11 - 17 March update Sydney Market that includes availability and price of seasonal fruits, vegetables and flowers. Also includes recipe suggestions.
FRUITS:
Fibre-rich pears are a family favourite. Naturally scrumptious, economical and versatile, pears make elegant and quick desserts or add a sweet flavour and crisp texture to a salad. Select from Williams, Packham, Beurru Bosc and new-season Corella pears selling for $3-$6 a kilo, depending on size and variety.
Pomegranates are beautiful, delicious and antioxidant-rich. Add colour and sweetness to an autumn salad with a generous sprinkle of pomegranate arils; they team deliciously with oranges, rocket, feta, rice, lentils, beetroot, quinoa, rhubarb, pears and lamb. Serve pomegranates with panna cotta, yoghurt or spatter arils over a Pavlova. Depending on size and quality, pomegranates are $1-$7 each. Try this pomegranate, tomato & tuna quinoa salad.
Quince season is here. Large, elongated, and highly aromatic Smyrna quinces are an autumn treat. Peel, halve, and core quinces; top halves with butter, honey, and a pinch of cinnamon, wrap in foil, and bake in a moderate oven for 1 hour. This dessert is worth the wait. Quinces retail for $5-$7 a kilo.
Ranging in colour from apricots to a rich reddish-orange, honey-sweet, firm and crunchy, Queensland-grown, sweet persimmons are in season at your local greengrocer for $10-$20 a kilo, which is around $2.50-$5 each. Learn more about persimmons.
It's a bumper time for freshly harvested apples. Perfect for a healthy snack and offering loads of potential for autumn desserts, apples depending on variety and size, apples are $3-$8 a kilo. Varieties include Royal Gala, Mi, Red Delicious, Jazz, Kanzi, Golden Delicious and Fuji.
At this time of year, smooth-skinned Shepard avocados mostly come from Queensland's Atherton tablelands, Bundaberg, and Childers areas, while the large fleshly Reeds are from South Australia. Ultra-nutritious avocados contain 14 vitamins and minerals, including vitamins B1, B2, B3, C, and E. Even though they have a creamy texture, avocados provide valuable fibre. Depending on variety and size, avocados are $1.50-$4 each.
Put versatile and juicy lemons back on your shopping list, as prices have eased to $3-10 a kilo, depending on quality and size. Lemon juice and zest enhance this tasty potato dish of lemon, mint, and feta potatoes.
There is an impressive range of grapes in-store. If you like sweet and crunchy grapes, I recommend the Crimson seedless or Thompson seedless grapes for great value. Depending on variety, grape prices are $4-$26 a kilo, with Autumn Crisps being premium.
Luscious tropical papayas are plentiful. Start your day with a large wedge of these vitamin A and C-rich fruit, enhanced with a drizzle of lime juice. Depending on variety and size, papayas are $3-$6 a kilo.
VEGETABLES
Pumpkins are the most adaptable of vegetables. Use them in gnocchi, breads, sweet tarts and pies, or roast wedges with garlic; whip a mash or puree for a rich cream soup if you crave comfort foods. Whole Jap, Butternut and Jarrahdale pumpkins range in price from $1.50-$2.50 a kilo.
Firm, bright green heads of broccoli are a choice buy this week at $5-$7 a kilo. Broccoli offers exceptional value as a rich source of folate and valuable antioxidants.
Brown onions from South Australia and Tasmania are a top buy at $1.50-$3 a kilo. Look for bulk by specials at your local greengrocer to save more. Caramelised onion is delicious added to a pizza topping, served with sausages, used in a frittata, added to an omelette or blitzed and stirred through yoghurt or sour cream for a homemade onion dip.
Tender and juicy Lebanese cucumbers are $3-$4 a kilo. Telegraph cucumbers are reasonably priced, $1.50-$3 each, and Quakes or Baby cucumbers are available for $3-$4 a punnet. This lime-marinated fish with cucumber & avocado salad makes a tasty and easy mid-week meal.
Prices of handpicked green beans from Victoria and Queensland remain firm at $10-$16 a kilo, while machine-harvested beans are better value at $4-$7 a kilo.
Super versatile and ultra-healthy carrots are the perfect ingredient to build a meal around. Fabulous raw in salads, crunchy in stir-fries, caramelised in a casserole or grated into a tasty carrot cake. No matter how you enjoy carrots at $2-$3 a kilo, carrots are top value.
Broccolini is a hybrid cross between Chinese broccoli – Gai Lum and traditional broccoli. With broccolini, you get the best of both worlds: long, tender, asparagus-like stems and delicate, flowery green florets. Broccolini is available at $2-$3 a bunch. Whip up this tasty char-grilled broccolini with tahini chicken.
Leafy and nutritious kale is a popular choice for green juices, stir-frying or adding shredded to frittatas and omelettes. Add a bunch to your shopping list for $2-$3 for a generous bunch.
Fresh chestnuts are a taste sensation. While nuts contain 50% fat, chestnuts contain 2.7%. To roast chestnuts, first cut a cross in the outer shell, then place the chestnuts in a tray and cook in a 200oC oven for 15-20 minutes or until the shell splits. Depending on size and variety chestnuts are $8-$15 a kilo.
FLOWERS
Indulge in a burst of autumn hues with a stunning selection of lisianthus, dahlia, carnations, flamingo celosia, oriental lilies, pineapple lily, Peppercorn berry sprigs, Snowberry, Siam tulips, sedum, paper daisies, Queen Anne's lace, sunflowers, local roses, tulips, chrysanthemums, hydrangea, hanging amaranth, smoke bush, tiger lily, Easter daisies, carnations, gerberas, bouvardia, or tuberoses. Experience the exquisite quality of autumn blooms by visiting your nearby florist.
Please note that the prices quoted in this report only apply for the current week and are subject to variation based on product variety, size, quality, and the trading area. For more information, please feel free to contact Sue Dodd, Marketing Consultant, at 0438725453
Published On 2024-03-11 15:35:00
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