Make | Pickled Radish on Rye

Colourful spring veg bring sunshine to your May table. They’re delcious with a slathering of butter on thin slices of rye bread

Serves 6

250g radishes
5 tbsp white wine vinegar
3 tbsp caster sugar
1 tbsp fennel or mustard seeds
Loaf of rye bread
Unsalted butter

1 Trim the ends of the radishes before slicing them, no thicker than a pound coin, and put them in a sterilised jam jar with a vinegar-proof lid.

2 Put the vinegar, sugar and seeds in a pan and bring to a simmer. Once the sugar has dissolved, remove from the heat and pour over the radishes. Stir and leave to cool before storing it in the fridge. Use within a week.

3 Serve on rye or sourdough, thinly sliced and thickly spread with butter.

Cook’s note: You can add flavour to the butter by softening it and stirring in chopped herbs, crushed garlic or anchovies. For easy canapés, cut the bread into bite-size pieces and top with a couple of slices of radish.

Find this and more ideas for a Whitsun gathering from page 6 in our May ‘Folk’ issue, in shops now. The recipes are by Lucy Brazier and the photographs by Jonathan Cherry.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More recipes for spring…

More from our blog…

Recipe | Spiced Honey Scotch Bonnet Ham with Pineapple Rice

Inspired by the spices used in Caribbean dishes, this rich and sticky celebration ham makes a tasty spring Sunday roast.

Serves 7-8

Ingredients

2.5kg unsmoked or smoked boned and rolled gammon joint
1 onion, halved
1 carrot, roughly chopped
1 celery stalk, roughly chopped
1 fresh bay leaf
1 scotch bonnet chilli, halved
½ bunch of thyme, tied together

For the glaze:
½ tsp allspice
1 tsp dried thyme
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground cloves
100g clear runny honey
½ scotch bonnet chilli
50g pineapple, peeled and cubed
1 tbsp vegetable oil

For the rice:
80g unsalted butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tsp garlic granules
1½ tsp allspice
2 tsp dried thyme
400g long-grain rice
300g pineapple, cubed
2×400g tins kidney beans, drained
4 spring onions, finely sliced

1 Place the ham in a deep pan and add the veg, chilli and herbs. Cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and cook gently for 1hr 40 mins. Turn off the heat and leave for 30 mins.

2 Line a roasting tin with foil, add the ham and leave to cool. Retain the cooking water – you’ll need 650ml, so top it up if needed.

3 Preheat the oven to 220C/Fan 200C/Gas 7. Using a knife, remove the ham skin, then score the fat.

4 For the glaze, blitz all the ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Brush half over the ham and roast for 15 mins. Brush again with the remaining glaze and roast for a further 10–15 mins. Leave to rest, but keep the oven on.

5 For the rice, heat the butter in an ovenproof pan. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and fry gently for 15 mins. Add the garlic granules, allspice and dried thyme, and cook for 1 min more. Stir through the rice, pineapple and kidney beans, then pour over the reserved ham stock and bring to a simmer.

6 Once simmering, cover and transfer to the oven for 20 mins, then remove from the oven and leave the lid on for 10 mins. Fluff the rice, stir through the spring onions and season with salt.

7 Slice the ham and serve it alongside the pineapple rice.

Cook’s note: Bring the ham to room temp 2 hours before cooking to help it cook more evenly. It’ll keep for up to 3 days in the fridge.

Taken from The Modern Spice Rack by Esther Clark and Rachel Walker (Hardie Grant). Photography: Matt Russell

More from our May issue…

More spring recipe ideas…

Recipe | Maypole Cake

Whether you end up dancing or not, the Maypole encapsulates the month’s playful spirit – we think it’s the, er… icing on the cake

Makes 1 cake
350g rhubarb, cut into 1cm chunks
50g caster sugar
Zest and juice of 1 orange
300ml double cream, whipped
Icing sugar, for dusting

For the cake:
200g butter, softened
200g caster sugar
4 eggs
Zest and juice of 1 orange
200g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder

1 Preheat the oven to 180C/Fan 160C/ Gas 4. Put the rhubarb in a roasting tin, sprinkle over the sugar, orange zest and juice. Cover and cook for 15 mins, or until the rhubarb is soft, but not falling apart. Leave to cool.

2 To make the cake, beat the butter and sugar together until creamy. Add one egg at a time with a spoonful of flour to stop the mixture curdling.

3 Add the orange zest and juice. Fold in the flour and baking powder and pour into two greased and lined 20cm sandwich tins. Bake for around 20 mins, checking they’re cooked by piercing the middle with a skewer until it comes out clean. Leave in the tins for 15 mins before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

4 To serve, fold the rhubarb into the whipped cream and generously cover the base of one sponge with the mix. Sandwich the second cake on top and dust lightly with some icing sugar. To make a tabletop Maypole Use a knitting needle and 6mm-wide ribbons. Tie the ribbons to the top of the needle and pierce the cake, leaving the ribbons to stream around or tuck them underneath the base of the sponge.

