How fitting I’m sharing my What’s In Season post for October on the first day of November. Lucky for us, some of these fruits and veggies also grow during November. Since I haven’t shared in a while, and we have some new subscribers, let me give you a refresh. What’s In Season is a series I started on Instagram, showcasing my favorite fruits and veggies that are in season each month. While sharing this, I also hope to encourage people to take an hour or two for themselves and visit their local farms or farmers’ markets. As a society, I think we’ve lost the art of slowing down, and for me, going to the farmers ’ markets or farms and talking to farmers about their growing process, learning about the different varieties of fruits and vegetables, and asking them why, especially in a world where processed is king, is not only grounding but inspiring.
If you’ve been a long-time follower on any of my other platforms, you might also be asking yourself, ” Why is Venita sharing food and not fashion on her substack. I wanted this platform to be the version of me that my friends get to see daily, not the perfectly curated one on Instagram. Food is something that, in a perfect world, I’d make my full-time job, and when I host my friends and cook for them, that’s the side of me that hasn’t lived anywhere outside of my home, until now. Some days, I think I love food more than I love fashion, but then I put on a chic pair of heels, and we are back at a tie. Hey, who knows, maybe every once in a while I’ll share “what I’d buy if I wanted to resemble a heirloom tomato in hue,” but, until then, I’ll inspire you to take familiar fruits and vegetables and make them exciting again.
I’m overly excited about this month’s (lol last month’s) What’s In Season, because I’ve teamed up with an artist, Ariann, aka But Like Maybe, to illustrate my What’s In Season image + create a little NYT-style cartoon of my favorite fruits and veggies for the month. You again may be asking yourself, “Why an illustrator?” This stems from bringing the other side of myself to this platform. To know me is to see that I have a strong appreciation, bordering on obsession, with all things animated. So, when I sat down and thought about how to make my Substack the most me thing possible, I knew I had to try to hire Arianna to get the job done. Her illustrations are so cheeky and playful, which is what really drew me to her work, no pun intended.
Now, onto What’s In Season! October is the beginning of the fall mecca growing period. From Pumpkins to apples, brussels sprouts, figs, and so much more. From now until the December growing period, alot of your fruits and veggies won’t go out of season, which is great for us because that means we can really perfect these recipes.
I’m not sure who named Pumpkin and Apples the stars of the fall season, but I honestly wish they had picked pears, blackberries, and figs instead. Don’t get me wrong, I love an apple just as much as the next gal, but the pear to me is such a prettier fruit in flavor.
I know I didn’t really dive too much into recipes this go around, as I was too excited to give a little back story and an update as to how What’s In Season is going to look like moving forward. Still, I promise, the Blackberry Vinaigrette I shared on IG is going to start us off strong. With that, I’ll leave you with the perfectly illustrated cartoon blurb by Arianna.
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