February

There are some great seasonal fruit and vegetables out there to brighten the darker days this month. We’ve put together a list to take the hard work out of what to buy and highlighted some of our favourites.

Brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, celeriac, chicory, Jerusalem artichoke, kale, kohlrabi, leeks, mushroom, onions, parsnips, potatoes, purple sprouting broccoli, rhubarb, salsify, shallots, swede, turnips.

Kale

• Don’t wash your kale until you are ready to cook with it. Wrap in a dry paper towel and store in the salad drawer in your fridge.

• Stored this way kale should last up to a week.

• Blanching kale before freezing helps to preserve it’s colour, flavour and texture.

Take advantage of the health benefits of this tasty veg with some of our savvy recipes Potato, egg and kale breakfast tray bake, Roasted tofu and crispy kale, Summer greens filo pie or Eggless mushroom and greens frittatas

Purple sprouting broccoli

• Can be roasted, steamed, sautéed with butter and garlic or used in a stir fry.

• Don’t forget to eat the stalks! Add them to your dish or use them in a homemade veggie stock.

• Salads aren’t just for summer, try our Warm potato and sprouting broccoli salad

Rhubarb

• Store rhubarb stalks in the fridge in a plastic bag, it can last up to 3 weeks stored this way.

• Only the stalks are edible, the leaves are poisonous but they are safe to go in your compost bin.

If it’s chilly outside what better way to warm up than with a lovely Rhubarb and oat crumble Mmmmmm! For more tangy rhubarb recipes go to BBC Good Food