Seasonal fruit and vegetables in September: what produce to buy

Another hot summer is about to end. Bringing as always the sweetest fruits, which will still stick around for a while: peaches, plums and nectarines will accompany us through the end of the month, but grapes are the true protagonists of the season, which comes to full maturation each week in the various regions of Italy. And Italia is the name of one of the most common table varieties, together with Regina, but there are also Cardinal, Melissa Pizzutello, concord grapes and gooseberries (remember the Snow White cake? It was not filled with apples but rather with gooseberries. A good idea to bake with the children!).

Fruits of September: figs

Watermelons are replaced by apples, pears and berries: the latter give their best in September and find space in the kitchen in an infinite number of recipes. You can use them in fruit salads and to prepare jams, made into coulis to dribble on top of gelato, or to complete desserts: try these fruits as toppings for cheesecake and you will not regret it. The symbolic fruit of the ninth month, however, is figs, in the variety called - precisely - settembrino. An ancient product, known and appreciated since the dawn of time: mentioned in the Bible, in the tradition of the foundation of Rome, which tells that Romulus and Remus were weaned from the she-wolf under a ruminal fig tree on the Palatine hill. It was furthermore food of the immortal gods in the Egyptian cosmogony. Composed like all fruits mainly of water (about 80%), but with a strong component of sugars (19%) figs are rich in minerals such as calcium, potassium, iron, sodium and phosphorus, and vitamins, such as A, B6, C and PP. Among the most famous are the two local DOPs: Figs from Cosenza and the white figs of Cilento.

How to use figs in the kitchen

Perfect for starting the day with energy, figs can also be used in the kitchen for sweet and savoury recipes, for a snack try focaccia sliced open and filled with raw figs and prosciutto, as required by Roman tradition. But they are also excellent, filled with fresh goat cheese and a drizzle of warm honey, eaten raw or after a quick heating in the oven. If you want to try your hand at a starchy starter, try using them in risotto together with gorgonzola, or with pasta with speck and a sprinkling of grated pecorino cheese. The sweetness of the fruit pairs perfectly with meat dishes. An example? Stewed rabbit with figs and mushrooms also bring the other protagonists of September to the table. For dessert, we are spoiled for choice as far as figs go: caramelized, grilled, in compôte... they are already a dessert in and of themselves, but for something more they can be used to enrich a ricotta tart.

September vegetables: more tomato varieties, soon the first mushrooms

On the vegetable front, tomatoes still resist (stock up on them now, because soon - alas - we will have to bid farewell to them for 9 months) and aubergines, to be canned in delicious preserves and kept in the pantry throughout the year. Think tomato puree (by the way, dare also with different varieties and not only with San Marzano), in oil or pickled. Towards the end of the month both tomatoes and eggplants will decrease more and more, giving way to the first seasonal pumpkins and then over time will appear beets, spinach, chicory and other leafy greens. In cooler areas, trusting in a rainy September, the first mushrooms should also start to appear: chanterelles, porcini, ovoli, chiodini and champignons to be pan fried, baked, sautéed, sliced into salads, or used for sauces or soups. The quintessential symbol of autumn is now upon us.

by Michela Becchi