All The Produce To Get Excited About This May—And What To Cook With It

As the old saying goes, April showers brings... May produce! May is when fruits and veggies like rhubarb, strawberries and asparagus start cropping up. Super-seasonal delicacies, like fiddleheads and ramps, are also available, so grab them if you see them (just be sure to cook them properly). Here's everything that's in season in May across Canada, and what you should cook with the first locally grown fruits and veggies of the season.

Rhubarb

Pink rhubarb is pretty much made for the Instagram age, but this sweet-tart veggie is much more than eye candy. It's most commonly found in desserts, but we're fond of savoury preparations too. It's especially delicious in sangria!

Rhubarb recipes:

• Rhubarb-apple crisp
• Strawberry-rhubarb sangria
• Rhubarb custard pie
• Rhubarb salad
• Strawberry-rhubarb pie
• Rhubarb upside-down cake

Strawberries

Locally grown strawberries will likely start appearing towards the end of the month, but they'll be worth the wait!

Strawberry recipes:

• Strawberry-rhubarb tiramisu
• Strawberry sheet pan pie
• Strawberry shortcake
• Spicy grilled chicken with strawberry-cucumber salad
• Strawberry scones

Asparagus

Green stalks of asparagus are truly a springtime treat. They make a delicious side and they're super easy to prepare.

Asparagus recipes:

• Asparagus and salmon sheet pan dinner
• Shaved asparagus salad
• Baked asparagus fries
• Asparagus soup

Spinach

Sure, frozen spinach is great and all, but in May, reach for the fresh stuff.

Spinach recipes:

• Spinach salad
• Spinach and artichoke fondue
• Spinach pesto pasta salad

Radish

Radishes often go overlooked, but no longer. They're super versatile and add a nice crunch to salad. And, you can also eat radish greens, which means you can easily eat it root to stem.

Radish recipes:

• Radish green dip
• Saucy BBQ pork tenderloin with radish cucumber salad
• Pickled radish

Green Onion

Those on the west coast should start seeing green onions this time of year.

Green onion recipes:

• Green goddess egg salad sandwich
• Sweet and sour pineapple chicken
• Pork and tofu cakes

Peas

Spring peas are also more of a west coast thing (they peak in summer in places like Ontario).

Pea recipes:

• Sweet peas on toast
• Modern pea soup
• Chicken cauliflower fried rice

Kale

Salad greens, like spinach and kale, start to become available in the springtime.

Kale recipes:

• Garlicky kale
• Tempeh burger with kale chips
• Kale Caesar

Garlic scapes, ramps and fiddleheads

Garlic scapes (the shoots that grow from a garlic bulb; they have a mild garlicky flavour), ramps (spring onions) and fiddleheads appear in farmers' market for a very short window, so if you see them, get 'em. However, don't mess around with fiddleheads—be sure to cook them properly!

Garlic scapes recipes:

• Pickled garlic scapes
• Garlic scapes pesto

How to make baked asparagus fries