Lentils: simple and nutritious at the same time
A photo: Getty Images The king of the Mediterranean diet, perhaps, is the main product, which is worth paying attention to in the cold. It is nutritious, but at the same time not so banal as rice or buckwheat, it is prepared simply, and it is quite budget. Buying lentils, you need to pay attention to two things: size and color. The smaller the grain, the better the product. As for the color, the cooking time depends on it. The fastest is preparing a red small lentil: to weld it, it takes about 20 minutes. With the green will have to tinker at least 40 minutes, or even an hour. In any case, whatever sort you choose, the cooking technology is the same: pour the lentils into a large saucepan, pour a glass of red wine, add the broth so that it completely covers the beans, and cook until soft, adding broth or hot water as needed. Ready lentils must be filled with good olive oil and a handful of chopped coriander leaves. Another one
Pumpkin: sauces, pies and stew
A photo: Getty Images Of course, the pumpkin first becomes relevant in connection with the celebration of Halloween. But after October 31, forget about it is not necessary: the season of red continues almost to the beginning of December, and you can store whole pumpkins even at least the whole winter, so you need to store a couple of copies exactly. About the same as the pumpkin is universal in the gastronomic sense, it seems already said more than necessary: it is ideal and in the form of puree - in soups, and in a pie, and as a component of a tajina, ratatuya, sauce for pasta or vegetable stew. And another pumpkin you can pickle. In general, at least until the New Year, you definitely do not get bored with her!
Persimmon: the best way to please yourself
A photo: Getty Images If the previous participants in the list of seasonal November and December products are more likely to respond to nutrition, the persimmon is exactly the best way to please yourself. However paradoxical it may sound, the persimmon season begins with the first freezes. That, you will agree, is a very weighty argument, helping them to accept. If for some reason you are bored with absorbing persimmon by itself, fresh, try combining persimmon with salad mix, pumpkin seeds and goat cheese. You can fill this salad with almost any of the classic dressings: olive oil, balsamic or even just a mixture of lemon juice and honey.
Cranberry: vitamin records
A photo: Getty Images Despite the fact that the actual time for harvesting cranberries is still September, and not November, it's right now to pay close attention to it. Collected in September, berries are sold frozen, but even so beat all records for the content of vitamin C and antioxidants. The main thing is to defrost cranberries correctly. If you plan to put cranberries on a saucepan (with honey and cinnamon - an excellent option for baked meat), you do not need to defrost the berries: they should be placed in already boiling water or syrup. The same goes for adding cranberries to vegetable stew. And in the case of a pie filling, cranberry berries should be taken out of the freezer in advance and allowed to completely unfrozen by natural means; it takes 1-2 hours, depending on the volume.
