Spring is arguably the most exciting time for a chef, or cook. The long – really long – winter has come to an end and, as the shadows shorten, the list of ingredients lengthens: peas, broad beans, wild garlic, spring lamb … It is where nature comes into her own, because, as if by design, all of its bounty goes together in the most wonderful, natural and understated way.
Lamb shoulder cooked in buttermilk with peas, broad beans and wild garlic
Prep 15 min
Chill overnight
Cook 3 hr 50 min
Serves 6
1 lamb shoulder (2.2-2.5kg), on the bone
500ml buttermilk
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1 whole head garlic, cloves separated and smashed, but unpeeled
50g chopped rosemary
200ml chicken stock
150g podded peas
150g podded broad beans
80g wild garlic leaves
Score the lamb all over in a crisscross fashion. In a bowl, mix the buttermilk with the lemon zest, smashed garlic cloves and chopped rosemary. Smother the lamb with the mixture, then cover loosely and chill in the fridge overnight.
The next day, heat the oven to 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4. Put the marinated lamb shoulder in a roasting tray, ensuring all the marinade goes in with it. Pour 200ml chicken stock into the tray, cover with foil and roast for three hours, basting every hour. Turn up the oven to 195C (185C fan)/385F/gas 5½, remove the foil and roast for another 30 minutes, until the meat is tender and the skin crisps up. Lift the lamb out of the tin and leave to rest while you get on with the vegetables.
Drop the peas and broad beans into the roasting tray, and bring to a boil; add a little more stock, if required. Once boiling, add the wild garlic leaves, cook for two minutes, then take off the heat.
To serve, shred the lamb, arrange it on a platter and spoon over the sauce with all the gubbins from the tray. Serve with boiled potatoes and a green salad.
Caponata (Sicilian aubergine stew)
Sicily does flavour well. We serve this dish at both Burro and Trullo, but I’ve tweaked the recipe slightly to make it easier to do at home.
Prep 20 min
Cook 20 min
Serves 6
400ml oil
50g pine nuts
2 white onions, peeled and thinly sliced
4 whole garlic heads, cloves separated, peeled and thinly sliced
4 celery sticks, peeled, blanched and thinly sliced
500g jarred grilled peppers, chopped
25g black olives, pitted and roughly chopped
100g datterini tomatoes, quartered
4 aubergines, trimmed and each cut into 8 even pieces
30g golden sultanas
50g fresh basil
50g fresh mint
25ml red-wine vinegar
Gently heat 150ml oil in a pan with the pine nuts. As soon as you see a change in colour, lift out the nuts with a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper.
Next, sweat the onions and sliced garlic in the pine nut oil for as long as possible before they change colour, then drop in the celery, peppers, olives and tomatoes. Take off the heat and cover with a lid.
In a deep-sided pan on a medium heat, fry the aubergines in 250ml oil for about four or five minutes, until golden all over.
Stir the aubergines into the onion mix, add the pine nuts, sultanas, chopped herbs and plenty of salt and vinegar, and serve warm or at room temperature.
Vignarola (Roman spring vegetable stew)
A Roman stew that marries broad beans, peas and artichokes, but this version adds a few extras – you simply cannot eat enough vegetables.
Prep 25 min
Cook 30 min
Serves 4-6
Olive oil
600g peas, podded and shells reserved
2 lemons, the peel of 1 pared off in 1cm-wide stripes, the other zested
50g bunch mint, leaves picked and stalks reserved
50g bunch basil, leaves picked and stalks reserved
Sea salt and black pepper
1 whole garlic head, cloves separated, peeled and thinly sliced, plus 1 halved clove extra, for rubbing on the toasts
6 fresh artichokes, peeled and turned, then quartered and the chokes removed
1 tsp dried chilli
500g rainbow chard, leaves torn from the stalk, stalks finely chopped
800g broad beans, podded
10g flat-leaf parsley
Sliced bread, toasted, to serve
Pecorino, grated, to serve
Put a litre of water in a medium pan, add a good glug of olive oil, the empty pea pods, the lemon peel, and the mint and basil stalks, season well, then bring to a boil.
Meanwhile, in a pan, sweat the garlic in 50ml oil for as long as possible before it turns golden. Add the artichoke quarters and dried chilli, and cook, stirring, for five minutes. When they start to break down, add the chopped chard stalks, followed soon after by the peas, broad beans and chard leaves.
Strain the stock through a sieve, then pour it over the vegetables, just to cover them. Add another glug of olive oil, then leave to cook for eight to 10 minutes, until everything is soft and tender. Finish with the parsley, basil and mint leaves, plus some lemon zest.
To serve, put a piece of toast in the bottom of four shallow bowls, rub them all over with the extra garlic, then ladle the vignarola over the top. Finish with lashings of pecorino.