Innehållsförteckning för April 2021 från Kitchen Garden

April is a wonderful time in the garden, when conditions for many of us are perfect for sowing seeds. True, some of our northern readers may still have to be content with sowing indoors in seed trays for a little while yet, but many of us will sow the bulk of our hardy crops over the coming weeks. So as you’d expect this issue is packed with great advice to help you get the best from your seed sowing and as always we have lots of growing guides to help you along; this month for celery, cauliflowers, and courgettes, plus a lesser known, but worthwhile veg called celtuce or stem lettuce. Do give it a go if you can. Christmas may be a very long way off (do I hear…

FRENCH BEANS In mild areas you can sow direct in the ground outdoors at the end of April. If late frosts and cold wet earth area problem, then it is safer to start seed in pots with a little warmth – you can choose your moment to plant these out, depending on the weather. Sow a few extra seeds, so you have enough to fill a row even if some fail. And it is worth covering outdoor rows with a cloche until temperatures are settled and reliably above 12C (54F). Allow a little extra space between plants for these early rows – 25cm (10in) should be fine. This allows air to circulate and reduces mould and mildew problems. THE HUNGRY GAP This time of year doesn’t have to be hungry…

Rows of peas and beans need some support. Even dwarf and bush varieties seem to grow taller than it says on the packet and they all do best if they don’t fall over and trail on the ground. ■ Push small twiggy sticks along each side of a pea row. The plants twist tendrils around the twigs and they hold themselves upright by this method. Add taller sticks as the plants grow, so they are always supported and firm in the row. ■ Or you can stretch strong netting between posts along the row and peas will use this for support as they grow. ■ Set up A-frames for climbing beans and make sure they are steady enough to stay upright in a strong wind. You may need to point…

■ As soon as you empty a watering can in the greenhouse, refill it from the water butt and bring it back inside. This does two things. Firstly, it allows the cold water time to get to room temperature so that when you water the plant, its roots don’t suffer a chill. Secondly, by continually topping up the cans it makes room in the water butt for when it next rains. If you are using mains tap water, also keep the cans full to allow the chill to go. ■ Use garden fleece in the greenhouse and polytunnel to cover over young plants and seedlings on cold or frosty nights. Ideally, remove the fleece the following morning to allow maximum light to the plants. ■ Remember to sow lettuce and…

Send us your tips and pictures and if your letter is published you will get a£10 Dobies voucher. If you are lucky enough to have yours chosen as our Star Letter you will get a £25 voucher. Your voucher will be sent out with a Dobies catalogue and you can choose to spend your winnings on a fabulous range of seeds, young plants and gardening sundries. You can get hold of a copy of the catalogue now by phoning 0844 701 7625 or go online to www.dobies.co.uk You can reach us by letter, email or via our Facebook page: FACEBOOK.COM/KITCHENGARDENMAG Email your letters to tflanagan@mortons.co.uk or post to Letters, Kitchen Garden, Mortons Media Group, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR…

Hi! I’m Belle and I’m now here every month to share lots of fun activities for you to do at home, on your own or with your family Do you use bamboo canes in your garden or allotment? Canes can be really useful when growing flowers and vegetables that love to climb or grow really tall. They give beans, sweet peas, tomatoes and many other plants something to hold on to as they reach for the sky. Some cling on by themselves and others need help from you to tie them secure, but either way the canes give them support and extra strength when the wind blows! Canes are also brilliant for building structures like a fruit cage. Their sharp ends mean that they can be dangerous if we aren’t…

Our Star Question winner will receive vouchers worth £25; the writers of all other questions printed will receive a£10 voucher. They can be redeemed against any products in the latest Mr Fothergill’s catalogue, which will be sent out with the vouchers so you can choose from the massive range of quality products, including seeds and garden equipment. To receive a free catalogue, call 0333 777 3936 or visit www.mr-fothergills.co.uk Email questions to tflanagan@mortons.co.uk or post to Question Time, Kitchen Garden, Mortons Media Group, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR. Please include your full address on letters and emails. We do not publish full addresses.…

