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Private Notes
As spring peaks, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall cooks his way through the crops on offer in this guide to locally produced seasonal food, starting with asparagus, artichokes and lamb.
Hugh's cooking lettuce, spinach, dandelion and burdock and pitting his country honey against the Hackney Bee Boy's city honey at a taste off in Broadway market.
This week Hugh's cooking up some delicious early potatoes, welcoming goats to River Cottage and celebrating the graduation of his butcher's apprentice with a meaty spring barbecue.
And, proving beyond all doubt that broad beans really are his very best, most favourite vegetable, he uses them in a whizzy new take on a classic snack with his broad beans on toast
In the final program, spring is poised to turn into summer and the River Cottage team hold a fair with the Bristol families joining them to spit roast spring pigs, lamb and goat.
It's autumn at River Cottage and Hugh's going to get us all eating beetroot. There's duck on the menu too, hatched by Hugh himself as well as some wild birds bagged by hunter-gatherer chef, Tim.
We return to Bramble Farm, to see how Hugh's Bristol smallholders are handling their harvest and Hugh travels up North to meet some green fingered guerrillas.
"Autumn feels like you've captured the taste of summer and put it on a plate," swoons Hugh. Tuck in.
Autumn's abundant with food and Hugh's in his element. You can hardly get him out of the garden as he surveys the fruits of his summer's labour.
It's not just the eating that's got Hugh excited. Like a cheek-stuffed squirrel, he's all geed up over winter storage.
"After a long summer of growing and harvesting, there's nothing better than stocking the larder for the winter siege," he says.
The autumn abundance is enough to tempt committed carnivore, Hugh, to lay on a slap up vegetarian feast at the River Cottage Canteen. But there's one vegetable that's not invited. Cauliflower. "Dull, dull, dull," moans Hugh.
We're deep into autumn and the harvest has been hearty for Hugh and his faithful River Cottage crew. As a reward for their hard work, Hugh's planning a slap up meal and, to show that you don't need piles of cash to dine like a king, he'll be foraging for all his food.
It's firework time at River Cottage and Hugh's preparing for a Bonfire Night shindig. But before any marshmallows can be toasted there's some hard graft needed, as the team bottle down for winter with some pickles, chutneys and preserves.
