June sees a wealth of new seasonal foods, after the lean patch of May. The summer fruits arrive, with strawberries, blackcurrants, cherries and raspberries. Early tomato varieties will begin to fruit, although mine are a way off yet.
On the vegetable side, asparagus continues, and beans, cabbage, mushrooms, beetroot, onions, new potatoes, spinach, lettuce. Look out for courgettes and cauliflower by the end of the month.
Your herbs should be good right now too, basil and oregano, chives, mint, parsley, and dill.
If you’ve been paying attention to the hedgerows, the elderflower is out and ready for home-made champagne. Look out for wild strawberries too, and nettles are still good at this time of year.
Elderflower cordial is heavenly and very easy to make. There are lots of simple recipes for it on the web, and you can find the required citric acid at pharmacies. If you freeze the cordial it does not set solid, so you can take out a tablespoon full, put it into a glass and top up with water. Give it a good stir and hey…!