What’s in season in September and how to eat it.
There are sound ecological reasons for eating fresh local produce, including the use of less fertilizer, and of course a lower carbon footprint due to the huge reduction in energy used for growing, transportation and storage.
Local, seasonal foods are also fresher, more flavourful and nutritious than foods consumed out of season. Crops matured naturally and picked at peak ripeness are sweeter, fuller-flavoured and contain more nutrients than their forced counterparts.
September
The supermarkets will probably start stocking fruits like caqui (persimmon) pomegranates and quince but honestly, they probably won’t have much flavour or sweetness yet and should be left until the end of the month or later.
Melons however should still be in good condition (particularly “piel de sapo” or toadskin melon) and grapes will be coming into their best. Citrus fruits – lemons in particular will be in abundance and pumpkins and squashes will be starting to appear – look out for different varieties like spaghetti squash, patti pan and acorn.
Sweet potatoes (boniato) are coming into season – look out for the local white fleshed variety – grown mostly around Sa Pobla, which are less sweet than the orange fleshed ones and have a lovely nutty flavour. They’re delicious simply roasted or baked or can be combined with other vegetables to make soups, taco fillings and more.
The migrating Mahi Mahi fish (locally known as llampuga) will be starting to appear on fish counters – smaller ones first, gradually getting bigger over the coming month(s). These smaller fish are best cooked whole and can be roasted and served with a wide range of flavour profiles including spicy and fruity. The flesh is quite firm, moist and not overly “fishy” in flavour.
Pumpkin & Sweet Potato Soup
- 500g pumpkin, peeled and cubed
- 300g boniato (sweet potato), peeled and cubed
- 1 onion, 1 leek, 1 large carrot, 3 fat garlic cloves – all chopped
- 1 litre vegetable or chicken stock
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Salt, pepper and a pinch of “4 spice” (cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, clove)
Start by frying the onions, leek, carrot and garlic until soft (about 5 mins), add the chopped pumpkin and boniato and continue to cook for a further 7-10 minutes. Season and pour in the stock (best if it’s warm or hot). Bring to the boil and simmer for about 25 minutes, then blitz it with a stick blender.
Options: Serve with a swirl of cream, toasted almond flakes, or add some toasted corn or chickpeas, strips of crispy smoked bacon or taquitos of chorizo.
Limoncello, liquid sunshine
Glut of lemons? What could be better than making a sweet and delicious, golden, fragrant batch of limoncello for drinking at Christmas? And it is simplicity itself!
Add the peel of 3-4 large unwaxed Mallorquin lemons to 1 litre of vodka and leave in a sealed container until the colour changes to yellow and the vodka takes on the smell and flavour of the lemons. (about 2 months). Strain.
Add 500g sugar to ½ litre of water and simmer until the sugar is dissolved.
Allow to cool and then add to the vodka.
Bottle and drink! Cheers!
Whole Roasted Llampuga
1 small whole llampuga fish, scaled, gutted, and cleaned
2 tbsp olive oil
1 lemon, half sliced, half for juice
2 garlic cloves sliced
Fresh herbs — rosemary, thyme, parsley, oregano, fennel — use a selection or all
Sea salt, black pepper
With the prepared fish, make a couple of slashes through the skin on either side.
Brush the inside of the fish with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and stuff with slices of lemon, herbs and garlic.
Brush the outside with oil and season.
Place on some foil or baking parchment on a roasting tray and cook in a preheated oven (220ºc) for 15-25 minutes depending on size of fish – serve with a squeeze of lemon juice.
Steve French has been a Chef, restaurateur and food consultant in both the UK and Spain for over 35 years; most recently at Finca49 in Pollença and is currently running cookery experiences in Andalucia (www.finca49.com/experiences).
Finca49 snapshots of summer cookbook is available to buy from www.finca49.com
