March 2017 - What's in season now?
OK, so it's still not very warm out there but there are still things in the garden that you can eat! Here are a few tips and thoughts about what to enjoy this month:
1. Sea beet - it's the header image for this page and it's a garden superstar! The leaves aren't very big but they grow pretty much all year round and can be cooked pretty much like spinach. Try them steamed with a little lemon juice, wilted in a little oil or butter, or added to stir fries (see below for some great recipes involving sea beet).
2. Herbs: the garden is home to some perennial types, including thyme, rosemary and oregano. These may not be at their best right now but they stand firm over winter so feel free to grab some to make your dinner more exciting. You'll also notice some of the more retiring herbs start to make an appearance right now, including chives, lemon balm, sweet cicely and mint, so keep your eyes peeled as these start to grow strongly over the next month or two.
1. Sea beet - it's the header image for this page and it's a garden superstar! The leaves aren't very big but they grow pretty much all year round and can be cooked pretty much like spinach. Try them steamed with a little lemon juice, wilted in a little oil or butter, or added to stir fries (see below for some great recipes involving sea beet).
2. Herbs: the garden is home to some perennial types, including thyme, rosemary and oregano. These may not be at their best right now but they stand firm over winter so feel free to grab some to make your dinner more exciting. You'll also notice some of the more retiring herbs start to make an appearance right now, including chives, lemon balm, sweet cicely and mint, so keep your eyes peeled as these start to grow strongly over the next month or two.
May 2015: Curried sweet potato and chard
By Hane Maung
Serves 2
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Chard (Beta vulgaris) is a leafy green vegetable that is surprisingly in the same species as beetroot. Both are descended from another inhabitant of Fruity Corners, sea beet. Here is a quick, healthy, and flavoursome chard dish that is suitable for vegans. Chickpeas can also be added to make it more substantial.
Ingredients
Preparation
1. Steam, boil, or microwave the diced sweet potato for 5 minutes.
2. Heat the oil in a large pan, and fry the onion, garlic, and ginger for 5 minutes, stirring to avoid burning.
3. Add the turmeric, coriander seeds, and cumin to the pan, and stir for another minute.
4. Add the chard and cooked sweet potato to the pan (also add the chickpeas at this point if you are using them).
5. Add the tomato purée to the pan, stir, and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes.
6. Add salt to taste, and serve immediately with rice or naan bread.
Serves 2
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Chard (Beta vulgaris) is a leafy green vegetable that is surprisingly in the same species as beetroot. Both are descended from another inhabitant of Fruity Corners, sea beet. Here is a quick, healthy, and flavoursome chard dish that is suitable for vegans. Chickpeas can also be added to make it more substantial.
Ingredients
- 2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
- 3 handfuls of Fruity Corners chard, roughly chopped
- (Optional) 240g chickpeas
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 inch piece of ginger, chopped
- ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander seeds
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 tablespoons tomato purée
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- Salt to taste
Preparation
1. Steam, boil, or microwave the diced sweet potato for 5 minutes.
2. Heat the oil in a large pan, and fry the onion, garlic, and ginger for 5 minutes, stirring to avoid burning.
3. Add the turmeric, coriander seeds, and cumin to the pan, and stir for another minute.
4. Add the chard and cooked sweet potato to the pan (also add the chickpeas at this point if you are using them).
5. Add the tomato purée to the pan, stir, and cook for another 5 to 10 minutes.
6. Add salt to taste, and serve immediately with rice or naan bread.
April 2015: Seafood noodle soup
By Hane Maung
Serves: 2
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
This is a quick and easy recipe loosely inspired by fond memories of a Burmese dish called kyay oh. It is remarkably versatile and additional ingredients can be added, thus making it great for using up left-overs from a roast. For example, I added some left-over wild duck. The quality of the stock makes a big difference to the quality of the dish, and so I have also included a recipe for fish stock. This is proper comfort food for a cold or a hangover.
Ingredients
· 500ml fish stock (home-made is best, but shop-bought is fine)
· 2 inch piece of ginger, finely chopped
· 4 cloves garlic, crushed
· 2 portions of fine noodles
· 300g mixed seafood (and other optional left-over meat, poultry, or fish)
· Generous helpings of Fruity Corners sea beet
· Additional optional vegetables, e.g. carrot, broccoli
· 3 spring onions, chopped
· 2 handfuls coriander, chopped
· 4 tablespoons light soy sauce
· Chilli flakes
Preparation
1. Heat the fish stock in a large pot.
2. First, add the mixed seafood, ginger, and garlic.
3. After 5 minutes, add the sea beet and other vegetables.
4. After a further 3 minutes, add the noodles and soy sauce. Boil for a final 2 minutes until the noodles are soft.
5. Transfer to a bowl. Garnish with spring onions, coriander, and chilli flakes.
Fish stock
One reason I like to buy whole fish rather than fillets is that I like to save the carcasses, including the heads, to make fish stock. I occasionally find John Dory at Shoreway Fisheries, which is an excellent fish for making stock, due to its large head. Finely chop a large onion, two carrots, and four sticks of celery, and add to a pot of boiling water. Add the fish carcasses, along with two crushed garlic cloves, two bay leaves, a handful of parsley, a few sprigs of thyme, and some peppercorns. Boil for twenty minutes, and then strain the stock. The strained stock can then be placed into containers and frozen for future use.
