Tender Volume II

by Nigel Slater  

Well, we raved about Volume I and there’s as much to say about the sequel but this time the focus is fruits.

And, while most of us feel confident about growing vegetables, fruits are not always the focus of our gardens.

One wonders why when you begin reading Nigel’s story about how he chose what to grow and which plants rewarded him with bountiful crops (or didn’t!).

Once again, his story is as enticing to read as a novel – he is, hands down, one of best food writers published today – and even if you don’t plan to grow any fruit, the recipes are divided into sections with 25 fruits making up a 1200-page tome that you’ll love forever.

And this time, the pull-off front cover design reveals a luscious pink beneath.

He’s hopelessly passionate about his plants (one can quite imagine him concealing precious finds in his suitcase…) and orders them from all over the world, but the thrill for him as a foodie was that meals suddenly took on ‘a delicious new significance’ from the beginning.

He also turns traditional cooking ideas on their head: try roasted grapes, for example. Sprinkle with olive oil androast in a baking dish – perfect to serve with roast pork or steak. Or try his roast pork belly with peach salsa (pictured here).

And how about a pear and lemon sorbet for summer – served with apricots and some velvet-red raspberries?

Or try his fig, orange and polenta cake, scented with cardamom and sweetened with honey, that he loves serving with glasses of mint tea or with yoghurt as a dessert.

Buy both volumes now if you don’t have the first – they’ll change your thoughts on gardening, or bring new life to your daily enjoyment of even the humblest fruit and veg.

Click here for a selection of recipes from Tender Volume II

(Forth Estate, R340)