The Allotment Kitchen

Sometimes it’s good to give a winter vegetable centre stage. Although I am not expecting to make any kale converts, this is a dish worthy of accompanying the best of winter food. Enough kale leaves to serve four2 tbs sesame seeds2 cloves garlicOlive oilSalt and freshly ground black pepperSqueeze of lemon juice Wash the kale…

This was a lovely autumn quiche to take to the farewell dinner arranged for the guests in Bath from our Twinning group from Aix-en-Provence. I give ingredients here for a 21 cm diameter dish but quantities can be increased or lowered for the size of dish you plan to use. Oven at 180℃ Pastry: 70g…

I recently bought tins of Abba anchovies online and welcome using them to make this dish. A nice point is that Abba anchovies aren’t anchovies at all but Baltic sprats, cured in brine and flavoured with sugar and sweet, warm spices, such as nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves. They are much milder than Mediterranean anchovies and,…

It’s the late August Bank Holiday of 2026 and, at last, we have had rain. Good weather for digging and clearing the allotment. Looking back over the growing season, my early crops, broad beans and asparagus, were good, but the hot, dry summer was difficult, Successive plantings of lettuce, both seeds and little plants, stood…

It’s the summer of 2026 and my greengage tree has branches broken from the weight of the fruit. The air even smells of greengages. I have made jam, stored stewed fruit for crumbles, my much loved pickled greengages will be made in the next few days but, looking for other ideas how to use greengages,…

This is a perfect starter for a hot summer’s day and now smaller watermelons – the size of footballs – are available. The ones I have seen are Italian and much more convenient than buying great, leaky wedges. All the ingredients need to be of the best quality. The portions I give are for up…

There is satisfaction in clearing the broad beans; the first major crop of the year. It is still early enough in the season to clear, dig and give a good mulch to the soil for another vegetable to use. I am hoping my young kohl rabi plants, left with an allotment neighbour while I was…

I had every intention to make apricot jam but the record breaking hot weather in late May 2026 and lots to do before a visit to France made time too short. The box of apricots I had ordered had amazing fruit. Large and shiny, as if they were a quarter nectarine, but with good apricot…

A friendly invite for dinner over the May Bank Holiday with neighbours and an opportunity to make this dish which catered to all tastes, being garlic free and vegetarian. It was a great success and thanks again to Yotam Ottolenghi. I doubled up and made enough for 10 people but give ingredient measurements generous enough…

It has been a good spring for wild garlic and I was invited by my friends Heather and Andy to pick from their garden. Like so many Italian dishes, it is very simple but the quality of the ingredients is essential. The freshest garlic and extra virgin olive oil (a bottle from a single in…

Pilaf doesn’t have to be made with rice and bulgur wheat makes a good alternative. In Eastern Europe, especially Ukraine, it would even be regarded as the norm.  This quick recipe is great for making good use of leftovers, especially chicken, which can be stirred into the dish at the end. It can also stand…