Bites of Spring

What are the quintessential spring meals?

There are vegetables that you harvest in spring. There are even certain foods with ‘spring’ in the name. Spring mix. Spring onions.

But in terms of clearly seasonal meals, spring seems like the least defined of all seasons.

Summer? You got grilling. You got big salads, picnic foods, bright fizzy cocktails, and cold smoothies for breakfast. Winter? Stews, big casseroles, cookies, egg nog, et cetera.

Even fall, another transitional season, seems more defined, probably because it contains the quintessential American food holiday, Thanksgiving. Squash. Warming spices. Soups. There’s also, I’d argue, a sense of hunkering down as the world closes in on you that narrows the plate. Temperatures dropping. Days getting shorter. That kind of stuff affects the psyche which, in turn, affects the diet.

But spring? Everything is opening up. Only, not all at once. Last week, where I live it was in the 70s and windy on Monday and Tuesday, then in the 20s and rainy on Wednesday. Less than an hour north, they got 9 inches of snow.

As such, the quintessential spring food sorta seems like: whatever the hell makes sense that given day.

For further evidence of my hypothesis, I point to this thread from r/cookingforbeginners where someone asks “What are some of your favorite dishes to cook during spring?”

Some of the responses include:

• stuffed peppers
• risotto
• omelettes
• soups
• pies
• grilled foods
• cinnamon rolls
• brunch items
• pasta primavera
• quiche

A pretty big smorgasbord, right?

Which means, you need some good cookware. Like this stuff.

It’s stainless steel which takes some getting used to (we shared some tips on this previous sale for a different set; if you have any further advice, definitely hop into the comments and share) but is ultimately very versatile and durable. You can sauté some veggies or start some chicken thighs on the stovetop and finish them in the oven (they’re safe up to 450 degrees).

Also, they boast three-ply construction. What does that mean? Basically, they’re built with a layer of aluminum sandwiched between two layers of stainless steel. Like such:

Is this one of those things like when Bud Light commercials started bragging about how they used rice, claiming it was for crispness and not just a cost-cutting measure? Maybe. But the point stands: these heat evenly. Which means they’re perfect for cooking all season long. And beyond.

So get some.