March in The Farm Table

The arrival of Spring brings a great sense of optimism and renewal. The mornings get brighter with each new day and natural world begins to shake off the paralysing grip of winter. Snowdrops emerge from the undergrowth, birdsong erupts amongst skeletal, withered trees and bees appear from their hives to bask in the warm spring sun.

If each month of the year was curated on a plate, I think March would take the glory. Or to put it another way, it would be my ‘death-row’ month. The feast would begin with blanched spears of Asparagus topped with a generous dollop of hollandaise & a soft-boiled egg. Our asparagus is grown by Chris Eaton on his smallholding in Newton Poppleford. Chris has been growing asparagus, plums, gooseberries and blueberries for us for over 40 years. Up next would be a slow-roasted shoulder of Spring Lamb from regenerative farmer Ben Mortimor over at Powderham. The southern bank of the River Exe is famous for rearing the earliest lamb in the country due to the unique Exe estuary microclimate & centuries of breeding.

Alongside the lamb would be a steaming bowl of Jersey Royal potatoes, dripping in wild garlic butter. Jersey Royals are always the first new potatoes of the season, they have the most wonderful sweet, nutty flavour and an unrivalled waxy texture. For 140 years they have been grown on the steep coastal cliffs of Jersey called ‘Côtils’ and fertilised using local seaweed. The emergence of wild garlic always sends chefs into a frenzy. For any budding foragers it is super easy to spot & often grows in damp, shady woodland. Although prolific, those in-the-know will seldom share their favourite ‘spots’.

This seasonal death-row feast would draw to a conclusion with a slither of new season St James cheese and finally a few delicate stalks of sweet & tender poached forced rhubarb. I would then die a very happy man!

George Dart

RECIPE: LAMB RUMP, BUTTERY ASAPRAGUS & SALSA VERDE

Ingredients

12-16oz lamb rump steak from the Darts Farm Butchers
1 bunch of local asparagus.
50g butter

For the salsa

100g chopped parsley
100g chopped basil
100g extra virgin olive oil
2 grated garlic cloves
2 anchovy fillets
30g of strained capers
30g of sherry vinegar

Method

For the salsa, chop the anchovy fillets and the capers roughly then combine the rest of the ingredients, adding salt and pepper to taste. For a looser sauce, just add more olive oil.

For the asparagus, gently bend each shaft until it snaps near the base, discard the woody base and wash the tops in cold water. In a frying pan bring an inch of water up to the boil and add 50g of butter, one pinch of salt, then the asparagus. Reduce the water until the butter starts to thicken (about 1-2 mins on a high heat) and then tip the asparagus on to the plate.

For the lamb rump, trim any tough or hard skin from the meat and lightly score the fat. Heavily salt and place into a hot frying pan, turning every 30 seconds to get a good colour on the flesh, then put into the oven for 6 minutes (medium-rare). Remove from the over and place onto a chopping board and cover with a tea towel to rest for 10 - 15 minutes, before carving in to thin slices.

To serve, lay the sliced lamb next to the asparagus and drizzle your salsa verde over the top.

Darts Farm

March in The Farm Table

RECIPE: LAMB RUMP, BUTTERY ASAPRAGUS & SALSA VERDE

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