■ CARROT ‘AUTUMN KING’: This intensely orange maincrop carrot will happily sit out winter in the ground but stores well on lifting too. Kings Seeds ■ PARSNIP ‘ALBION F1’: Great resistance to parsnip canker disease and broad, sweet roots that have earned it an RHS Award of Garden Merit. Organic Seed Catalogue ■ POTATO ‘MARIS PEER’: A reliable second crop variety to plant in summer for tubers from late autumn. Great flavour and an fantastic all-rounder. D T Brown ■ LEEK ‘MUSSELBURGH’: This classic variety remains one of the best: bold, beautiful and ever-reliable. It has good disease resistance and a fine flavour. Kings Seeds ■ BRUSSELS SPROUT ‘CRISPUS F1’: Troublefree choice with strong resistance to clubroot disease. The sprouts hold well right through to midwinter. Organic Seed Catalogue ■…

Cauliflower is one of those staple kitchen vegetables which makes us think of cauliflower cheese perhaps, but please don’t relegate it to that one dish as it can do so much more! After all, homemade piccalilli wouldn’t be the same without small chunks of cauliflower sticking through the turmeric and mustard spiced sauce; neither would a deliciously spicy Aloo Gobi curry, with its soft potatoes and cauliflower pieces. Traditionally a boiled vegetable, cauliflower is now finding new fans who love it raw with dips or made into ‘rice’. CHOOSE RIGHT Cauliflowers are part of the brassica family, so they’re related to cabbages and kales, yet it’s the immature flower – otherwise known as a curd – that is the main affair with this allotment favourite, not the leaf, as with…

‘ALL GREEN BUSH’: This dark green skinned variety will produce succulent courgettes thoughout the season – just pick regularly to ensure a steady crop. (Kings Seeds) ‘BOLDENICE F1’: These round courgettes can be harvested when about golf-ball size, or let them mature when they can be used for stuffing. Good resistance to powdery mildew. (Kings Seeds) ‘GOLDMINE F1’: One of my favourites this one with its golden-yellow striped skin and prolific habit. A tasty courgette with some tolerance of powdery mildew. (Dobies) ‘ROMANESCO’: This small to medium-sized Italian variety is a little different with its ribbed skin. It has a distinctive nutty flavour and produces large flowers. (Mr Fothergill’s) ‘SHOOTING STAR F1’: As the name suggests, a bit of a climber, this one, which can be grown up a trellis…

■ Pests such as celery fly(or celery leaf miner) will start to cause problems by tunnelling the leaves from May onwards, and peaking in late summer/autumn. Protect against them by covering the plants in crop protection fleece or insect netting after planting. ■ Slugs love to hide among the developing stems and to nibble young plants. Take precautions using your favoured form of slug control. ■ Celery leaf spot is a seed-borne fungal disease and causes brown spots to form on the older leaves, which often move to young growth and stems rendering them inedible. Seeds can be given hot water treatment where, for example, you are saving your own seeds, but this is not easy and it is best to buy fresh stocks. ■ Heart rots can be caused…

POSH SHED BIG PLANTER This brand new planter from The Posh Shed Company comes in nine sizes. It has fully pressurised treated timber walls and a base that will not rot, made from recycled plastic board. www.theposhshedcompany.co.uk EMPATHY GROW YOUR OWN PACK This pack contains everything needed to grow delicious crops naturally. The pack contains Rootgrow, two packs of Tomato Starter, After Plant Tomato Feed, After Plant Grow Your Own and complimentary RHS bird feed.www.rootgrow.co.uk HOZELOCK BIOMIX Make your own natural and organic plant feeds in this Biomix. Just add the leaves of comfrey or nettles and water and seal the unit. There is no smell and you can mix the solution using the handle on the top. You extract the plant feed from the tap at the base. Tel:…

