Even if China and India share 70% of the world production, three-quarters of the French production of cauliflower are grown in the North West of France, on the breton coast ... If you arrive with the ferry at Roscoff, you'll see fields of cauliflowers everywhere... Prince de Bretagne the main supplier of vegetables of the region...



Cauliflower belongs to the very, very, large cabbage family ... that have so many different colors, shapes and even sizes. Cabbage season never stops... all year long...

Origins
Asia Minor. Cabbage is a very old food already eaten by prehistoric people ... Cauliflower disappears however in Europe after the Roman time and reappeared in Italy in the late Middle Ages. In France, it is cultivated again in the 17th C. In England, a bit earlier...

Vitamins and co
This vegetable plant has many advantages: rich in vitamin C (good for healthy bones, cartilage, teeth and gums ... It also protects against infections, promotes the absorption of iron content in plants and accelerates healing. ) It was good for sailors wishing to fight against scurvy (No fresh food on boats for days...a lack of vitamin C makes you loose your teeth!).
Studies say that cauliflower is also appreciated against cancers (lung, ovary and kidney). And good for pregnant women (contents folate (vitamin B9 used for the growth and development of the fetus ...).
It is a low calorie vegetable (high content of water: 20 calories per 100 grams).

Culture and Consumption
It is an annual plant. Thanks to the mild climate of the region of Roscoff, we can eat them September to January.

How to choose a cauliflower
A fresh one will have still green water-soaked leaves and a white heart...
But ... very often, unfortunatly, the cauliflower arriving in our plates has done a long journey before ending in a saucepan of boiling water... Leaves are all dried, the white is often spotted (these are signs of decay).
However ... It is a very good food that I recommend as a dipping appetizer

Italian raw cauliflower recipe in spicy sauce

Ingredients
a cauliflower 800 g
Chopped parsley
Anchovies thinly cut
Juice of half a lemon
100g butter
Salt

For this recipe, the ideal is to have a cauliflower extremely fresh, white, with no trace of passing time ...
Remove leaves, divide the clumps of cabbage and soak in salted water.
In a saucepan, melt butter, add anchovies that you've previously cut into thin slices and parsley. After a few minutes, remove from heat.
Drain the cauliflower florets and arrange in a dish, pour sauce and lemon juice.
Serve as appetizer ...

Read this article in French : Le chou-fleur de Bretagne

It's summer ... the best season to enjoy veggies and fruits ... because they're plenty...because the fruits are sweet and juicy... And because you can prepare nice cold salad with so many different kinds of products.... because it's the best diet... to loose weight (Vegetables and fruits are low in calories) or to feel fit and healthy... Natural vitamins for a beautiful complexion and a nice skin. The best time to eat fresh food.

You can still eat Beets, Carrots, Celery, Potatoes and Onions as they can be preserved all year long but try to enjoy some other ones...
As the weather is nice and warm, enjoy eating cold... outside...

You can also enjoy collecting what you would like to eat by going to farms where you can pick what you want to eat and savour... In Brittany, it's possible, in many places...

You can also when walking around, collect blackberries, sloes and other nuts and chestnuts ....

Remember that exotic fruits do not grow all year long....

Here is your monthly calendar... July, August and September. For free and full of nice local recipes...

Blue links are connected to vegetables and fruits produced in the region... and the culinary specialties...

Vegetables

Asparagus, Artichokes, Batavia, Broccoli, Corn, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Fennel, Garlic, Green beans, Lettuce, Peas, Peppers, Radishes, Rockets, Salad, Spinach, Tomatoes, Zucchini

Fruits

Apricots, Blackberries, Blueberries, Cherries, Currants, Melons, Nectarines, Peaches, Plums, Raspberries, Rhubarb, Strawberries
Exotics Bananas

Vegetables

Artichokes, Broccoli, Corn, Cucumber, Eggplant, Fennel, Green beans, Lettuce, Peas, Peppers, Rockets, Squash, Spinach, Tomatoes, Turnips, Zucchini

