The best books to help you eat seasonally

Seasonal eating is nothing new – just ask your grandparents and the generations before them. However, over time, with growing global markets and increasing supermarket competition, we have become accustomed to being able to eat our favourite foods year round. This liberty not only makes eating out of season foods expensive but our palate misses out on some glorious tastes that you only get when you’re eating the freshest of fruits and vegetables in the peak of their season (think juicy peaches in summer and fragrant oranges in winter).

As the weather changes across the globe (we can feel the impending winter here in Melbourne) so does the fresh produce that is available and this is a great time to start experimenting and trying new recipes or reworking those old ones. It’s with this in mind that we have had a poke around the internet and found some fabulous titles that will bring a little seasonal flair to your dinner table.

Food In Jars by Marisa McClellan

Stories of wild blackberry jam and California Meyer lemon marmalade from Marissa McClellan’s childhood make this book a read as pleasurable as it is delicious; her home-canned food, learned from generations of the original “foodies”, feeds the soul as well as the body in more than 100 recipes.

Popular food blogger Marisa McClellan takes you through all manner of food in jars, storing away the tastes of all seasons for later. Basics like jams and jellies are accompanied by pickles, chutneys, conserves, whole fruit, tomato sauces, salsas, marmalades, nut butters, seasonings, and more. Small batches make them easy projects for a canning novice to tackle, and the flavours of vanilla bean, sage, and pepper will keep more experienced jammers coming back for more. Sample some Apricot Jam and Rhubarb Syrup in the spring, and then try your hand at Blueberry Butter and Peach Salsa in the summer; Dilly Beans and Spicy Pickled Cauliflower ring in the fall, while Three-Citrus Marmalade and Cranberry Ketchup are the harbingers of winter.

Greenfeast by Nigel Slater

Nigel Slater’s Eat was one of his bestselling and most popular books ever. Now he has written GreenFeast, the green follow-up to Eat, packed full of short, doable and fast vegetable recipes that are usefully divided into In the frying pan, In the hand, On the hob and Puddings. The GreenFeast recipes are for those who want easy recipes for eating more vegetable dishes throughout the week and there will be suggestions for changing up each recipe, as well as lists and lists of quick ideas. GreenFeast is split into two volumes: GreenFeast: spring summer (May 2019) and GreenFeast: autumn winter (which will be published in September 2019). This is exactly the food everyone wants to eat now, in the style everyone loved in Eat, all told in Nigel’s warm and unique signature style.

Around the World in 80 Food Trucks by the Lonely Planet

Lonely Planet has taken to the streets to bring you 80 fast, fresh and mouthwatering recipes from the most exciting chefs on four wheels. From sea bass ceviche and Lebanese msakhan to old-fashioned American peach cake, discover how to cook some of the world’s most crowd-pleasing dishes, meet the chefs and hear the stories behind their passion projects.

Run by passionate foodies, food trucks have nailed the delicate balance of merging the methods and flavours inspired by personal travels and experiences with family recipes, immigrant influences and local ingredients all the while celebrating sustainable and seasonal local produce.

Starting up and running a food truck is a vehicle for expression and experimentation, a way to serve food that’s both personal to the cooks and popular with the crowd. After all, food trucks park where the people are no booking or dress code required.

Inside Around the World in 80 Food Trucks, you’ll find out how to recreate chicken and waffles from Nashville; Indian sliders from Melbourne; paneer poutine from Berlin; spicy lamb samosas from Killary, mollete of roasted pork from Gijón; San Francisco langoustine rolls; and burgers, shrimp and breakfast sandwiches from Cape Town, Bogotá and beyond.

No Crumbs Left by Teri Turner

As millions of people know, one of the toughest things about completing the Whole30 is figuring out what to eat next, the other 335 days of the year. Teri Turner, creator of No Crumbs Left, has healthful and great tasting answers. Food is Teri’s love language, and her approach to getting people into the kitchen, rolling up their sleeves, and cooking is contagious. “Don’t be afraid to fail: it’s just food,” is one of her mantras. Teri’s passion is evident on every page of her first cookbook, as she leads readers through a discovery of new flavours and spice combinations and teaches people to trust their cooking instincts. Teri’s recipes, most of which are gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, and Whole30 compliant, are what makes No Crumbs Left so unique. Simple and incredibly delicious dishes such as Pistachio Pesto Chicken Breast, Shrimp Pad Thai, and Spicy Pepperoncini Beef are on the dinner table quickly. Teri considers this book a love letter to her mother, and woven throughout are tips and favourite quotes to bring you right into her kitchen, where there is always an extra seat at the table.

Hunter Gather Cook by Nick Weston

Hunter Gather Cook aims to set you on a fulfilling, lifelong path of culinary adventures and food DIY, and show you how to embrace the lifestyle that surrounds the 21st-century hunter-gatherer. It will make wild food accessible to you, and take away any sense of trepidation at making your first brew, burger or carpaccio. And if you’re already a 21st-century hunter-gatherer, then it will help you to expand your culinary repertoire, taking your experimentation and enjoyment to the next level.

While there’s no doubt the world is a very different place to how it was 10,000 years ago, some things have remained the same. We are still hunter-gatherers, just like our ancestors.

Winter by Louise Franc

When the temperature cools down and the nights become longer, we tend to crave our favourite comfort foods – slow-cooked meats that fall off the bone, rich chowders and hearty stews, succulent roasts with all the trimmings, and fragrant and warming curries served with steamed rice. This is the time of year when we tend to skip the salads, smoothies, and lighter meals, and the art of winter cooking comes into its own. Winter: Warm Recipes for Cold Nights, is a stunning collection of innovative cold-weather recipes perfect for this time of year.

From simple and warming traditional comfort foods like classic French onion soup, slow-cooked beef stroganoff, chicken cacciatore, rich osso buco, and a moreish tuna pasta bake to impressive modern cold weather dishes including Asian-style caramel pork, Panang chicken curry, roasted pumpkin risotto with brown butter and sage, and creamy Calvados chicken, as well as a host of decadent desserts, think dulce de leche and chocolate peanut butter puddings, slow baked spiced quinces, chai-spiced slow-baked rice puddings, and winter-warming dried fruit compote. Winter has a recipe to cover every occasion. With 140 recipes included, designed to not only taste amazing but to warm you up too, Winter is a comprehensive volume on cold-weather cooking. This season now promises to be that much more delicious!

Enjoy!