We love to grow fruit and veg. After converting our garden to a kitchen garden many years ago, we also look on a local allotment plot in 2010.

Maple Cinnamon Glazed Plum & Blackberry Sticky Buns

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If you follow me on Instagram, Twitter or my blog’s Facebook page you’ll have noticed that I visited Canada recently, taking in Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto and the region around Niagara-on-the-Lake. I’ll be sharing lots (and lots and lots!) from that trip in coming weeks. I totally loved all the destinations I visited and cannot ... Read more »

The Green Revolution in Almeria & Murcia

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A few weeks ago, I was invited to Almeria and Murcia, two neighbouring regions in Southern Spain, to learn more about their agricultural practices and produce. 1 Agrobio – Biological Pollination & Pest Control We started with a fascinating visit to Agrobio, a company that produces and sells bumblebees for pollination and a wide range ... Read more »

Easy Butternut Squash Soup with Bacon Brittle

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I first made butternut squash soup with candied bacon last autumn, after watching a masterclass episode of MasterChef Australia in which Matt Preston shared his recipe for an easy pumpkin soup garnished with pepita (squash seeds) and bacon candied in brown sugar. I simplified his recipe further to come up with the version I shared ... Read more »

A Seasonal Variation: Butternut Squash, Black Garlic & Blue Cheese Bake

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I don’t usually make Halloween dishes. But I had a crate full of home-grown butternut squash in my kitchen when a friend of mine gave me a block of his home-made black garlic cheese. The handover, in a central London coffee shop, probably looked like an illicit drug tryst – the cheese resembled a very ... Read more »

Burnt Apple & Bourbon Ice Cream

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This ice cream is very much inspired by a recipe from The Bojon Gourmet, a blog I discovered via Pinterest. It caught my eye when I was looking for ideas on new ways to put some of our enormous apple harvest to good use. I replaced Alanna’s cream base with a rich and very sweet ... Read more »

Pete’s Courgette, Blue Cheese & Cherry Tomato Quiche

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Pete came into the house one recent Monday evening with an overgrown courgette from the back garden, brandishing it in the manner of a cartoon caveman and his trusty club. The quiche he made with half of it the next evening was so fantastic that I begged him to make it again the next night. ... Read more »

Puff Pastry Cheese, Courgette & Mint Tart

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We are experiencing a glorious courgette glut at the moment, as you may have guessed! We’ve had courgette frittata, courgette soup and courgettes stuffed with sausage ragu… and courgette crisps, courgette-saka, grilled courgettes, stir-fried courgette… we even tried a chocolate courgette cake but that one’s not for sharing as we didn’t love the recipe we ... Read more »