There are three ‘triffid’ type plants growing in my vegetable bed this month, taller than me and certainly wider. A plant I had discounted as a crop, has taken me by surprise. I am growing three very tall, wide and beautiful angelica plants. The flower heads are enormous and the hollow stems as thick as a mature tree branch.

Perhaps angelica is best known as ‘crystallised candy’, but its seeds are also one of the principal flavouring agents in vermouth, Chartreuse and gin, and thought to be the ‘secret ingredient’ in certain Rhine wines. The leaves can be used as a salad leaf or a substitute for parsley – or so I was led to believe, however I don’t recommend them – horrid, horrid, horrid! They can however be used to flavour fish, poultry, cooked fruits, soups or stews. Its stems, cut and prepared like asparagus, can be chopped and stewed with rhubarb and apples, or crystallised to serve as decoration on cakes and deserts, which is no doubt the angelica form most of us will be familiar with.

Ever an explorer of new things to prepare and eat, I felt I should explore how to prepare crystallised angelica. You are required to cut your stems into strips, soak them for eight hours, boil them with baking soda, drain then remove the stringy bits, cook in a syrup then soak in the syrup for 24 hours, dry, cook, soak, dry, cook, soak, dry and then, after four or five days of this repetitive process, roll in caster sugar and leave until completely dry and glossy. Now, that is what I call a palaver, but I intend to try it!

One thing that could never be called a palaver, is the 4 Villages Spring Fête, which we have successfully held at the Remembrance Field for another year. I write this the day after this great event. Still exhausted with feet throbbing, I realised I needed to feed two happy helpers at lunchtime today, who had volunteered to move car boot loads of stone to line my pond and to dig a few holes. I raided the freezer and came up with a rather delicious tart, that I give you this month. We enjoyed the tart with Buttlings sausages and partridges cooked on the BBQ (strange what you find in the freezer). We enjoyed this eclectic mix of food with a leaf salad, beer won on the bottle stall and rhubarb cake from the cake stall – an impromptu, welcome and tasty lunch eaten in the drizzle. Summer is here. Enjoy what it brings.
aif

Spinach and Cheese Tart
Serves 4
Approx. £5.50 when all ingredients bought at Ludwell Stores.

Ingredients 1 tbs oil
1 large  red onion
400g fresh spinach (substitute part with purple sprouting, chard etc)
500g ready made all-butter shortcrust pastry
2 large free range/organic eggs, beaten plus extra for brushing
400g cheese – a mix is good – I used parmesan, cheddar and Kings Favourite – feta would be good here too
2 tbs fresh herbs, thyme, rosemary, tarragon or dill
Seasoning lots of black pepper, but ease up on the salt depending on your cheese choices.

Preheat the oven to 200°C / gas mark 6. (AGA roasting oven, bottom shelf with cooling shelf above)

1. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and gently fry the onion for 5 minutes until soft and translucent.
2. Add the spinach leaves or chard, if using, and cook until wilted, and set aside.
3. Roll out the shortcrust pastry on a floured surface and use to line a greased and floured 20cm loose bottomed round tin, leaving a generous 3–4 cm hanging over the edge.
4. Transfer the spinach and onions to a bowl and fold together with the grated or crumbled cheese, the herbs, seasoning and the beaten eggs.
5. Spoon into the pastry case and fold the excess pastry in towards the centre – this gives it a rustic look yet you still see the spinach and cheese in the centre.
6. Brush with beaten egg and bake for 30–35 minutes until golden and set.
7. Serve warm with salad and new potatoes, or chill, wrap in foil and pop into a lunch box.

A truly, truly scrumptious lunch, picnic or lunch box treat

I am writing about lots of hot air this month. That’s different from the hot steam that sometimes comes out of my ears and nose but rather the hot air that fills the wonderful, light-as-a-feather soufflé as it is removed from the oven.

Soufflé is one of those dishes that many people are fearful to prepare, having heard stories of mortifying disasters. This notion of difficulty and disasters is wrong. I, for example find it is much easier to cook a hot soufflé than to poach an egg. Soufflés are really simple to prepare but not a dish that one can make in advance. There may be some preparation you can do to get ahead, but the final baking is last minute, which if you are entertaining, does make it all rather public.

