SEASONAL & SUSTAINABLE LIVING - DECEMBER: SUSTAINABLE FEASTS & CELEBRATIONS

2 December 2020 - Posted by The Sisterhood of Sustainability

The festive season is here! We want to help you celebrate in a sustainable way this December and so will be sharing lots of little tips and tricks which will allow you to reduce your environmental impact whilst still making the most of every feast and party over Christmas and the New Year...

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES IN SEASON IN DECEMBER

Celebrate Christmas with feasts of fresh fruit & vegetables...

SEASONAL FRUITS

Apricots - Black Currants - Bananas - Cherries - Gooseberries- Honeydew - Loganberry - Lychee - Lemons - Mangoes - Passionfruit - Raspberries - Rockmelon - Red Currants - Rough Leaf Pineapple - Rambutan - Smooth Leaf Pineapple - Starfruit - Strawberries - Valencia Oranges - Watermelon

SEASONAL VEGETABLES

Asparagus - Capsicum - Celery - Choko - Cucumber - Eggplant - Green Beans - Green Peas - Hass Avocado - Lettuce - Radish - Snake Beans - Salad Onion - Spring Onions - Snow Peas - Sugar Snap Peas - Squash - Sweet Corn - Tomatoes - Watercress - Zucchini - Zucchini Flowers

TIPS & TRICKS FOR SUSTAINABLE CELEBRATIONS

1. Instead of using disposable cups, plates and cutlery, opt for reusables. If you don't have enough, make a quick trip to your local second hand shop and pick up some bargains from the ceramics aisle!

2. To prevent food waste, don't prepare excessive amounts of food and carefully pre-plan. If there happens o be leftovers, save them for the next day and discard of food scraps by adding them to your compost pile.

3. Instead of buying wrapping paper and sticky tape, use second hand cardboard boxes and wrap in reusable fabric wrapping paper. Use recycled pieces of ribbon to secure the present instead of using tape!

4. Avoid using balloons and tinsel and use eco-friendly decorations instead such as fresh greenery, candles, handmade paper decorations and flowers. Anything that can be reused, composted or recycled is great!

5. Do your grocery shopping for Christmas at a bulk food store such as The Source so that you can avoid unnecessary packaging and make your celebrations as zero waste as possible.

SUSTAINABLE RECIPES FOR PASSIONFRUIT

The two main types sold in supermarkets are purple and Panama. Purple passionfruit are smaller, with a hard dark skin and lots of pulp. Panama passionfruit are larger and comes in a variety of colours. Panama varieties aren’t as sweet and don’t have as much pulp as purple fruit but they are larger in size and cheaper.

BUYING
Choose passionfruit that feel heavy for their size. Look for smooth to slightly wrinkled skin; the skin wrinkles as it ripens, but some varieties can still be ripe without being wrinkled. Avoid passionfruit that have too many wrinkles, soft spots or bruises.

STORING
Store fruit at room temperature for up to 10 days or refrigerate for one month. To keep for later use, freeze pulp in ice-cube trays or freeze whole.

Make a delicious tropical fruit smoothie the healthy way; combine fresh passionfruit pulp, diced mango and ice-cubes. Process in a blender until smooth. Serve in tall glasses for a refreshing drink.

Make a tasty dip or spread: combine some passionfruit pulp with cream cheese. Mix well and then serve with a fresh fruit salad or use as a delicious spread for fruit bread.

Give your next bowl of muesli a makeover by topping it with a mixture of passionfruit pulp and natural yoghurt for a refreshingly tart flavour.

SUSTAINABLE RECIPES FOR LYCHEES

Lychees are a small, round or oval fruit with bumpy, reddish-brown skin. The flesh is translucent cent white with a sweet, refreshing flavour and a texture similar to grapes. It contains a small, inedible stone.

BUYING
Choose firm and plump lychees with unblemished skin. Avoid purchasing lychees with cracks in the skin.

STORING
You can store lychees for up to one week in a reusable bag in the fridge.

Sweeten up your favourite Thai-style stir-fry by adding peeled, destined lychees just before serving. Lychees complement flavours like ginger, mint and coriander.

To balance the salty flavours of a mezze plate, try this sweet addition. Combine finely chopped almonds with cream cheese. Peel lychees and carefully remove stones. Fill lychees with cream cheese mixture and serve.

This light and delicious dessert is the perfect treat on a hot afternoon. In a food processor, puree 2 peeled and diced peaches, 6 peeled and destoned lychees, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 3 tablespoons caster sugar and 1 1/2 cups Greek style yogurt. Pour mixture into icy pole moulds and freeze until solid.

SUSTAINABLE RECIPES FOR APRICOTS

Apricots are not sold by variety in Australia but do vary in colour, ranging from pale yellow to a golden orange colour - some even have a pink flush to them. Apricots have soft, velvety skin and a distinctly sweet scent.

BUYING
Choose apricots that are plump and yield slightly when pressed. They should have a strong, sweet fragrance.

STORING
Allow to ripen at room temperature. Ripe apricots can be stored in a reusable bag in the refrigerator for 2 - 3 days.

For this fresh spring salad, halve 5 apricots, remove the stones, then cut flesh into thin wedges. Combine apricots with cooked, shredded chicken, Lebanese cucumber (peeled into ribbons) baby spinach leaves and 1 tablespoon each shredded parsley and mint. Top salad with crumbled feta and chopped walls, Drizzle with balsamic before serving.

Apricots add wonderful flavour and texture to meat dishes. Combine chopped apricots, roast pumpkin, parsley, nuts and lemon juice with cooked couscous or wild rice. Serve with slices of grilled lamb or pork.

For a quick and easy snack, halve an apricot, remove the stone and fill the cavity with fresh ricotta and top with drizzled honey.