basic Borscht (hot or cold)
• Quick-Fridge-Pickle-Packed Beets

October Recipes

• How do I prepare Acorn Squash?
• Peas in Acorn Squash
• Autumn Squash Soup

September Recipes

• Sweet Potato Apple Bake
• McIntosh-Caramel Apples

June Recipes

• Strawberry Spinach Salad

May Recipes

• Grilled Mushrooms
• Hazelnut Lavender Shortbread
• Rhubarb Pie
• Grilled Radishes

December Recipes (from the Harvest Box Newsletter)

Curried (Leftover) Turkey n’ Kiwi Wraps

Ingredients:

• ½ cup chutney
• 1 tsp your favourite curry powder
• ½ cup yogurt
• 2-1/2 cups shredded cooked turkey
• 4 flour tortillas (6-inch)
• 2 kiwifruit, peeled, sliced thinly
• 1/4 cup slivered toasted nuts (optional)
• Fresh spinach leaves, washed, dried

How to Make:

1. Salad dressing:  Mix together chutney and curry powder in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil then stir into yogurt in a bowl.  Cool in fridge.  (For a very quick “dressing” just mix the curry powder with the yogurt.)
2. Stir the shredded turkey into the dressing
3. Add kiwi fruit and nuts to turkey mixture.
4. Line tortilla with spinach leaves.
5. Place line of turkey mixture in the middle of each tortilla, roll-up and serve.

Winter Fruit Salad

Ingredients:

• 2 kiwi fruit, peeled, cubed
• 1 tsp lemon juice + 1 cup water
• 2 pears, cored, cubed
• 2 apples, cored, cubed
• Other fruit, canned or fresh, bite size
• ½ cup whatever fruit juice you have
• Yogurt & Honey mixed 1 to 1
• Chopped nuts (optional)

How to Make:

1. Place cubed pears and apples in the lemon juice mixture to keep them from going brown on the outside until you are ready to mix them with the other stuff.
2. Mix all the cubed fruit together
3. Pour the fruit juice over and stir
4. Put in bowls then drizzle honey/yogurt mixture over and sprinkle with nuts if you like.

You can half or double this recipe! Serves 4

November Recipes (from the Harvest Box Newsletter)

Basic Borscht (hot or cold)

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp. butter/oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 medium size carrots, sliced
• 3 medium size beets, peeled, cut in strips
• 2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 6 cups vegetable or chicken broth
• 1 small cabbage, cut into 2-inch chunks
• 3 medium size potatoes, diced
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• Sour cream and dill weed for on top, if you have some

How to Make:

1. In a large thick bottomed pot heat butter/oil then sauté onions, carrots, and beets over medium heat until the onion is clear.
2. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf and sugar and cook for 30 seconds. Add broth, cabbage, potatoes, tomato paste, salt and pepper.
3. Simmer, covered until vegetables are tender, about 20 to 30 minutes.
4. Remove from heat and stir in vinegar.
5. You can eat hot right away or cool to room temperature and refrigerate overnight.
6. Serve hot or cold: Ladle soup into bowls and put a bit of sour cream and dill weed on top.

Serves 6

Quick-Fridge-Pickle-Packed Beets

Ingredients:

• 6-8 medium-sized beets
• 1 medium-sized onion
• 1 cup white vinegar
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 clove garlic (optional)

How to Make:

1. Wash beets then boil or steam them (see instructions on page 1).  Let cool for 5 minutes then trim off top and “slip” the skin off.  Cut into ¼ inch thick slices.
2. Thinly slice the onion.  In a quart (litre) jar with the wide mouth, pack the beets and onions in firmly.
3. Combine vinegar, sugar and garlic (optional) and stir until sugar dissolves.  Pour into jar, covering the veggies.  Screw on lid and shake jar well.
4. Put in fridge for at least one day for good flavour; will last three months. You can serve cold, as a side-dish but can also be heated.

October Recipes (from the Harvest Box Newsletter)

How Do I Prepare Acorn Squash?

Give the squash a quick rinse then, with a good knife, chop off top end, just below the stem. Cut in half from stem to bum end.  Scoop out all of the stringy stuff and all of the seeds.  (If you have time, you can wash and separate the seeds, brush some oil on them and roast them.)

Brush the flesh with oil, turn cut-side down on a roasting pan and bake at 400F for 45 minutes or until a knife goes through the squash easily.  When it’s done, let cool a little and then scoop out the flesh and serve with a little butter, salt and pepper or a little butter, brown sugar and cinnamon stirred up!  If you are using for soups or if you want to steam, take the seeded squash and carefully peel off the skin and cut into curvy cubes.  Many squash recipes ask you to start this way.

Peas in Acorn Squash

Ingredients

• 1 acorn squash
• 1 Tbsp butter, melted
• 1 Tbsp oil
• 1 small onion peeled and chopped
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• Salt and pepper to taste

How to Make:

1. Prepare squash as explained above.  Brush with melted butter and place skin-side down on a baking dish.  Add a little salt and pepper.  Bake at 400F until tender.
2. When the squash is almost done, heat a large frying pan to medium heat and fry the onion in the oil until tender.
3. Add the thawed peas and fry for a few minutes with a little salt and pepper to taste.
4. Fill the cooked squash halves with the pea mixture and serve.  Makes a fun side dish!

