"ideas on the freshest produce this season coupled with gourmet recipes for the freshest produce in town
What's fresh?
Limes
Put some festive zing into your week with Aussie-grown limes and lemons. Supplies are increasing, and prices have eased, making them ideal for cocktails, salad dressings, seafood and marinades
Apricots are at their seasonal best in December—plump, aromatic and naturally sweet with a pleasing tang. Enjoy sugar grilled apricots with raspberries or roasted apricots with passionfruit, honey and ricotta
Summer is prime time for tomatoes, with a colourful mix of shapes, sizes and flavours landing in store. Choose from truss and oval Roma tomatoes, heirloom, cherry, grape, and festive cherry truss.
Potato prices traditionally rise at this time of year as demand peaks and supplies tighten. The best-value option is to buy in bulk, choosing 2–5 kilo bags. Plan ahead, unpack them from plastic as soon as you get home, and store in a cool, dry, well-ventilated spot to help prevent greening or sprouting
Eggplant turns wonderfully smoky and tender on the barbecue, soaking up flavours like a sun-warmed sponge and earning its place as a true summer essential. With prices at $4–$8 per kilo, it’s the perfect time to pile a few into your basket and grill them into dips, salads, or charred slices for easy entertaining.
Carrots are excellent value and a nutritional powerhouse, offering vitamins A, B6 and C. Try them raw in salads, blended into juice with orange and ginger, or in a Moroccan carrot, rocket and chickpea salad
A vibrant bunch of mint can lift a meal from every day to lively in a blink, delivering cooling freshness and bright flavour. Pair mint with cucumber, melons, lime, chilli, lamb, mango, pineapple, peas, potatoes and yoghurt.
Crisp and refreshing Cos lettuce is a summer essential for Caesar salads, wraps and sandwiches. Another option is the popular choice - crunchy and versatility Iceberg lettuce
