Lisa Barksdale

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The Champions of Spring Produce

Lisa Barksdale

I am a big fan of eating with the seasons. There are many benefits of doing this, one of the most obvious being that it wards off food boredom. We all have a tendency to get stuck in our routine. We start relying on the same rotation of easy dinners, the same assembly line of veggies that we know how to prepare. It's totally fine to have a routine, but after awhile we all can get pretty sick of the same thing over and over again. Rotating your food choices with the seasons is a natural way to snap yourself out of that routine and experiment with new foods, recipes, and flavors.

Changing up your fruits  and veggies seasonally also means that you'll be consuming a variety of nutrients throughout the year. And if you've ever tried to buy strawberries in February and balked at the high price compared to the two-for-one bundle sales that usually happen in the late spring/summertime, you already have observed that eating with the season is actually a practical way to help reduce the amount of money you spend on fresh produce. What is abundant becomes more affordable. Even if you don't have access to a farmers market or health food store, you'll probably notice the shifting season reflected in what is most prominently displayed on the grocery store shelves (and what looks the brightest and freshest!).

The Spring season is a time of transition, new beginnings, and a time for foods that do well with gentle cooking or being eaten raw. While Spring lacks the vast abundance of the summer and fall season, there are some very unique foods that peak during the spring months. It's well worth taking advantage of their brief moment of shining in the produce section spotlight.

Here are some of my favorites:

1. Asparagus 

You might remember the outrage of 2015 when "Asparagus Water" somehow wound up being sold on Whole Foods shelves. No, asparagus does not make for a sexy spa water type beverage, but that is not to be taken as a diminishment of its value. I have always found asparagus to be quite beautiful. Whether the stalks are green or purple or white, thin-stemmed or thick-stemmed, the appearance of this vegetable is unique, and it has a taste to match. Try steaming it, gently roasting it with some garlic salt and lemon, mixing it into a stir fry, baking into a frittata, or blending it with cauliflower in a soup. It does not need lengthy cooking. It has a pungent, slightly bitter flavor, but to me when it's cooked well an element of sweetness still comes through. Just don't put it in your water and pretend it's trendy!

Asparagus has many nutritional benefits, including carotenoids, B vitamins, vitamin C, vitamin E, and potassium, iodine, and zinc. In traditional medicine cultures (like Traditional Chines Medicine) it has earned a reputation for being supportive of the heart, lungs, and kidneys, and may even be helpful for easing menstrual symptoms in women. Just be careful: eating it in excess can actually stress your kidneys out. As with all things, enjoying in moderation is a wise option. 

2. Radishes 

If you grew up in the 80's or 90's you might remember watching the Rapunzel episode of Shelley Duvall's Faerie Tale Theater, when Rapunzel's mom becomes so obsessed with radishes that she convinces her husband to break into the garden of their not-so-friendly neighbor (a wicked witch), who promptly curses their family and plots to steal their child. Yeah, fairytales are weird, and I have to admit I always thought Shelley's crazed radish obsession was really creepy. She was after all pregnant and under a spell though, so I think we can give her a pass there.

That being said, I have over the years developed if not an obsession with radishes at least a loving appreciation of them. The radishes most commonly seen on grocery store shelves are the small red ones, bundled together with their green leaves. However, there are many varieties of radishes, including but not limited to daikon radish, black radish, and varieties of all sort of colors (purple, white, yellow, etc). If you're at the farmers market you might see some that you've never seen before at the supermarket. Give them a try!

Radishes have many health benefits, including being especially high in vitamin C, and they contain powerful antioxidants and phytochemicals that support the body's detoxifying process. These components have earned the radish a reputation as a detoxifying aid, which makes it especially appropriate for this spring season, as our bodies transition to a warmer, lighter time of year. If you're thinking about doing a detox or looking to support a lingering cold, you might just consider adding some radishes to your diet!

Try tossing some sliced radish raw into salads, gently sauteeing with some greens, or even roasting to deepen their flavor (like in Ina Garten's recipe for chicken with radishes). Just don't steal them from the wicked witch's garden!!