This Maypole Cake recipe is just one of the recipes from our May ‘gathering’ feature which we’ve called ‘Come What May’. It’s a menu for a Whitsun Get-Together, hopefully in the sunshine (British weather allowing) and also incudes recipes for Quick Elderflower & Rosemary Cordial, Pickled Radish on Rye, Whitsun Warldorf Salad, Asparagus & Pea Quiche and Herby Broadbean Couscous. The recipes are by Lucy Brazier and the photographs by Jonathan Cherry.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

Recipe | Crab, Radish and Chilli Bruschetta

When the sun shows its face, let optimism win over the actual temperature and lure friends outside with something tasty… Or maybe just throw open the back door and tuck in indoors

This recipe for crab bruschetta will bring some spring zing to the lunch table and the promise of many more outdoor meals to come. Serve on crusty bread with big wedges of lime.

Serves 6

Ingredients

200g fresh crab meat
Zest and juice of ½ small unwaxed lemon
½ small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
50g mayonnaise
1 handful of finely chopped fresh parsley
6 slices of fresh crusty bread (such as sourdough or baguette)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 small garlic clove, peeled and cut in half
6 large radishes, finely sliced
2 small limes, cut into large wedges

To make

1 In a large mixing bowl, mix together the crab meat, lemon juice, chopped chilli, mayonnaise and half the chopped parsley.

2 Brush the slices of bread with the olive oil and rub them with the raw garlic clove, then toast on both sides under the grill.

3 Top each slice with the crab mix, then sprinkle with the remaining parsley and lemon zest. Top with the finely-sliced radish pieces and add a twist of freshly ground black pepper to each slice. Serve immediately with the lime wedges.

This recipe is from the gathering feature in our March issue, which is a ‘Plant Party’. Get together with friends to swap houseplants, seedlings, cuttings and seeds and when you’ve finished swapping, sit down to a seasonal lunch of crab bruschetta, halloumi, basil and beetroot skewers, ricotta and spinach dumplings and spring mixed pea salad with mint and pistachios. Finish with a homemade lemon and blueberry tart. The recipes and styling are by Kay Prestney and the photography is by Rebecca Lewis.

More recipes to welcome in Spring…

More from our March issue…

Recipe | Easter Pie (Torta Pasqualina)

A traditional Easter pie from Liguria, Italy, that can be traced back to the 1500s and still enjoyed today

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

500g whole milk ricotta
550g chard, spinach, or a mix
160g parmesan, finely grated, or a mix of parmesan and aged pecorino
5 medium eggs
Nutmeg (optional)
Olive oil or melted butter, to brush
1 pack filo pastry (around 270g)
Fine salt

To make

1 If your ricotta is watery, drain it for 30 mins in a sieve set over a bowl.

2 Discard any tough stems from the greens. Rinse and divide across 2 large pans and allow to wilt, stirring occasionally over a medium heat (or blanch in a pot of boiling water for a minute or two, just until wilted), then refresh under cold water. Transfer to a colander and squeeze out as much water as possible, then chop finely.

3 In a bowl, mix the ricotta with the greens, parmesan and 1 egg. Add a few gratings of nutmeg and season with salt to taste.

4 Preheat the oven to 210C/Fan 190C/Gas 6–7 and brush a deep, 23cm springform tin with olive oil or melted butter.

5 Layer sheets of filo over your tin, letting them settle so they cover the base and drape over the sides. Brush each sheet with oil or butter as you layer. Reserve 1 sheet for the top.

6 Spoon the ricotta mixture into the pastry, level out with the back of a spoon, then use the spoon to create 4 small hollows in the filling.

7 Crack the remaining 4 eggs into the holes and season the yolks. Dot a little butter onto each egg. Fold the overhanging pastry over the top and use the remaining sheet, to cover any gaps. Brush oil or butter over the top.

8 Cook for 40 mins until golden on top, then cover with baking paper. Cook for a further 20–30 mins.

Cook’s note: Can be stored in the fridge for 5 days and eaten cold, or gently reheated. Traditionally, families without ovens took their pie to a local bakery to be cooked, carving their initials into the crust so that the right pie came home for Easter Sunday

Taken from: Stagioni: Contemporary Italian Cooking to Celebrate the Seasons by Olivia Cavalli (Pavilion, HarperCollins Publishers). Photography: Sophie Davidson

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More makes and bakes for the Easter weekend…

More from our April issue…

Tipple | Aperol Tonics

A more substantial take on the much-loved spritz. Still refreshing, but with added depth.

