We have yet another dazzling weather forecast for the coming weekend. And with the hot weather continuing and based on the feedback from some of you we would not be including broccoli in our boxes until the weather cools down again. The broccolis are fine when they arrive but as there is no refrigeration possible they do turn yellow very quickly and really need to be picked up right away which we know isn’t always possible.

But we have broad beans (some of you had these substituting for the mini cucumber last week) and the first British tomatoes in our boxes this week.

Broad beans and fennel make the perfect pairing so try an easy version with lemon, parmesan and mint. Or go French with blue cheese and a Dijon mustard and lemon dressing. Or brave an Ottolenghi version with quinoa and spices and maybe go with the suggestion to “fortify it further with nigella or pumpkin seeds, toasted walnuts, goat’s cheese and oven-dried tomatoes”. Or try a broad bean and fennel tart/quiche.

For the other vegetables, why not try a Greek-styled salad, starting with shredded pointed cabbage for a base, top with chopped tomatoes and feta cheese, and finally toss with some herbs, balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Or try an orange, beetroot and fennel salad with cumin vinaigrette.

And do try this rustic Tuscan-style sausage, white bean and kale soup. Or a sweetheart cabbage soup (another name for pointed cabbage) where you can throw in your bunched carrots (topped and tailed), tomatoes if you like and courgette if you’ve got them in the box this week or from last week – that’s the entire small box for this week! These soups definitely taste better a day later.

For more ideas on how to eat the vegetables in this week’s box, try searching on our webpage for past blogs!

Standard Box
* Roosters, Lincs
* Pointed Cabbage, Suffolk
* Bunched Carrots, Norfolk
* Tomatoes, Yorks
Beetroot, Yorks
Kale, Yorks
Broad Beans, Kent
Fennel, Italy

Small Box
Items starred (*) above

+ Courgettes, Spain