There is confusion as to what is a soufflé and what is a mousse. There is little difference, although generally a mousse is cold – I can’t think of many baked mousse dishes. But not all soufflés are hot. They do use many of the same ingredients, although a cold version may rely on gelatine to set it and may use cream as a main ingredient, whereas a savoury cheese soufflé, for example, would use a roux for the body of the dish into which egg yolks are mixed, followed by the folding of whipped egg whites. Anyway – whether a mousse or a soufflé, they all need lots of light-as-a-feather whipped egg whites to keep them airy. My mother used to make a cold lemon soufflé for special occasions. I remember peeping at them at the back of our tall 1960s’ cream refrigerator. There would be a high collar of paper around the straight-sided soufflé dish, tied with string. It would be served with chopped nuts pressed into the sides and decorated with piped cream and crystallized angelica. It was such a treat. My sister and I would fight over the tangy jelly at the bottom. I realize now, decades later, that the jelly should not have been there, as the mix had clearly not been mixed very well, but our Mother pulled it off as being intentional.

I have adapted a baked soufflé recipe of Delia’s that claims never to collapse or explode. I endorse this claim and whilst they will shrink slightly as they come out of the oven they remain light and soufflé -ike 15 minutes later. The passion fruit curd adds a lovely zing to the dish and rounds the whole thing off into one of my favourite, foolproof pudding recipes to date. Perfect for Sunday Lunch or as an Easter treat, served with pouring cream or vanilla ice cream. aif

Hot Passion Fruit Curd Soufflés (foolproof)
Serves 4
Approx. £4.20 when all ingredients bought at Ludwell Stores.

Ingredients
3 eggs
60g golden caster sugar
1 lemon – zested and then juiced (you will need 2 tbs juice)
4 tbs Mrs Darlington’s Passion Fruit Curd (orange or lemon curd is also available in Ludwell Stores). Naturally, you could easily make your own!

Preheat the oven to 180°C / gas mark 3 (AGA roasting oven, bottom shelf with cooling shelf above)

1. Prepare four ramekins, approx. 5 cm deep and 7.5 cm in diameter by lightly buttering the sides.
2. Spoon a large dollop of passion fruit curd into the bottom of each ramekin being careful not to dribble it down the sides.
3. Separate the eggs, putting the yolks into a medium-sized bowl and the whites into a spanking-clean larger one.
4. Using an electric hand whisk, whisk the whites to the stiff-peak stage, which will take 4–5 minutes, starting on a slow speed, gradually increasing to medium and then high.
5. Sprinkle 10g (large tablespoon) of caster sugar to the whites and whisk on a high speed for 30 seconds more. Put aside.
6. Next, add the zest and lemon juice and the remaining 50g of sugar to the yolks and mix them together briefly.
7. Take a tablespoon of the whites and fold them into the yolks to loosen the mixture, then fold the rest of the whites in, using a light cutting and folding movement, so as not to lose the precious air.
8. Spoon the mixture into the prepared ramekins, piling it high like a pyramid, then run a finger around the inside rim of each one. (This will help the rise).
9. Place the ramekins on a solid baking sheet and place in the oven on the centre shelf (not AGA ovens – see above) for 15–17 minutes or until the tops are golden.
10. Remove from the oven and allow them to settle for 5 minutes and for the curd to cool a little.
11. They will sink slightly – don’t panic, this is normal. Just before serving, place them on a small plate and dust lightly with icing sugar.
12. Serve with pouring cream or vanilla ice-cream.
Simply the ‘zest’
A truly, truly scrumptious and impressive dessert – perfect at Easter time.

The last days of 2014 brought rock hard ground, an iced up pond, and beautiful hoar frosts to my grasses and hydrangea heads, but most importantly, sweetness to my prize winter crop – Jerusalem artichokes. They, as with celeriac, kale and Brussels sprouts, to mention a few, embrace a hard frost to enhance their sweetness and texture.

I grow these little knobbly gems in large tubs / plastic dustbins, as they grow rampantly in open ground. Probably the easiest and least needy of any vegetable to grow, Jerusalem artichokes are neither from Jerusalem nor an artichoke, but rather part of the sunflower family, as their luscious growth shooting skyward by mid summer, evidences. If after reading this you wish to grow ‘a few’, I urge you to try. The Jerusalem artichokes you can buy for eating are perfect for burying in the ground. They vary in colour from white to gold to purply red. Keep them contained and you will have a crop for decades as long as you leave a few in the container each year and top up with compost after harvesting.

The taste of these gnarled winter treats is sweet and nutty. They are sophisticated in texture and taste and they can be transformed into swanky salads (yes, they can be eaten raw – try grated with a little carrot, beetroot, blue cheese and a lemony dressing made with a good nut oil). Or try sweet sticky fries, roasted, mashed, sliced to mix into a dauphinoise, gratin or blitz into a velvety soup. Really, what is there not to like about these beauties, other than skinning them maybe? Peeling a witch’s nose may be easier than peeling these, although the modern varieties are less gnarled. The skin is not offensive if you can’t be bothered to peel them; however, one trick is to parboil them before slipping off the skins with your fingers.

