Fresh Food Club - What's in season?

Juicy Imperial mandarins from Queensland and South Australia are ripe and ready to enjoy. Easy to peel and loaded with vitamin C

From the crisp Granny Smith to the sweet Pink Lady and everything in between, like Golden Delicious, Kanzi, Jazz, Royal Gala, Bravo, Envy, Rockit and Mi, there's a perfect apple waiting for you. These apple varieties offer a satisfying crunch with every bite.

Creamy, extra-sweet custard apples are in season. A custard apple indicates ripeness when it yields slightly to gentle pressure. You will also notice the green skin becomes duller. These fruits are available both ripe and firm to the touch. If firm, allow them to ripen naturally over several days before consumption. Place the fruit in a brown paper bag with a banana to speed up ripening and leave it on the kitchen counter.

Sweet persimmons (Fuyu variety) are an autumn treat. Enjoy them firm and crisp like an apple, or let them ripen for a softer texture. The flavour of sweet persimmons develops when left at room temperature for a few days, and their thin, edible skin softens. Add sliced persimmons to salads with hazelnuts and salad greens, or enjoy them alongside a ripe brie or camembert cheese.

Nothing beats freshly squeezed orange juice for flavour. New-season Australian-grown navel oranges are now available and bursting with tangy flavour.

Upgrade your breakfast with homemade smashed avocado on toast! Snap up the last of the Reed avocados, or opt for the Shepard or Hass varieties.

Pears are a naturally sweet snack. They add sweetness and crunch to a salad and, when poached or roasted, make elegant desserts. The fruit is ready to eat when it yields to gentle pressure at the stem end. Use firm pears for cooking

Look for specials on 1-kilo bags of brown onions. Onions have antibacterial and antiviral properties that can help boost the immune system and reduce the risk of infections. Slow-cooking onions over low heat until they are brown and caramelised can bring out their natural sweetness and add depth of flavour to dishes like soups, stews, and sandwiches.

Jerusalem artichokes have an interesting nutty flavour and a texture similar to a potato. Ideal for soups, they are also delicious roasted. Select firm, smooth, even-sized artichokes free of soft spots. Scrub well or peel before cooking.

Select vibrant green broccoli with firm, tightly packed florets. The tiny buds in the florets should not have opened or flowered.

Brussels sprouts are a good source of vitamins and can build immunity against winter colds and flues. For something slightly different, finely shred Brussels sprouts and stir-fry with chopped bacon, pinenuts, and garlic. Brussels sprouts are sold loose and in packs of 300g

Fennel adds a vibrant Mediterranean flair to fall recipes. Enjoy its crisp, refreshing, raw taste to benefit digestion. When cooked, its aniseed flavour becomes milder. Incorporate fennel into salads, pasta, or roasted dishes

Celery is economical, healthy and discreetly delicious. Raw celery is crisp, tasty and low in kilojoules. Serve celery sticks with peanut butter, whip up a creamy celery soup or add flavour and fibre to hearty winter soups with celery.

Add chestnuts to your shopping list. Supplies and quality are excellent. Once cooked, their creamy-white flesh is similar in texture to a roast potato with a delicate, sweet, nutty flavour. Try chestnuts cooked and removed from their hard shell, then stir-fried or add to casseroles, meat stuffings, pasta filling or puree to use in cakes and desserts. 11 tasty ways to make the most of chestnuts

Orange-fleshed sweet potato, also known as kumara is good value. Delicious mashed, diced and roasted or baked in peeled chunks, kumara has a pleasant, sweet flavour.

Bright and brimming with flavour, green beans can be boiled or steamed until tender, then tossed with olive oil, sautéed garlic, and finely grated lemon zest.

Pumpkins' golden flesh and natural sweetness offer so many possibilities. Team pumpkin with aromatic flavours like lemongrass, ginger and kaffir lime for a sweet Thai-style curry or soup. Roast with chopped sage and toss pumpkin through pasta, gnocchi or an autumn salad. Whole pumpkins are good value