Fresh Food Club - What's in season?

Leeks add a delicate onion flavour to soups, casseroles, stir-fries and pasta dishes. But have tried serving leeks as a vegetable side dish? Pick up a plump and flavoursome leek this week.

Brown onions are less pungent than white onions and ideal for making a sweet and aromatic French onion soup and fabulous for adding depth of flavour to a casserole.

Add a bunch of crunchy and versatile Victorian grown celery to your shopping list this week.

Eggplant is a savvy buy. There is so many ways to enjoy eggplant, roasted, grilled, barbecued or add to a curry. Layer cooked eggplant slices with a rich tomato passata and mozzarella cheese and bake until warm and bubbly.

Queensland grown green beans are a thrifty buy.

Select compact, even sized, vibrant green Brussels sprouts. Toss thinly sliced Brussels sprouts in a hot wok with a little oil and sliced beef until just tender, toss through noodles and soy sauce and serve.

Add colour to you diet with fresh beetroot. Toss roasted beetroot, with diced apples and rocket

For value on the vegetable scene, you cannot go past cabbage. This humble vegetable is versatile, nutritious and flavoursome. Add shredded Chinese cabbage also known as wombok to soups, hoikken dishes.

Warm up with a bowl of mug of nourishing pumpkin soup. Start with sliced leeks for a mild onion flavour or use brown onions for a richer flavour base. Jarrahdale pumpkin is a top buy when purchased whole.

Microwave chopped rhubarb with honey and a sprinkle of cinnamon until tender and serve over pancakes or porridge.

The Australian winter harvest of juicy Navel oranges has arrived. For a quick dessert, peel some oranges, removing all the pith, then slice. Arrange the orange slices on a platter, drizzle with honey, lightly dust with cinnamon and sprinkle with chopped pistachio nuts.

Attractive ruby-coloured and antioxidant rich pomegranates contain fruit contains jewel-like seeds bursting with juice and flavour. Sprinkle the seeds over a range of dishes, and use the juice for salad dressings or marinades. Pomegranate compliments lamb, duck and chicken dishes. Liven up your porridge, salads, couscous, eggplant or hummus with a spoonful of pomegranate seeds

Pears are a naturally sweet snack; they add sweetness and crunch to salads and then poached or roasted make elegant desserts. Pears continue to ripen after harvesting. Select firm, mature pears and ripen at room temperature. Skin colour may not change with ripening. The fruit is ready to eat when it yields to gentle pressure at the stem end. Use firm pears for cooking

Dress up a simple salad, pizza topping or nashos with avocado. The Hass are well supplied. Team avocados with citrus, pepper flavoured baby rocket leaves and a drizzle of olive oil for a quick salad.

Versatile bananas make the ideal quick snack, as the carbohydrates found in bananas has a low glycaemic index which means it is absorbed slowly and is extremely filling giving you sustained energy.