Kasey and Karena: All veged out (+recipes)

Israeli Couscous. Photo / Doug Sherring

Think outside the square with seasonal vegetables.

As a country we think we are getting better at eating our greens. When we shop we always try to buy in season, especially with vegetables. It takes a second to check whether the produce is grown in New Zealand and you can definitely taste the difference in flavour.

It was always easier for us to eat in season because our mum and neighbours have abundant gardens. Silverbeet grows like weeds in our area and our mum's pumpkin patch takes up half of our sister Michaela's backyard.

Cafes and restaurants are doing an amazing job at making winter vegetables more desirable again. Among the new trends are charred broccoli salads and those gorgeous red and orange raw energy mixes with featuring yummy nuts scattered throughout.

Vegetables are getting more attractive by the day. From our two months working at Baduzzi and The Grove recently we have seen how versatile they can be. It's truly inspiring. The way a plate of perfectly cooked spinach can taste if it is given the right love (and seasoning) is, well, inspiring.

For us, seeing a big bowl of stir-fried silverbeet on the dinner table was exciting. This meant mum would be starting to make her minestrone soup and her big family-sized mince pies. We grew up loving hearty winter vegetables, a staple on our plates in the colder months.

A combination of how our mum cooks vegetables and the more modern way of enjoying seasonal produce has inspired our recipes for this week.

Our mum makes one of the best parsnip soups. It is creamy and comforting but not too heavy and rich. We like to add some crispy bacon to the top, plus a few garlicky croutons.

Parsnips have a lovely sweetness and a delicious earthy taste. We like to take this
with us in a flask when we have a busy day, which makes us happier about the crisp weather.

Israeli couscous is another of our favourite ingredients. It is versatile and takes on whatever flavour you cook it with.

We always have a packet in our pantry and love adding different flavours to it. This time, we have stirred through some of our favourite winter vege but feel free to mix it up.

We love roasting beetroot and stirring this through with some walnuts or adding some beautiful slow-roasted tomatoes with balsamic and pan-fried haloumi.

Roasted cauliflower has to be one of our favourite no-meat treats midweek. Cauliflower gets a lovely nutty flavour when it is roasted so we like to add some turmeric to make it a warming yellow colour and add depth of flavour.

We love this with our sharp and salty anchovy sauce and our savoury herb crumb on top. We honestly think this is a dish where you don't miss the meat at all.

Try Kasey and Karena's delicious recipes at bite.co.nz below

• Parsnip and Leek Soup
• Spinach and Israeli Couscous Salad
• Cauliflower Steaks with Garlic Cream Sauce and Anchovy Crumb