Serves: 2
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
This is a quick and easy recipe loosely inspired by fond memories of a Burmese dish called kyay oh. It is remarkably versatile and additional ingredients can be added, thus making it great for using up left-overs from a roast. For example, I added some left-over wild duck. The quality of the stock makes a big difference to the quality of the dish, and so I have also included a recipe for fish stock. This is proper comfort food for a cold or a hangover.
Ingredients
· 500ml fish stock (home-made is best, but shop-bought is fine)
· 2 inch piece of ginger, finely chopped
· 4 cloves garlic, crushed
· 2 portions of fine noodles
· 300g mixed seafood (and other optional left-over meat, poultry, or fish)
· Generous helpings of Fruity Corners sea beet
· Additional optional vegetables, e.g. carrot, broccoli
· 3 spring onions, chopped
· 2 handfuls coriander, chopped
· 4 tablespoons light soy sauce
· Chilli flakes
Preparation
1. Heat the fish stock in a large pot.
2. First, add the mixed seafood, ginger, and garlic.
3. After 5 minutes, add the sea beet and other vegetables.
4. After a further 3 minutes, add the noodles and soy sauce. Boil for a final 2 minutes until the noodles are soft.
5. Transfer to a bowl. Garnish with spring onions, coriander, and chilli flakes.
Fish stock
One reason I like to buy whole fish rather than fillets is that I like to save the carcasses, including the heads, to make fish stock. I occasionally find John Dory at Shoreway Fisheries, which is an excellent fish for making stock, due to its large head. Finely chop a large onion, two carrots, and four sticks of celery, and add to a pot of boiling water. Add the fish carcasses, along with two crushed garlic cloves, two bay leaves, a handful of parsley, a few sprigs of thyme, and some peppercorns. Boil for twenty minutes, and then strain the stock. The strained stock can then be placed into containers and frozen for future use.
March 2015: Kale and ricotta lasagne
Recipe by Hane Maung
Serves 4 hungry people
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Kale is a leafy green vegetable belonging to the species Brassica oleracea, which also contains the cultivars cabbage, sprouts, broccoli, and cauliflower. However, it is believed that kale is biologically the closest of these to the original wild cabbage that is indigenous to the British Isles. Hence, kale has a heritage in England that is much more ancient than many of the vegetables we normally associate with traditional English cuisine, including potatoes, carrots, turnips, and, all of which were actually introduced from abroad. To paraphrase the chef Richard Corrigan, kale deserves to be treated badly. It is a coarse and bitter vegetable that requires punishment in hot water to bring out its inner sweetness before any subsequent cooking steps.
Ingredients
• Around 400g kale, roughly chopped
• 250g ricotta
• 400g tinned chopped tomatoes
• 175g lasagne sheets (fresh is best, but dried is fine)
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan
• A handful of basil, chopped (or 1 tablespoon dried basil)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. To make the tomato sauce:
4. To build the lasagne:
6. Serve straight away.
Serves 4 hungry people
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Kale is a leafy green vegetable belonging to the species Brassica oleracea, which also contains the cultivars cabbage, sprouts, broccoli, and cauliflower. However, it is believed that kale is biologically the closest of these to the original wild cabbage that is indigenous to the British Isles. Hence, kale has a heritage in England that is much more ancient than many of the vegetables we normally associate with traditional English cuisine, including potatoes, carrots, turnips, and, all of which were actually introduced from abroad. To paraphrase the chef Richard Corrigan, kale deserves to be treated badly. It is a coarse and bitter vegetable that requires punishment in hot water to bring out its inner sweetness before any subsequent cooking steps.
Ingredients
• Around 400g kale, roughly chopped
• 250g ricotta
• 400g tinned chopped tomatoes
• 175g lasagne sheets (fresh is best, but dried is fine)
• 2 tablespoons grated parmesan
• A handful of basil, chopped (or 1 tablespoon dried basil)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. To make the tomato sauce:
- a. Heat the olive oil in a pan;
- b. Gently fry the onions and garlic for around 5 minutes;
- c. Add the tinned chopped tomatoes;
- d. Stir in half the basil, some salt, and some pepper;
- e. Gently simmer.
