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Garden minestrone soup

Parsnip soup

Spiced butternut soup

Cauliflower cheese

Beetroot tops with anchovies

Roasted beetroot & carrots

Potato gnocchi with mushrooms & spinach

Creamed potatoes with fresh horseradish sauce

Celeriac gratin

Purple Peruvian potato pea crush

Creamy mashed peas

Shredded ham & pea pot

Vegetable stir-fry

Broad bean & chorizo risotto

Passata

Tomato & green bean salad

Bulgur wheat salad

Bread salad

How does your garden grow?

Our patch of North Yorkshire can sometimes be wild, wet and windy, but it’s amazing what our head gardener, Lesley, achieves. Her knowhow and green fingers produce a wide variety of vegetables and salad crops, including potatoes, red and green cabbages, onions, courgettes, beetroot, carrots, tomatoes and lettuces, plus rhubarb and lots of fresh herbs. Some of the produce goes into the tasty chutneys and pickles that are sold in Ginger Pig shops; the rest is generally used up on the farm.

If you want to try growing your own, it’s really important to work out what kind of soil you have. Clay is claggy, wet and poor-draining; chalk is stony and coarse, so drains well; sand is gritty and free-draining; and peat is dark and spongy, so it retains moisture. If you’re very lucky, you may have loamy soil, which is excellent for growing. It has an even, well-structured and almost smooth texture, which is easy to work, retains moisture and warms up quickly in spring. Remember, whatever type of soil you have, the quality can always be improved by adding coarse sand or organic matter to improve drainage, or fertilizer to improve the nutrient content.

Our soil is clay over limestone, so the ground retains moisture but is quick to drain, which keeps both plants and pigs happy. While clay isn’t the easiest soil to work, it’s relatively supple in the autumn, and that’s when we sow for the year ahead.

Potatoes

There are many varieties of potato – far more than you see in the shops – so why not experiment and grow a few unusual types alongside your favourites? Here are some tips.

Accord
New potato; small, oval, waxy and firm; easy to grow and high-yielding. Steam or boil.

Anya
A cross between Pink Fir Apple and Desiree: long, oval and knobbly; waxy with nutty flavour. Fairly easy to grow and high-yielding. Steam or boil.

Charlotte
New potato, white and waxy but with plenty of ‘give’; easy to grow, moderate yields. Steam or boil; also good for roasting if parboiled in the skin, lightly bashed and roasted in dripping and olive oil.

Desiree
Maincrop red-skinned potato, neither floury nor waxy; holds its shape. High-yielding and drought resistant. Use for roasting and chipping.

Dunbar Rover
Maincrop white heritage variety; floury texture. Moderate yield, if grown successfully. Steam or boil and butter.

Jersey Royal
New potato, grown exclusively in Jersey; white, sweet and nutty. Needs little adornment: simply steam and butter.

King Edward
Maincrop white potato; floury texture; easy to grow, moderate yields. Use for mashing, roasting and extra crispy chips.

Maris Piper
Maincrop; light-skinned, easy to grow, good yields. Very versatile: use for chipping, mashing, roasting and baking.

Nicola
Maincrop; long, yellowish and waxy, but with a bit of ‘give’. Moderately resistant to disease. Boil or use in salads.

Pink Fir Apple
Maincrop salad variety; sweet, smallish, knobbly potato; a little waxy. Fairly easy to grow, but tricky to harvest and store. Use for boiling or steaming.

Rooster
Maincrop red-skinned, floury potato. Needs careful seed handling. Use for roasting, chipping and mashing.

Sante
Early maincrop variety; dry and firm-textured; grows well in all soils and very disease-resistant; good all-rounder for cooking.

Saxon
New potato, with pale skin and creamy-coloured flesh; firm rather than floury. Easy to grow; stores well; good all-rounder.

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Garden minestrone soup

  1. Put the oil and all the diced ingredients in a large saucepan and cook over a medium heat for 8 minutes without browning.
  2. Add the stock and canned tomatoes, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
  3. Break the spaghetti into pieces and add to the pan, then stir in the haricot beans and simmer for 12 minutes. Season and stir again.
  4. Finally, add the cabbage and parsley, simmer for 2 minutes, then serve with Parmesan sprinkled on the top.