Fruits

Apricot, Blackberries, Blueberries, Currant, Gooseberries, Grapes, Figs, Melons, Mirabelle, Nectarines, Peaches, Pears, Plums, Raspberries, Strawberries, Sloes

Vegetables

Artichokes, Cabbage, Corn, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Fennel, Green beans, Lettuce, Mushrooms, Peppers, Pumpkins, Spinach, Radish, Salads, Tomatoes, Truffles, Zucchini

Fruits

Apples, Blackberries, Blueberries, Currants, Figs, Grapes, Melons, Mirabelle, Nectarines, Peaches, Pears, Plums, Quinces, Raspberries, Sloes, Strawberries
Chestnuts, Hazelnuts, Walnuts
Exotics Bananas, Pineapples

Spring time... Nature is waking up.... And you too.
There are so many reasons to enjoy fruits and vegetables in spring...Good vitamins and diversity of taste are back... Nicer and longer days too. Prepare your skin (fresh veggies and fruits are the best diet to have a wonderful complexion) and your body for the sunny days... and loose quietly the overweight of the wintertime.

Spring is the best excuse to go back to a nice healthy diet to be fit and nice looking for the -soon- sunny beaches... Cold is gone and it is easier to eat light....

Specially because the spring vegetables and fruits mature without being helped and that's much better for our palates, our health, our body and our wallet ...

The common Beets, Carrots, Celery, Potatoes and Onions are still around as they are the basis, edible during the whole months of the year...

We do often forget that green salads are also related to the seasons ... The lettuce starts to appear on the shelves in April ... while the winter salad (chicory for example) disappears ...

Remember that exotic fruits don't grow all year long...

The links refer to vegetables and fruits produced in Britain or to recipes ...

APRIL

Vegetables

Asparagus, Avocados, Beets, Cabbage, Carrots, Chards, Celery, Cucumber, Garlic, Green beans, Lettuce, Onions, Peas, Potatoes, Radishes, Rockets, Sorrel , Spinach, Turnips

Fruits

Kiwi, Lemons, Oranges, Rhubarb

Exotics Bananas, Pineapples

MAY

Vegetables

Asparagus, Avocados, Beets, Carrots, Celery, Cabbage, Cucumber, Eggplant, Green beans, Lettuce, Leeks, Onions, Peas, Potatoes, Radish, Spinach, Sorrels,Turnips, Watercress

Fruits

Apricots, Cherries, Currants, Kiwis, Lemon, Raspberries, Rhubarb, Strawberries

Exotics Bananas, Passion fruit, Pineapples

JUNE

Vegetables

Artichokes, Asparagus, Beets, Cabbage, Carrots, Celery, Chanterelle mushrooms, Cucumber, Eggplants, Fennel, Green beans, Leeks, Lettuce, Onions, Peas, Potatoes, Peppers, Radishes, Salads, Spinach, Tomatoes, Turnips, Zucchini

Fruits

Apricots, Currants, Cherries, Kiwi, Melons, Nectarines, Peaches, Strawberries, Raspberries
Exotics Bananas, Mangoes, Papayas

Well, this is easy when you have a life in harmony with nature, time, goodwill and principles .... Otherwise, you can also go on a healthy diet of vegetables and fruits, using canned ... or frozen products. Canned vegetables are full of vitamins and frozen fruits too as they are freshly collected and preserved in the same day.

Read this article in French : calendrier de printemps des fruits et légumes de saison

Winter is the season for soups and stews, good simmered dishes and rich meals... Apple pies and roasted chestnuts are also part of the winter menu... and the excess of Christmas time...

It is also the season of cold, where diseases are more predictable ... Therefore vitamins of fresh produces and food are even more recommended ... to fight your bad cough... Fresh fruits or vegetables are the best natural source of vitamins... and the best way to loose weight after the plenty of New Year... Some days of a diet of fruits and veggies, that the best way to recover...

So let's see what we can eat... to enjoy the winter production without worrying ...