Now, Truly Scrumptious followers will remember that last edition I used poultry pickings, or poached chicken if you were being posh, and I am using chicken here again – (apologies veggies) but this is a good healthy recipe this month – a fresh unusual taste using these humble ingredients with large quantities of tarragon and lemon – fresh and truly flavoursome. If you don’t eat meat, then make a classy soup or sauté in butter with sage leaves and a squeeze of lemon and serve with a poached organic egg.
aif

Jerusalem artichokes with chicken, saffron and lemon
Serves 4
Approx. £9.50 when all ingredients bought at Buttlings and Ludwell Stores.

Saffron, lemon and chicken – always a great combination – written with a big nod to my favourite chef of the moment, Yotam Ottolenghi. Follow Ottolenghi on twitter@ottolenghi for inspiring writing and photos from this phenomenal, original chef.

Top tip – Plan ahead to leave it to marinate as long as you dare

500g  Jerusalem artichokes, peeled and cut into thick wedges
3 tbs  fresh lemon juice
8   large chicken thighs, on the bone with the skin on
12  banana shallots peeled and halved lengthways
12  large garlic cloves, sliced
1   lemon, cut in half lengthways then into very thin slices
2 tsp  saffron threads
50 ml  olive oil
150 ml  cold water
1½ tbs  pink peppercorns, slightly crushed (optional – in brine – not the dried ones)
10g  fresh thyme leaves
40g  tarragon leaves, roughly chopped
2 tsp  salt and ½ tsp black pepper

Preheat the oven to 240°C / gas mark 9 (AGA roasting oven, middle shelf)

1. Cover the prepared Jerusalem artichokes with cold water, add half the lemon juice, and bring to the boil. Simmer for 15 minutes or until tender but not soft. Drain and leave to cool in a large bowl.
2. Add all the remaining ingredients excluding the remaining lemon juice and half the tarragon and mix well with your hands, rubbing the marinade into the chicken well.
3. Cover and leave to marinate in the fridge for a minimum of 4 hours.
4. Place the chicken, skin-side up, in a roasting tin and spread the vegetables and marinade around the chicken.
5. Roast for 30minutes, then cover with foil and cook for a further 15 minutes, by which time the chicken should be cooked through.
6. Remove from the oven and add the reserved tarragon and lemon juice. Mix well, taste and add more salt if needed.
7. Serve at once with kale, steamed and then tossed lightly in butter, sprinkled with toasted almonds.
8. I’m not even going to lower myself to mention the notorious, guaranteed after effects of these little treasures. Serve them to children and you will have them sniggering all night. I suggest the rest of the family sleep alone!

A truly, truly scrumptious earthy yet flavoursome mid-week winter supper

It is a dark and cold day and raining hard as I prepare to write my muse for this month. The kitchen is warmed by the Aga, so most of the time I don’t notice the chill in the air. Such days lead me down an unstoppable slide towards comforting winter cooking and, as such, I hear the slow bubbling of a rich chicken stock on the stove, which is filling the room with a warm, comforting aroma. Lighting the wood burner now would transport me to a winter haven.

I casseroled a chicken yesterday evening and it cooled on the doorstep overnight carefully sealed to stop it being plundered by local scavengers. It’s the stock I’m really interested in rather than the chicken on this occasion, although I shall use both to make this month’s Truly Scrumptious recipes. My stock should be rich and thick, having added some roasted squash, a few soft tomatoes, carrots, tarragon and some ends of leeks and celery. Yes, most of my fridge’s bottom drawer and some leftovers. I’m also going to use my stock to make a walnut soup for lunch. The recipe from Tamsin Day-Lewis describes the walnut soup (which is only walnuts – freshest you can find, garlic, stock and cream) as robust yet delicate. It’s highly unusual, however, and I am hoping it may be something rather different for Christmas. I can’t think of any reason why it wouldn’t freeze well either, so I thought I would give it a try.

My heart sinks when I see all the festive goods on sale, the advertisements showing tables groaning under the weight of Christmas dinners, frozen cheesecakes and canapés, or obscenely enormous turkeys. It surely isn’t about the volume of your offering, but rather simple quality. Christmas to me is not just one meal but many; a series of mini feasts for people you may not see on the day itself. I feel something mildly festive is called for, that is refreshingly simple and this is what I am planning for my Boxing Day with family and for kitchen suppers with friends. No-one should be found sobbing at the stove any day, and absolutely never at Christmas, but I have no doubt some of us may have done so in the past, possibly through frustration and disappointment at that longawaited masterpiece of culinary expertise that didn’t quite turn out as expected. So, my mantra this year, is keep it fresh and simple. We need a light touch and a sense of fun, tinkering with recipes as we see fit. Be inventive with your leftovers, like the two recipes overleaf, where I suggest using cooked ham and the pickings of your Christmas turkey, chicken, duck or goose.