Different species of bees have different requirements when it comes to nesting. Solitary bees like leaf cutters and mason bees will look for cavities in the soil, walls, trees, bricks, and in the hollow stems of plants, such as bamboo as in bee hotels. Social bumblebees nest in various sites such as old rodent burrows, under sheds or in bird nest boxes. Some nest in tussocks of rough grass or sheltered corners, and the eaves of buildings and nests may contain up to 400 insects. You can buy solitary bee hotels, or they are easy to make by drilling old logs or stuffing sections of piping with old hollow plant stems or bamboo canes cut to a suitable length. Many other insects will use these too as a safe place…

■ WATER REGULARLY: Potted plants rely on you almost entirely for water since the leaves often deflect it. Check them every day in summer. If you need to be away for long periods, consider installing a reliable irrigation system. These can be linked to a water butt or the mains supply. ■ RIGHT COMPOST: Loam-based composts such as John Innes no. 3 are ideal for long-term fruit crops (not blueberries). This gives stability both in the pot and against the wind, but is heavy. Lighter peat-free composts are ideal for strawberries and all veggies, and allow pots to be moved around easily. Start feeding after six weeks with a general liquid fertiliser to maintain growth and vigour. Remove the top inch of compost from the surface of permanent plantings, e.g.…

Gardening can mean many things to different people, from the aesthetic of creating a beautiful herbaceous border to the sheer visceral pleasure of burrowing in the soil to unearth your first new potatoes of the season. For me, gardening has meant embracing two attitudes which don’t come easily: patience and compromise. Patience as a gardener is relatively straightforward to grasp. Garden centres may be full of pots of instant colour (and these hits of immediate gratification certainly have their place), but the real joy comes from planting a seed with the promise of fruit or flower in several months’ time. Or, in the case of planting a mulberry tree, in about 10 years’ time. Compromise becomes clear once you have started to develop a relationship with your own garden, and…

WORTH OVER £918 COLOUR AS YOU PROTECT Thorndown is a specialist water-based paint manufacturer that makes wonderful ranges of Wood Paint and Peelable Glass Paint from its factory in Glastonbury, Somerset. These high- performing eco paints are designed to be the best for exterior use, but are also brilliant for interiors. They use architectural-grade VOC-free colour pigments that will stay beautiful for years. Shade your greenhouse or conservatory with Peelable Glass Paint, made with a 100% recycled plastic resin. Choose from opaque or translucent whites and 35 colours, roller it on to window panes, then at the end of the season, simply peel it off! It’s very durable, so can last for years if you like the design and want to leave it on. With 66 colours in Thorndown’s Wood…

KEEP ONION BEDS WEED-FREE Onions are shallow rooting and they suffer from competition if the bed is full of weeds. Keep the soil clean and don’t let it dry out if you want to grow some lovely large onions for lifting in the summer. SOW BRASSICAS Sow different types of kale and you can harvest from autumn through to late spring. Broccoli needs a long growing season too – sow late-sprouting varieties now to harvest at this time next year. PLANT MAINCROP POTATOES Choose waxy or floury varieties to suit your taste. Look for some resistance to blight – maincrop varieties stay in the ground later and are more likely to get this disease than crops that are lifted sooner. Plant in early April for plenty of large roots to…

■ CARROT FLY This affects parsnips as well as carrots. Keep the bed covered with fine mesh net to keep flies out. Put this on when you sow and leave it in place until the crop is lifted. Uncover for weeding, but don’t leave the bed exposed for long if you want grub-free roots. ■ PEA AND BEAN WEEVIL These pests nibble the edges of leaves. This isn’t a big problem on large plants but emerging seedlings can be seriously set back. Cover pea and bean rows with cloches to keep weevils out and remove when plants are big enough to survive attack. ■ CUTWORMS Some moth larvae come out at night to creep along the soil’s surface. They eat through stems of small plants such as lettuces. Remove any…

