Making Good Use of the Produce

15th July 2016:

The potatoes are being harvested and they have produced a good crop due in part to plenty of rain in the growing season. We will dig up plants as we need them for the next month or so then pick the rest on mass and bag them up for the winter. The kestrel potatoes we planted are a lovely tasting potato, good for summer salads but also for baked potatoes and my oven chips in winter. Fortunately kestrel potatoes are slug resistant because the rain has caused an explosion in the slug population.

We are also picking broad beans, courgettes, beetroot, lettuce, chard and lots of fresh herbs and it’s been interesting seeing what I can make with the produce available. When we needed a picnic for an event performance in the park I decided to use as much food as possible from the garden and allotment. I made a potato salad with lots of fresh chives, a green salad using lettuce, baby broad beans, finely sliced baby courgettes and fresh herbs. I also made a broad bean hummous and a grated raw beetroot salad using the sweetest small beetroot and dressed with my favourite pomegranate molasses dressing.

Together with the food our friends brought along we had a colourful and varied feast of lovely fresh produce. It’s good to reap the rewards of months of planting and tending.