Christmas Dinner

This is what it is all about folks! Digging up your very own veggies on Christmas Day and serving them up alongside the turkey. It doesn't get much better than this.

Merry Christmas. 

Pomegranate

I was able to see a pomegranate on a tree in the hotel garden in Madeira. This one is not quite ripe, but beautiful nevertheless. They are in season over here right now and well worth buying. I have a bee in my bonnet about supermarkets selling fruit out of season. Just think of all the air miles involved in selling us tomatoes or courgettes in December! It's criminal!

If you fancy a pomegranate (and now is the time) go for it. I have found the cheapest ones are Spanish, the next best are from Turkey, and the best come from Iran. Memories of childhood come flooding back. Happy Christmas! No stocking should be without one! 

Exotic Fruit

My favourite place in Madeira is the Mercado dos Lavradores - the main fruit and veg market in Funchal. These long green fruit that look like a pine cone are the fruit of the common house plant , Monsteria or cheeseplant. These are absolutely delicious. Peel off the green scales and underneath is a sort of a slippery sweetcorn - it tastes like a cross between a pineapple and a banana. I did see them in the Kitchen Garden magazine a few months ago.