nectarines
Spring heralds the commencement of the stone fruit season with the arrival of nectarines and peaches. Luscious and deliciously sweet and tangy, they also signify the change of season from a chilly winter to a hopeful breath of spring. Nectarines are not, as commonly believed, a cross between a peach and a plum but rather a cultivar of the peach family. Their flesh colour can vary from almost white or yellow to almost red, and they are classified by whether their stone comes away easily (freestone) or is difficult to remove (clingstone). Look beyond eating them fresh from your hand and try them sliced through salads or grilled and accompanied by a generous scoop of vanilla bean ice-cream (see our recipe on page XX).

loquats
Nutritionally speaking, loquats are very comparable to apples in terms of their high sugar, acid and pectin content. Firm, slightly immature fruits are best used for making pies or tarts. Choose deep golden-coloured loquats as they should have reached optimum maturity and therefore desirable sugar levels. Loquats mix well with other fruit in fresh fruit salads or fruit cups, are commonly used to make jam, jelly and chutney and are delicious poached in light syrup. Ripe fruit may be stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

navel oranges
Now is the time to be enjoying juicy WA-grown Washington navels. The Washington variety is an easy-to-peel seedless orange that’s perfect for eating fresh. Eating one a day ensures you are receiving your recommended daily intake of vitamin C. Combine Hass avocado slices with navel orange segments, fresh chervil and a garlic dressing for a delicious barbecue salad, which is also a very healthy combination.

blood oranges
These mottled red-fleshed oranges have a sweet tangy taste with wicked berry overtones. They make a sensational juice or you can simply eat the flesh. The vibrant segments look sensational in salads; try thinly shaved local fennel, black olives and blood orange – it’s a springtime must.

papaya and papaw
These two fruits are often confused with one another but are individual fruits derived from the same species – Carica Papaya. The papaya is smaller in size with salmon coloured flesh whereas the papaw is the larger fruit with yellow-flesh and caviar-like black seeds. These black seeds are edible and are often used as a substitute for black pepper in some parts of Asia and the Americas.
The papaya is extremely versatile and can be enjoyed when paired with either sweet or savoury ingredients. Enjoy it for a nutritious and simple breakfast or add a squeeze of fresh lime juice to heighten its flavour. Try experimenting with the addition of other complementing flavours include: cinnamon, nutmeg, orange, honey, vanilla, mint and passionfruit. It also pairs particularly well with ricotta fruit toast, maple syrup and yoghurt. Store the papaya at room temperature. It will be soft to the touch when ripe. It needs to be handled with care as the fruit can easily be damaged. Light superficial blemishes (found on most fruit) may be disregarded as they often result from leaf rub or in some instances wind abrasion and do not affect the internal eating quality of the fruit.
The Australian Yellow Papaw is considered your body’s best friend as it contains a wide variety of vitamins and minerals necessary for wellbeing and is particularly good in assisting with strengthening the immune system to help prevent recurrent colds and flus. Papaw also contains “papain”, a natural enzyme that is believed to help with digestive issues. Once again the papaw is a fragile fruit and should be handled with care. Enjoy adding slices of papaw to your breakfast fruit salad, include it in a fruit smoothie or add slices to a salmon and rocket salad for a tempting light lunch.

Hass avocados
The avocado is most often used in savoury food but is actually a fruit and not a vegetable. Discovered by early Spanish explorers who first saw the Aztecs eating avocados, these explorers later went on to introduced it to the English. The rich pale yellow-green flesh of the avocado is likened to a firm, ripe banana with a smooth and buttery texture and a faintly nutty flavour. When transporting the avocado, handle it with care as it can easily bruise and should be stored at room temperature. If you wish to speed up the ripening process, place the avocado in a paper bag together with a ripe banana or apple.
Use finely diced avocado to create a base for a rustic, fuss-free salsa. Be inspired by Latin flavours and add chilli, lime and coriander or for a hit of Mediterranean go with tomato, fresh oregano and sea salt – both pair marvellously with a range of grilled meats and seafood. Avocado is an immensely nutritious first food for babies and is easy to spoon straight out of the skin.

