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Mike Kitchen unpacking one of his ‘gardens in a box’ |
Rocket Gardens’ box of delights
Fed up with overpackaged supermarket food? Grow your own vegin a ‘Peter Rabbit’ garden on your window sill, says Clare Latimer
ROCKET Gardens are going to change my life and my business.
This great company, started by Mike Kitchen and a fabulously energetic team, have created a Peter Rabbit-style garden that arrives in the post.
The company has spread its roots all over the country and is endorsed by Jamie Oliver and Alan Titchmarsh.
The plants arrive having grown into “teenagers” in their organic dissolvable pots.
For less than the price of filling your car with petrol you can grow plants that will harvest up to £500 worth of fruit and vegetables, which will not have travelled further than from your garden to the kitchen. For those who have no garden, a window sill will do as there are many different packs to choose from.
Ratatouille
Try it now with bought ingredients and then try it with home-grown produce later in the year and see which you prefer! For a change you can roast all these vegetables in the oven (220C/450F/gas 7) for about 30 to 40 minutes. Just toss in the oil and season and cook on a roasting tray. This way is more like a casserole.
Ingredients
Serves 6
2 medium aubergines, topped and sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large red onion, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
3 medium courgettes, topped and tailed and sliced
2 red peppers, topped, deseeded and chopped
6 ripe tomatoes, topped and chopped
1 teasp fresh thyme or basil.
Method
Put the aubergine slices on a large flat plate and sprinkle with salt. Leave for about 30 minutes to bring out the bitter juices. Wipe dry with kitchen paper.
Put the olive oil into a large heavy-based saucepan with the onion and garlic and cook gently for about three minutes. Add the courgette slices and the chopped peppers along with the wiped aubergines. Season with salt and pepper, stir well and cover and cook for about 30 minutes.
Add the chopped tomatoes and the herbs and cover and cook for a further 10 minutes. Check the seasoning and serve.
Vegetable crumble
This is one of our favourite dishes to serve at dinner parties for the vegetarians and it certainly goes down very well. You can choose the vegetables, so when your garden is full of ready veggies, have a go with this recipe. Until then, stock up at the greengrocers and try and avoid any shop that has wrapped them in that ridiculous plastic.
Ingredients
Serves 6
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 small parsnips, peeled and sliced
1 small cauliflower, stalk removed and cut into florets
3 young courgettes, topped, tailed and sliced
3 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, peeled and sliced
125g mushrooms, wiped and sliced
50g butter
50g flour
10 fl oz milk
175g gorgonzola, crumbled
4 slices bread, made into breadcrumbs
50g cheddar cheese, grated
1 heaped teasp fresh mixed herbs, chopped finely
Salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Method
Preheat the oven 190C/ 375F/gas 5. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil, then add the carrots, parsnips, cauliflower and courgettes. Bring back to the boil, simmer for five minutes, drain, return the vegetables to the pan.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan, add the onions and cook on a low heat for five minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for a further five minutes.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan, stir in the flour, then gradually stir in the milk to make a smooth white sauce.
Add the Gorgonzola and cook on a low heat until the cheese is melted. Mix the breadcrumbs, cheddar cheese and herbs in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add the onion mix to the carrot mix and then stir in the cheese sauce. Put into a shallow ovenproof dish and top with the breadcrumb mix. Bake for 30 minutes or until the crumbs are slightly brown. Serve hot. |
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