April
In among the bluebells, you’ll find one of nature’s best spring foods – wild garlic. The leaves add a wonderfully subtle, tangy flavour to sandwiches, salads, stir-fries and soups, says Tom Norrington-Davies.
It's back! From April-October this powerhouse of a vegetable should be piled high on our plates. Rejoice.
Days are longer (hooray), the sun is shining (we hope) – it's the month to revel in watercress, sample spinach, try turbot and make the most of oysters and purple sprouting broccoli.
For many, spinach is the stuff of schoolday nightmares; a soggy reminder of all that's wrong with poorly cooked food. But this much-maligned vegetable is very popular at delicious., so spinach-spurners, we beseech you – make it your friend!
Make the most of these special oranges while they're in season. Why? Because they're 'bloody' lovely.
Celebrate Jersey Royal new potatoes
Peasant food? Pah! In our eyes they're worthy of a knighthood. Potatoes are brimming with goodness and are, quite possibly, the ultimate comfort food.
Jersey Royals – arguably the best new potatoes – have quite an impressive background, even though they have a relatively short seasonal life – from April-June, only getting bigger and better from mid-late April.
The poor old potato has, unfairly, developed a reputation among dieters and healthy eaters that they're fattening. This isn't so: potatoes are actually very low in fat, containing only 135 calories and 0.5 g of fat per 180g serving. This nasty rumour has probably come about because of the way potatoes are often presented in cooking –
chips are high up on the naughty food league table, and
dauphinoise and
jacket potatoes are too often smothered in cream or cheese. But virgin potatoes, as nature intended, contain vitamins B & C, and a healthy dose of fibre. And they're the
best potatoes to steam and for making a potato salad. If you're watching your waistline, just make that knob of butter a smidgen.
They're also partly responsible for keeping a whole island's economy afloat – these small spuds are the Channel Island of Jersey's third biggest industry: 99% are exported to mainland Britain and pickers
work twelve hour shifts to get the Jersey Royals onto our supermarket shelves.
But that's enough chat; what you really want is some lovely recipes.
Chargrilled pesto tuna with potato salad
Dum aloo, sweet and spicy new potatoes
Hot potato, red cabbage and orange salad
Potatoes, bacon and oyster mushrooms
Red pesto salmon fishcakes
Lots more potato recipes