Adapted from- The Frugal Gourmet Whole Family Cookbook, Jeff Smith, 1992, Morrow

Autumn Squash Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp oil
• 2 medium onions
• 1 tsp dried thyme leaves (or ½ tsp ground)
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 medium rutabaga (yellow turnip) peeled
• and cubed
• 2 potatoes, cubed
• 1 medium acorn squash, gutted, peeled and
• cubed
• 7 cups chicken or veggie broth (prepared or
• from cubes or homemade)
• Salt and pepper to taste

How to Make:

1. In a medium to big pot, heat oil on medium-high heat and add onions, thyme, and nutmeg cooking until soft, stirring often.
2. Add rutabaga, potato and squash and cook until they begin to soften ( ~½ hour).
3. Pour in broth and bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat and simmer until squash mashes easily (~1 hour).
4. Carefully blend in small batches in a blender or food processor until all smooth. (If you don’t have one, just use a potato masher and have it a little chunky, eh?) Serve hot, serves 5-6

Adapted from- Sunset Fresh Produce, 1987, Lane Publishing

September Recipes

Sweet Potato Apple Bake (from BC Tree Fruits)

A vitamin-rich serving of both fruits and vegetables all in one dish.
Makes 4 servings.

• 6 medium sweet potatoes
• 2 cups (500 ml) thinly sliced tart apples
• 1/2 cup (125 ml) brown sugar
• dash cinnamon
• 1/2 cup (125 ml) water
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) butter or margarine

Peel and cut sweet potatoes into 1/2 inch slices. Cook sweet potatoes, covered, in shallow boiling water until nearly done. Preheat oven to 350° F (180° C). Grease a baking dish and place in it alternate layers of cooled sweet potatoes and apple slices. Sprinkle layers with brown sugar and cinnamon; dot with butter or margarine. Pour water over each layer. Bake for one hour.

McIntosh-Caramel Apples (from BC Tree Fruits)

A good old-fashioned treat!
Serves 6

• 6 McIntosh apples
• 1 cup (250 ml) sugar
• 3/4 cup (175 ml) dark corn syrup
• 1 cup (250 ml) whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) butter
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla

Wash and dry the apples, remove stems. Place a wooden skewer into each apple, set aside.

In a saucepan, combine the sugar, syrup, cream and butter and place over high heat until it boils for 3 to 5 minutes. The mixture should register 245° F (115° C) on a candy thermometer.

Remove from heat and blend in vanilla. Quickly dip the apples into the mixture, one at a time. Spoon the mixture to ensure good coverage. Turn the skewer in your fingers briefly, letting each dipped apple cool slightly prior to placing on wax paper for final cooling.

June Recipes

Strawberry Spinach Salad

• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup distilled white vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon minced onion
• 10 ounces fresh spinach – rinsed, dried and torn into bite-size pieces
• 1 quart strawberries – cleaned, hulled and sliced
• 1/4 cup almonds, blanched and slivered

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sesame seeds, poppy seeds, sugar, olive oil, vinegar, paprika, Worcestershire sauce and onion. Cover, and chill for one hour.

2. In a large bowl, combine the spinach, strawberries and almonds. Pour dressing over salad, and toss. Refrigerate 10 to 15 minutes before serving.

May Recipes

Grilled Mushrooms

INGREDIENTS:

• 12 mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

• Remove stems from mushrooms.
• In a small bowl combine oil and garlic.
• Brush mushrooms with the oil and garlic mixture. Season with salt and pepper.
• Place mushrooms on broiling pan or grill and cook mushrooms until juice begins to seep out, about 2 minutes per side.

Hazelnut Lavender Shortbread

Makes:  30 cookies

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/2 cups  All-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon  Dried lavender flowers
• 1/4 teaspoon  Salt
• 3/4 cup   Butter, softened
• 1/3 cup   Brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 cup   Powdered sugar
• 1 cup  Hazelnuts, toasted, skin removed, whole
• Crystallized decorating sugar (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

• Mix flour, lavender and salt in small bowl; set aside.
• Beat butter and sugars in large bowl on high until creamy.  Stir in flour mixture and hazelnuts until blended.
• Shape into two, 8 x 2-inch round logs.  Wrap in plastic wrap; refrigerate for 1 hour or until chilled.
• Preheat oven to 325° F. Slice logs into 1/2-inch thick slices.  Press tops of slices into sugar, if desired.  Place slices on parchment lined baking sheet.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until light golden brown.  Cool 2 minutes, transfer to wire rack.

Rhubarb Pie

Source: allrecipes.com

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 cups chopped rhubarb
• 1 1/3 cups white sugar
• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 recipe pastry for a 9 inch double crust pie