Garden pantry
Celebrating the Royal Botanic Gardens
THIS VEGETARIAN COOKBOOK
celebrates both the glorious variety of edible plants and fungi that we eat and the vital work that the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, does to promote and sustain the rich biodiversity of the plant and fungi world.
Organised in six sections, covering leaves, roots and squashes, grains and pulses, fungi, herbs and spices, and fruit and nuts. The book features over 60 delicious and unusual vegetarian recipes from celebrity contributors, including New Zealand chef and celebrity Monica Galetti.
JENNY CHANDLER’S ROASTED BEETROOT, PLUM and CARLIN PEA SALAD
A sweet and sour, late summer salad with the carlin peas creating a satisfyingly filling backdrop for the seasonal fruit and veg. Carlin peas have been part of the foodscape in the North and Midlands for centuries, but have recently become more widely available, thanks to a pioneering company called Hodmedods who sell a huge range of sustainable British pulses, grains and seeds. You could use chickpeas or lentils in their place, but the nutty flavour of the carlin pea is so worth seeking out.
Ingredients
600g raw beetroot (about 6 medium beets)
3 Tbsp olive oil good pinch of salt
2 small red onions
8 ripe plums
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp chilli flakes
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 100g walnut pieces
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 2-3 Tbsp cider vinegar salt, pepper and perhaps a dash of honey or brown sugar to taste
600g cooked carlin peas, drained (home-cooked (see note at end of recipe) or 2 x 400g can, drained a large handful of dill, mint or parsley, roughly chopped
Method
Preheat the oven to 190C/170C fan.
Wash the beetroot well, and cut in half if the beets are particularly large. Place them on to a large sheet of foil in a roasting tin, drizzle over half of the olive oil and season with the salt. Now fold over the foil, making a loose tent. Roast for 45 minutes to an hour until they are tender (and then the skins will slip off easily).
Meanwhile, peel and chop each of the onions through the root into about 10 thin segments.
Halve and stone the plums. Place the onions and plums in roasting tin, drizzle over the remaining oil and season with a little salt, the cumin seeds and chilli flakes. Roast these in the same oven for about 15 minutes before sprinkling over the garlic and walnuts and cooking for 10 more minutes, then set aside to cool.
Make the dressing by mixing together the extra virgin olive oil, cider vinegar, salt and pepper (adding a little honey, or sugar, if your plums were quite tart).
Stir the carlin peas around in half of the dressing and add half of the herbs.
Slip the skins off the beetroot and cut into bite-sized, irregular chunks.
Now arrange the salad on a large platter — carlin peas first, scattered with the beets, plums, onion, walnuts, remaining dressing and herbs.
You could:
• Use a mixture of golden and classic red beetroot
• Crumble over 150g feta cheese or serve with seasoned Greek yoghurt
• Replace the roasted plums with segments of raw blood orange in late winter
Cooking carlin peas (or any whole, dried peas for that matter):
Soak the peas overnight (you can add a teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda to speed up the cooking if you live somewhere with hard water). Drain the peas, place in a large pan and cover with plenty of cold water. Cover and simmer for about 45 minutes to an hour, until the peas are soft and creamy within, but still hold their shape. Season with salt.
— Serves 4 as a main