SOW BEANS IN TRAYS AND POTS A greenhouse or polytunnel is the ideal place to start off tender vegetables such as beans to give them a head start. Sowing under cover in frost-free conditions means you can raise strong plants for the garden that can be planted out after frosts have passed. As a guide, sow around four to six weeks before you want the plants for planting out. Of course, many beans including dwarf French beans and runner beans – if space allows -can be planted in a polytunnel for an early crop and these can be sown as early as late March. Ideally, sow in cell trays or small pots to avoid root disturbance when planting out and provide frost-free conditions to germinate. MAKE SURE THE PROPAGATOR IS…

EDIBLE FINGERS New to the Dobies’ Rob Smith Range is ‘Green Fingers’, a snackable cucumber which will produce high yields of smooth, dark green and spineless 10cm (4in) long fruits. This is predominantly a female flowering variety that can be grown outside or in a greenhouse/polytunnel. It offers excellent resistance to powdery and downy mildew, and good tolerance of cucumber mosaic virus and cucumber vein yellowing virus: £9.49 for three super plugs. www.dobies.co.uk PETITION TO BAN RENEWED USE OF PESTICIDE Thousands of people have signed The Wildlife Trusts’ petition calling on the prime minister to overturn the Government’s authorisation for the emergency use of thiamethoxam on sugar beet grown in England this year. Despite some exemptions, the pesticide was banned across the EU in 2018 because of the widespread harm…

BIGROG106TH: I want to try growing potatoes in pots, but I’m a bit confused. The recommendation is to put three seed potatoes in each pot or growing bag, but that means the distance between tubers is much less than if they were in open ground. Why is this? It seems to me that each bag should only have one tuber inside to give the same amount of room as in open ground. MONIKA: I always use three potatoes per pot or bag, but give them much richer soil and more attention by regular watering and feeding as they grow, so that the end result is a higher yield than you would expect from their close planting. Start them off by putting just a few inches of soil into the pot…

■ ‘MULTI-HEADED F1’: This produces one large head and three to five smaller side heads for later use. This unique cut-and-come-again cauliflower is perfect for those of you who like to harvest your crop in your own time. (Suttons) ■ ‘CHINESE SWEET SPROUTING F1’: This variety produces masses of long stems tipped with small white florets. They have a crunchy texture and a mild, sweet flavour. Add them to stir-fries, steam them, or eat them raw. (Thompson & Morgan) ■ ‘GRAFFITI F1’: This variety has the deepest purple cauliflower curds which are perfect for adding colour to any summer or autumn dish, delicious and highly nutritious. The colour intensifies with exposure to light. RHS AGM. (Kings) ■ ‘NECKARPERLE’: This reliable variety can be harvested in summer right through to autumn.…

Up until 1970, many gardeners and growers throughout the country would purchase their vegetables for the coming season from their local farmers market or directly from neighbouring farms. These plants were bare rooted brassicas growninafield for several months until they developed sufficient roots and leaf canopy. When it was time to be transplanted into gardens, they were already acclimatised to the outdoor environmental conditions and mature enough to start taking up nutrients immediately. From 1970 onwards, advances in technology developed the concept of producing plants from the seed in individual plastic modules, also known as plugs. Growing times are reduced to a matter of weeks under controlled greenhouse conditions, using hybrid varieties such as ‘Advantage F1’ and ‘Duncan F1’. This method has multiple benefits for large growers over the traditional…

‘GREEN UTAH’: Long, green and crunchy stalks with excellent flavour and very popular in the USA. Matures September to December. (Kings Seeds) ‘PINK’: Attractive pink-tinged stems on vigorous plants with good disease resistance. Early maturing from August to October. (Mr Fothergill’s) ‘LORETTA’: An award-winning variety with succulent white sticks on vigorous plants. Harvest from August to November. (Suttons Seeds) ‘OCTAVIUS F1’: Another AGM award winner, this time with crunchy green stems. Slow to bolt. Harvest August to October (DT Brown)…

