Best Seasonal Produce for Your Fall Grocery List

When it comes to seasonal produce, you can’t beat apples in the fall! Credit: Emily Carlin

You just can’t beat summer fruits and veggies. The berries! The watermelon! The tomatoes! But when it comes to seasonal produce, fall goodies are a close second. There is so much tastiness, from apples to pumpkin. Today, Bob Greene, founder of TheBestLife.com (and Oprah’s Bob Greene!), shares the delicious, nutritious fall produce you should be picking up in the coming months. Plus, most are appealing to even the pickiest of eaters!

Best Seasonal Produce for Fall

Apples. Apples are high in fiber, plus they contain quercetin, which has cancer-fighting properties.

Pears. A medium pear contains an impressive six grams of fiber. Be sure to eat the skin; it’s high in antioxidants.

Grapes. Red and black grapes are a great pick because they contain heart-healthy anthocyanins as well as resveratrol, another phytochemical that protects the heart and helps fight cancer.

Oranges. One 60-calorie orange delivers 100 percent of your daily value of vitamin C, 3 grams of fiber and 10 percent of the daily value of folate, a B vitamin that helps fight cancer and birth defects. (You’ll typically find these in orange-growing states, such as Texas, Florida and California.)

Rapini (broccoli raab). This versatile veggie looks like broccoli and can be used in many different kinds of cuisine, including Italian and Chinese. It’s a great source of vitamins A and K, plus it provides cancer-fighting “phenolic compounds.”

Shelling beans. These fully matured beans in the pod have to be shelled before eating, but they take only about 15 minutes to cook. They come in many varieties, including black-eyed peas and cranberry beans and are a good source of protein and fiber.

Celery Root (celeriac). This knobby-looking brown vegetable that’s available from October until March contains compounds that help lower inflammation (a trigger for heart disease and other chronic conditions).

What’s your favorite fall fruit or vegetable? I’ve gotta go apple all the way! —Erin