Serves 4–6
Takes 45 minutes

This great Italian soup is now a firm favourite around the world, and inevitably there are many variations of it. For example, some people add diced bacon at the start of the cooking process, others add chilli, but I have given you our classic version.

Parsnip soup

  1. Gently sauté the shallots, parsnips and cumin in the butter for 10 minutes, but do not allow them to brown.
  2. Add the stock and season, bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes.
  3. Using a hand-held blender, whiz the soup until smooth. Return to the pan, add the cream and reheat. Serve with a sprinkling of chopped parsley if you wish.

Serves 4
Takes 45 minutes

The sweet flavour and almost creamy texture of parsnips makes them fantastic for soup. Here the cumin adds a gentle spiciness, while the duck stock adds richness and depth.

Spiced butternut soup

  1. Wash the squash, cut it in half and scoop out all the seeds. Roughly chop into 5cm (2in) pieces.
  2. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large pan, add the onion and sauté gently for 5 minutes without browning.
  3. Add the garlic, cashew nuts, curry powder and seasoning. Cook for a further 2 minutes.
  4. Add all the squash and stock, bring to the boil and simmer for 25 minutes. Using a hand-held blender, whiz the soup until smooth. Serve with a sprinkling of chopped coriander if you wish.

Serves 4
Takes 40 minutes

We also call this ‘sunshine soup’ because of its amazing colour. There is no need to peel the squash because the skin is relatively thin and softens during cooking. Also, like many vegetables, the skin contains most of the vitamins, so keeping it makes a more nutritious soup.

Cauliflower cheese

  1. Trim the cauliflower, cut into florets and steam for 5 minutes.
  2. Melt the butter in a saucepan, add the flour and mix until smooth. Stir over a low heat for 2 minutes. Take off the heat and slowly whisk in the milk, seasoning and mustard until smooth.
  3. Return to the heat and bring to the boil, stirring constantly, so that it does not catch. Boil for 1 minute, then add half the cheese and mix off the heat.
  4. Preheat the grill. Add the steamed cauliflower to the sauce, stir to coat, then place in an ovenproof dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese and place under the hot grill for 5 minutes, until golden.

Serves 4
Takes 30 minutes

As a supper dish or a vegetable accompaniment to a roast, you can’t go wrong with cauliflower cheese. It’s important to steam rather than boil the cauliflower because it absorbs less water and won’t dilute the cheese sauce. While the cheese traditionally used is mature Cheddar, you might like to try Beaufort, which is an excellent hard cheese from the Savoie region of France.

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Beetroot tops with anchovies

  1. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the garlic, chilli, anchovies and breadcrumbs and cook until just golden. Transfer to a plate.
  2. Add a little more oil to the pan, place the beetroot tops in it and toss well. Sauté until wilted, about 5 minutes.
  3. Add the reserved breadcrumb mixture to the pan, stir well and serve at once.

Serves 4
Takes 15 minutes

Once you’ve tried this tasty way of cooking beetroot tops, never again will you throw them away.

Roasted beetroot & carrots

  1. Preheat the oven to 190°C/375°F/gas mark 5.
  2. Cut the beetroot into wedges. Place in a roasting tin with all the other ingredients and toss well. Roast for 40 minutes, turning halfway through the cooking time. Serve straight away.

Serves 4
Takes 45 minutes

Roasting beetroot intensifies its flavour, and the beautiful velvety texture marries well with carrots. While great with roasts, this dish can very easily be turned into a starter or salad. Cook as directed, then place on a bed of mixed salad leaves and crumble creamy goats’ cheese over the top.

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Potato gnocchi with mushrooms & spinach

  1. Cook the potatoes in salted boiling water for 20 minutes, until soft. Drain and mash. Add the semolina flour, egg and nutmeg and mix together until it forms a smooth ball.
  2. Lightly dust a work surface with semolina flour. Divide the potato mixture into 4 equal pieces and roll each piece into a sausage shape just over 2.5cm (1in) in diameter. Cut them into 2.5cm (1in) lengths, then mark each little ‘pillow’ with a fork on each side.
  3. Heat a large pan of salted water and, when boiling, add the gnocchi in small batches – do not overcrowd the pan. Cook for 2 minutes and they will rise to the top. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a clean tea towel to drain.
  4. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.
  5. Put the oil and mushrooms in a pan and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes.
  6. Combine the gnocchi, spinach and mushrooms with the crème fraîche and half the cheese. Place in an ovenproof dish, top with the remaining cheese and bake in the top of the oven for 15–20 minutes.

