TARTS OF GOLD Nutritiousappleandpeardesserts thatareperfectfornippyMarchdays

“WhatIenjoyaregood,simpleingredients thatdon ’tneedmuckingaboutwith”

MACKEREL WITH RHUBARB

Rhubarb works beautifully in both sweet and savoury dishes. It is wonderful with pork – either made into a compote and served like apple sauce with chops or roasted beneath a tenderloin that’s been wrapped in thin, salty leaves of Parma ham. But for speed, flavour and all-round prettiness, try pairing it with mackerel.

Preparation10 minutes Cooking15 minutes Serves2

4-6 STALKS OF RHUBARB, TRIMMED 1 ORANGE CASTER SUGAR 4 SKIN-ON MACKEREL FILLETS, BONES REMOVED OLIVE OIL WATERCRESS, TO SERVE 1 Preheat the oven to 200˚C (180°C fan oven) gas mark 6. 2 Slice the rhubarb into 5cm lengths and place in a roasting tin. Zest the orange and sprinkle the zest over the rhubarb. Squeeze over the juice of half the orange and sprinkle with a couple of good pinches of sugar. 3 Roast for 7-10 minutes until the rhubarb is soft but still holds its shape. Remove from the oven, leaving in the tin. 4 Turn your grill to its highest setting. 5 Take your mackerel fillets, put a couple of slashes in the skin, drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place them, skin-side up, on top of the rhubarb and put the tin under the grill for about 5 minutes until the mackerel is cooked. 6 Divide the rhubarb between 2 plates, top with the mackerel fillets and pour over any juices from the roasting tin. 7 Serve with a handful of watercress alongside and eat immediately.

LINGUINE WITH CRAB, CHILLI, LEMON, ROCKET AND HAWTHORN

My friend Liz Knight – an inspirational hedgerow hunter – told me not to dig up my ground elder. “It was brought here by the Romans because it is so good to eat, ” she explained. It is, too. I had no idea that the spring leaves of hawthorn are just as delicious as parsley. So I’ve used them in my favourite pasta dish, which always kicks off my campervan holidays.

Preparation15 minutes CookingApproximately 12 minutes Serves2

250G DRIED LINGUINE 1 GARLIC CLOVE, FINELY CHOPPED ½-1 LONG RED CHILLI, FINELY CHOPPED 150G FRESH CRABMEAT (JUST WHITE OR A MIXTURE OF BROWN AND WHITE) OR 1 CAN OF CRABMEAT ZEST OF 1 UNWAXED LEMON, PLUS A SQUEEZE OF JUICE EXTRA-VIRGIN OLIVE OIL A SMALL HANDFUL OF HAWTHORN LEAVES OR PARSLEY, ROUGHLY CHOPPED 2 HANDFULS OF ROCKET

1 Put a large saucepan of salted water on to boil and cook the linguine according to the packet instructions. 2 While the pasta is cooking, mix the garlic, chilli, crabmeat and lemon zest with a little olive oil in a large bowl, big enough to take all the pasta. 3Using tongs, remove the cooked pasta from the water and put straight into the large bowl with the crabmeat. Stir everything together, coating the pasta in the oily crab mixture. If necessary, add a couple of spoonfuls of pasta water and stir well until the pasta is coated in a silky sauce. 4 Season generously with salt and pepper. Mix well and taste – it might benefit from a squeeze of lemon juice. 5Stir in the hawthorn leaves (or chopped parsley) and rocket and serve.

EXTRACTED FROM Home Cooked by Kate Humble (Octopus, £25). See page 168 for details of a CL Holidays trip to the Galápagos Islands with Kate.

Apples and pears argoldTARTS OF en ’t just for autumn. If kept in cool, dark conditions, British-grown varieties should last until spring, making these nutritiousdessertsperfectfornippyMarchdays

APPLE TART

A fresh take on a British classic, this recipe includes a layer of vanilla-scented apple purée.

