What's In Season For April

By now there's no denying the days are becoming progressively shorter and at both dusk and dawn there's a familiar chill in the air. Relishing in all of April's Autumn glory, use this as the perfect excuse to lavish your family and friends with a seasonal meal.

When it comes to culinary inspiration at this time of year we recommend earthy tastes, occupying your palate with Autumn ingredients, such as eggplant, fennel, garlic, potatoes and Brussel Sprouts; while fruit-wise it is all about apples, pears and nuts. 

What's in Season for April

Autumn appetizers may include crisp bitter leaves in a fresh and flavoursome salad; perhaps combined with Manu Feildel's onion and bacon tartlets to make a lovely light meal. Something like a pear and walnut salad needs nothing more, though consider sprinkling on your favourite goat's cheese for creamy richness. 

A bowl of steamy Thai pumpkin soup can be a first course or a meal in and of itself - garlic, lemongrass and green curry paste will give great Autumn flavour and you can opt for coconut cream if it's to your liking.  Working into the heartier mains, a slow braised beef cheek recipe will leave you ample creative freedom to fill the plate with seasonal vegetables on the side.

Baked goods fill your kitchen with an amazing aroma.  Depending on your timing you can bake a few hours in advance or plan it out so by the time your baking has cooled, you're ready to gobble up the oven-fresh morsels.

Try this apple strudel recipe as a delicious way to end an April family dinner...for more recipes, click here.

Fruits in Season

Apples – Braeburn, Cox's Orange Pippins, Fuji, Gala, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Jonagold, Jonathan and Red Delicious; Avocados – Fuerte; Bananas, Cumquat, Custard Apples, Feijoa, Figs, Grapes – Muscat, Purple Cornichon, Sultana, Waltham Cross; Guava, Kiwifruit, Lemons, Limes, Mandarin – Imperial; Nashi, Nuts – almond, chestnut, hazelnut, peanut, pistachio and walnut; Olives, Oranges – Valencia; Papaya, Passionfruit, Pears – Beurre Bosc, Howell, Josephine, Red Sensation and Williams; Persimmon, Plums, Pomegranate, Quince, Rambutan, Rhubarb and Tomatoes – truss, cherry and mini romas. 

Vegetables in Season

Asian Greens – bok choy, gai lan, choy sum and wonga bok; Beans – green and snake; Beetroot, Broccoli, Broccolini, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, Capsicum, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celeriac, Celery, Chilli, Cucumber, Daikon, Eggplant, Fennel, Garlic, Ginger, Leek, Lettuce, Mushrooms – wild, field, pine and Slippery Jack's; Okra, Onions – brown and spring; Parsnips, Peas, Potato, Pumpkin, Shallots, Silverbeet, Spinach, Squash, Sweet Potato, Swede, Tomatoes, Turnips and Zucchini.