Lovely weather we’ve been having, if you’re a vegetable! But I, being a sun-lover, hope it has warmed up and dried out by the time you read this. The last month has been a challenging one for our farmers (more news of that on the back page) We are hoping, wet or dry, that you can enjoy your summer evenings with our free Comedy café tickets. Spend a pleasant evening, eating, drinking and laughing (and they really have a great line-up of comedians) in trendy Shoreditch (near Old Street tube station, EC2). So how do I get my free tickets? I hear you ask. If you are one of our regular customers you will receive a voucher for 4 free tickets in your July box, (just e-mail or ring us, if you don’t receive them and we’ll pop them in the post). If you are a new customer and are setting up a regular weekly or fortnightly order in July or August, you will automatically receive them with your first order.
Here’s to a sizzling summer from Clare, John, Malen ,Meg, Fi and Kai
E c o b a l l s
New green whiteness, and a cleaner conscience
Clare tries them out…
With 3 sporty children and 2 adults, we do a lot of washing every week, so I wanted to find a greener, cost-effective, alternative to my ordinary washing powder. I had already heard about these 3 rubbery green flying saucers, but were they really going to do the trick? I like the fact that no detergent is used, as some of the children have sensitive skin. The pellets inside the balls soften the water, so you also don’t need to use fabric softener. That means, I can cut out the rinse cycle and save more energy. I like it more and more.
At around 3p per wash then, they really are 3 magical balls ! Ecoballs on offer at £29.96 RRP £35.99
Every bottle has a silver lining...
A new product from our bodycare specialist Ann Elise in Kent has been proving very popular. Colloidal Silver comes in a beautiful deep blue bottle. It is a liquid that holds ultra fine particles of silver in suspension (which cannot be seen by the naked eye). Silver has been used since ancient times as a natural antibiotic. It can be used to treat acne, for mild burns and cuts, ear ache, sore throats, sunburn and ulcers. A remarkable ‘cure all’ with no side effects!
High Stability Colloidal Silver 100ml £10.80. See our Bodycare or Vitamins & Supplements aisle
A Climate friendly choice for your wine
Yes, you might be surprised when motoring in East Sussex to see, on a sunny slope, rows of ripening vines from Will Davenport’s vineyards . Will started his first vineyard in 1991 and converted to organic in 2000 . He was particularly worried about his grapes suffering from mildew, which traditionally would be treated with chemicals. The hotter summers experienced over the last 10 years, plus treatment with minerals such as copper means this has not been a great problem for him. Production this year is slower due to the wet weather in June but hopefully with the sunshine on its way, and the right conditions in the Autumn, he could even be harvesting some varieties right up until November. So you can enjoy the taste of his wines as well as feeling good about it being local, organic and low in food-miles!. On offer this month, we have one of his dry white wines made with the Ortega grape.
See our special offers aisle:
Limney Horsmonden dry white wine,
on offer at £7.74
All the colours of the rainbow…
That is what our farmers have been experiencing in the last month, April showers drowned much of the June sun, making many of the summer crops waterlogged. They are hoping that July and August will bring drier weather, so they can catch up on the planting of the early winter root vegetables. Other farms around the country have struggled with the wet conditions which have been affecting their delicate soft fruits.
Our chard this month comes from Andy Ward in Ivy House farm near Canterbury. Chard has long green, crinkly leaves with white, yellow or red stems and veins. It grows easily in loam-rich soil and is full of anti-oxidants. Cook it as little as possible, to keep in all the natural goodness. To prepare, just trim off the thicker stems at the bottom, wash, finely chop and then steam with some tasty, new potatoes. Andy tells us, once the chard has been cut, it still goes on growing, so it needs a period of rest. This allows the ’field heat’ as they call it, to die down. If it is packed straight away at this point, it wilts very quickly. Andy’s chard is cut and stored in a cool atmosphere for several hours, so it arrives in the best possible condition. Make sure you use your chard within the first 1-2 days as they will not last longer than this.
Win
Veg, the Greengrocers Cookbook in our quick & easy competition. 120 vegetable recipes for your table.
We have 10 copies of Masterchef presenter :Gregg Wallace’s comprehensive, seasonal vegetable cookery book to give away. For a chance to enjoy this beautifully photographed cook book , just enter our simple, fun competition on our website homepage. So no more excuses about what to do with those strange looking vegetables in your box, just turn the page and get cooking!
Rainbow Chard & Leek Gratin
Serves 4
1kg bunch of chard, 500g chopped leeks, seasoning of salt & pepper, 2 large cloves of garlic, 500g ripe tomatoes, 100g goats or cheddar cheese, 100g part wholemeal, part white bread made into breadcrumbs and fresh parsley.
Chop off any thicker stems at the bottom of the chard, then wash well and cut up finely. Steam lightly with the chopped leeks. Place half the mixture in a gratin dish and top with half the sliced tomatoes ,a pinch of parsley, half the cheese and seasoning. Repeat the layers. Mix together the breadcrumbs, crushed garlic, chopped parsley and a tablespoon of olive oil plus seasoning. Sprinkle this over the gratin and bake for 30 minutes. Gas 4. 350f.
Raspberry Ripple Sponge Serves 6
This is a great way to enjoy your fresh raspberries, if you can hold off eating them straight from the carton! You can also use blueberries or blackberries but not strawberries as they go all mushy. Use half in half of wholemeal & white flour or for a richer, fuller taste, all wholemeal (I prefer this.) A punnet of raspberries, 4oz of self-raising, wholemeal, doves farm flour,4oz of white, self-raising, doves farm flour, 6oz of butter or margarine, 3-4oz sugar, 2 tbsp of honey (optional),3 large organic eggs.
Separate the eggs. Beat the sugar, egg yolks and margarine until light and fluffy. Add the flour and fold in the beaten egg whites. At the last minute carefully stir in the raspberries or other summer berries, so they stay whole. Bake in the oven for 25-30mins ,gas 4. 350f.
Green bean salad Nicoise Serves 4
Beans are plentiful this time of year and can easily be made into a summer, suppertime salad. 500g new boiled potatoes,150g steamed, chopped, green beans, 4 chopped, hard boiled eggs, leaves from a small lettuce, 5 tbsp olive oil, 300g halved tomatoes, 2 tspn balsamic vinegar, basil leaves, 10 black olives. For the dressing: 6tbsp olive oil, 3 tbspn vinegar, salt & pepper and 1 tsp Dijon mustard. Lightly sauté the potatoes in 2 tbsp oil for 4mins , add the halved tomatoes for 1-2 mins until softening. Splash in the balsamic vinegar and add the chopped basil. Put the potato mixture on a serving dish. Arrange on the top the quartered eggs, lettuce, green beans and olives and pour over the dressing.