Now that summer is over (boo!) it is time to start preparing for the cooler months of autumn and winter. Here are Her Campus Nottingham’s top October food recommendations; stocking up your cupboards with these foods will help you stay healthy, eat seasonal produce and vary your diet after the Dominoes Freshers Week offer has expired. We encourage you to eat local produce, so there is also a list of alternative places to buy these foods that you may not have known about before.
Apples – There are many varieties of apples and many of them are grown here in the UK. Packed full of vitamins A and C, they are great for your immune system and fighting colds (including Freshers Flu). This sweet fruit can be eaten as it is after a quick wash, and is a perfect snack, grab and go breakfast for the walk from Lenton, or something to keep you going between lectures. Try cutting an apple into thin slices and adding it to a salad for a sweet crunchy twist to your lettuce leaves.
Mackerel – Fresh mackerel is one of the oily fish that is notorious for its brain boosting qualities. As students we should nourish our brains throughout the year and fish is a great source of omega 3 and fatty acids which do exactly this. October is the end of the British mackerel season, so make the most of it before the imported European fish come to our shops. Available from the market on the top floor of Victoria Centre; speak with the fishmonger and he will gut the fish for you, leaving you with the decision of how to prepare it. Try grilling mackerel fillets over a medium heat, adding chilli flakes and crushed garlic and serving with savoury rice or super noodles.
Sweet Potatoes – The sweet potato season starts in October and these beauties are a great variation from standard potatoes. The texture is somewhat creamier than normal potatoes and they are high in vitamins A, C and B6. Vitamin B6 is important for healthy brain function to help us study, and some studies say that this vitamin relieves some of the symptoms of PMS. You can prepare them in the same way as normal potatoes – mashed, baked, roasted or made into chips. Try cutting one into cubes and throwing it into a curry.
Now you know what our top three October foods are, it is important that you know where you can find these products away from the big supermarkets, where I find that fresh produce is often imported from other nations when we should make every effort to buy British. Here are some of Nottingham’s hidden gems for food shopping that HC wants to share with its readers.
Mogul Express (188 Ilkeston Road, Lenton/Radford) – I stumbled across this shop last year, as I was taken aback by the amount of fresh fruit and vegetables on display at the front of the store. Not only did it look appetising, the prices are competitive and unlike the neat rows of identical produce in the supermarkets, here you can buy strangely shaped peppers and apples of different colours. It doesn’t mean their produce is deformed, it is natural. They also have a Halal butcher at the back of the store with good prices for fresh cuts of meat.
Victoria Centre Market (Victoria Centre Second Floor, City Centre) – The local markets in the UK are always good places to find fresh and local produce. In the Nottingham market you will find grocers, butchers and fishmongers who all have a wealth of products on offer. The price may be a little more expensive than in the supermarkets, but you will taste the difference in the quality of the food, and buying local helps the trade rather than the monopolising supermarkets with their BOGOF offers.
Parsnips and Pears (online http://www.parsnipsandpears.co.uk/) – This local grocers delivers boxes of fresh produce to your door. A Mini Veg Box will arrive to your door on a Saturday full of fresh produce from the local area; the boxes change with the seasons so you will be able to get many different types of vegetables to throw into stir fries, curries and to experiment with. Splitting the cost of the box between your housemates is a good idea so that your whole house can get their five a day of fruit and veg. They also do salad and fruit boxes which saves you lugging heavy bags home from Lidl.