7 Autumnal Virginia Crops that Belong On Your Dinner Table

Fall means harvest time and locavores (those who love to shop for and consume local foods and drink) can fill the pantry with fresh, locally grown produce. Those of us in Virginia Beach are fortunate to have resources like the City of Virginia Beach Farmers Market open on a year-round basis, but it certainly pays to stock up while fall classics are fresh and in abundant supply.

Below are 7 crops that are at their peak in Virginia during fall and yummy ways to use them: 

• Apples - sweeten a curried sweet potato stew with diced apples or applesauce;
• Escarole - throw a pound of chopped escarole into a pot of white bean soup and don't forget the freshly chopped garlic;
• Fennel - try roasting fennel bulbs in the oven topped with olive oil, fresh pepper and shaved parmesan;
• Parsnips - roast in the oven with other root veggies, like turnips;
• Pumpkins - puree pumpkin and add it to your pasta dishes, like lasagna;
• Winter squash (acorn, butternut) - perfect for hearty soups or chopped and oven roasted; and
• Turnips - roast in the oven with mushroom caps for a hearty vegetable side.  

Enjoy these fall flavors with your family and experience the health benefits of consuming fresh, local produce!