Buying the right food is not always about spending more. It is more about the quality of your raw materials. The simpler the dish, the more exposed the quality of your ingredients and we are lucky in living where we are as the quality from Buttlings and Ludwell Stores is beyond question.

Here’s to many stress-free and genuinely truly scrumptious celebrations, whether enjoyed on your own or with others.
aif

Roasted Ham, Squash and Marmalade
Serves 6.
Approx. £6.50 when all ingredients bought at Buttlings and Ludwell Stores.

A wonderful, if odd mix – the salty ham and bitter marmalade cut through the creamy squash. Serve with winter watercress salad and tiny baked potatoes rolled in sea salt.

200g cooked gammon torn into large chunks – avoid the ham cube look! (If you are cooking your own, use ham hocks)
1.5kg squash – Prince Crown, Sweet Mama, Acorn or Butternut are best
2–3 tbs rapeseed oil or olive oil
6 bay leaves and sprigs of thyme (both optional)
6 tbs orange marmalade (with rind)
1 tbs pink peppercorns (optional but adds a lovely colour and mild crunch)

Preheat the oven to 190°C / gas mark 5 (AGA roasting oven, middle shelf)

1. Cut the squash into wedges, scooping out the seeds. Put squash into a roasting dish (same one you will serve from), season well and trickle with the oil. Roast for 25–30 minutes
2. Remove the squash from the oven and add the ham chunks with the bay and thyme together with the pink peppercorns
3. Mix the marmalade with 3–4 tablespoons of the ham liquor (if you have cooked them yourself) or hot water and spoon over the ham and squash.
4. Return the tray to the oven and cook for a further 20–25 minutes until glazed and bubbling. Serve with watercress salad and baby baked potatoes rolled in sea salt.

Egg Noodles, Poached Chicken and Greens
Serves 3–4
Approx. £2.50, excluding the left over poultry, when all ingredients bought at Ludwell Stores.

Great for using left over chicken, duck, goose or turkey and when you have a great stock on the go. If you want extra protein or are making a vegetarian version, add a simple egg pancake (2 eggs beaten, cooked in large flat pan, rolled up and cut into slices)

1 small head of spring greens or kale or Savoy cabbage (150g approx)
2 nests of fine egg noodles, crushed lightly
1 garlic clove finely sliced
½ thinly sliced red chilli (optional)
dash soy sauce
1 tsp lime juice (a squeeze worth)
chicken, duck, goose or turkey pickings
750 ml chicken stock
2 eggs, beaten and seasoned (optional)

1. Prepare your greens by roughly shredding and rinsing well
2. Bring your stock to a simmer and add the greens, then the noodles, garlic and chilli
3. Cook for 3–4 minutes or until the noodles are just tender
4. Add the cooked chicken or turkey to warm through
5. Taste and adjust seasoning, add the egg pancake slices if using (see above for method), add a dash of soy sauce and lime juice before serving in warm bowls

A truly, truly scrumptious duo of quick, fresh recipes for any occasion or season!

At the end of last year I waxed lyrically in Truly Scrumptious about the joy of dehydrated fruits and fruit leathers. I wrote how tempted I was to buy myself a food dehydrator to make the very best of such delicious morsels, and this I did (an impulsive and extravagant buy). The plan was to spend my summer practising and then let you know how it may be done. Well, motivated by a glut of currants, strawberries, gooseberries, blueberries and rhubarb, I have done so. Fruit leathers do not sound attractive, bit like jerky which I wouldn’t touch, but imagine a sheet of jewel coloured fruit, translucent, shiny and made from pureed fruit, thick and smooth, sometimes with the juice of a lemon or lime, usually uncooked and unsweetened (unless with honey) and then spread on to silicone sheets to dry. They should be flexible and strong so you can cut them, roll them or fold them to take to school, or on long journeys or walks. ‘Pam the Jam’ (River Cottages’ jam expert Pam Corbin) suggests snipping off pieces to dissolve gently into fruit salads, or even hang them on the Christmas tree (a bizarre suggestion as surely they would dissolve into a sticky blobby bauble as they rehydrate, I’m not recommending it)!

