Menu for Market Garden- Cook & Eat March 2026

starter: onion tarte tatin, lemon and chive crème fraiche

Delicate Roscoff onions, slowly caramelised and wrapped in golden pastry. A timeless French classic.

ingredients:

• 500g Roscoff Onion
• 80g Butter (soft)
• 120g Sherry Vinegar
• 60g Caster Sugar
• 230g round of pre-rolled shop bought puff pastry (pate feuilleté)
• 2 sprigs Thyme
• 125g Crème fraiche
• 2.5g Chives finely chopped
• 2.5g Parsley finely chopped
• Juice and zest of half a lemon

method:

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C.
2. Cut the onions into quarters (or into six if the onions are large).
3. Spread the soft butter onto the pan, sprinkle the sugar on top, and finish with the vinegar.
4. Arrange the onion segments in the pan in a spiral, and place a circle of puff pastry on top, tucking in the sides.
5. Place on the stove, rotating the pan 90° every 5 minutes for 20 minutes (or until you start to see caramel forming around the edges). Transfer to the oven at 170°C for 20 minutes. Turn out on to serving plate and finish with Maldon salt and picked thyme leaves.
6. For the crème fraîche: In a bowl, whisk everything except the lemon until stiffpeaks form. Add the lemon zest, juice, salt, and pepper, then check the seasoning. Spoon on top of the warm tart. Serve with a dressed green salad.

Main:  Baked cod loin, spring vegetable melange, sauce beurre blanc

•  ingredients:
•  3 tbsp plain flour
• 6 cod loin fillets
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 lemons
• ¼ jar of capers
• 100g melted butter
• 2 tsp paprika
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
•  small bunch of thyme

method:

1. Heat the oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Tip the flour into a bowl and add the paprika and some seasoning. Turn each cod fillet in the flour until evenly coated.
2. Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add the cod and fry on each side for 2 mins or until golden brown.
3. Melt the butter, add the juice and zest of one lemon and the capers and picked thyme leaves.
4. Slice the other lemon and lay the slices in a roasting tin. Transfer the cod to the roasting tin on top of the lemon slices. Drizzle each fillet with the caper butter mix. Bake for 10 mins or until cooked through.

ingredients:

For the vegetable melange:

• 16 asparagus spears
• 400g broad beans pods, beans removed from the pods
• 16 small baby carrots, scrubbed
• 16 new potatoes, scrubbed
• A bunch of spring onions, trimmed
• 1 bulb wet (new seasons) garlic, trimmed and sliced lengthways
• 8 baby turnips, halved
• A handful of mixed fines herbes, chervil, chives, tarragon and parsley, chopped
• Salt and pepper
• For the Beurre Blanc
• 50g shallots (or onions), roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 4 tablespoons dry white wine
• 6 tablespoons water or fish stock
• 2 tablespoons double cream
• 175 g (6 oz) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

method:

1. Boil the potatoes in salted water with a few sprigs of mint until tender, then drain.

2. Bring a large pan of water to the boil and take it in turns to blanch the asparagus, broad beans, carrots, turnips, spring onions and garlic for 1 minute each; removing from the water using a slotted spoon and plunging into ice-cold water to refresh.

3. Heat the butter in a wide pan over a low-medium heat, add the carrots and turnips, a pinch of salt and a really good pinch of sugar, and cook for 5 minutes or until al dente.

4. To make the beurre blanc, put the shallots, vinegar, wine and water/stock in a small pan, bring to the boil and simmer until nearly all the liquid has evaporated. Strain into another pan to remove the shallots. Add the cream and boil to reduce a little more, then remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the butter a little at a time until it has all amalgamated and the sauce has the consistency of double cream. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

5. Bring the large pan of water back to the boil, add the potatoes, asparagus, broad beans, spring onions and garlic and cook for a few seconds, then drain well.

6. Arrange all the vegetables on a large platter and scatter over the chopped herbs. Serve with the beurre blanc. And alongside the fish.

Dessert: lemon meringue pie

ingredients:

For the pastry:

• 225g/8oz plain flour
• 175g/6oz butter
• 45g/1¾oz icing sugar
• 1 large free-range egg, beaten
• For the lemon filling:
• 6 lemons, zest and juice
• 65g/2¼oz cornflour
• 250g/9oz caster sugar
• 6 free-range egg yolks
• For the meringue topping:
• 4 free-range egg whites
• 225g/8oz caster sugar
• 2 tsp cornflour

method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4
2. First make the pastry. Measure the flour and butter into a food processor and blend together until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs (alternatively rub in by hand). Add the icing sugar, egg and 1 tablespoon water and briefly pulse until combined to form a ball.
3. Tip the pastry onto a work surface and roll out to a 3mm thickness. Use the rolling pin to lift the pastry up and transfer it to line a 23cm/9in loose-bottomed flan tin. Be careful not to stretch the pastry as you tuck it into the corners. Cover in cling film and place in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes.
4. Take the pastry-lined tin out of the fridge and trim the excess pastry. Press the top edge of the pastry so that it stands slightly higher than the top of the tin. Use a fork to lightly prick the pastry base all over.
5. Line the pastry case with baking paper and fill with baking beans (or uncooked rice). Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the beans and paper and return to the oven for a further 5 minutes, or until the pastry is very lightly cooked. Remove from the oven and set aside.

6. Reduce the oven temperature to 170C/150C Fan/Gas 3½.
7. For the filling, mix the lemon zest and juice with the cornflour and stir to form a smooth paste. Measure 450ml/16fl oz water into a pan and bring to the boil. Add the lemon cornflour mixture to the hot water and stir continuously over the heat until the mixture is thick and smooth. Remove from the heat.
8. In a bowl mix together the sugar and egg yolks and carefully whisk into the lemon mixture in the pan. Stir over a medium heat until thickened (it should have the texture of a thick custard). Pour into the pastry case.

9. For the meringue, whisk the egg whites in a freestanding mixer until soft peaks form when the whisk is removed. Slowly add the caster sugar a little at a time, continuously whisking until all the sugar is incorporated and the meringue is very stiff and glossy (this can take up to 10 minutes). Add the cornflour and whisk again.

10. Spoon the meringue on top of the filled pastry case and spread to completely cover the lemon filling, taking care to get right to the edges. Create swirls on the top of the meringue using the back of a fork.
11. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes until the meringue is lightly golden and crisp.
12. Allow to cool a little before carefully removing from the tin once it's safe to touch. Serve in slices while it's still very slightly warm.