Weekend food

DID WE ever think we would hear a discussion on the RTE airwaves about people choosing to go hungry rather than default on their mortgage for fear of losing their house? The reality has stunned the Irish nation.

One can just imagine how paralysed with fear many must be by the situation they find themselves in. The problem is further exacerbated when people can’t cook or have few practical life skills.

For those who have a little land, a front or back garden can produce a prodigious amount of food. Beautiful flower beds and a manicured lawn are all very well, but a well-tended vegetable patch will nourish the family and can also be a thing of beauty. Even a few pots on a balcony or in a paved or concrete yard can produce a surprising quantity of salad, fresh herbs, spinach, chard… It’s a bit late this year to plant most things but one can still plant winter lettuces, spring cabbages. Autumn onion sets and winter garlic will be soon available, you can even sow broad beans as late as November.