The gluts have left the building (shed)
This is where I used to write about the gluts I get from my veg patch and the ensuing gluttony in the kitchen.
Now I write a weekly mostly-veggie recipe over on Substack, plus share tales from the veg patch and exclusive videos. You can subscribe for free by clicking on the link below and every recipe will be sent straight to your inbox. If you’d like more content (such as those videos I mentioned, interviews and printer-friendly PDFs of every recipe to collect) do consider becoming a paid subscriber. More on that here.
In the meantime, here’s an archive of my old Gluts and Gluttony blog:
Rhubarb, ginger & honey flapjack
My craving for forced rhubarb remains unquenchable. Even though we have no kitchen I am still finding ways to use it. Perhaps ‘no’ kitchen is an exaggeration. Whilst our usual kitchen is knocked, we have a temporary one equipped with a microwave that claims to also be a convection oven. I tested that claim for the first time this week with these flapjacks…
Rhubarb, Mackerel & Fennel Salad
I always get a bit silly about forced rhubarb. I think it’s because the season falls when the weather is at its bleakest and the veg patch its muddiest and least productive. In this context, the bubblegum glow of forced rhubarb stems feel like neon lights shining through the gloom, a brief respite from murk…
Summer Sharing Platter
A glass of rosé, dewy with condensation. The low sun keeping the evening chill at bay. Perfume from the jasmine wafting over the terrace. Ah, June. On this sort of an evening it seems a shame to come inside to eat. Far nicer, don’t you think, to continue nursing that glass of rosé and nibble at a few bits and bobs whilst watching the sun set over the veg patch? And if those nibbles can be a celebration of that oh so picturesque kitchen garden, then so much the better.
Rhubarb & Pistachio Macaroons
I am just about back in control. Of the rhubarb, that is. I’ve been compotting, pickling, preserving, baking, freezing (less romantic, but very practical) and have worked my way through the armfuls of stems that were plump and in need of urgent picking. I’ve made a fair few savoury dishes with the fat, greener stems. But the pinkest ends of the daintiest stems I have saved for pudding purposes….
Forced Rhubarb & Hazelnut Cake
Forced rhubarb season is upon us. Regulars will know my obsession with rhubarb so we don’t need to go over it again. Suffice to say that every year, when the thin, pink stems arrive in the shops I am never, ever, short of new ideas for using them. This week I made this hazelnut (though it could just as easily have been walnut) and rhubarb cake, inspired by a Nigel Slater plum cake recipe.
Celeriac Soup with Pickled Rhubarb
There’s so much rhubarb in the patch that it is becoming a bit of a problem. Rampant and unwieldy, it is technically caged in a spot removed from the main veg beds to protect it from the rabbits, but I think the barbed wire is really to keep it from taking over the EVERYTHING. Anyway, its abundance means I find myself with the first of many main crop rhubarb gluts.
Rhubarb, Saffron & Honey Granola Pots
The drizzle has set in. The mud is endless. When it isn’t raining the mire freezes rock hard so it’s treacherous underfoot either way. A chill wind whips around your jacket collar and down your back. Scarf tales, helpless, just get blown about your face. Even the dog shivers. We are in the depths of the Hungry Gap: the long, cold, soggy stretch of the year when the winter crops are virtually spent and spring seemingly a lifetime away. But not in Yorkshire.
Forced Rhubarb & Seville Orange Ceviche
Cooking with the seasons is rarely a chore. There’s always something new just coming in to season, some additional flavour to get excited about, a new harvest to inspire you. Nature is always waving her arms and mouthing, “This! Over here. It’ll go brilliantly with this. And they harvest at the same time of year – it’s like I planned it!” before wandering off chanting, “what grows together, goes together”.