New cookbook celebrates food fresh from the garden

Nerys Howell, who has been cooking for the viewers of S4C’s Prynhawn Da for the last 25 years, says: “I am a cook who gardens and enjoys growing and harvesting fruit and vegetables. Harvest time provides a huge sense of achievement, enjoying the freshest food from the garden full of seasonal flavour. 

“This book is a natural progression from my previous book Welsh Food by Season (2020), which was about eating locally and seasonally. Nothing is more local, more seasonal or more sustainable than using what we grow, which is the central message of Harvest.” 

Harvest includes recipes that use parts of the plants usually discarded, such as the Carrot top pesto. The book also contains tips on how to start gardening, how to harvest and store, how to reduce waste, and a calendar showing what fruit and vegetables are in season when. The book is divided into five sections – Alliums, Brassicas – leaves; Root vegetables and pumpkins, Summer vegetables and Fruit with an introduction at the beginning of each chapter. 

Nerys Howell is the owner of the food company Howel Food Consultancy, and she has many years of experience working in the food, drink and hospitality sector. She has travelled around the world to promote food and drink from Wales, and says, “I feel passionate about the fact that we need to look at what’s at its best at particular times of the year – produce tastes so much better when it’s enjoyed in the right season. Gardening brings the added benefit of being able to connect with the earth and nature, as well as being good for the body and the mind.” 

The book is full of photographer Phil Boorman’s beautiful photographs.