Makes 1

50ml Aperol
25ml grenadine
1 tbsp lemon juice
125ml tonic water
Ice
Orange slices, to serve

1 Combine the Aperol, grenadine and lemon juice together in a glass and add ice.

2 Top with the tonic water, garnish with orange slices and serve.

Cook’s note: Serve with moreish taralli (traditional Italian nibbles) or breadsticks.

This aperol tonic recipe is just one of the ideas from our April issue for a Sunday Roast with an Italian twist, including Roast Fillet of Beef with Salsa Verde, Crispy Roast Gnocchi and Peperonata, Simple Shaved Asparagus Salad, Roasted Parmesan Cabbage and Lentils and a Traditional Colomba Cake. The recipes are by Lottie Storey and the Photography by Kym Grimshaw.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More things to do on Sundays…

More from our blog…

Recipe | Rhubarb Soda

Photography by Tom Crowford

A refreshing thirst quencher for a warm spring day.

We like to serve this simple rhubarb soda with lots of ice and fresh mint leaves.

Serves 6-8

250ml water
250g granulated sugar
500g rhubarb, chopped into 5cm lengths
Sparkling mineral water or soda water
Fresh mint leaves to serve (optional)

1 Put the water and sugar into a large pan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to the boil, add the rhubarb, and bring back up to a simmer. Cook for a couple of minutes, then remove the pan from the heat and set aside to cool. Once the mixture has cooled down, strain out the poached rhubarb (this is Rhubarb soda delicious served with thick yogurt), and pour the syrup into a sterilised bottle or jar, then chill in the fridge.

2 To serve, tear a few mint leaves into the bottom of a glass, pour in a generous glug of the rhubarb syrup, add a handful of ice cubes, and top with chilled sparkling water or soda water (stir gently to help blend the syrup with the water if needed). Serve immediately and enjoy.

This soda is just one of the recipes from our feature Spring on the Smallholding, from our April issue. It also includes recipes for Cheddar and Wild Garlic Biscuits, Griddled Asparagus with Spring Herbs and Poached Eggs and Spring Cabbage with Sweet Chilli and Marmite Butter, as well as lots of makes and ideas to make the most of spring in the outdoors, by Kathy Bishop and Tom Crowford, owners of the smallholding in Somerset. You can follow all their adventures at theseasonaltable.co.uk or @the_seasonal_table

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More from our April issue…

More recipes with rhubarb…

Recipe | Leek & Thyme Flatbreads

A new idea to help use your early spring veg box well

Traditionally known as the ‘hungry gap’, early spring is the time of year when home-grown seasonal veg is harder to come by as winter veg comes to the end of its run but many spring varieties are yet to arrive. This may mean your weekly veg box feels like it is lacking excitement, but with a few new recipes ,there’s always a way to liven up a leek!

You could easily transform this crispyon-the-bottom, fluffy on the top flatbread into a pizza but, equally, the dough with more modest toppings is more akin to an Indian naan bread or a Persian bread made for dunking into dips. Whichever way you go, it’s delicious and a brilliant staple.

Makes 6-8

7g dried yeast or 150g active sourdough starter
4 tbsp lukewarm water
500g strong white flour
Sea salt, plus extra for topping 225ml cool water
2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for kneading and glossing
2 leeks, thinly sliced
A handful of thyme, leaves only (you can infuse the stalks in vinegar with garlic skins for a fantastically tasty garlic and thyme vinegar)
A crumbling of goat’s cheese, blue cheese, mozzarella or grated cheddar (optional)

1 Tip the yeast into a large mixing bowl and whisk in the warm water until frothy; if using a sourdough starter, simply mix in the warm water. Add the flour, a pinch of salt and cool water. Leek and thyme flatbreads
2 Use your hands or a spoon to bring the dough together. Add the oil and knead the dough for 5-10 mins, or until smooth and stretchy. Add a little more oil as you knead to keep it moist and prevent it from sticking.
3 Put the dough in a clean bowl. Cover with a plate, a lid, or clingfilm and set in a warm place for about 30 mins, or until it has doubled in size. If you’ve used sourdough in place of yeast, it will need longer to rise – at least 2 hrs or overnight.
4 Once the dough has risen, heat your oven grill to high and warm a large frying pan over a high heat.
5 Roll out pinches of dough (roughly golf-ball size) on a floured surface. Roll them thin for crispy flatbreads or about 2cm thick for fluffier (more naan-style flatbreads). Thicker flatbreads keep better.
6 Put the dough on the hot, dry pan. Drizzle a little oil on top, then add the chopped leeks, thyme and cheese, if you’re using it. Add a finishing gloss of oil and season with salt and pepper.
7 Once the bottoms are firm and look like they’ve been in a tandoor oven, remove from the pan and put them under the grill. Cook until golden on top. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Cook’s note: The dough will keep in the fridge for a week. It also freezes beautifully if you want to make it ahead of time or have any left over.