My growing journey started with a standard pack of seed off a shelf at a local garden centre. If I’m honest, I wasn’t connected or inspired to grow many of them. Where were their stories? What was interesting about them? Where did the seeds come from? Maybe I’m strange but I want to feel connected with what I grow. I set out to change that and find out more about growing from seed, and I soon discovered heirloom seeds. My whole outlook on growing changed. It wasn’t about planting a seed – it was about growing a piece of history, and having a connection with my food that I didn’t get in any supermarket. WHAT ARE HEIRLOOM SEEDS? Heirloom varieties are a specific type of old open- pollinated variety of…

SPRING/EARLY SUMMER FLOWERING FOXGLOVE - Poisonous if eaten. (Will often self seed) CROCUS - Great to lift your spirits after a long winter APPLE AND PEAR - Have several varieties for cross pollination BLACKBERRY AND BRAMBLE – Why not let a few brambles grow through a hedge? BROOM - Dazzling colour in spring and a light fragrance HELLEBORE - Great early colour for the garden and often self seed LUNGWORT - Pulmanaria, attractive foliage too SUMMER FLOWERING ALLIUMS - Ornamental and cultivated onions STRAWBERRY - Cultivated and alpine ERYNGIUM - Sea holly, often self seeds ECHINOPS - Globe thistle. A real bee magnet SCABIOUS - Cultivated and wild OREGANO - Marjoram CLOVER - Including trefoils and vetches COTONEASTER - Berries also great for birds in autumn SPEAR THISTLE - Remove…

To make the most of my gardening space, I try to grow at least two crops in each bed every year, and often manage to grow three or four! Starting seeds off under cover (greenhouse, windowsill or cold frame) and putting them out as transplants means that they have a head start, and should start producing delicious dinners up to a month earlier than seeds sown outside in April. Healthy transplants are less susceptible to slugs and other nibbling pests, too. To save time, I don’t harden the plants off: instead I use crop protection for the first three weeks or so to ease the transition from a cosy greenhouse to the colder world outside. I’m often gardening in a T-shirt in the April sunshine, but nights can be bitterly…

Although celtuce is similar to its lettuce cousin, the stem is the prized part rather than the leaves, although these can be eaten too. SOWING CELTUCE Celtuce can be sown in spring to early summer. Like lettuce, it will tolerate a bit of shade so it is a good crop to plant in shadier spots on the plot. Sow about 6mm (1⁄4in) deep and about 5cm (2in) apart. You can thin the seedlings to roughly 25cm (10in) apart. GROWING ON Keep the crop well watered in very dry weather but preferably not using overhead irrigation. Direct the water to the base of the plants. Initially it will be lettuce-like in growth and some young leaves can be harvested at this point but don’t remove the whole head. Allow the plant…

Have you tried wild garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata)? Rich in Vitamin Aand Vitamin C, this leafy green is super nutritious and, as the name suggests, has a powerful fragrance and taste. It is one of my April favourites and a must-have addition in the kitchen while I’m waiting for my vegetable seeds to germinate! The mild leaves of this biennial herb can be eaten in fritters, salads and soups, or perhaps turned into pesto. The white flowers look beautiful as a salad garnish, the seeds can be used as mustard, and the roots taste much spicier, like horseradish or wasabi. Garlic mustard - also known as Jack-by-the- Hedge -isone of a collection of super nutritious and health boosting edibles commonly seen as weeds that naturally grow together along the towpath…

KG YOUTUBE CHANNEL SOWING MANGETOUT Emma is sowing ‘Sweet Horizon’ mangetout, ideal for steaming or stir-fries. Seeds can be sown March-July and pods harvested June-September, depending on when you sowed them. One method is to sow in cell trays initially, one seed per cell, filled with multi-purpose compost. Push each seed down 13mm (½in) deep, cover with compost and water in. Another method is to fill a piece of guttering with compost and sow the seeds in a zig-zag pattern about 5cm (2in) apart. When the plants have grown sufficiently you can slide them out en masse into the space outside you have set aside for them. Visit: www.youtube.com/kitchengardenmagazine and search: sowing mangetout KG FACEBOOK A TALE OF TWO HALVES This apple was picked from a tree near Garfield, Washington,…

