Hi, and welcome back to this issue of Laura’s Kitchen. When I began writing this issue a few weeks ago, I had intended to talk about seasonal cooking. Imagine my surprise to find out that the growing season in Colorado is dormant from December through April.
What does that mean? It means that to cook in season, I would have had to create my meals around the staples of winter like potatoes and squashes. Or that I would have to rely on produce I canned or froze for just this time of year. Since I didn’t do any of that, I am grateful that my local grocer has plenty of produce to choose from, but I can no longer blindly shop there – more on that later.
Benefits of Seasonal Cooking
My desire to talk about seasonal cooking comes from the idea that eating within season creates a more varied diet. If you are like me, I’ve been cooking for more than 20 years and I have exhausted my culinary repertoire. I tend to cook the same things over and over which has gotten boring.
Eating in season creates seasonal favorites. Similar to holiday favorites. You know, those dishes we only get to eat at Easter, Thanksgiving or Christmas. Suddenly ordinary dishes can become special because we only get to eat them during a certain time of the year. Also, when we eat in season, we get produce at its’ prime; when it has the most nutritional value and the best flavor.
Additionally, produce in season is less expensive than out-of-season produce. I noticed this recently with peppers. I love red and yellow bell peppers. In the summer, they are three for a dollar, but right now, a red pepper is $1.99. One pepper!
Eating locally grown produce
I must confess that until this year, I never paid attention to seasonal produce. It just didn’t enter my mind. If something was in the store, I’d buy it. Economically, this was not always a smart move. I am finding out that healthfully, this was not a smart move either.