Seasonal Food In July: Cherries, Herbs, Courgettes, Bass
The Month of Taste, from FARMA, takes place from 13 June - 19 July, celebrating the best of seasonal British produce direct from the farm.
The cherry season traditionally starts on 21st June, when the asparagus crop ends, and continues throughout July and into early August. It is just as prized a crop, as any last minute showers can cause the swollen fruit to burst. A handful of plump, crimson cherries is a true sign of a terrific summer.
Britain has a cherry-growing heritage that dates back to Roman times - you can trace the route of old Roman roads by looking for wild cherry trees, the progeny of cherry stones discarded by the legionaries as they marched around the country. The fruit proved well-suited to our maritime climate, and glorious orchards sprang up in the following centuries, particularly in the south and west of England.
In more recent years, UK growers have suffered from the arrival of cheap imports and cherry orchards now cover just one-tenth of the land they did in the 1950s. Campaigns such as CherryAid seek to restore UK cherries to their former glory. Try looking for them at farmers markets, farm shops or pick-your-own sites which make ideal outlets for smaller producers. And don't forget to visit Borough Market for Cherry Corner on 16-18 July.
Buy plump, shiny, blemish-free cherries with no signs of splitting or rotting. Stems should be green and skins soft (buying British means the fruit doesn’t need survive long haulage trips). At pick-your-own farms, pick the stalk from the branch and leave attached to the cherries until ready to eat.
The fruit can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days, or freeze by spreading in a single layer on a baking sheet and freezing until firm, before storing in plastic containers or freezer bags. Eat with yoghurt, dipped in chocolate, folded into sponge cake mixes or doused in brandy and served with cream.
Cook with British Cherries
Summer is prime time for herbs; abundant sun-loving annuals such as basil, dill, and oregano, join perennials like fennel, mint and tarragon producing exciting flavours to enhance seasonal dishes. Think strawberries and mint, sea bass and fennel, or goat’s cheese and chives.
Salad varieties such as rocket, chervil and red mustard keep light lunches interesting all season. Try different combinations to see what you like best, and use as a bed for barbecued meats or roast vegetables.
Herbs have long been used for medicinal purposes. Many of us are familiar with drinking peppermint tea to aid digestion or inhaling lavender to ease stress, but don’t hesitate to try something new. Herbal infusions are easy to make by soaking leaves like lemon basil in boiling water for 3-5 minutes, or try using lavender to flavour custards and cakes. Just make sure you are aware of any potential side-effects before getting too carried away...
Herbs are best freshly picked, when their fragrance and colour are strong, with no sign of limpness or discolouration. Farm shops and farmers markets are increasingly offering own-grown, freshly picked herbs and salad leaves. Look out for ‘pick-and-mix’ offers which allow you to create your own combinations. Beats an iceberg lettuce any day. Or buy plug plants from garden centres or markets and grow on in your own garden - they’ll be cheaper and last longer than a supermarket pot. Dig annuals up in early Autumn and re-pot indoors to keep them going a little longer.
Cook with Herbs
Broad Bean Crostini... Cheddar, Sorrel & Anchovy Souffle... Herbed Prawns... Chicken, Leek & Tarragon Pie... Chicken with Parsley Stuffing... Scallops with Lentils & Coriander Sauce... Blood Orange & Rosemary Jelly... Pumpkin Chive Cornbread...
Sometimes seen as the ‘Marmite’ of the vegetable world; people tend to hate courgettes or rave about them. More often than not, they simply don’t know what to do with them - if you’ve ever experienced a bumper crop at home, then you’ll probably be nodding your head in agreement.
Courgettes are one of the most colourful, versatile vegetables around, adding flavour to everything from salads to chutneys and even cakes, and can be eaten from the first flowers through to jumbo marrows.
Courgette flowers are a delicacy usually dressed as tempura. If you can get your hands on some at a farmers market or pick-your-own, it’s easy to do using a light batter and serving with a squeeze of lemon and parmesan. If you're growing your own, you’ll need to identify male flowers or you’ll severely reduce your courgette crop.
Buy courgettes fairly small, but deep in colour, when they are sweetest. Larger vegetables are worth ‘bleeding’ to intensify their flavour – slice and sprinkle with salt and leave to drain in a colander before squeezing out any excess moisture with your hands.
Courgette works well with citrus flavours, cream and cheese. Peel thin strips of raw courgette, sprinkle with fresh tarragon and drizzle with lemon and olive oil. They also make a great pickle, sliced horizontally and placed in a pickling brine as you would cucumbers. Marrows are delicious stuffed with traditional mince and white sauce, or try a spiced, fruity coconut rice.
Cook with Courgettes
Deep fried Courgette Flowers... Courgette & Pine Nut Frittata... Courgette & Corn Chowder... Courgette & Smoked Chicken Tart...
Sometimes known as ‘King of the Sea’, sea bass is the fish people fall in love with on holiday, a firm favourite on restaurant menus, and a highly prized fisherman’s catch. However, like many popular fish, sea bass is under threat from overfishing, so if you want to satisfy your conscience as well as your tastebuds, make sure you’re sea bass savvy...
July is the perfect time to look for wild sea bass. The crucial breeding season which enables populations to replenish finishes in June, and as juvenile fish head out to sea, mature fish (min. 31cm long) migrate to UK coastal waters - just in time for the barbecue season. Naturally, fresh is best, and if you can’t buy from the fishermen themselves, try a farmers market or good fishmonger. Some farm shops also offer a fresh fish counter.
Be nosey about the provenance of your fish - choose line or gill-net caught wild fish over those captured by pelagic trawls – some fisheries use tags to help customers (see www.linecaught.org.uk), fisheries in Cornwall and South Wales have larger minimum landing sizes, giving the fish a greater chance to mature and reproduce. Also look out for the ‘blue tick’ MSC logo certifying sustainably managed fisheries (www.msc.org).
If only farmed is available, opt for organically farmed, which are kept in lower stocking densities, and whose feed is derived from waste offal and trimmings from the fish filleting industry as the main ingredient, rather than relying on large quantities of wild caught fish.
Wild or farmed, you want a firm flesh with sparkling skin and reddish (not brown) gills. The eye should be proud and there should be very little smell. Bass is a predator to rival jaws, feeding on small fish which give it a high oil content and delicious taste. Fresh fish is best simply cooked – rub a whole seabass with garlic and olive oil, and stuff with plenty of herbs and citrus fruit wedges, then bake or grill until the eye turns white and the inside will be perfect. If you buy fillets, try pan-frying with garlic, ginger, soy sauce, chilli and lime.
