| OWL Venice
A Guide on Eating During the Fall Season
Cool mornings and mild afternoons. Chilly nights and Friday Night Lights. Jumping in piles of crispy leaves with your kiddos, venturing through corn mazes in your new boots, daytripping to the cider mill with your best friends. Hay rides, apple picking, and pumpkin patch photo-ops in your best denim, flannel, and favorite scarves. There is so much to love about the fall season.
The sights and sounds alone are enough to put a cozy smile on your face. But the tastes and aromas of nostalgic home cooking flavors are what truly mark the Autumnal Equinox and the official change of season.
From hearty and savory stews to warm and spicy sweets, Fall has a special way of tantalizing the taste buds and pleasing the palate. Lucky for us, there are plenty of health benefits that go along with the reaping of the Fall Harvest. Below are some of the foods found in our cornucopia during this season of abundance.
Our Favorite Fall Foods
The fruits and vegetables filling our tables this fall are packed with antioxidants and heart healthy vitamins. These foods help keep blood sugar levels in check, have anti-inflammatory properties, and promote healthy digestion and glowing skin.
FRUITS
- Apples
- Pears
- Kiwi
- Pineapples
- Quinces
- Figs
- Pomegranates
- Persimmons
- Grapes
- Cranberries
- Raspberries
VEGETABLES
- Pumpkins
- Sweet potatoes
- Carrots
- Potatoes
- Butternut and acorn squash
- Mushrooms
- Turnips
- Parsnips
- Rutabagas
- Radishes
- Cauliflower
- Beetroots
- Broccoli
- Brussel sprouts
- Celery
- Shallots
- Leeks
- Kale
- Cabbage
Best of all, these flavors compliment one another in many different ways. For example, try adding cranberries to your roasted Brussel sprouts this Thanksgiving - it is scrumptious!
Spice Up Your Digestion
There is a reason that we typically season our apples, pumpkins, and figs with cinnamon and cloves. Sure it makes them super tasty - but it also helps digestion! These two spices together not only arouse that fall aroma, but they work together as warming agents that get things moving within your digestive tract (especially those high fiber veggies!).
Cloves encourage salivary secretions which in turn jumpstarts the digestive process. Coupling cinnamon with sweet foods enhances the sweetness without overdoing it on the sugar. Excessive processed sugar promotes bad bacteria growth which is bad for digestion.
Nutmeg and ginger are other well-used warming spices used in baked goods during the fall. Cardamom, fennel, coriander, parsley, rosemary, sage, thyme, and cumin compliment those savory dishes we know and love, while also helping move that array of root veggies on our list through your digestive system with ease.
Fall Season Means Flu Season
Don’t let the pesky flu ruin all of your fun Fall adventures. Taking care of your immune system at the turn of the season is the best way to ensure you get to enjoy this festive time.
The following minerals and vitamins play a crucial role in immune function. Bonus - they are all found in many of the foods on our shopping list!
Good digestive function ensures well-maintained immune function, and good immune function results in well-maintained digestive function. Because the two are co-dependent, it’s important that you focus equally on both during cold and flu season.
Happy Harvest
No matter how you choose to spend the pre-holiday season, be sure to get in plenty of quality time with friends and families. It is a time to be thankful and a time to spread love and warmth. Through the many ups and downs of this year, we hope that you can find an abundance of blessings in your life for which you are grateful.
In good health,
The OWL Fam