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8 forms of capital active hope agroecology agroforestry alder buckthorn Amazon anxiety apples arthritis autumn Autumn equinox back yard beans Bec Hellouin beech tree bees beneficial berries biochar biodigester biodiversity blackberries blackthorn book review brain brassica cage budget build building campesino capital card deck Celtic festivals change changes chemical-free chickens christmas circular clay pot cleansers cleansing milks climate change climate chaos climate emergency climate grief climate solutions climbers climbing cob comfrey community Community Nature Network community projects compost compost teas connection consciousness conservation container cooking coppice coppicing cordial cosmology courgettes crafts crisis crop protection Cross Quarter Festival cultural emergence culture cut flowers cycles degraded design diary diversity DIY do it yourself dryland earth care earth's cycles Earth's energy ecoculture economics ecopoetry ecosystem ecosystem restoration camps ecosystems edges edible edible flowers education efficiency elder elderflowers elements elixir energy equinox ethics face mask fair shares Fairtrade farming feedback feminine ferns figs film firewood floristry flower essence flower garden flowers food food forest food garden footbath forage foraging forest garden forest gardening forests fruit fruit leather fruit trees funding fungi future future care gardening gardens garlic gift economy gin Give Nature a voice Glennie Kindred global poverty glut grapes green space greenhouse grief groundcover grow grow food grow your own growing guilds habitat habits handcream harvest harvests hawthorn hazel hazelnut healing shrubs healing trees health healthy soil heart health hedgerow hedging herbal herbal remedies herbal teas herbalist herbs holistic holistic planned grazing home homeless homemade wine homestead hope Hugelkultur humanure hummus hungry gap IBC tanks Imbolc incense increase yields Indigenous inexpensive influence inspiration International Womens Day jam keyline kingfisher kitchen garden lacto-fermentation Lammas land landscape landscapes life lifestyle limeflowers livelihood livestock living labs logs Looby Macnamara lotion low cost low-impact Lush Spring Prize macerations Manda Scott Mangwende Orphan Care Trust market garden market gardening marmalade marshmallow mass heater meadowsweet medicinal microbes microfarm Midwest Permaculture mimic mindset mitigation money Morag Gamble moringa Mother Earth movement mulch multifunctional mushrooms native plants natural natural building natural fertiliser natural skincare natural swimming pool nature nature connection nitrogen no dig no waste no-dig north-facing novel November nutrition nuts observe oca October off-grid oil cleansing orchard orchards organic organic flowers organic gardening outdoor shower oven oxymel oyster pallets pasture-fed patterns people people care peoplecare perennials permaculture permaculture design permaculture magazine award permaculture projects permaculutre permayouth pesto pests philippines pine tree pips pizza oven plant profile plants pollinators pollution polyculture polycultures positive change preserving principles propagating protection pruning prunings psycho-spiritual awareness psychospiritual transformation rainforest rainwater raspberries recipe recipes reduce reed beds regeneration regenerative regenerative agriculture relative location relative matter remedy renewable renewable energy resilient resources restoration reuse revolution rhythms rootstock rootstocks roundhouse roundwood runner beans sage salad salads salve Samhain schools Scotland scotts pine seasonal seasons seeds selfcare Sepp Holzer september septic tanks sewage treatment shade shamanism sheet mulching shrubs skincare sloes slugs small solutions small-scale smallholding social justice soil health solar solutions sowing spiritual spring squash stacking functions stock-free straw straw bale summer support sustainable Sweet Bay syntropic systems temperate terraces thistles thrutopia timber timber framing tincture tonic toolkit tools transformation trees upcycle urban urban gardening veg garden vegan veganic vermicomposting vinegar visionaries walnuts waste water water cleansing watering weeds wellbeing wetland wild edges wild food wild garlic wildflower wildlife wine recipes wings winter winter greens winter salads wood stove woodburner woodland woodland management woodlands world is possible worms yarrow year round year-round food yield young people youth zai pits zone 00 zoning

