Is the shortage of ground cinnamon universal or just local to Bath? Waitrose have had none for weeks and a trip to Sainsbury’s yesterday also showed an empty space where the little pots should be? Bad harvest? Sudden demand from watching Mary Berry? Have written to both supermarkets to ask.

My own demand for cinnamon is that I am liking it with lamb just as much as in an apple pie or bun.

Recipe

We are helping a neighbour look after her allotment. We took it over late and a sale of various vegetable plants in a garden centre have given us a bonus crop. Kohl Rabi has done especially well.

Best of all is Susie’s rhubarb which is the most generous I have ever seen. Yesterday William came in with some stalks that were overlapping the path. I had never cooked rhubarb after July before but it was fine and, best of all, I had bought some ricotta from the Homewood stall at the Bath Farmers’ Market that morning – so we had Mark Hix’s spicy rhubarb – a delicious and easy pudding.