June

This month, Tom Norrington-Davies takes the beet route.

Tom Norrington-Davies thinks the much-loved symbols of summer are much more versatile than people give them credit for.

Picasso like them so much he included one in a nudey picture! Come and see how the mackerel earned its stripes...

British produce shines this month. The array of homegrown produce in season is dazzling: broad beans and peas are joined by earthy beetroot, tender carrots, tangy gooseberries, omega 3-rich mackerel, and eagerly-awaited strawberries. Eat like the gods!

Celebrate raspberries

Unique, tart, sweet, petite: if this fruit was a woman it would be Kylie Minogue.

Celebrate cucumbers

Cool as, and it's not hard to see why.

FoodLovers Britain recommends...

delicious. online has teamed up with FoodLovers Britain to highlight some of the producers responsible for bringing this month's succulent seasonal produce to our kitchens...

Mackerel Jefferson’s Seafoods		Mackerel is at its richest and plumpest this month. If you don’t live near a good fishmonger or by the sea for catching your own, your best bet is to order online. Jefferson’s Seafood in Cornwall buy fish fresh every day caught locally off the Cornish coast and landed at Looe. They operate a next-day delivery service for both fresh fish and seafood. Mackerel can be ordered whole or they’ll do the hard work and gut and fillet your fish for you. More details, and to buy...
Lamb Blackface Meat Company		Early summer lamb has a delicate flavour that, in its prime, will linger on the palate summoning a gentle sweetness. The Blackface Meat Company rear Blackface sheep, a hardy Scottish breed. Their milk-fed lamb, born in March and available now, has a particularly delicate flavour and tender texture – best simply cooked, it‘s ideal as we come into the BBQ season. They sell such butchered cuts as legs, shoulders and racks and will deliver to your door with free delivery. More details and to buy...
Beetroot Weardale Organic Soup Company		At its best now, beetroot is a welcome ingredient that makes satisfying soup - served either hot or cold on a summer’s evening. If you don’t want to make your own, Weardale Organic Soup Company will do it for you. Using only local organic ingredients for pure, natural soups, the same ingredients you might have in your kitchen, they are suitable for vegetarians and coeliacs. They produce a seasonal soup range, so how about trying Beetroot & Parsnip with its kick of horseradish and ginger. More details and to buy...
Raspberries and strawberries Macknade Fine Foods		With June comes the first onslaught of summer fruit and vegetables and the temptation to fill your shopping basket with whatever you find. One FoodLovers Approved farm shop that goes the extra mile is Macknade’s Fine Foods in Kent. Here you’ll find English wines, cheese and ice cream alongside locally-reared meats, fresh bread, own-squeezed juices and a vast array of own-grown and local Kentish fruit and vegetables from courgette flowers to yellow, purple and red raspberries and juicy strawberries. More details and to buy...
Raspberries and strawberries Stratta		Soft fruits, just coming into their own, are glorious just as they are or served with a mound of rich Jersey cream. They are also intriguingly delicious when transformed into fruit vinegars and Stratta are masters of the art. Using local Sussex flowers and fruit, including strawberries, raspberries, elderflowers or even mulberries and medlars, they steep them in white wine vinegar, before filtering and sweetening with organic cane sugar for a pure-tasting fruit vinegar. Try them in marinades, dressings, in sauces, poured over ice cream or diluted with soda water for a refreshing summer’s drink. More details and to buy...