Serves 4
Takes 1½ hours

There is something very rewarding about making your own gnocchi: it’s relaxing and makes a very economical family supper. The spinach does not need additional cooking – instead it wilts in the heat of the finished dish.

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Creamed potatoes with fresh horseradish sauce

  1. Cut the potatoes into similar-sized pieces and place in a pan of water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 20 minutes. When soft to the point of a knife, drain and return them to the pan. Shake over a low heat to release any excess moisture.
  2. Pass the potatoes through a ricer, then return them to the pan. Add the milk, butter, seasoning and horseradish and mix well using a hand masher.

Serves 4
Takes 35 minutes

Here’s the ideal accompaniment to a beef casserole, such as Slow-braised ox cheek cooked in stout. Mashed potato can carry lots of different flavours, so why not try it with other variations, such as mustard powder, fried onions, chopped parsley, grated cheese or fried bacon?

Celeriac gratin

  1. Put the celeriac into a pan of salted water, boil for 5 minutes, then drain.
  2. In another pan, fry the bacon lardons for about 5 minutes, until golden, and set aside.
  3. Preheat the grill. Melt the butter in the bacon pan, add the flour and mix to a paste. Slowly add the milk off the heat, stirring until blended. Return to the heat and bring to the boil, stirring constantly until thick. Remove from the heat, add the celeriac, bacon, seasoning and half the cheese. Mix well, then place in an ovenproof baking dish and sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
  4. Place under the grill for 8–10 minutes, until bubbling and golden.

Serves 4 as a main course, or 8 as an accompaniment
Takes 45 minutes

While celeriac is related to celery and has a similar flavour, it is totally different in appearance and texture – a knobbly ball rather than stringy sticks. In fact, celeriac is a a versatile vegetable because the stalks can be used as celery and the leaves as parsley.

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Purple Peruvian potato pea crush

  1. Put the potatoes in a saucepan of salted water, bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes. Lift out of the pan with a slotted spoon, then add the peas and simmer for 3–4 minutes.
  2. Roughly chop the potatoes, drain the peas and return both to the saucepan. Crush lightly with a masher, then stir in the butter, oil and seasoning.

Serves 4
Takes 35 minutes

You’re in for a surprise if you’ve never seen the potatoes used in this recipe. The tubers are purple all the way through and make a colourful addition to any table.

Creamy mashed peas

  1. Boil the potatoes in salted water until tender – about 15 minutes. Add the peas and cook for a further 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, set aside 2 spoonfuls of the peas.
  2. Put the bacon into a small pan with half the butter and cook for 5 minutes, until just golden.
  3. Meanwhile, drain the potatoes and peas, then return to their pan and toss over a low heat to remove excess moisture.
  4. Take off the heat and mash until smooth. Add the reserved peas, plus the bacon, remaining butter, crême fraîche, mint and seasoning. Mix well over a low heat and serve piping hot.

Serves 4
Takes 30 minutes

Potatoes, peas and bacon are three ingredients that really complement each other. Try this dish with roast spring lamb.

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Shredded ham & pea pot

  1. Place the hocks in a large pan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer for 2 hours, until the meat is tender.
  2. Transfer the hocks to a plate and set aside. Reserve 125ml (4fl oz) of the stock and freeze the remainder to use another time.
  3. When the hocks are cool enough to handle, remove and discard the skin along with any excess fat. Pick all the meat off the bones, roughly chop it and place in a bowl.
  4. Heat the reserved stock with the peas and cook for 3 minutes. Add to the ham, then stir in the parsley, Parmesan, seasoning, mascarpone and cream until evenly combined. Serve immediately.

Serves 6–8
Takes 2½ hours

The pork hocks used here have wonderfully sweet, melting meat, and their smoky flavour combines perfectly with the other ingredients. The finished dish makes a tasty sauce for pasta or jacket potatoes.

Vegetable stir-fry

  1. It’s best to prepare all the ingredients before starting to cook as you need to work fast with a stir-fry. Make sure you keep them in separate piles.
  2. Cook the noodles according to the packet instructions (usually in boiling water for about 5 minutes). Drain well and toss in the sesame oil.
  3. Meanwhile, heat the vegetable oil in a wok and add the ginger, chilli, garlic, onion and carrots. Stir-fry for 4 minutes, moving the vegetables constantly. Add the cabbage and spring onions and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add the coriander, cooked noodles, soy sauce and lime juice and toss well. Serve immediately.

