Saffron Strands

Syllabub with eau-de-vie cherries Winter's chill is not something we want to think of when market stalls are piled high with the s...

Raspberry 'Clafoutis' It's the way the word rolls off the tongue - c l a f o u t i s - that does it.  It's like a lovi...

Rhubarb & grapefruit I've previously mentioned Jane Grigson's declaration that only "pink" rhubarb is worth eat...

Raspberry Ripple Ice cream in the making It's February.  Why on earth am I making ice cream?  Because I have a bag of frozen rasp...

Seasonal Specials at England Preserves The renewed interest in home preserving is a trend I hope will long continue.  A desire to be m...

Warm Plum & Citrus Compote Jane Grigson wrote in 1982 of the ubiquity of the Victoria plum.  Since 1840, when a stray seedlin...

Blueberry & Raspberrry Mascarpone Pot On this day of the autumnal equinox the temperature is hovering around 20 degrees C through...

Almond, Polenta and Lemon Cake with blackberry compote Blackberries, or brambles, are probably the most widely foraged foodstuff in th...

Rosie's Blackcurrant and Lemon Posset Blackcurrants don't have the jewel-like appearance of red and white currants but they pa...

Raspberryade The raspberry harvest can get a little out of hand at this time of year.  It reaches a point when even friends and neighb...

Cucumber Salad 'Cool as a cucumber' (idiom) - calm, self-possessed, imperturbable, unruffled.  This most definitely does no...

Cherries & green almonds The first English cherries have arrived with early varieties Inga and Merchant making an appearance at ma...

Raw Asparagus, pea-shoots and mint salad Spare a thought for the asparagus farmer subject to the vagaries of our climate.  Yes, the...

Poached spiced rhubarb with yoghurt, honey and biscuit We're well into the forced rhubarb season now so, if you haven't bough...

The annual Calҫotada festivals are a feature of winter in Spain's Catalunya region.  Somewhere between a spring onion and a leek, cal...

Candied Cedro I'm ending this year on a preserving note.  Though everyone has their sleeves rolled up and heads filled with Chri...