As the weather gets colder, the way I eat naturally starts to change.
I absolutely love this time of year. Colder mornings, cosy evenings, slow-cooked meals, soups, stews, pot roasts and all the comfort foods that come with autumn.
There is also something quite intuitive about eating with the seasons. Traditionally, autumn was a time to make use of what nature provided while preparing ourselves for the colder months ahead.
So, as a nutritionist, there are certain foods I deliberately start eating more of at this time of year.
Not because they are trendy or because I believe in magical "superfoods", but because together they can provide more fibre, omega-3 fats, polyphenols, fermented foods, quality protein and a broad range of micronutrients.
Here are 11 of my favourites, plus one bonus autumn spice.
1. Blackberries
Blackberries have to be near the top of my autumn food list.
Their deep purple colour comes partly from anthocyanins, a family of plant compounds called polyphenols.
They are also surprisingly high in fibre, providing roughly 5g per 100g, alongside nutrients including vitamin C, vitamin K and manganese.
Some of the polyphenols we eat can also reach the colon, where they interact with our gut microbiome.
How I eat them: Add a handful to Greek yoghurt, kefir or oat bran. If you can find wild blackberries growing locally and can forage them safely, even better.
2. Mushrooms
Mushrooms are fascinating because nutritionally they are quite different from plants.
They provide nutrients including B vitamins, selenium and copper, as well as compounds such as beta-glucans.
Certain mushrooms can also provide meaningful amounts of vitamin D2 when they have been exposed to UV light. However, don't assume every packet of supermarket mushrooms is automatically a significant source of vitamin D.
How I eat them: Fry them with eggs, serve them with steak or add plenty to a slow-cooked casserole.
3. Celeriac
Celeriac deserves far more attention than it gets.
This root vegetable provides fibre, potassium and vitamin K, while containing considerably less carbohydrate than something like potato.
It is also incredibly versatile and works brilliantly in the colder months.
How I eat it: Roast it, make celeriac chips or turn it into a creamy mash with a little butter or extra virgin olive oil.
Proper comfort food.
4. Leeks
Leeks are where we can start thinking more about feeding the gut.
They contain fructans, including inulin, which are types of fermentable carbohydrate that certain bacteria in our gut can use.
When certain fibres are fermented by bacteria in the colon, they can produce short-chain fatty acids. These compounds play important roles within the intestinal environment and gut barrier.
There is an important caveat here. Leeks can trigger digestive symptoms in some people who are sensitive to FODMAPs, so more is not automatically better.
How I eat them: Add them to soups, stews, casseroles and other slow-cooked meals.
5. Red Cabbage
Look at the colour of red cabbage and you already have a clue that something interesting is going on.
Like blackberries, red cabbage contains anthocyanins.
You are also getting fibre, vitamin C and vitamin K, alongside glucosinolates, compounds characteristic of cruciferous vegetables.
But there is another way I particularly like eating cabbage.
Ferment it.
6. Sauerkraut and Fermented Vegetables
Proper unpasteurised sauerkraut can contain live microorganisms produced during fermentation.
Fermentation also produces organic acids and changes the food before we even eat it.
Research into fermented-food-rich diets has produced some interesting findings around the gut microbiome, although this does not mean a spoonful of sauerkraut is going to magically transform your gut health.
Think of fermented foods as another component of a varied diet rather than a miracle food.
How I eat them: I don't eat mountains of sauerkraut. A small serving alongside eggs, meat or another meal is an easy way to incorporate fermented vegetables.
7. Apples
It doesn't get much more autumnal than an apple.
Where possible, I keep the skin on because it provides additional fibre and a range of polyphenols.
Apples are also a source of pectin, a type of soluble fermentable fibre that can be metabolised by our gut microbes.
They're also a good reminder of why I don't think we should be afraid of whole fruit simply because it contains naturally occurring sugar.
Fruit comes packaged with fibre, water, micronutrients and numerous plant compounds.
How I eat them: Chop an apple into yoghurt, eat it whole or gently cook it with cinnamon for a simple autumn dessert.
8. Walnuts
Walnuts are an easy way to introduce more unsaturated fat into your diet.
They contain polyunsaturated fats, including the plant omega-3 fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), alongside fibre, minerals and polyphenols.
Randomised trials have also found that including walnuts in the diet can produce modest reductions in LDL cholesterol.
They are energy dense, though, so you don't need huge quantities.
How I eat them: A small handful added to yoghurt, oat bran or fruit.
9. Oily Fish
Sardines, mackerel, salmon and herring are all fantastic options.
Oily fish provides the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA, alongside high-quality protein, vitamin B12, selenium and, depending on the fish, vitamin D.
EPA and DHA are incorporated into our cell membranes and have important roles within cardiovascular and inflammatory biology.
Rather than expecting a supplement to do all the work, I like to make oily fish a regular part of my diet.
How I eat it: Keep it simple. Sardines on toast, baked salmon, grilled mackerel or herring alongside vegetables can all work.
10. Oat Bran
If you've followed me for a while, you've probably heard me talking about oat bran.
One of the reasons I like it so much is its beta-glucan content.
Beta-glucan is a type of soluble fibre with a particularly strong evidence base. Oat beta-glucan can help lower blood cholesterol, with around 3g per day of oat beta-glucan being the amount associated with the authorised cholesterol-lowering health claim in the UK and Europe.
Beta-glucan is also fermentable, giving us another way to provide substrate for our gut microbes.
How I eat it: I often use oat bran instead of conventional porridge and build a breakfast around it with fruit, yoghurt, nuts and seeds.
11. Pumpkin and Winter Squash
That gorgeous orange colour isn't just there to make your autumn dinner look good.
Pumpkin and winter squash are rich in carotenoids, including beta-carotene, which our bodies can convert into vitamin A.
Vitamin A contributes to normal immune function and vision and helps maintain normal epithelial tissues, including some of the protective barriers throughout our body.
Squash also provides fibre and potassium.
How I eat it: Roast it, blend it into soup or add chunks directly to a slow cooker.
This is autumn comfort food that actually brings something nutritionally too.
Bonus: Cinnamon
Finally, my bonus autumn spice has to be cinnamon.
It works beautifully with apples, blackberries and oat bran, but there is more to cinnamon than flavour.
Cinnamon contains a range of polyphenolic compounds, and clinical research suggests it may have modest effects on some markers of glucose control, particularly in people with impaired glucose regulation. That doesn't make cinnamon a treatment, but it is an interesting addition to the diet.
If you're using cinnamon frequently, I generally prefer Ceylon cinnamon.
Cassia cinnamon typically contains considerably more coumarin, which you don't want to consume excessively over the long term.
It's Not About Finding One "Superfood"
The important point isn't that any one of these foods is going to transform your health.
Nutrition rarely works like that.
What matters far more is what happens when nutrient-dense whole foods consistently form the foundation of your diet.
More fibre. More diversity. More polyphenols. Better-quality fats. Fermented foods. Quality protein. A wider range of micronutrients.
These are the kinds of foods that formed part of the way I changed my own diet when I was trying to turn my health around, and many of them remain staples for me today.
They're also the types of foods I look at incorporating when working one-to-one with clients, always depending on that person's individual needs, tolerances and goals.
If you're interested in using real food to support better health, explore more of the Eat to Heal Guide and follow along for simple, practical ways to make whole-food nutrition part of everyday life.