SUMMER: what is in season?

Sandra Slawinski 3rd July 2022 0 comments

SUMMER is here!

The glorious, bountiful season—when every fruit and vegetable bursts with sunshine and yumminess—is finally here. While many eagerly await the signs of spring, it’s truly summer that brings joy, when the warm sun caresses your face and market stalls overflow with vibrant colours, fragrant herbs, and the rich aromas of ripe Belgian strawberries, juicy cherries, crisp cucumbers, sweet tomatoes, and tender courgettes—each a delicious promise of the season’s freshest offerings

WHAT IS SEASONAL PRODUCE?

Seasonal produce refers to fruits and vegetables harvested at their natural peak—when they are ripe, full of flavour, and most nutritious. These are the times when nature intends for them to be eaten, making them fresher, tastier, and often more affordable.

Whether you buy organic or conventionally farmed produce, eating seasonally is key to enjoying better quality food and supporting local agriculture. In Belgium, summer brings an abundance of juicy strawberries, raspberries, cherries, tomatoes, courgettes, cucumbers, beans, leafy greens, and fresh herbs—each reflecting the richness of the season.

When choosing produce, it’s also worth being mindful of pesticide exposure. The “Clean 15” and “Dirty Dozen”—lists compiled by the U.S. Department of Agriculture—can be helpful guides, even if they aren’t Europe-specific.

  • CLEAN 15: These fruits and vegetables tend to have the lowest levels of pesticide residue. They include avocados, sweet corn, pineapples, onions, papayas, frozen sweet peas, eggplants (aubergines), asparagus, cauliflower, cantaloupe melon, broccoli, mushrooms, cabbage, honeydew melon, and kiwis.

  • DIRTY DOZEN: These are more likely to carry higher pesticide residues, even after washing. They include strawberries, spinach, kale, nectarines, apples, grapes, peaches, cherries, pears, tomatoes, celery, potatoes, and bell peppers.

While organic produce can be slightly more expensive, it is grown without synthetic pesticides and typically contains lower levels of chemical residues. Organic farming favours natural, low-toxicity methods and supports biodiversity, soil health, and sustainable ecosystems.

Beyond the question of pesticides, choosing organic—especially from local or small-scale producers—means supporting farming practices that work in harmony with nature. Approaches like permaculture embrace natural growing patterns, prioritising zero waste, earth care, and long-term sustainability.

7 BENEFITS OF EATING SEASONAL

  1. Better Taste & Flavour
    Seasonal fruits and vegetables taste better because they are picked at their natural ripeness, not harvested early to ripen in crates during long transport. Freshly picked produce bursts with flavour.

  2. More Nutrients
    Seasonal produce is more nutritious. When fruits and vegetables are picked early, chilled for transport, and later heated to ripen, they lose a significant amount of their nutritional value.

  3. Lower Cost
    Seasonal food is generally more affordable. You’re not paying for expensive cooling, storage, transport, or artificial ripening processes—just for the food itself.

  4. Support for Local Farmers
    Choosing seasonal and local means you’re supporting nearby farmers and communities. It’s a simple way to practise the farm-to-table philosophy. (Click here for my article to learn more.)

  5. More Variety Throughout the Year
    Eating with the seasons adds natural variety to your diet. Not only do you get to look forward to new produce as it comes into season, but this diversity helps strengthen your immune system and fight disease.

  6. Boosts Creativity in the Kitchen
    Seasonal eating encourages you to get creative with your meals. It pushes you to try new ingredients and recipes, helping you avoid the rut of cooking the same dinners week after week.

  7. Environmentally Friendly
    Eating seasonal (and local) significantly reduces your carbon footprint. It cuts down on the energy used for transportation, refrigeration, and artificial ripening. It also reduces the need for excessive water use and synthetic chemicals required to grow out-of-season produce.

Bear in mind that even within a single season, the flavour of ingredients can evolve. Following a recipe isn’t just about exact steps—it’s about staying present and tasting as you go. Adjust seasoning and cooking times to match the character of the produce in that moment, finding the right balance for its ripeness and flavour.

Some fruits and vegetables appear at the crossroads of two seasons, while others span across them. If you’re ever unsure about what’s in season, simply look to nature and ask yourself: “Would this be ripe now?” Let the rhythm of the natural world guide your choices.

COURGETTE

This vegetable is a real favourite of many but other used all year round, but truthfully it really comes in season in August in Europe.

Check out my courgette frites with Zaathar dip here

My tempura courgette blossoms are just delightful, recipe here

Here the recipe for a veggie-loaded grilled Provencal pizza.

TOMATOES

I am over the moon when I get to bite into my first tomato of the season , so fleshy full of acidic & sweet flavour and soo versatile.

Go classic with little shrimps. recipe here

Serve them with Flemish style cos with Hern and breadcrumb crust, here

Of course summer means gazpacho, my recipe here

And in salads a must, like my sun-filled Nicoise salad, here

PEAS

These little green gems are perfect to eat right out of the pod in the garden so delicious and sweet they are.

Check out my pea and mint hummus and seasonal veg here

LETTUCE

Plenty of leaves available all year round and soo versatile

How about my bite size veggie tacos, here

My version of a Caesar salad , here

Check out my grilled baby lettuce salad, here

PEACH

My favourite fruit in the whole wide world! Truly the best thing on earth!

Check out my champagne-smoked peach melba trifle here

My grilled peaches with cardamom whiskey cream and honeycomb, here

WATERMELON

What can you not so with a watermelon?

Check out my hibiscus and watermelon frozen margaritas here

My tasty Mediterranean watermelon salad, here

and yes I add some to my summer gazpacho, here

MELON

The sweet juicy flavour screams summer.

Check out my melon sorbet infused with lemon verbena here

STRAWBERRY

These berries are the first to come in season in Spring and carry all the way through summer.

Check out my strawberry, rose water and pistachio clafoutis here

My strawberry and oats breakfast squares here

and of course strawberry jam, here

GREEN BEANS

Possible my favourite vegetable tp east almost daily in summer, they are fab in salads or just on their own.

Check out my sun-filled Nicoise salad here

FIGS

at the end of the summer season, figs are at its best!

Check out my cardamom roasted figs with goat cheese here

My gluten-free figs galette, here

My figs and truffle pecorino grilled cheese sandwich, here

CHERRY

These sweet dark berries are just perfect in any cooking

Check out my one-pan roasted cherry chicken with rosemary here

Or my canned cherries sweet or boozy here

EDIBLE FLOWERS

How gorgeous these flowers are in a salad or on top of pie

My ultimate guide here

My floral lunch in the garden, here

Here my vegetable tart leaded with burrata and flowers

For the complete Seasonal Chart, click here.

Written and photographed by Sandra Slawinski without commercial deals.