3. Artichokes 

A few years ago the father of one of my young violin students came into a lesson very apologetic that his daughter hadn't practiced the night before. "Daddy decided to cook artichokes," he said, the stress of that experience clearly still weighing on him. Perhaps this experience is one of the reasons I tend to think of artichokes as intimidating, and I therefore have to make an honest confession that I have never personally cooked artichokes before! I opt for frozen or jarred artichokes every time I'm wanting them. However, in reading through recipes I am very often tempted to take on the adventure of one day cooking artichokes myself. If you're feeling adventurous, I'm sure the internet will supply you with some great advice, but buying artichokes jarred or frozen is a perfectly good option.

Interestingly, artichokes are actually immature edible flowers (in the thistle family), and they are prized all around the world. They have a lovely, mildly sweet and nutty flavor. Not surprisingly artichokes are also super nutritious, containing beneficial levels of vitamin C, vitamin K, folate, and various minerals (magnesium, manganese, copper, potassium, etc.), and they are an especially great source of fiber (that stuff that helps keep you "regular"). Toss them into a salad, steam them and drizzle with lemon and olive oil, blend them into a dip, or stir into a stew with some green peas and lamb. And if you're feeling bold and want to cook them yourself, this recipe from Martha Stewart looks like about the simplest way you could possibly go.

4. Peas

Peas make this list because they are just so darn versatile and tasty! They have a mild sweet taste, a flavor which is associated with the spring season, and they are delicious eaten fresh from the garden vine, cooked from dried, or cooked from frozen. In fact, if you cannot find fresh peas where you live or don't have time to shell them, then frozen peas are a perfectly good option. Personally I would avoid the soggy canned variety.

Since peas are legumes rather than vegetables, they do have the highest protein content of all the foods on this list and can make a good addition to your meals if you are experimenting with vegetarianism. However, I wouldn't make them the sole source of your protein intake. They have other benefits too, including healthy fiber, B vitamins, vitamin C, and minerals such as calcium, iron, copper, and zinc. 

Their mild flavor and versatility makes them a simple and tasty addition to many varieties of dishes, like soups, stir fries, spring stews, or even omelettes or frittatas. In fact, one of my go-to spring recipes is to sautee some chopped asparagus, leeks (or shallots), and frozen peas together with salt, pepper, and olive oil. It's simple, cooks quickly, and very satisfying to eat. And I oftentimes find myself tossing some frozen peas into any dish that just feels like it needs an extra nutritional boost.  Bon Appetit has even more ideas if you're looking!

5. Rhubarb

When I think of rhubarb I immediately think of strawberries, and then I start dreaming about strawberry-rhubarb pies, tarts, summer jam, sauce poured over ice cream, you name it. Though rhubarb and strawberries are best-buds (and consequently come into season at roughly the same time!) it's easy to jump to the conclusion that rhubarb is a fruit. Actually it is a vegetable - a long red stalk with green leaves to be exact (but don't eat those leaves - they are toxic).  Rhubarb has a sour taste, which is why it's often paired with fruit and sometimes excessive sweetener. But you know I'm not opposed to treats now and then. Try finding a sweet recipe for rhubarb that doesn't pile on the sugar too much (or even better uses a natural sweetener like honey), and you'll have a better chance of actually appreciating its sour note. You can also simmer it down with some ginger and honey to make a lovely sauce. And a little bit of googling will reveal that it has its own place in more savory dishes as well (like this Braised Pork Shoulder with Rhubarb and Peas)

When not too overpowered by sugar, rhubarb can also pack a powerful nutritional punch. In fact, one cup of cooked rhubarb yields just as much calcium as milk. And rhubarb comes with some co-factors that help our bodies to process and absorb that calcium (including vitamin K, vitamin C, and other beneficial vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants). 

Though it's only on grocery store shelves for a short time, rhubarb deserves a place in your veggie rotation, and if you're feeling very bold you can even explore turning it into jam, preserves, or other methods to ensure you can enjoy it year-round. 

Honorable Mention:

  • Herbs - dill, lavender, chives, rosemary, mint, and marjoram make this a very flavorful season!
  • Strawberries (you don't have to eat these with rhubarb if you don't want to)
  • Greens - arugula, mizuna, dandelion, kale, sorrel, tatsoi, bok choy - this is a great time of year to add some greens to your diet
  • Leeks - looks like an excessively large green onion, and it is a kind of onion - an absolutely delicious kind!

Wanting More??

You can find more recipes for spring produce on my Spring Recipe Pinterest Board!

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