With self-interest and that of course of those Truly Scrumptious followers, I have tried lots of different mixtures, gooseberry and blackcurrant, strawberry and rhubarb, currant mixes and pure 100% blitzed home-grown raspberries. Some were quite successful, others not so – the raspberry leather was like eating course sandpaper as I didn’t sieve out the pips, but the strawberry with a little rhubarb for sharpness was delicious. My favourite remains the blackcurrant leather. I managed to over-dry one batch and they were rather crispy, shattering all over the worktop and floor – I still find little sticky slivers of it stuck to the kitchen cupboards. I plan this week to make a blackberry and apple leather, following ‘Pam the Jam’s’ recipe where she cooks the apple and uses honey as a sweetener. It looks wonderful in her book Preserves (River Cottage Handbook No. 2 – available at Ludwell Stores); and with blackberries at their best now and apples dripping from the trees, it should be perfect.

My sister (photographer extraordinaire) sent me an artistic photo of one of my leathers, fascinated by its colours and texture. That gave me a fleeting boost, before she tasted one and declared through a screwed up face “it’s rather sour”. Family can be so cruel.

As we go into autumn, I like the thought of inspiring readers to indulge in the autumn apple bounty and make a delicious Apple Frangipane Tart. The tart can be topped with raspberries, pears, apricots, blueberries – anything really – however the second recipe I am giving you this month, goes especially well with apples. Salted Caramel Sauce is wonderful served with almost anything. I gave jars of this wonderful sauce to friends at Christmas last year. They tell me it’s excellent, especially spooned over vanilla ice-cream, pancakes or just on its own by the tablespoon, stolen from the fridge whilst no-one else is around. It could last about a month in the fridge if you don’t tell anyone it’s there.

Anyone who has spent the summer eating fruit leathers and has a superior opinion of their natural diet deserve now to indulge in this sugar-laden tart with accompanying sauce. Now to the sauce, which can be rustled up in a matter of moments, please take care with the sea salt. Start with half a teaspoon and add more to the finished sauce as needed, bearing in mind that the colder this is served, the more the flavours will be muted and therefore need bolstering…. We’ve had a great summer – here’s to a great autumn.
aif

Apple and Frangipane Tart with Salted Caramel Sauce
Serves 6
Approx. £6.50 for the tart and approx. £3.50 for the sauce when all ingredients bought at Ludwell Stores.
For the Apple and Frangipane Tart
200g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
200g soft butter, plus extra for greasing
100g caster sugar, plus 1 tbs
2 large eggs
100g ground almonds
1 tbs finely chopped lemon zest
4 eating apples
1 tbs jam (apricot is best but not essential – could use redcurrant jelly equally well)
For the Salted Caramel Sauce
75g unsalted butter
50g soft light brown sugar
50g caster sugar
50g golden syrup
125 ml double cream
1 tsp sea salt (the very best you can find)

Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4 (AGA roasting oven, middle shelf with cooling shelf above)

Save yourself time & mess, buy ready-made shortcrust pastry and skip to No. 4
1. For the purists – Sift the flour into a bowl, dicing 100g of butter into it. Add the salt and rub together until it resembles breadcrumbs.
2. Stir in 1–3 tbs cold water until the dough seems to want to cling together.
3. Knead lightly to make a ball, dusting with flour if wet. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
4. Generously butter a 24 cm flan tin with a loose base and dust with flour.
5. Roll out the pastry and line the tin, trimming the edges.
6. Line the case with foil, fill with baking beans and bake blind for 10 minutes.
7. Remove foil and beans and bake again for 5 minutes until golden.
8. Meanwhile, beat 100g butter and 100g sugar together until light and fluffy.
9. Beat in one egg at a time, then fold in the ground almonds and lemon zest, then tip the mix into the cooled pastry case.
10. Halve and peel the apples, carefully cutting out the cores. Placing the flat side down on your board, slice thinly across the width – making a sort of fan.
11. Place the apples artistically in the tart, spreading out the slices slightly and brush over the remaining butter, melted. Don’t worry about this, just get the apples in the mix.
12. Bake for 40–45 minutes until the frangipane is puffy and golden and apples just cooked. On removal from the oven, brush with warm apricot jam. Make the Caramel Sauce
13. Melt butter, sugars and syrup in small heavy-based pan – simmer for 3 minutes swirling occasionally.
14. Add cream and ½ tsp sea salt and swirl again. Stir with wooden spoon and with caution…. taste for saltiness, bearing in mind that salt dissolves the hotter the sauce.
15. Serve (or jar as you would jam in sterilized jars) Spoon over whatever you fancy…..it’s that simple

A truly, truly scrumptious duo of recipes for any occasion, season or private binge!