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 Doherty, MPS, PCII discovered her love of cooking at her grandmother's side, stirring raisin oatmeal on a Saturday morning. By 15 she had her first food service job. At 18 she was accepted to the Culinary Institute of America, where she graduated second in her class, then went on to the Fachschule Richemont in Switzerland to study pastry arts and baking. A decade with Hyatt Hotels followed before she founded Food and Health Communications with a single conviction: food that is good for you should taste extraordinary.

Judy holds a Master of Professional Studies in Food Business from the Culinary Institute of America, a Bachelor of Science in Culinary Arts from Johnson and Wales University (Summa Cum Laude), two art certificates from UC Berkeley Extension, and the CIA's Pro Chef II certification. She has earned the American Culinary Federation Bronze Medal, Gold Medal, and ACF Chef of the Year award.

Today she develops every recipe on this site, shoots and styles food through her food photography and motion studio, and publishes nutrition education materials for dietitians, schools, extension offices, and health professionals through nutritioneducationstore.com. She uses the latest nutritional science and Dietary Guidelines to drive her creativity — whether that means a new twist on fajitas or Italian brownies made with toasted nuts and cooked honey. Her mission has never changed: help everyone make food that tastes as good as it is for them.

https://nutritioneducationstore.com
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