Topics

8 forms of capital active hope agroecology agroforestry alder buckthorn Amazon anxiety apples arthritis autumn Autumn equinox back yard beans Bec Hellouin beech tree bees beneficial berries biochar biodigester biodiversity blackberries blackthorn book review brain brassica cage budget build building campesino capital card deck Celtic festivals change changes chemical-free chickens christmas circular clay pot cleansers cleansing milks climate change climate chaos climate emergency climate grief climate solutions climbers climbing cob comfrey community Community Nature Network community projects compost compost teas connection consciousness conservation container cooking coppice coppicing cordial cosmology courgettes crafts crisis crop protection Cross Quarter Festival cultural emergence culture cut flowers cycles degraded design diary diversity DIY do it yourself dryland earth care earth's cycles Earth's energy ecoculture economics ecopoetry ecosystem ecosystem restoration camps ecosystems edges edible edible flowers education efficiency elder elderflowers elements elixir energy equinox ethics face mask fair shares Fairtrade farming feedback feminine ferns figs film firewood floristry flower essence flower garden flowers food food forest food garden footbath forage foraging forest garden forest gardening forests fruit fruit leather fruit trees funding fungi future future care gardening gardens garlic gift economy gin Give Nature a voice Glennie Kindred global poverty glut grapes green space greenhouse grief groundcover grow grow food grow your own growing guilds habitat habits handcream harvest harvests hawthorn hazel hazelnut healing shrubs healing trees health healthy soil heart health hedgerow hedging herbal herbal remedies herbal teas herbalist herbs holistic holistic planned grazing home homeless homemade wine homestead hope Hugelkultur humanure hummus hungry gap IBC tanks Imbolc incense increase yields Indigenous inexpensive influence inspiration International Womens Day jam keyline kingfisher kitchen garden lacto-fermentation Lammas land landscape landscapes life lifestyle limeflowers livelihood livestock living labs logs Looby Macnamara lotion low cost low-impact Lush Spring Prize macerations Manda Scott Mangwende Orphan Care Trust market garden market gardening marmalade marshmallow mass heater meadowsweet medicinal microbes microfarm Midwest Permaculture mimic mindset mitigation money Morag Gamble moringa Mother Earth movement mulch multifunctional mushrooms native plants natural natural building natural fertiliser natural skincare natural swimming pool nature nature connection nitrogen no dig no waste no-dig north-facing novel November nutrition nuts observe oca October off-grid oil cleansing orchard orchards organic organic flowers organic gardening outdoor shower oven oxymel oyster pallets pasture-fed patterns people people care peoplecare perennials permaculture permaculture design permaculture magazine award permaculture projects permaculutre permayouth pesto pests philippines pine tree pips pizza oven plant profile plants pollinators pollution polyculture polycultures positive change preserving principles propagating protection pruning prunings psycho-spiritual awareness psychospiritual transformation rainforest rainwater raspberries recipe recipes reduce reed beds regeneration regenerative regenerative agriculture relative location relative matter remedy renewable renewable energy resilient resources restoration reuse revolution rhythms rootstock rootstocks roundhouse roundwood runner beans sage salad salads salve Samhain schools Scotland scotts pine seasonal seasons seeds selfcare Sepp Holzer september septic tanks sewage treatment shade shamanism sheet mulching shrubs skincare sloes slugs small solutions small-scale smallholding social justice soil health solar solutions sowing spiritual spring squash stacking functions stock-free straw straw bale summer support sustainable Sweet Bay syntropic systems temperate terraces thistles thrutopia timber timber framing tincture tonic toolkit tools transformation trees upcycle urban urban gardening veg garden vegan veganic vermicomposting vinegar visionaries walnuts waste water water cleansing watering weeds wellbeing wetland wild edges wild food wild garlic wildflower wildlife wine recipes wings winter winter greens winter salads wood stove woodburner woodland woodland management woodlands world is possible worms yarrow year round year-round food yield young people youth zai pits zone 00 zoning

Seasonal Pesto and Hummus Recipes

No dig kitchen gardener and homesteader, Stephanie Hafferty, shares three seasonal recipes from 'The Creative Kitchen' – wild garlic pesto and onion salad, seasonal hummus and seasonal greens and herb pesto.

