Recipes

Ingredients

• 3 cups kale, stripped and shredded thin
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Juice of half a lemon
• 1 tsp chilli oil, plus extra to serve
• 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Method

1. 1Massage the kale with the olive oil and lemon juice for 1–2 minutes until it darkens and softens.
2. 2Drizzle with chilli oil, top with sesame seeds and eat straight away.

Ingredients

• 1 cup cooked green or Puy lentils
• A big bunch of chard, stems and leaves separated
• 1 clove garlic, sliced
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Juice of half a lemon
• Sea salt, black pepper
• 1 tbsp crumbled feta or goat's cheese (optional)

Method

1. 1Slice the chard stems thin, tear the leaves.
2. 2Sizzle the garlic in the olive oil, add the stems and cook for 3 minutes.
3. 3Add the leaves, wilt for 1 minute, then fold in the warm lentils.
4. 4Squeeze over the lemon, taste for salt, crumble cheese on top if using.

Ingredients

• 1 tin (400 g) chickpeas, drained
• 2 cloves garlic, sliced
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• A big handful of soft herbs (parsley, chives, dill), chopped
• Juice and zest of half a lemon
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• Sea salt, black pepper

Method

1. 1Warm the olive oil in a frying pan and sizzle the garlic and paprika for 30 seconds.
2. 2Tip in the chickpeas, season and cook for 6–8 minutes until they're a little crisp on the edges.
3. 3Off the heat, stir through the lemon zest, juice and a big shower of herbs.
4. 4Eat straight from the pan with bread, or spoon over yoghurt.

Ingredients

• A big handful of fresh mint
• 2 tea bags (black or green)
• 1 litre boiling water
• Juice of half a lemon, ice to serve

Method

1. 1Steep the tea bags and mint in the boiling water for 5 minutes, then remove.
2. 2Chill, add lemon juice and pour over plenty of ice.

Ingredients

• 20 elderflower heads (picked on a dry sunny morning, not shaken)
• 1.5 kg sugar
• 1 litre boiling water
• 3 lemons, sliced
• 1 tsp citric acid (optional, extends shelf life)

Method

1. 1Give the elderflower heads a very gentle shake to lose any insects (don't wash — you'll lose the pollen and flavour).
2. 2Dissolve the sugar in the boiling water in a big non-reactive pot.
3. 3Add the lemon slices, citric acid and the elderflower heads, snip off the biggest of the stalks.
4. 4Cover, leave for 24 hours in a cool place.
5. 5Strain through muslin, decant into clean bottles. Keeps 6 weeks in the fridge — or freeze in plastic bottles for the winter.

Ingredients

• 1 kg blackberries
• 500 g cooking apples, chopped (skins on for pectin)
• 500 ml water
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Sugar (see method)

Method

1. 1Simmer the blackberries, apples and water for 30 minutes until pulpy.
2. 2Tip into a scalded jelly bag or muslin over a bowl, drip overnight — do NOT squeeze or it goes cloudy.
3. 3Measure the juice, add 450 g sugar per 600 ml juice.
4. 4Boil hard with the lemon for 8–10 minutes to setting point (a drop on a cold plate wrinkles when pushed).
5. 5Pot into hot sterilised jars, seal. Keeps a year in a cool cupboard.

Ingredients

• 1 kg rhubarb, chopped
• 1 kg jam sugar (with pectin)
• 50 g stem ginger in syrup, chopped
• Juice of 1 lemon

Method

1. 1Toss the rhubarb with the sugar in a bowl and leave overnight to release juice.
2. 2Tip everything into a big pan with the ginger and lemon juice.
3. 3Boil hard for 10–12 minutes to setting point (a drop on a cold plate wrinkles when pushed).
4. 4Pot into hot sterilised jars, seal. Bright and sharp all through winter.