GRAPES
Very good quality sweet grapes are in good supply this February; grapes are an excellent source of vitamin C and dietary fibre, keep refrigerated to maintain optimum quality.
Varieties available this month are –
Dark Seeded - Cardinal, Currants, Muscat and Red Globe
Dark Seedless - Flame
White Seedless - Menindee and Thompson (sultana)
PEARS
New season Victorian William Pears are now being harvested; they are a medium to large fruit which are great to eat fresh and are also the major variety used for canning. They are light green in colour changing to a clear yellow when ripe; the flesh is white, smooth and juicy with a slight aromatic flavour. Pears are an excellent source of Vitamin C and a very good source of dietary fibre.
APPLES
New season Victorian Royal Gala and Golden Delicious apples are now being freshly harvested. Royal galas are a dense, sweet aromatic small apple; it is juicy with a white flesh. They can be identified by a blush of pink on the skin; the colour varies from yellow to almost orange with deep orange stripes. Golden Delicious has a bright yellow to golden skin colour, sometimes with a pink tinge. It is at its best when the skin turns from green to gold. It is excellent as an eating apple, with its crisp, creamy, white flesh, which is sweet, tasty and juicy. Apples are full of antioxidants and are a good source of vitamins B and C; they contain no fat, cholesterol or salt.
MELONS
Watermelon Seedless and Long Seeded - when buying watermelon, look for melons with an attractive waxy bloom and a pale yellow underside. When tapped lightly, the melon should sound hollow, which is an indication of maturity.
Honey dew melon - when selecting honeydew, look for a deep golden skin or honeydew with an almost white skin.
Rockmelon - the rockmelon has a porous skin allowing the aroma to come through and the exotic smell is the best indication of ripeness for rockmelon.
STONEFRUIT
Summer stonefruit is in plentiful supply this month and a varied choice is available -
Apricots - delicious when eaten fresh or they can be used in desserts, poached, stewed, or pureed in jams and chutneys.
Peaches - available white or yellow fleshed and are a good source of vitamins A, C and B3.
Plums - are ideal addition to lunch boxes, they can also be used in hot and cold desserts, stewed, grilled, baked or sautéed, or in fruit salads and pies.
Nectarines - new season white and yellow varieties are now at your local greengrocer.
GREEN BEANS
Good supply and quality green beans grown in the Gippsland region are available the next few weeks at your local greengrocer.
When selecting beans, choose young, firm, straight pods with good colour .Good quality beans should snap crisply. Store in an airtight plastic bag in the refrigerator crisper.
SWEET CORN
The Gippsland region is also harvesting excellent quality sweet corn due to excellent growing conditions recently. Select corn with a fresh husk. Kernels should be plump, shiny and fairly straight.
ZUCCHINI
Local fruit are in abundance at this time of year, they are a great addition to summer cooked meals.
Zucchini are an excellent source of vitamin C and are low in sodium
EGGPLANT
Eggplant or Aubergine are of excellent quality this month; they are a good source of dietary fibre and contain vitamin C and potassium. There are five varieties available -
Long Tom - slender elongated and cucumber shaped.
Black Bell - pear shaped.
Purple - roughly the same size and shape as the regular eggplant, but reddish purple in colour and excellent for antipasto.
Continental - long and thin are usually purple but may be pale green or white.
Thai apple - small round shaped fruit and grown in a variety of colours ranging from white through green to purple.
Choose eggplant which is firm, heavy in comparison to size, dark and shiny skin with a fresh green stalk.
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