If you’re wanting more than just a pot that serves its basic purpose, there are lots of options (too many to cover in a short space) and ones that will span a whole range of budgets. Whether it’s for indoor use – herbs, for example – or for fruit and veg outdoors, you can always find something that fits the bill and suits the style of your kitchen, garden or conservatory. TEAPOT POTS If you are resourceful and have suitable materials at hand, the most unlikely containers can serve as excellent pots which can look stylish or just plain novel – a great talking point perhaps for when you have visitors next. Take this discarded toilet bowl which now looks far more sanitary as a flower container or this old…

(AGM is the RHS Award of Garden Merit. Under RHS garden trials these varieties performed particularly well) SAVE UP TO £36 ALSO IN THE KG SHOP THIS MONTH CURRANT FRUIT PLANT COLLECTION The collection contains one bare root plant each of: ■ ‘BEN CONNAN’ This excellent and reliable blackcurrant tolerates frost and resists mildew to produce a heavy crop of really large, juicy berries with an outstanding flavour. Packed full of goodness and ready to pick from mid-July. ■ ‘ROVADA’ This is the latest and best redcurrant available, cropping from midJuly through to August. An established bush of ‘Rovada’ will yield up to 2.5kg/6lb of juicy berries each year, presented on long strigs. An ingredient of the classic summer pudding, redcurrants are versatile and delicious. ■ ‘BLANKA’ The highest yielding…

STEP BY STEP STEP 1: Dig the bed over and incorporate some compost, well-rotted manure or dried feed, depending on what’s available. Use a dibber to make holes at 30cm (12in) apart for earlies and 40cm (16in) for maincrop. Holes should be 15-20cm (6-8in) deep. Put one seed potato in each hole with the shoots pointing upwards. STEP 2: Cover the bed with grass clippings every time you mow the lawn. Do this to earth up around stems as the plants grow. This keeps tubers from turning green. Put a crop cover over the bed from the time of planting until frosts have passed. This reduces frost damage and stops birds scratching the mulch. STEP 3: Use your hand to feel if roots are big enough after three to four…

Trees may be full of blossom over the next few weeks, but this doesn’t automatically ensure that trees will be full of autumn fruit. Those flowers need to be pollinated to make fruit set, so try following a few techniques to aid the process: ■ Learn about the varieties you grow. Make sure there are enough trees in flower at the same time – some apples need two other varieties, some need only one, and some fruit trees are self-pollinating. ■ Attract pollinating insects to your garden by planting a wide range of flowering plants. Herbs in flower can attract insects too. One bee may not pollinate all your cherry blossom, but a whole hive visiting the garden probably will. ■ Use a paintbrush to transfer pollen. This requires patience…

■ If you can provide constant warmth in a greenhouse, start to sow melon and cucumber seeds in a heated propagator. ■ Sow peas and mangetout in large pots of compost where they will grow and crop in summer. ■ Harvest spring cabbage and greens from the polytunnel and when they finish, clear the ground for summer crops. ■ Sow brassicas, including cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kale, cauliflower and calabrese in small cell trays. At this time of the year an unheated greenhouse is fine. ■ Earth up young potato plants growing in the polytunnel border and keep the soil moist at all times for strong growth.…

TOMATOES IN DECEMBER I thought I’d share the photo of my tomato plant, taken on January 6, 2021. I read in a summer edition of KG that new tomato plants can be grown from sideshoots, so I thought I’d experiment! I put the shoot in a pot, added in the compost and for a while it was outside. As September/October came round I decided to bring the plant indoors and it’s joined me in my (since lockdown) office. To my delight, flowers began to appear, which in turn showed tomatoes and just at the end of December the green tomato started to turn red! How encouraging, something that should have been discarded has thrived, something that shouldn’t grow (wrong time of year), has -and as we’ve all just headed back…

