My Favourite Ingredients - Skye Gyngell

This is a collection of recipes and information based on the authors favourite foods. Skye Gyngell is a chef at Petersham Nurseries restaurant, and she's very passionate about good seasonal food.

I found the recipes looked and sounded wonderful, I even fell asleep dreaming of the food. The only issue I have is that some of the ingredients are a little obscure, suggesting an alternative to them would have been useful.

The information she included on the foods she choice, from general information to their season and knowing when they're ready to eat, was very informative. For example.

Young asparagus spears are the tender shoots of a much larger plant, which if left alone will grow over a metre tall, with fern like fronds and brilliant vermilion-coloured berries.

Also grown from seed it takes 4-5 years to harvest. I didn't know that, though I've only ever brought it in bunches from the super market and you do tend to except what you see.

I've not cooked any of her recipes yet but I've got my eye on several, particularly the baked apples; Cox's apples stuffed with currents, sultanas, raisins, a little lemon zest and covered with brandy. How good does that sound?