No dig kitchen gardener, Stephanie Hafferty, is well-known for turning her organic homegrown veg into colourful and tasty meals. Here we share three seasonal recipes from her book The Creative Kitchen, which is packed with recipes for salads, dips, sides, main meals, drinks and even cleaning products, balms, soaps.

Roast onion salad with wild garlic pesto

This salad is delicious made with shallots, spring onions and leeks. It’s a good way of using up any over-wintered onions, which seem to start bolting around the same time that the wild garlic is in season

Ingredients:
8 medium-sized red onions (white are fine too)
2 tbsp olive oil
Balsamic vinegar (or a fruit vinegar of your choice, blackcurrant is good) to drizzle
A sprinkle of salt and pepper (optional)

Pesto:
100g (3½oz/1 cup) walnuts
150g (5oz) wild garlic
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 tbsp walnut oil (olive or sunflower)
2 tbsp lemon juice
A little water, as needed

When wild garlic is not in season, replace with rocket for a spicy pesto or spinach for a milder pesto.

Preheat the oven to 180oC fan (200oC/400oF/gas mark 6). Peel the onions and cut in half. Arrange on an ovenproof dish and brush the olive oil all over to coat. Roast in the centre of the oven for 20 minutes until the onions are soft and cooked. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with a little balsamic vinegar (and salt and pepper if you wish).

Whilst the onions are cooking, make the pesto. Place the walnuts, wild garlic, minced garlic, oil and lemon juice in a food processor. Blend, adding a little water if necessary, to make a thick sauce.

Eat the onion salad hot or cold, drizzling the pesto over the onions before serving.

If you prefer, cut the onions into quarters before roasting and reduce the cooking time to around 15 minutes.

Seasonal greens, herbs and lime pesto

You can use any greens in this zingy pesto – spinach, kale, chard, mustards, mixed salad leaves, spring greens. It is delicious as a dip, drizzled over salads or mixed through rice, pasta or grains. Refrigerate any leftovers for 3-4 days, or freeze individual portions in an ice tray for later use.

If you do not have (or like) coriander, replace with basil, parsley, dill or mint. The walnuts can be replaced with toasted almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, sunflower or pumpkin seeds. The flavour will be different of course!

Ingredients:
2 cups greens, chopped
1 cup coriander, chopped
2-4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 lime, juice (and zest if you want it very lime flavoured)
1 cup walnuts, toasted
¼ cup olive oil (approximately, you may not need it all)
Salt and pepper to taste

Add the greens, coriander, garlic, walnuts, lime and seasoning to a food processor.

As it is processing, drizzle some olive oil in until the pesto is smooth.

Taste and adjust seasoning, if required.

Cooking intensifies the flavour but if you prefer, the nuts and seeds may be added raw.

Seasonal hummus

I make a hummus of some kind for every gardening course lunch, everyone loves the bright colours, especially welcome in the winter months. Add your choice of vegetables, leaves and herbs. It is a good way of using up leftovers in the fridge, too.

Vegetable suggestions:

Cooked – beetroot, squash, parsnip, carrot, onion, swede, sweet peppers, kale, tomatoes, courgette

Raw – spinach, kale, tomatoes, courgette, cucumber

Herbs – parsley, basil, coriander, dill, French tarragon

Ingredients:
330g (12oz/2 cups) cooked chickpeas (reserve the cooking liquor)
240g (8½oz/2 cups) vegetables
4 tsp tahini
2 or 3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 lemon, juice (3½ tsp)
½ tsp freshly ground cumin seed
½ tsp ground coriander
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp seasonal herbs, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Add everything except the cooking liquid into a food processor. Turn on, gradually drizzling the liquid into the mixture until it is the texture you like.

Further Resources

Watch

How to dry herbs for winter

Books

The Creative Kitchen
by Stephanie Hafferty

Edible Paradise
by Vera Greutink

Articles

5 Elderflower Recipes

Four Recipes, One Butternut Squash

The Creative Kitchen

About the Author

Stephanie Hafferty is a no dig gardener, writer and author of The Creative Kitchen and coauthor of No Dig Organic Home and Garden.