By Leigh O’Connor.
"If recipes are stories, this book is a collection of moments from my first three years on our little farm…this is simple home cooking, made from a place of love, not only for the people eating it, but for the land it came from.” – Julius Roberts.
Longing for a simpler life and desperate to reconnect with the natural world to grow his own food, Chef Julius Roberts left London for a small farm in the west of England.
Four piglets – Snap, Crackle, Pop and Alby – soon turned into chickens, goats, a flock of sheep and a vegetable patch, but his life was still underpinned by the desire to create delicious, unfussy food. Now, three years into his adventure, Julius shares honest tales of farming life and thoughtful recipes in his first cookbook, ‘The Farm Table’.
Following a calendar year on his Dorset smallholding, the book is an outstanding collection of more than 100 recipes inspired by the British countryside, making the most of affordable, seasonal ingredients. This is food to comfort and inspire whether cooking for your family, or yourself.
This first-generation farmer and restaurant-trained Chef is on a mission to live a self-sufficient life while also cultivating the finest ingredients, cooking and eating the best food.
"It has been a time of rich exploration and inspiration, learning to really connect with the place I now call home,” Julius explains. "I hope the recipes provide a window into my life here and inspire a new connection to the seasons. These are quick dishes made in an instant while kid goats climb the kitchen table and nibble at the wallpaper.
"Steaming bowls of soup and broth brought out to the garden while we dig the veggie patch and discover the richness of the soil that feeds us through the year. It is a collection of recipes made with muddy fingernails and much to do; but also food made on slower days after long walks, really relishing the grounding act of cooking, enjoying the methodical process and joyful dance of ingredients into the pan.”
Passionate about seasonality, welfare and the environment, Julius shows us how to make the most of nature’s bounty – from crisp, crunchy apples to pink rhubarb, asparagus and strawberries. Each chapter of ‘The Farm Table’ has a mix of smaller plates, vegetable dishes, fish and meat, with a few delicious yet easy desserts to finish.
Julius’ relaxed approach encourages cooking freely, playfully and instinctively – think dishes like Mediterranean fish and chips, transporting diners straight to a simple restaurant, perched on a jagged cliff in Greece, above the emerald sea.
Ideally, you would cook the fish over charcoal outside in the sun, but roasting it in the oven works just as well – red mullet is a particular favourite for Julius, however, this recipe works well with any white-fleshed fish and is served with a tomato salad and oven chips.
A great roast chicken is the heart of home cooking and this recipe for epic tarragon roast chicken is one you will find yourself cooking time and again.
"I relish the ritual, my family’s fight over the wings, the secret Chef’s treats of oysters, the leftover sandwiches and bubbling stocks. There is no meal that makes me feel more at home.”
Julius says there are three keys to a good roast chicken – juicy meat, brown salty skin and most importantly, a ton of sauce. It’s the sauce of this chicken that sets it apart with handfuls of tarragon, lashings of cream and a proper dollop of mustard.
Finish your next family meal with this coffee semifreddo with salted caramel pistachios, an absolute showstopper of a dessert. Rich with coffee and vanilla and studded with utterly addictive salted caramel pistachios, you can tweak the recipe to create your own version with different nuts, shaved dark chocolate, or fold in sour cherry compote.
This is a book that helps you connect with the countryside, to curl up with and cherish – with stunning photography, this is simple, seasonal cooking at its best.
The Farm Table by Julius Roberts, Ebury Press, RRP $55. Photography by Elena Heatherwick.
