Five seasonal recipes using local produce available now

The stalls at the Capital Region Farmers Market in Exhibition Park ran low on kale and Jerusalem artichokes by 9 a.m. last Saturday. July is, quietly, one of the best months to eat well in Canberra — if you know what you're looking for. Root vegetables, brassicas, citrus and hearty greens are peaking right now, and most are selling for between $3 and $6 a bunch from local growers.

That matters because winter eating habits in the ACT have a measurable health dimension. The Australian Bureau of Statistics' most recent National Health Survey found fewer than one in 20 Australians meets the daily recommended five serves of vegetables — a figure that local dietitians at ACT Health's community nutrition programs have been trying to move for years. Cold weather doesn't help. When temperatures drop below six degrees overnight on Tuggeranong's southern fringe, the instinct is to reach for something heavy and processed rather than something fresh. The trick is making local, seasonal produce the easy option.

The Capital Region Farmers Market, held every Saturday from 7:30 a.m. at EPIC on Flemington Road, and the Southside Farmers Market at Woden Town Square on Sundays are the two most direct routes to what's growing in the region right now. Both markets feature produce from farms within roughly 150 kilometres of the city, including growers from the Yass Valley and Murrumbateman wine and vegetable belt.

What's in season and what to do with it

Here are five recipes built around what's actually on the tables this fortnight.

1. Roasted celeriac and white bean soup. Celeriac is abundant and underused. Quarter a medium bulb, toss it with olive oil and roast at 200°C for 35 minutes until caramelised at the edges. Blitz with a can of cannellini beans, a litre of vegetable stock and a clove of garlic. Season hard. It costs around $4 for a celeriac large enough to serve four.

2. Cavolo nero and ricotta frittata. Strip the leaves from four stems of cavolo nero — the dark Tuscan kale that several Murrumbateman growers have been producing since April — wilt briefly in a pan, then fold through six beaten eggs and a generous spoonful of local fresh ricotta. Finish under the grill. Quick, high-protein, works cold the next day.

3. Roasted beetroot and orange salad. Wrap four medium beetroots in foil and roast for an hour. Peel, slice, and lay over rocket with segments from two navel oranges, a handful of walnuts and a sharp red wine vinaigrette. The ACT citrus season is short — grab oranges now from roadside stalls along the Barton Highway.

4. Parsnip and pear soup. Parsnips are at their sweetest after the first hard frost, which Canberra reliably delivers. Sweat two diced parsnips and one peeled pear in butter, add stock, simmer for 20 minutes, blitz smooth. A pinch of nutmeg and a swirl of cream finishes it. Total cost per serve: under $2.50.

5. Braised red cabbage with apple and caraway. A half-head of red cabbage, shredded and slow-cooked with a diced green apple, two tablespoons of red wine vinegar, a teaspoon of caraway seeds and a splash of water for 45 minutes. It reheats perfectly and pairs with anything from sausages to grilled chicken. Red cabbages at EPIC last week were $3.50 each.

Making the habit stick through winter

The practical challenge is getting these ingredients home regularly. The Capital Region Farmers Market Community Fund offers a concession card that provides a 20 per cent discount for Health Care Card holders — an underused program worth checking at the information stall near the main entrance on Flemington Road. The ACT Government's Healthy Weight Initiative, running through to December 2026, also funds free seasonal cooking demonstrations at several Belconnen and Tuggeranong community centres.

None of this requires a radical overhaul. Swapping one midweek meal to a recipe built around whatever is cheap and local right now is, according to dietary guidelines published by the NHMRC, enough to produce a measurable improvement in vegetable intake over a month. Start with the celeriac soup. It is harder to get wrong than it sounds, and it will warm a flat on a minus-four Canberra morning in a way that a frozen meal will not. For personal dietary advice specific to your health needs, speak with a GP or accredited practising dietitian through ACT Health's community referral service.