Best seasonal British foods: autumn

Seasonal autumn foods are like autumn leaves – colourful, beautiful, transient and a gift from nature to be savoured and enjoyed before the long, cold winter months. Make the most of late September’s succulent tomatoes, sweeten your palate on hazelnuts and walnuts and ease yourself into winter with warming soups, casseroles and crumbles made with autumn root vegetables and succulent fruits. Seasonal, local foods taste fresher, are rich in nutrients and add variety to your diet.

Autumn Fruits

Autumn fruits are a feast for both the eyes and the senses, particularly when the two come together in a sensuous, delicious fruit crumble served with custard or cream. Apples, pears, blackberries, raspberries and blood oranges are seasonal fruits that you can mix and match in crumbles. For a contemporary twist, make them in individual dishes to serve at a dinner party and add oats to the crumble mix for an extra-crispy topping. There’s an old Yorkshire saying that apple crumble without cheese is like a kiss without a squeeze, so if you want to be traditional, stir some crumbled Wensleydale cheese into the mixture for the topping.

Pumpkins

The pumpkin is both a fruit and a vegetable and this versatility lends itself to a variety of sweet and savoury recipes, ideal for serving on Hallowe’en and bonfire night. You can add it to stews and soups or try your hand at pumpkin risotto or pumpkin pasties. Alternatively, make pumpkin cheesecake or pumpkin pie or rustle up some pumpkin and cranberry muffins. Pumpkins are rich in potassium, zinc and fatty acids and contain vitamin C, calcium and fibre. Although the pumpkin has American associations, its roots are embedded in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, a precursor to Hallowe’en, when it was used as a lantern to ward off evil spirits.

Mussels

British mussels come into season in September and are at their most succulent during the autumn and winter months. Those plucked from Ireland and Scotland’s clean waters are particularly good. Mussels should have clean uncracked shells and should close up when you tap them. Mussels are a good source of the minerals zinc, iron and selenium and contain protein and vitamin B12. Add mussels to stews and soups, and they work well with pork and shellfish. An easy way to cook mussels is to steam them.

Vegetables

Autumn vegetables are ideal for soups, stews and livening up Sunday roasts. Wild mushrooms, which are rich in B vitamins, come into season in September, and you can pick them yourself or buy them from farmers' markets. Broccoli and carrots are in season in September and October, while mid- to late autumn root vegetables, including parsnips, swedes, turnip and Brussels sprouts are rich in fibre and vitamins, enabling you to make a healthy transition to the cold winter months.