ANY EXCUSE FOR A PICNIC…
It’s been a mild spring, so catch the last of the bluebells before they’re gone. Pack some goodies (search ‘picnic recipes’ at deliciousmagazine.co.uk for pies and quiches galore) and find your nearest bluebell woods via meanderingwild.com or search for them at nationaltrust.org.uk. Bonus points for telling your walking companions that bluebell sap was once used as glue in Elizabethan bookbinding.
SEASONAL PRODUCE UK highlights
Asparagus, broccoli, lettuce, elderflowers, new potatoes, peas, radishes, rhubarb, spinach, spring cabbage, spring onions, watercress
From overseas
Alphonso mangoes
SUMMER SCHOOL FOR FOOD LOVERS
Thinking about a career change, or just fancy enhancing your foodie know-how? Our editorial assistant Mia Rodriguez (pictured) visited The School Of Artisan Food, on the Welbeck Estate in Nottinghamshire, to preview its Artisan Summer School (29 July to 23 August). It involves breadmaking, patisserie, barbecue and more. The four-week course also includes foraging and tours of local producers, and costs £3,995, or £4,995 with accommodation. Prefer something a bit less full-on? There are also half-day/short courses from £95. schoolofartisanfood.org →
The poetry of life on the farm
Organised by environmental charity The Gaia Foundation, We Feed The UK is a roving art project on a mission to draw our attention to how food is grown. Telling the stories of 10 farmers in 10 British regions through photography and poetry, the exhibitions are taking place around the UK and Ireland until spring 2025. Intrigued? Hear more on BBC Radio 4’s Food Programme (catch up on the BBC Sounds app) as Jimi Famurewa visits producers and poets to discuss the project. For information on upcoming exhibitions, head to wefeedtheuk.org
Create a buzz for World Bee Day
Bees in trouble means bad news for us. Intensive farming and pesticides have hit the bee population and, by extension, the quality of our food. World Bee Day (20 May) reminds us to make a difference. Do your bit by planting bee-friendly fruit and veg, ditching the pesticides, keeping wild areas in your garden and installing a bee hotel. It will all help the little buzzers – not to mention our ecosystem. And don’t miss our honey feature on p86.
THE ULTIMATE CHEESE PULL
If you’ve failed to recreate the
