Eat With the Seasons

Benefits of Seasonal Eating:

Seasonal eating simply means eating foods that are naturally available during that season. There are many benefits to this including:

1. Increased nutritional density of foods
2. Balancing the body and mind
3. Saving money
4. Festivities

1) Increased Nutritional Density of Foods:

In a time before modern technology, people didn’t have the option to eat tomatoes in the winter or butternut squash in the summer, they simply ate whatever was naturally available during that season. Now a days while the cold winter frost would never let a tomato grow in your town, 5,000 miles away where it’s hot and sunny, tomatoes are happily growing just for you. But this surface level convince doesn’t come without sacrifice.

When fruits and vegetables must be shipped long distances, they are harvested before fully ripened. This prevents the full development of nutrients leading to a less nutrient rich, less flavorful food. “Fruits and vegetables grown in North America may spend up to 5 days in transit before arriving at a distribution center, and another 3 days on a grocery store shelf, before they are purchased by the consumer, who may store them for up to 7 days prior to consumption.” (1) By the time the produce makes it to your kitchen and your dinner table, it has lost a significant amount of its nutrients.

The more time that goes by after harvest, the greater the nutritional loss. For example, “vegetables lose between 15 and 77 percent of their vitamin C within a week of harvest…” (1)

Buying local produce from the grocery store or farmers market and growing your own food are excellent ways to insure you get the most nutrient dense fruits and vegetables.

(Pictures of my past gardens)

2) Balance our Bodies and Minds:

Nature knows what it’s doing, so it’s no surprise that eating with the seasons naturally balances our bodies and minds. The spring is very moist and wet and can have a sluggish effect on the mind and digestion. Light and dry veggies such as dandelion greens, asparagus, and peas can counter act these effects. 

Summer is very hot and dry. This can be countered by sweet,  juicy, refreshing foods like peaches, tomatoes, and a variety of fresh fruit. 

Fall is very drying and brings spaciness to the mind. This can be countered by rich, oily, and hearty foods such as squashes, nuts, root veggies, and fatty meats which will nourish the skin and ground the mind. 

With shorter days, harsher conditions, and less food availability; the winter sends many animals into a hibernation. This is a time to rest and nourish your body with comforting warm stews, lots of meat, and hearty vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli and sweet potatoes.

Overall, the foods that grow each season naturally balance out the seasons effect on your body and mind.

3) Save Money:

Eating with the seasons can also be easier on your wallet. This is due to some simple economics. There is a surplus of seasonal produce because it’s easier to grow. This surplus drives prices down. If one company were to try and raise the price, people would just buy from another company.

Compare this with out of season foods. Ever try to buy blueberries in the winter and find that it cost $6 for a tiny basket or a bunch of asparagus in the winter which costs a whopping $8 per lb. The price of these foods rise when they’re not in season because the supply goes down. They’re harder to grow and often have to be grown far away and imported. The low supply means that companies can get away with selling them for high prices, and the lack of options leads consumers to pay these high prices.

Try eating seasonal and you’ll likely see your grocery bill go down.

4) Festivities

Eating with the seasons gives you something to look forward to each season: bright heirloom tomatoes, sweet berries, and juicy peaches in the summer; savory squashes and crunchy apples oozing to be baked into pies in the fall; hardy veggies like cauliflower, sweet potatoes, and parsnips perfect for a winter stew; and light greens like arugula and asparagus in the spring.

Eating different foods at different times of years can lead to an excitement and celebration around certain dishes. Thanksgiving is a great example of this. Thanksgiving foods are very seasonal and very celebrated dishes, exclusively made for a specific fall celebration.  

Seasonal Eating Guide:

(Note: These produce lists are specific for California. While they may share many similarities with other regions, different fruits and vegetables grow best in different climates so be sure to check out this seasonal food guide to get specifics for your home. In the meantime let these lists serve as a general guideline).

Spring:

Spring is a fertile season with fields of green grass and yellow flowers. It’s very moist and wet and can have a sluggish effect on the mind and digestion. Light and dry veggies such as artichokes and greens, can counter these effects. 

For Spring Recipes click here and for more tips to balance the effects of spring click here!

Spring Produce:

Summer:

Summer is a time of warmth and an abundance of food. Fresh fruit and veggies are plentiful this time of year. It’s very hot and dry which can be countered by sweet,  juicy, refreshing foods like peaches, tomatoes, and a variety of fresh fruit. 

For Summer Recipes click here and for more tips to balance the effects of summer click here!

Summer Produce:

Fall:

Fall is notorious for dry cold winds. And much like the leaves fluttering in the wind, we often become spacey, anxious, and fluttery. Fall calls for hearty nourishing oily foods to ground us and combat the dryness we are likely experiencing. Foods like fatty cuts of meat; stews; nuts; and hearty veggies like carrots, sweet potatoes, and pumpkin.

For fall recipes click here and for more tips to balance the effects of fall click here!

Fall Produce:

Winter:

In many places winter is a cold and harsh month where snow prevents the growth of fruits and veggies. Because of this, many of our ancestors ate a diet of primarily meat in the winter time. However peoples who lived closer to the equator still ate some plants in the winter time.

Winter is a time to slow down, rest, and nourish your body. Meat (especially slow cooked meats), soups and hearty stews (preferably made with bone broth), and heart vegetables like cauliflower and sweet potatoes all balance the effects of winter and nourish and ground the body and mind.

For Winter Recipes click here and for more tips to balance the effects of winter click here!

Winter Produce:

Works Cited

1. Burrows, Sara. “Vegetables Lose Up to Half Their Nutrients By the Time They’re Shipped to the Store: Another Reason to Grow Your Own.” Return to Now. 23 September 2018. https://returntonow.net/2018/09/23/study-produce-loses-around-half-its-vitamin-content-within-a-week-of-harvest/

2. Seasonal Food Guide. Accessed 26 June 2019. https://www.seasonalfoodguide.org/