Miranda York - The Food Almanac: Volume Two

WHEN USING KITCHEN APPLIANCES PLEASE ALWAYS FOLLOW THE MANUFACTURERS INSTRUCTIONS

HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd

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HarperCollinsPublishers

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First published by Pavilion, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2022

Text Copyright Miranda York 2022

Miranda York asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

Hardback ISBN: 9781911682240

eBook ISBN: 9781911682967

Commissioning Editor: Cara Armstrong

Design Manager: Laura Russell

Illustrator: Jordan Amy Lee

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.

If youre returning to The Food Almanac series welcome back! I hope the first book carried you happily and hungrily through the seasons. As were already acquainted, feel free to dive straight in.

If youre new to this series, let me share a little more

To put it simply, this is a book about good things to eat. Its also a collection of brilliant food writing by some of the most talented cooks and scribes, from legendary food writers and lauded chefs to up-and-coming poets and debut novelists. Youll find memoirs, essays, short stories and poems alongside recipes, menus and monthly reading lists, presented within the framework of a seasonal food almanac: a month-by-month guide to the culinary year. Each chapter begins with an introduction to the month ahead, followed by seasonal highlights for the larder, spotlights on ingredients and passages on food history. The chapters end with a menu, each recipe carefully chosen to show off the best of the season, and a reading list, should you wish to delve deeper into the ingredients explored and the stories told.

As you may have guessed, this is not a traditional almanac. It wont tell you about the tides and the phases of the moon; it wont list the times for sunrise and sunset, or suggest when to sow seeds and harvest crops. It will tell you the best time to eat each harvest, though, and I hope the following pages will intrigue and inspire, weaving practical advice and recipes through stories that are at once universal and intensely personal. This is not a manual, dictating and reprimanding, but a book about enjoying food. Its about cooking in harmony with the seasons, how it can be a pleasure, not a chore, and following the rhythm of the growing year. Theres a sense of anticipation as the landscape changes around us, and joy to be had from the bounty it brings.

I hope this alamanac will be both a companion in the kitchen and a book to curl up with; that youll enjoy the literary musings on food, cook the recipes from the monthly menus and perhaps learn something new along the way. Cooking, eating and feasting with friends are threads that run through all our lives, a tapestry connecting us to the past and present, as well as the world around us. Take a seat at the table and join the conversation.

The seasons cannot be rigidly defined; they are unpredictable and ever-changing. Apply a similar attitude to the way you use and interpret this book, flicking to the chapters either side of your chosen month for recipes and culinary inspiration.

In each chapter, youll find a list of seasonal produce, followed by a spotlight on one of these ingredients. These lists draw attention to some of the highlights of the season, a quick reference to provide instant ideas when youre shopping for your supper. The lists lean towards British produce, though there are specialities from our neighbours, too. With the exception of forced produce (such as rhubarb, radicchio and sea kale), they refer to fruit and vegetables that mature outdoors without artificial heat or shelter. Youll also discover wild foods to forage from the fields, woods and hedgerows.

Most fruit and vegetables are now available all year round, whether its because weve found clever ways of extending the seasons, or because produce is shipped from the other side of the world. The hard edges have blurred and the idea of seasonality has been all but forgotten. Yet theres something special about dipping spears of asparagus into soft yolks in spring, biting into the perfect peach in summer, gently moving wild mushrooms around a pan frothing with butter in autumn, and peeling a jewel-like blood orange, its citrus mist thrilling the senses, on a grey winters day. Eating with the seasons brings a rich variety to our lives and is, of course, more sustainable. But most satisfying of all, it tastes better.

MIRANDA YORK

A month for staying put, slowing down and revelling in the rituals of the kitchen. The fields and hedgerows may look bare but January can be surprisingly abundant. Delight in the colourful citrus fruits and bitter leaves fresh and vibrant flavours after weeks of festive indulgence. Marmalade on toast for breakfast, lentils for good luck, tonics and teas for cold days, and a cake fit for kings.

IN SEASON

Black mustard leaves

Blood oranges

January King cabbage

Jerusalem artichokes

Kale

Lemons

Radicchio

Seville oranges

MORE THAN MARMALADE

Bitter oranges arrived at our tables long before their sweet cousins. Early cookbooks calling for oranges in both sweet and savoury recipes referred to the bitter orange right up until the beginning of the nineteenth century. Far too sour to be eaten fresh, they were prized for their sharp juice and aromatic peel, their elegant tartness often appreciated above lemons.

While bitter oranges still feature in Latin American and Middle Eastern cooking, its only in Britain that Seville oranges are obsessively sliced, squeezed, de-pipped and boiled into marmalade for a few short weeks at the beginning of the year. We are devout marmalade-makers, importing almost the entire crop (some 4 million kilograms) grown around the southern Spanish city. It has even been suggested that Sevilles would fade into obscurity if it wasnt for our bittersweet addiction. Perhaps this far north were more in need of the warming glow of these little pots of preserved sunshine an annual celebration of citrus to brighten our kitchens and lift our mood.

Delicious as it is spread on buttered toast, there are more inventive ways to use marmalade try it in a bacon sandwich, alongside cheese or swirled into a Swiss roll. Look beyond preserves to make the most of the fresh fruit, too. Nothing equals the perfumed juice in baked orange creams, jellies, fools and ice creams, and the zest makes cakes and tarts sing. Turn to the past for sharp takes on familiar recipes: squeeze into sauces for white fish, such as turbot or brill; add to marinades for duck, pork and lamb; steep the zest in alcohol to make ratafias or shake up your cocktail repertoire with Seville orange margaritas.

MAKE AHEAD

Vin dorange