A month ago I received my first veg box from Riverford Organic Farmers based in Buckfastleigh, Devon. There is lots to be found out about them from their website, www.riverford.co.uk. They supply differing boxes of vegetables and other supplies once a week straight to your door. I am so impressed I can even forgive them their catchy slogans, Live Life on the Veg and Wicked Leeks. Their commitment is infectious.

The vegetable boxes come with a copy of Guy’s News which contains not just news but tips on preparing and storing specific vegetables and recipes too.

My first order was for the Familiar Favourites box. The vegetables were very fresh and it was fun deciding the order in which to use them. I made a note. Recipes from The Allotment Kitchen are marked AK and those from the website (www.theallotmentkitchen.com) are marked WWW. In the same week of eating our way through the veg box, we had a roasted chicken. This was a bonus as it gave us stock to use in soups and risotto.

Courgette sticks (WWW 2 recipes)
Everyday spinach (AK186)
Spinach omelette with remainders of above
Roasted carrot purée with feta (WWW)
Carrot and coriander soup
Sweet potato and lentil soup with remains of above
Courgette risotto
Greek meze mushrooms (WWW)
Pickled cucumber (WWW and AK)
Broccoli and stilton soup (AK48)
Tomatoes à la Provençale (AK202)
Roasted sweet potato

My second order was for a Seasonal Vegetable box. Again, a good choice – though one head of broccoli would have been enough and it was a shame that leeks or more UK grown root vegetables such as parsnips or celeriac weren’t included. Highlight meals from this box were:

Mushrooms, garlic and mascarpone with penne
Leg of lamb roasted over a carrots, sweet potatoes, onions and tomatoes
Carrot, sweet potato and lentil soup
Kale, Cabbage and Feta Frittata (Kuku) (WWW)
Calabrese broccoli pesto with spaghetti

There is no doubt that these boxes have been both fun and challenging but also a great benefit to life under lockdown.