I’m a bit of a bean freak and each year we grow a variety of beans in our garden. French beans, borlotti beans, angel beans, coca beans, dwarf beans…. and most years each of these produces enough beans for us to enjoy but no way overwhelm us but the runner...

How time flies! We have already entered the second half of summer, having passed the longest day which seems to have come round faster than ever this year. It may be the second half of summer but I’m still prowling around the courgettes plants waiting for them to spring into...

There are crowds of seedlings waiting to move to a more spacious location to continue growing. We have just re-covered the tunnel that was destroyed in one of the winter storms so the tomatoes can relocate and the other tunnel is full of infant spinach, chard, herbs and baby beans....

  We have now eaten our way through fifteen cauliflowers and gifted another five – not an easy thing to do in lockdown. Five remaining and enthusiasm is waning. Most dishes have been successful, the biggest factor in ‘oh no not cauliflower ‘ is when it’s been twice in a...

It’s a busy time in the garden, lots to sow, transplant and weed but not a vast selection to eat. There are plenty of green things – salad leaves, herbs, baby spinach, a few bolting leeks but for the rest we are waiting. This recipe is in anticipation of the...

We have a rabbit in our garden, It has been hopping about devouring beans and kale and now it’s systematically chomping through a row of cauliflowers. This is an unusual problem for us as the garden’s walled and although birds cause devastation the rabbits usually stay out. It’s not easy...

August really is the month in Ireland for home grown Mediterranean‘ vegetables although in fact they are actually fruits! Tomatoes, aubergine peppers and courgettes are sun loving fruits that are eaten as vegetables. The sun loving being the reason they take all summer to ripen. Our courgettes have been taking...

The time we have been waiting for all summer has arrived. The tomatoes have ripened and we are enjoying them with nearly everything. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. We grew fifteen varieties of tomatoes this year, all selected for their flavour rather than prolific production or uniform size. The names are...

Our bumper apple harvest has had us wading through buckets of apples. Apple puree for the freezer, apple juice and cider for imbibing, apple chutney and of course cakes and tarts. Apple Tart Tatin is right up there when it comes to apple tarts. In our household it is the...

Beetroots have been around since the Romans who enjoyed their earthy charm.  The root and leaves have been eaten for centuries. They also had a moment of glory when it was discovered that beetroots could be converted to sugar but these days these brightly coloured vegetables are known more for...