What Is In Season?

Written By Judy Doherty, MPS, PCII

WHAT'S IN SEASON: SUMMER PRODUCE GUIDE

Fresh picks from now through the end of summer

Eating with the seasons means better flavor, better prices, and often better nutrition — produce picked at peak ripeness has less distance to travel and less time to lose nutrients. Here's what to look for at the farmers market or grocery store from now through September.

FRUITS

- Berries: Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries

- Stone fruit: Peaches, nectarines, plums, apricots, and cherries early in the season

- Melons: Watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew

- Mango: Peak sweetness through mid-summer

- Figs: Best late summer into early fall

- Grapes: Late summer into fall

VEGETABLES

- Corn: Sweetest right after picking

- Tomatoes: Peak flavor from midsummer on

- Zucchini & summer squash: Abundant and mild

- Cucumbers: Crisp and hydrating

- Peppers: Bell peppers and chili peppers

- Green beans: Tender and quick-cooking

- Eggplant: Best in the heat of summer

- Okra: A Southern summer staple

- Beets: Earthy and colorful

- Leafy greens: Heat-tolerant kale and Swiss chard hold up better than lettuce, which can bolt in peak heat

- Onions & garlic: Harvested early summer, available all season

TIP: Peak season and best price usually line up. If a fruit or vegetable on this list looks abundant and inexpensive at the store, that's a good sign it's at its seasonal peak right now.

Note: Availability shifts by region and can vary by a few weeks depending on your local climate. Check with your local farmers’ market or extension office for the most accurate timing in your area

Judy Doherty, MPS, PCII

Judy’s passion for cooking began with helping her grandmother make raisin oatmeal for breakfast. From there, she earned her first food service job at 15, was accepted to the world-famous Culinary Institute of America at 18 (where she graduated second in her class), and went on to the Fachschule Richemont in Switzerland, where she focused on pastry arts and baking. After a decade in food service for Hyatt Hotels, Judy launched Food and Health Communications to focus on flavor and health. She graduated with Summa Cum Laude distinction from Johnson and Wales University with a BS in Culinary Arts, holds a master’s degree in Food Business from the Culinary Institute of America, two art certificates from UC Berkeley Extension, and runs a food photography & motion studio where her love is creating fun recipes and content.

Judy received The Culinary Institute of America’s Pro Chef II certification, the American Culinary Federation Bronze Medal, Gold Medal, and ACF Chef of the Year. Her enthusiasm for eating nutritiously and deliciously leads her to constantly innovate and use the latest nutritional science and Dietary Guidelines to guide her creativity, from putting new twists on fajitas to adapting Italian brownies to include ingredients like toasted nuts and cooked honey. Judy’s publishing company, Food and Health Communications, is dedicated to her vision that everyone can make food that tastes as good as it is for you.

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