May: the landscape is never so alive with growth as it is now, life pushing ahead, making more of itself. It renews us too: our love for life and each other, our desire to connect with all this radiance. A friend was telling me recently as we … [Read more...]
White asparagus time
I lucked into some white asparagus at the Norwich market yesterday, flown in from Germany where it is highly favoured. The 'spargel' season there ('spargelzeit') is a national craze of sorts, with restaurants and cafés offering it multiple ways on a … [Read more...]
Grilled lamb chops and asparagus with mint and parsley pesto
If your thoughts turn to lamb this spring, consider chops, if you are feeding one to four people. A slow-cooked shoulder, or a roast leg, is a better buy and more manageable when feeding four-plus, but chops are great when you don't want to cook a … [Read more...]
Cambridge in March: English asparagus and rhubarb
Skip to recipes This has been one confused winter: daffodils rehearsing in December, snowdrops extending their run into March, then actual snow just as the daffs get into full costume. It’s as though winter had stage-fright and only roused itself … [Read more...]
Asparagus now!
It’s here! I returned from a week away to find my asparagus bed has leapt to attention and is at risk of growing into trees before I’ve had a harvest. It really is one of the “hurry up and wait” crops: you drum your fingers for weeks in impatience, … [Read more...]
Stalking wild asparagus
As kids in rural southern New Jersey, the five of us cousins made a ritual every Easter of plundering the wild asparagus that grew on the sandy verges of the unpaved road that ran to the house. The habitat offered generous pickings on the margins of … [Read more...]