Some vegetables are edible all year long if they are well kept : Beets, Carrots, Celery, Potatoes and Onions.
Same thing for nuts...
Exotic fruits, even if they are produced in warm lands, are also connected to seasons.

Better than eating food supplements in winter, try the natural vitamins and the right minerals...

Links are connected to recipes or specific vegetables and fruits produced here ...

Vegetables
Beet, Horseradish, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Carrot, Celery, Chicory, Cress, Crosne, Fennel, Jerusalem artichoke, Leeks, Onions, Potatoes, Pumpkin, Salad, Salsify, Turnips
Fruits
Apples, Clementines, Kiwis, Mandarins, Oranges, Pears
Dates Nuts
Exotics Banana, Grapefruit, Lychee, Papaya, Pineapple



Vegetables
Avocados, Beets, Cabbage, Carrots, Celery, Chicory, Leeks, Onions, Potatoes, Salads, Salsify, Turnips, Watercress

Fruits
Apples, Blood oranges, Clementines, Kiwi, Lemons, Mandarins, Pears
Nuts
Exotics Bananas, Grapefruit, Mangoes, Passion Fruit, Pineapples



Vegetables
Avocados, Beets, Carrots, Cabbage, Celery, Leaves, Leeks, Mushrooms, Onions, Potatoes, Radish, Salsify Spinach,Turnips
Fruits
Apples, Clementines, Kiwi, Mandarins, Oranges
Exotics Bananas, Mangoes, Pineapples

If you want to eat the right products at the right time, the easiest way to do it is to go to the market next and buy the vegies and fruits produced in your area.
You'll discover vegies that we do not eat often anymore and you need just a bit of imagination to accommodate some vegetables! Bon appétit

Read this post in French : Fruits et légumes de saison : calendrier d'hiver

Have you heard about the Copenhagen Summit... Of course... States and men have to act together to change the habbits we have for years...

One step can be simple : eat the right vegetable or fruit at the right time...
But as most of us don’t grow anymore vegies, we have forgotten when it is the right season to eat that kind of vegetables or this type of fruits…
And it is not just politically correct, it is also healthy (fresh vitamins) and wise (less expensive if you buy them when they're naturally mature.... cheaper...) to eat well and good (better taste)...
To help you through and to discover some of our regional products, I have done this calendar for the autumn production… October, November and December...

Some veggies can be kept through the year, if well preserved : beets, carrots, celery, potatoes and onions...
We often forget that exotic fruits are also related to the seasons.
Autumn is also the season to collect and enjoy fresh nuts (chestnuts,wallnuts...).

Enjoy the recipes and the local production clicking on links.



Vegetables
Artichokes, Beans, Beets, Horseradish, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflowers, Celery, Chicory, Cucumbers, Fennel, Leeks, Onions, Potatoes, Radish, Romanesco cauliflower, Roquette Salad, Spinach, , Turnips, Zucchini

Fruits
Apples, Dates, Figs, Grapes, Lemons, Oranges, Pears, Persimmons, Quinces
Almonds, Chestnuts, Hazelnuts, Walnuts
Exotics Pineapples

NOVEMBER

Vegetables
Beets, Broccoli, Carrots, Cabbage, Celery, Chicory, Fennel, Jerusalem artichokes, Leeks, Lentils, Onions, Potatoes, Pumpkins, Salad, Salsify, Spinach, Turnips Fruits
Apples, Grapes, Kiwis, Mandarins, Oranges, Pears
Chestnuts, Dates, Walnuts



Vegetables
Avocados, Beets, Horseradishes, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celeriac, Leeks, Onions, Potatoes, Pumpkins, Salsify, Turnips

Fruits
Apples, Clementines, Mandarins, Oranges, Pears
Almonds, Dates, Hazelnuts, Walnuts
Exotics Bananas, Guavas, Lychees, Mangoes, Pineapples

Read it in French : Calendrier des fruits et légumes à consommer en saison d'automne