Preparation1hour,plusstandingand chillingCooking1hour10minutes Serves6-8

3 MILD EATING APPLES, SUCH AS GOLDEN DELICIOUS, PEELED, CORED AND SLICED 1 TBSP UNSALTED BUTTER, MELTED 1 TBSP SUGAR CHILLED SINGLE CREAM, TO SERVE FOR THE SWEET PASTRY DOUGH 200G PLAIN FLOUR 2 TSP CASTER SUGAR 100G UNSALTED BUTTER, CHILLED AND CUBED FOR THE APPLE AND VANILLA PUREE 3 APPLES (ANY VARIETY), PEELED, CORED AND DICED 1 VANILLA POD, SPLIT LENGTHWAYS 2-4 TBSP CASTER SUGAR, TO TASTE 2 TSP UNSALTED BUTTER

1Forthepastry,puttheflour,sugar,butter andapinchofsaltinafoodprocessorand pulseuntilthemixtureiscombined(5-10 pulses).Add3-4tbspwaterandpulseuntil thedoughholdstogether.Wrapthedough inbakingparchmentandletstandina coolplacefor30-60minutes. 2Butterandlightlyfloura27cmloosebasedtarttin. 3Rolloutthedoughonaflouredsurface toacircleslightlylargerthanthetarttin. Transfertothetinandtrimtheedges. Refrigeratefor30minutesuntilfirm. 4Tobakeblind,preheattheovento200°C (180°Cfanoven)gasmark6.Prickthepastry base,linewithbakingparchmentandfill withweights.Bakefor15minutes,remove thepaperandweightsandbakeforafurther 10-15minutes.Coolbeforefilling. 5Tomakethepurée,puttheapples,vanilla pod,sugarandbutterinapanwith3-4tbsp water.Cookgently,stirring,for10-15minutes untilsoft(addingmorewaterifnecessary). Removethevanillapod,useaknifeto scrapetheseedsintothemixture,then discardthepod.Transfertoafood processorandpuréeuntilsmooth. 6Turntheovento190°C(170°Cfanoven)gas mark5.Spreadthepuréeinthepastrycase. 7Arrangetheappleslicesaroundtheedge. Repeattocreateaninnercircle,goingin theoppositedirection.Brushwithbutter andsprinkleoverthesugar. 8Bakefor20-25minutes.Servewithcream.

SPICED APPLE CAKE

Apple cake is a West Country staple, thought to have originated in Somerset. This one has been enriched with honey, spices and a sprinkling of flaked almonds.

Preparation30minutesCooking 50-60minutesMakes16squares

225G UNSALTED BUTTER, SOFTENED 200G LIGHT SOFT BROWN SUGAR 6 TBSP HONEY 275G PLAIN WHOLEMEAL FLOUR 75G PLAIN FLOUR 2 TSP BAKING POWDER 1 TSP GROUND CINNAMON ½ TSP GROUND CLOVES ½ TSP GROUND GINGER ½ TSP GROUND NUTMEG 5 EGGS, BEATEN 3 TBSP GROUND ALMONDS 50G SULTANAS 550G TART COOKING APPLES, PEELED, CORED AND FINELY CHOPPED 4 TBSP MILK 3-4 TBSP FLAKED ALMONDS, TOASTED ICING SUGAR, FOR DUSTING

1Lightlybutterandfloura23cmsquare caketin.Preheattheovento160°C(140°C fanoven)gasmark3. 2Putthebutterandbrownsugarina mixingbowlandcreamtogetheruntillight andfluffy.Beatinthehoney.Inaseparate bowl,combinetheflours,bakingpowder, cinnamon,cloves,gingerandnutmeg. 3Foldthedryingredientsintothebutter mixture,thenaddtheeggsandmixwell. Foldinthegroundalmonds,sultanas, applesandmilk,andmixjusttocombine. Transferthemixturetothepreparedtin andlevelthetop. 4Bakeintheovenfor50-60minutes,until risenandgolden,andaskewerinsertedin thecentreofthecakecomesoutclean.Let coolslightlyinthetin,thenturnoutontoa wirerack.Whencool,sprinklewithflaked almondsanddustwithicingsugar.Cut intosquarestoserve.