A lovely autumnal salad that works as a starter or a main course, this combines roasted beetroot and blackberries with walnuts and feta, dressed in a pomegranate vinaigrette. Continue reading
The hedgerows are frothing with elder blossom and the strawberry beds spilling over with fruit. I can’t think of a better way to bring them together than in this fresh, seasonal interpretation of a centuries-old recipe, an elderflower and strawberry syllabub. Continue reading
More familiar in desserts, strawberries and rhubarb work remarkably well together as a savoury side dish. The combination of sweet and sour, soft and crunchy (for the rhubarb is eaten raw), makes an irresistible summer salad.
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This wonderfully warming, autumnal crumble is very adaptable: I love the combination of plum and blackberries with the spices and hazelnuts, but you can use plums alone, or swap them for blackberry and apple, or just apples.
And it has one big advantage: you make the filling and topping a day or more ahead and bring them together just before you want to eat, giving you more time to spend with family and friends. And we all need a bit of that after the past 18 months.
I’ve got a new recipe in development featuring greengages, but while I perfect it (hopefully before the wasps get them), here’s a reminder of some of the other plum and autumn fruit recipes you could be cooking. Continue reading
Tiny tarts that taste like summer. A couple of mouthfuls and they’re gone, but they’re light to eat, simple to make and go down a treat with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of crème fraîche. Continue reading
This is the best sort of comfort food, the flavours bursting out of that glorious suet crust with beefy, fruity bravado. I think I’m in danger of over-egging this particular pudding but honestly, give it a go before the quince season slips through our fingers, it’s really good. Continue reading
This pie is my interpretation of one in Thomas Dawson’s The Good Housewife’s Jewel, first published at the end of the 16th century, and the latest in my new series of historical recipes. I’ve followed his suggestions for both pastry and filling as faithfully as I can, because although Dawson gave more detail than many of his contemporaries, there’s still plenty of room for guesswork and because I’ve adapted it to modern tastes. Continue reading
It’s been a phenomenal year for plums here in our part of Suffolk and we’ve been in a race with the wasps to see who can get there first. Luckily, we have so much fruit, there’s plenty left for wildlife of all sorts.
The last to ripen have been the black bullace and damsons. The bullace tree in particular is so laden, the plums are hanging like bunches of grapes. As the jam cupboard is already full, we opted for a chutney and I honestly think it’s one of the best we’ve ever made. Continue reading
Jalousie: mid 18th century, French, literally ‘jealousy’, from Italian geloso ‘jealous’, also (by extension) ‘screen’, associated with the screening of women from view (Oxford Languages). The internet is a wonderful thing.
In this case a jalousie is a puff pastry pie with the top slashed to resemble (allegedly) a jalousie or louvred blind. It can be savoury or sweet and in this case proved to be the perfect vehicle for the greengages I picked from our tree, although you can use any plums you have handy. Continue reading