zucchini
Courgette is another name given to zucchini. It is related to quash, pumpkin and cucumber. Originating in Italy, zucchini was used for hundreds of years throughout the Mediterranean before it became popular in the Western World. Choose firm, green zucchini with glossy skins and avoid those with blemishes or soft spots. It is an excellent source of vitamin C and is a very versatile vegetable that can be eaten raw, slivered or grated into salads. The zucchini can be baked, boiled, steamed or best cooked in a little oil or butter to release the delicate flavour.

white globe salad onions
These are arriving just in time for the salad and barbecue season. They often have green tops still attached to indicate they really are freshly harvested. Barbecue, caramelise or use in salads and sandwiches. Crisp new season onions add a lovely flavour to salads such as the traditional and still popular tomato, cucumber and onion combination. If they are too pungent, slice and blanch them (in boiling water then drop them into cold water). Keep blanched slices in a jar of white wine vinegar in the refrigerator to use in salads/sandwiches. Finely slice the green tops on the diagonal as a garnish.

rhubarb
Keep your eyes peeled for some wonderfully deep red spring rhubarb in local produce stores. The colour of the rhubarb stalks can vary from the commonly associated blushed red, through to speckled pink and simply green. Thin red stems are generally considered sweeter and more tender than the thick green ones but this also depends on the particular variety of rhubarb. Remove the poisonous leaves then store the stalks in a plastic bag in the crisper section of the refrigerator for up to a week until ready to use. Once cooked, rhubarb can be kept in a sealed container for a similar period of time.

local purple garlic
Grown locally, purple garlic simply has the best possible flavour available. Its pungent, intense essence comes from its freshness, far superior to the imported specimens. There is no need to peel for roasting alongside meats and vegetables as leaving the skin on will enhance the flavour and helps to keep the garlic moist. Just place individual cloves (or the whole bulb) into the pan and at the end of cooking, squeeze the flavoursome flesh over the vegetables or into a reduced sauce of pan juices.

beetroot
With its warm, earthy flavours fresh beetroot is a favourite and is nothing like its vinegar-laced tinned cousin! When preparing, roots should be gently washed, as heavy scrubbing may damage the skin. Keep the roots, stem and skin on during cooking and remove afterwards – unless the intention is to make soup or add colour to a dish with beetroot juice. Peeled beetroot can also be grated and eaten raw and is particularly good with a sour cream and horseradish dressing.

Swiss brown mushrooms
It’s time to tuck into some local Swiss brown mushrooms. Mushrooms not only deliver a range of nutrients but also contain the elusive fifth flavour “umami” meaning “savoury deliciousness” in Japanese. First isolated by Japanese researchers in 1908, the presence of umami was confirmed in 2000 by United States researchers who found taste receptors that allow the brain to take in the satisfaction and mouth-feel of the balanced flavour of foods such as mushrooms.

baby cos lettuce
Cos lettuce is thought to have gained its name from its origin on the Greek island of Kos. Cos lettuce is a primary ingredient in a classic springtime Caesar salad and baby cos leaves in particular make wonderful “bowls” for serving sang choy bau or a Thai larb salad. Lettuce is a good source of folate and antioxidants and also contains a small amount of dietary fibre.

fennel
Native to Mediterranean cuisine, fennel is highly aromatic with a slight aniseed perfume and flavour with origins shrouded in mystical legends, as the seeds are believed to have wondrous properties. Fennel leaves are a traditional favourite when paired with fish, especially when baking or barbecuing a whole fish. The fennel bulb should be cut into thin slices and separated like an onion then added to your favourite garden salad. Fennel can be eaten either cooked or raw.

 parsley
The two most popular types of parsley are curly parsley and the Italian flat-leaf parsley, the latter having a stronger, more fragrant flavour and the former possessing a clean, fresh, crispy taste. Parsley is found in a number of Levantine, Mediterranean and North African dishes including spiced tagines with preserved lemons, the classic Italian green sauce – Salsa Verde and the Lebanese parsley-rich staple – tabbouleh.

sugar snaps
The soft and tender edible pods of sugar snap peas are crisp, sweet and succulent and are often served raw in salads, stir-fried or lightly steamed. Before being eaten, mature snap pea pods may need to be “stringed”, which means the membranous string running along the top of the pod, from base to tip, is removed. Unlike its cousin, the snow pea, the sugar snap pea is picked more mature and is fully rounded with thick pod walls that retain their natural plumpness.