4. To build the lasagne:
- a. Spread some of the tomato sauce over the bottom of a baking dish;
- b. Layer a third of the lasagne sheets in the baking dish;
- c. Spoon half the kale over the lasagne sheets;
- d. Scatter half the ricotta over the kale and season with basil, salt, and pepper;
- e. Spread some more tomato sauce over the ricotta;
- f. Repeat again with a layer of lasagne sheets, the rest of the kale, the rest of the ricotta with seasoning, and some more tomato sauce;
- g. Add the final layer of lasagne sheets;
- h. Top with more tomato sauce, sprinkle over the grated parmesan, and drizzle over some olive oil.
6. Serve straight away.
February 2015: Stir-fried whelks with sea beet and sweet cicely
Recipe by Hane Maung
Serves 2
Preparation time: less than 10 minutes (20 minutes for vegetarian alternative)
Cooking time: less than 10 minutes (20 minutes for vegetarian alternative)
The whelk (Buccinum undatum) is a sea snail that is commonly found on the shores of the United Kingdom. In spite of their abundance, whelks are greatly under-appreciated in Western cuisine, which is a shame, given that they are ecologically sustainable, healthy, affordable, and genuinely delicious. Nonetheless, they are frequently used in Oriental cuisine, which is the inspiration for this recipe. The whelks are sliced thinly, which removes the chewiness that they often have when eaten whole. The sweet cicely from Fruity Corners contributes to the flavour with a gentle anise-like aroma. Whelks can usually be bought at a fishmonger, where they are sold already cooked, either chilled or frozen. Here at Lancaster, I regularly find them at Shoreway Fisheries. If whelks are not available, prawns, squid, or shelled mussels can be used instead. I have also included a vegetarian alternative that uses firm tofu.
Ingredients
• 1 bowl cooked whelks, sliced
• A few handfuls of Fruity Corners sea beet
• One handful of Fruity Corners sweet cicely
• 2 spring onions, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 inch piece of ginger, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons dark soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Preparation
1. Heat the vegetable oil in a wok.
2. Add the ginger, garlic, and spring onions to the wok, and fry for 30 seconds, stirring continuously.
3. Add the cooked whelks and fry for 30 seconds, stirring continuously.
4. Add the sea beet and sweet cicely, and fry for 1 minute, stirring continuously.
5. Pour over the dark soy sauce and cook for a further 1 minute.
6. Finish by stirring in the toasted sesame oil.
7. Serve with boiled rice or noodles.
Vegetarian alternative
This dish works very well with firm tofu instead of whelks. However, some additional steps are required before proceeding with the above instructions. First, press 400g firm tofu for at least 10 minutes under a heavy chopping board to extract excess water. Second, once pressed, thickly slice the tofu and fry the slices for 5 minutes on each side. The tofu is now ready to be used instead of the whelks as per the above instructions.
Serves 2
Preparation time: less than 10 minutes (20 minutes for vegetarian alternative)
Cooking time: less than 10 minutes (20 minutes for vegetarian alternative)
The whelk (Buccinum undatum) is a sea snail that is commonly found on the shores of the United Kingdom. In spite of their abundance, whelks are greatly under-appreciated in Western cuisine, which is a shame, given that they are ecologically sustainable, healthy, affordable, and genuinely delicious. Nonetheless, they are frequently used in Oriental cuisine, which is the inspiration for this recipe. The whelks are sliced thinly, which removes the chewiness that they often have when eaten whole. The sweet cicely from Fruity Corners contributes to the flavour with a gentle anise-like aroma. Whelks can usually be bought at a fishmonger, where they are sold already cooked, either chilled or frozen. Here at Lancaster, I regularly find them at Shoreway Fisheries. If whelks are not available, prawns, squid, or shelled mussels can be used instead. I have also included a vegetarian alternative that uses firm tofu.
Ingredients
• 1 bowl cooked whelks, sliced
• A few handfuls of Fruity Corners sea beet
• One handful of Fruity Corners sweet cicely
• 2 spring onions, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, sliced
• 1 inch piece of ginger, finely chopped
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 3 tablespoons dark soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
Preparation
1. Heat the vegetable oil in a wok.
2. Add the ginger, garlic, and spring onions to the wok, and fry for 30 seconds, stirring continuously.
3. Add the cooked whelks and fry for 30 seconds, stirring continuously.
4. Add the sea beet and sweet cicely, and fry for 1 minute, stirring continuously.
5. Pour over the dark soy sauce and cook for a further 1 minute.
6. Finish by stirring in the toasted sesame oil.
7. Serve with boiled rice or noodles.
Vegetarian alternative
This dish works very well with firm tofu instead of whelks. However, some additional steps are required before proceeding with the above instructions. First, press 400g firm tofu for at least 10 minutes under a heavy chopping board to extract excess water. Second, once pressed, thickly slice the tofu and fry the slices for 5 minutes on each side. The tofu is now ready to be used instead of the whelks as per the above instructions.