1 Slip brassica collars around newly planted cabbages and sprouts. The collars serve as a physical barrier to cabbage root flies, preventing them from laying their eggs 2 Include nearby companion plants. Nasturtiums tempt cabbage white butterflies away from your crop, while nectar-rich flowers like zinnia will attract aphid-hungry ladybirds 3 Netting is a sure way to keep both cabbage whites and pigeons off your plants. Check there aren’t any gaps and support the netting so it isn’t resting on your crop…

Many of our favourite crops, including most of our fruits and a number of popular vegetables, need to be pollinated in order to produce a good crop. Even some which are self pollinating will produce bigger and better pickings once bees and other pollinators have worked their magic. The relationship between plants and insects is complicated, and we are only just discovering the many amazing adaptions made over millions of years by both insect and flower to ensure a successful partnership. Unfortunately, we have unwittingly managed to damage this relationship by massively changing habitats, affecting climate and introducing pesticides. We have also been busy breeding ever more complicated and blousy flower shapes, and while large double blooms may be more aesthetically pleasing to us, they must be a complete mystery…

You don’t need acres of space to grow your own delicious edibles; in fact, by far the best way to begin is by growing a few plants in pots or a small raised bed. If you enjoy that (and you will), you can always expand your efforts later. A paved area is just perfect for filling with pots and many crops are colourful and attractive, either alone or dotted among ornamental plants in pots and containers or in the borders. It is amazing just how much you can produce in containers on the patio, a balcony or dotted around the garden, and most fruit and veggies lend themselves to growing in this way. Many others are suited to growing in hanging baskets or to climbing up walls, arches or obelisks.…

Rhubarb has been cropping for weeks now, such a versatile ingredient for many sweet and savoury dishes. I make this relish without any added sugar, using dried fruit and orange juice to add sweetness. Keep it in the fridge for a week or so. ■ 500g/17½oz rhubarb, chopped into 3cm pieces ■ 2 onions (red or white), sliced ■ 2 oranges, juice and zest ■ 180g/6½oz chopped dried fruit - raisins, dates, figs, sultanas ■ 150ml/5¼fl oz cider or wine vinegar ■ 1 chilli, finely chopped (optional) ■ 1tsp finely chopped fresh ginger ■ 1tsp ground cinnamon ■ 4 cardamom pods ■ A little oil ■ Sea salt and pepper, to taste 1. Pour the oil into apan and sauté the onions until they are soft. Add the rhubarb, orange…

I want to finish by offering you my fritter recipe, which Iuse every year. It makes 8-10 fritters or pancakes, depending on how big you make them. ■ 300g/10½oz sweetcorn (small tin) ■ A handful of washed garlic mustard leaves ■ 2 free-range eggs ■ 100ml/3½fl oz milk or alternative milk - I used oat milk ■ 100g/3½oz plain or wholemeal flour ■ ½ tsp cayenne pepper ■ Vegetable oil, for frying ■ Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1. Wash and finely chop your garlic mustard leaves, stems and flowers. 2. Beat the flour, eggs and milk in a bowl. 3. Add in the drained sweetcorn and chopped garlic mustard, then mix well. Season with cayenne pepper, salt and pepper. 4. Add a small amount of oil to…

FALAFEL BOWL WITH ROCKET, ROASTED RED PEPPER AND COUSCOUS A healthy and colourful lunch bowl that can easily be made in advance and taken with you in a container. Just keep the dressing separate. VEGAN RECIPE SERVES 1 Preparation time: 25 minutes Cooking time: 25 minutes ■ 4-5 falafel ■ 1 red pepper ■ 1 large handful rocket, washed ■ 1 cup couscous, cooked ■ ½ red onion, sliced ■ A handful of parsley, chopped ■ 1 tbsp hummus ■ 1 tsp oregano ■ Salt and pepper FOR THE DRESSING: ■ 2 tbsp plant yogurt ■ 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar ■ 2 tsp maple syrup ■ 1 garlic clove, minced ■ Salt and pepper 1. Place the red pepper under a hot grill, turning once the skin is charred…