The Healthy Eating Guide

I love going to the Farm Shops and local markets to buy food. It’s so much fresher and better for you than out of season foods that have traveled goodness knows how far. It is almost like going on a treasure hunt when you set off, armed with your shopping basket, to see what you can find that is good to eat today. One of my favourite foods is very seasonal, and I have to say, I am also very fussy about it. I love Asparagus, but I only like the local Asparagus grown here where I live. It has a flavour and texture all it’s own that nothing else quite matches. It is delicious served just on it’s own with absolutely nothing else. The season is short, only a few weeks so I always aim to make the most of it.

A good friend of mine has written the most fantastic book about the best Asparagus in the world, the ‘Gras’ that grows in the Vale of Evesham. A whole industry has grown up around this wonderful vegetable, sadly it has suffered from the cheap imports from as far away as Peru, but the season is still eagerly awaited by the local residents and we munch our way through tons of the stuff from mid April to early June. A Passion For Asparagus is a beautifully written and illustrated book that is a joy to read for anyone who has the remotest interest in food, it’s place in our lives and the joys of fresh, local produce.

Chris has spent a great deal of time researching his subject and his passion for asparagus really does show through. The lore and legend of asparagus as well as it’s history is all well covered and there are a raft of excellent recipes included as well, even tales of some visitors to the area who were obviously not initiated into the joys of asparagus eating and tucked into the woody end, leaving the tender and delicate buds on their plates! There are some wonderful photographs of the annual Asparagus Auction which is held at The Fleece Inn in Bretforton, the only pub owned by the National Trust (and worth a visit in it’s own right). This is the culmination of the Asparagus Festival which started this year with a ‘dash’ to London to take the first Asparagus to the Houses of Parliament.

If you are interested in Chris’s book you can find out more, or obtain a copy here – A Passion For Asparagus.