Seasonal fruit and vegetables | L'Osteria di Giovanni

Posted on June 25, 2013 by Osteria di Giovanni

It’s true that in Italy we are very influenced by the seasonal availability of fruit and vegetables. There is really not much that doesn’t grow in Italy in one season or another, and the summer season brings us a multitude of goodies to chose from.

Bear in mind that a good housekeeper never thinks of the menu and then goes out to buy the ingredients, but goes to the markets, sees what is in season, fresh, reasonably priced and looking good – and only then decides on the menu!

Currently in season we have: zucchini, zucchini blossoms, peppers, eggplant, cucumbers, tomatoes (fiorentini and costoluti variety), onions, green beans, watermelon and melon.

Try raw!

Try these really simple dishes:

zucchini thinly sliced and tossed in hot oil, with salt, pepper and virgin olive oil
zucchini blossoms, stuffed with a gooey oozy cheese (burrata is great), a sprinkle of sea salt, and a dash of virgin olive oil
peppers cooked whole on your BBQ, remove the blackened skins, clean the insides and cut into strips, dress with a little oil and salt
eggplant, cut into discs and grilled
cucumbers, straight up if possible with the peel still on
tomatoes – straight up with some fresh origano, salt and oil
onions, pan tossed and added to an omelette
green beens, just dipped into boiling water for a couple of minutes, no longer!
watermelon, as it is or for some summer silliness inject a shot of vodka, pimms or other spirit!
melon (the orange sweet melons – retato in Italian) with a cold cut such as prosciutto, salame or speck

In the summer, the less you do to your food, the better it will help you through the day. Leave the complicated stuff to us in the evenings!

Tags: blossoms, cucumber, eggplant, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables, green beens, melon, onions, summer food, tomatoes, watermelon, zucchini

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