This recipe is just one of the ideas from our Veg Box Suppers feature by Rachel de Thample with photography by Ali Allen, which also includes creamed kale, coconut, cardamon and beetroot soup, rhubarb frangipane tart and an array of veg box pickles.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More veggie suppers…

Recipe | a picnic pie for the garden

A delicious picnic pie tastes as good in the garden as it does on a blanket in the woods

This lovely layered veggie pie beats soggy sandwiches hands down. One slice is never enough. You can find the recipe for this and the rest of our outdoor menu in our April issue… Salad jars with peanut butter dressing, tomato, mozzarella and prosciutto skewers, homemade scotch eggs and berry cheesecake.

Serves 6-8

You will need:
400g butternut squash, cubed
1 red onion, sliced
Olive oil
1 tbsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
1 tbsp fresh sage, finely chopped
50g soft goat’s cheese
2 large peppers
1 courgette, sliced
150g baby spinach
100g ricotta
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
500g shortcrust pastry
1 large egg, beaten

How to make:

1 Pre-heat the oven to 200C/ 180C Fan/Gas 6.
2 Peel and deseed the butternut squash and cut it into small cubes. Place on a baking tray with the sliced onion, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast for 30 mins, or until soft. After 20 mins, add the rosemary and sage.
3 Transfer to a bowl and, when cool, stir in the goat’s cheese and set aside. Place the peppers, whole, on a separate baking sheet and cook for 30 mins or until the skin blackens. Allow to cool before peeling the skin, deseeding and cutting into slices. Allow to drain in a sieve until ready to assemble. Heat a frying pan with a little olive oil and add the sliced courgette. You may need to do this in batches. Cook each side until brown, then transfer to a plate and set aside.
4 In the same pan, add the spinach, allow to wilt in the heat for 2-3 mins, transfer to a colander and, when cool enough to handle, squeeze out the excess moisture. Chop up and place in a large bowl. Add the ricotta, sprinkle in the nutmeg, season with salt and pepper and stir to combine. Set aside.
5 Grease a 20cm spring-form tin. Lightly flour a surface and roll out two thirds of the pastry to cover the base and tin sides. Carefully press into the tin leaving some overhang, then trim the rest. With the remaining pastry, roll out a circle large enough to cover the top of the tin and set aside. Spread the base with the spinach mix, followed by the pepper slices, then a layer of courgettes and finally the butternut squash mix. Add the pastry top, crimp the edges to seal the pie and make a hole in the top for the steam to escape.
6 Brush the top with the beaten egg and bake for 50 mins or until the top is golden brown. Leave to cool completely before removing from the tin. Slice to serve. Cook’s note: This pie is good hot or cold. so, it’s great for a picnic. It can be made the day before, simply keep in the fridge until ready to serve.

You can find the rest of the outdoor recipes in this menu in our April issue, available in shops now or from our online shop.

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More from our April issue…

More outdoor recipes for Spring…

Recipe | nettle soup

Serves 6

Knob of butter
1 onion, diced
2 celery sticks, diced
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
2 bay leaves
2 large potatoes, peeled and sliced
1½ ltr vegetable stock
1 handful of spinach
3-4 handfuls of young nettles, well washed
Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
Crème fraîche, to serve
Toasted seeds, to serve

1 Melt the butter in a large saucepan, then add the onion, celery, garlic and bay leaves and sweat down for a couple of mins.

2 Add the potatoes and stock and simmer for 30 mins until the potatoes are cooked through.

3 Add the spinach and most of the nettles (saving a handful for deep frying later), then return the soup to the boil and remove from the heat. Allow to cool for a few mins before transferring to a blender. Whizz the soup until smooth, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

4 Pour a couple of centimetres of vegetable oil into a small, heavybased saucepan. Heat the oil over a medium heat until a small cube of bread dropped into it turns golden in about 15 secs (about 180C on a cooking thermometer). Deep-fry the reserved nettle leaves until they are dark green and just crisp, being careful to shield your eyes as the hot oil can spit with some ferocity.

5 Drain on kitchen paper, then drop into the soup with a drizzle of crème fraîche and some toasted seeds.

Taken from Giffords Circus Cookbook: Recipes & Stories from a Magical Circus Restaurant by Nell Gifford & Ols Halas (Quadrille). Photography: David Loftus

Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribe

More from our April issue…

More foraging fun…