Serves 4
Takes 20 minutes

If you are a keen gardener, this stir-fry is for you.

Do vary the ingredients according to availability and your personal likes. If you want to make this dish more substantial, add some strips of flash-fried chicken or beef.

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Broad bean & chorizo risotto

  1. Put the oil, bacon, shallots, garlic and whole chorizo sausages into a pan and cook gently for 8 minutes, stirring now and again.
  2. Add the rice and stir to coat with the cooking juices.
  3. Add just enough chicken stock to cover the rice, stir well, then simmer gently, stirring frequently. As the liquid is absorbed, add more stock, allowing each addition to be absorbed before adding the next.
  4. Just before adding the last of the stock, stir in the broad beans and cook for 4 minutes.
  5. Remove the sausages and slice thinly. Return them to the pan, season, then add the Parmesan and mix well.

Serves 4
Takes 40 minutes

I like to use Carnaroli rice in this dish as it has a high starch content, which helps to deliver a creamier risotto. We make our own chorizo sausages on the farm in Yorkshire, but you can get them from almost any supermarket these days.

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Tomatoes

On the farm we’ve been known to grow over 40 different varieties of tomato, giving us lots to use in the kitchen, especially in our chutneys.

Good tomatoes need very little done to them: they can either be eaten straight from the plant a blissful experience on a sunny morning – or sliced, dotted with buffalo mozzarella, torn basil and maybe a sprinkling of finely sliced red onion, then dressed and seasoned.

When the summer is in full swing and a glut is upon you, it is really worth making your own passata to use later in the year because it adds fantastic flavour to so many dishes.

Passata

  1. Put all the ingredients in a large saucepan. Place over a low to medium heat, cover and simmer very gently, stirring from time to time, until the tomatoes break down and the mixture becomes very juicy. At this point, increase the heat and simmer for 1¼ hours, stirring frequently.
  2. Pass the tomato mixture through a mouli or sieve to remove the skins and seeds. Return the pulp to a large saucepan and simmer with the lid off for a further 1 hour until the sauce becomes rich and thick.
  3. Pour into sterilized bottles or jars (see page 222) and seal tightly. Label and date each one, then store in a cool, dark place until needed.

Makes 1 litre (1¾ pints)
Takes 3 hours

Making passata is a terrific way of using up a glut of tomatoes, and it’s such a useful ingredient for sauces, casseroles, pizza toppings and soups. It can be stored for up to eight months in a cool, dark larder.

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Tomato & green bean salad

  1. Cook all the beans and peas in a large pan of boiling water for 4 minutes. Drain and plunge into iced water until cold, then drain again.
  2. Place the cold beans and peas in a large bowl, add the tomatoes, spring onions, mint, olive oil, lemon juice and seasoning and toss well. Sprinkle with the onion seeds and serve.

Serves 8
Takes 35 minutes

A vibrant and delicious salad packed with summer flavours, this is great for serving at barbecues. Try adding crumbled feta for a different twist.

Bulgur wheat salad

  1. Put the bulgur wheat in a pan of boiling water, then simmer for 15 minutes. Drain and set aside to cool.
  2. Place all the other ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
  3. When the bulgur is cool, add it to the bowl and mix again. Check the seasoning and serve.

Serves 4
Takes 40 minutes

This fresh-tasting but simple salad needs an abundance of chopped parsley. In fact, it should be so green that you can hardly see the bulgur. It’s a great addition to summer barbecues.

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Bread salad

  1. Place the bread in a single layer in the bottom of a large bowl. Add the tomatoes, then sprinkle with the onion, capers, anchovies and cucumber.
  2. Pour over the lemon juice, olive oil and vinegar, add seasoning and finish with the chopped parsley.
  3. Cover and leave the salad to sit for 3–4 hours. Just before serving, toss well to mix all those wonderful flavours.

Serves 4–6
Takes 30 minutes, plus 3-4 hours to marinate

Also known as panzanella, this Tuscan salad is served throughout Italy and all along the French Mediterranean coast. It is a delicious lunchtime dish, bursting with flavours that will bring a ray of sunshine to your summer table.