The joy of veg

PAUL GAYLER is executive chef at London's Lanesborough Hotel and an award-winning food writer. He is well known for having brought vegetarian cooking to a new level.

He wrote his first book, Virtually Vegetarian, 10 years ago, and was one of the first chefs to put specifically vegetarian dishes on his "menu potager" - a seven-course gourmet dinner - at his restaurant in the Lanesborough.

In his new book, Pure Vegetarian, he continues to extol the virtues of seasonal fresh vegetables.

Fresh ingredients, used in season, are the best, the most nutritious and the healthiest - as Paul says: "From the first crisp spears of spring asparagus, tender carrots and broad beans, to the sun-ripened tomatoes and courgettes of summer, from the jewel-coloured pumpkins and squashes of autumn to earthier winter favourites such as parsnips and crisp celery, the opportunities for rich and varied vegetable dishes throughout the year are endless."

A man after my own heart, Paul encourages us to cook and eat seasonally. Eating seasonally means: "Simply that vegetables usually taste best and are at their most nutritious when they have been grown at the time that Nature intended (rather than cultivated in artificial conditions) and are eaten as soon as possible after harvesting (rather than kept in storage or flown half way round the world). This way you not only get the best and freshest ingredients to work with, but pay less for them, as prices remain low with the seasonal bumper crops. Vegetables, herbs and fruit in season are so vibrantly flavoured that even the simplest preparation yields great results."

Paul says it is unfortunate that children rarely, if at all, get to experience the taste of real food, such as a sun-warmed strawberry straight from the plant, freshly-dug carrots or an apple plucked from the tree. It is now so easy for us to forget about the seasons when we eat as most supermarkets carry produce that looks and tastes the same from January to December.

However, the upsurge in farm shops, farmers' markets and home-delivery vegetable boxes enables us to purchase wonderful, lovingly-grown seasonal ingredients.

With Paul's guiding hand, the book will have you cooking exotic dishes with ease. For example, there's rosemary-grilled goat's cheese with warm apricot relish or honey-roasted fruits with rosemary and pear rosti. Whether cooking for the family or entertaining guests, the recipes are sure to impress.

Pure Vegetarian, by Paul Gayler, published by Kyle Cathie.