What are your favorite seasonal produce items in May? Summer is around the corner and more and more seasonal produce is popping up! I love this time of year and am so thankful to live in a place with great access to local produce.
A few of my favorite produce items for May are asparagus, bok choy and rhubarb.
For those who subscribe to my Plantiful Plate meal plan you recently got my Spring Asparagus Soup recipe, so you already know I am loving using this seasonal produce item. Asparagus is a great green to incorporate into your meals (or feature in your meals, such as in my soup) because it has a distinct and unique flavor. I like asparagus as a side, in a salad, as toppings for portobello burgers, and, of course, in soups!
Bok choy is a vegetable which originated in China. The plant is known by different names including Chinese cabbage, Chinese celery, Chinese mustang, spoon cabbage and others. It’s thought to be over 6,000 year old but didn’t come to North America until the nineteenth century thanks to Chinese immigrants. Bok choy is versatile and can be eaten raw or cooked. I tend to use bok choy in recipes inspired by Asian cuisine. My Plantiful Plate meal plan subscribers recently got a Shiitake Pho recipe in their inbox which included bok choy.
Strawberry rhubarb pie was my favorite pie growing up. I was fortunate in that my grandma grew rhubarb on her farm so I could pick it fresh and take it home for my mom to bake into a pie. I still enjoy a good strawberry rhubarb treat, I also appreciate the tangy flavor in other forms. Rhubarb can be made into jams or compotes and tastes great! It can also be pickled, used in salads, used as a marinate for dishes (think a rhubarb tofu steak), and in stir-fries. If you are making a savory dish with rhubarb it is known to pair well with asparagus. Plantiful Plate subscribers can pull up their Strawberry Rhubarb Shortcake recipe for a sweet treat!