There’s something I find particularly comforting in eating food that is in season and following the natural rhythms and cycles to the year. That said, I live in New England, so I make exceptions for some things I can find in-season elsewhere.
I’m not a moral purist about this stuff: mostly I like the idea of seasonality helping me with decision fatigue!
I’ve been meaning to pick back up the habit of my monthly food list: a list of seasonal foods to eat, favorite recipes to cook (again and again), and new things to try! Given that I’m on a kick this week, and January is always a great place to start, here’s the first iteration!
I also gravitate towards cookbooks that capture the year: Nigel Slater’s Kitchen Diaries (and his many repeat volumes) are some of my personal favorites.
Things in Season in January
Not all the things, just the things I might want to eat! I use cheat sheets from my Farmer’s to You order site, the Red’s Best fresh options, Foodwise (yes, it’s Calfornia!) and a few cookbooks (Stephane Reynaud’s 365) to make this list!
Vegetables and fruits: beets, leeks, rutabaga, parsnips, potatoes, cabbage, carrots, belgian endive, kale, kohlrabi, radicchio, variety greens, mushrooms, sunchokes, all the citrus! (Bag of clementines! Citron! Kumquats! A pomelo! A tangelo! Grapefuit!)
Fish: bass, monkfish, skate, oysters, mussels, cod, whitefish
Butcher: duck, oxtail, pork chops, ham, sausages from the freezer, steak
Cheese: fondue, comté petit reserve, roquefort
Special Things: caviar, foie gras, chopped liver, beet hummus
Things I’d like to eat:
Tis the season for soups and stews for me.
Marcus Samuelsson Black Eyed Pea Curry (yearly tradition – done!)
Rice Bowls with Fish!
Nigella Lawson’s Chicken in a Pot with Lemon Orzo
Schnitzel with Farfalle and Cabbage (a fave of my mom’s)
Ropa Vieja with Yellow rice, Platanos maduros
Kapuska (cabbage soup; or Sherman’s Sweet and Sour Cabbage Soup)
Duck Legs and Potatoes
Slow Salmon with Citrus and Herb Salad (Alison Roman)
Annie’s with Crab, Tomato Paste, and Sherry
Nabeyaki Udon (a fave of my dad’s)
Steak Au Poivre, Broccoli with Blue Cheese and Balsamic
Fondue and Potatoes and Cornichons
Fennel salad and Pork Chops
Split Pea Soup with Ham
La Jota (Beans and Sauerkraut soup) Marcella Hazan, Essentials of Italian Cooking – ***project soup
French Onion Soup
Kabak tatlısı (stewed pumpkin dessert)
Candied citrus peels
Restaurants to Eat From:
- Grandma’s Kitchen (Chicken Noodle Soup)
- Shan a Punjab Butter Chicken
- Yogurt Parfait from Sofra
- Wegmans California Rolls
- Kava Neo-Taverna (with Kathy!)
