Conran Restaurants And The RHS 'Grow Your Own Veg' Campaign 2007
 Conran Restaurants is pleased to support The Royal Horticultural Society’s ‘Grow Your Own Veg’ campaign for 2007 with recipe cards from various leading Head Chefs.
The RHS campaign coincides with the start of a new BBC2 series ‘Grow Your Own Veg’ which encourages people to grow vegetables and shows novice growers how to get the best out of their space, whether it be a balcony or a back garden.
The first major event of the campaign is ‘Grow Your Own Veg Day’ on 10 February 2007 when all four RHS Gardens will be offering free entry and providing visitors with complimentary RHS Starter Packs containing seeds, a vegetable garden poster, gardening tips plus a set of six recipe cards from leading Conran Head Chefs, each focusing on a different set of vegetables.
The aim is to provide visitors with new ideas on how to cook home grown produce; to this end, the Chefs have chosen to feature some of their celebrated dishes, which regularly appear on their restaurant menus, when ingredients are seasonally available.
- Potatoes and artichokes – Artichokes à la Barigoule by James Walker, Le Pont de la Tour
- Root vegetables – Root Vegetable Hash by Shannon Whitmore, Butler’s Wharf Chop House
- Beans and peas – Summer Potage of Broad Beans, Green Hammock Hock and Soft Herbs by Mark Broadbent, Bluebird
- - Brassicas – Purple Sprouting Broccoli with ramsoms or allium ursinum by Peter Weeden, Paternoster Chop House
- Salads – Beetroot Salad by Jeremy Lee, Blueprint Café
- Pumpkins and Squashes – Butternut Squash Soufflé by Craig James, Quaglino’s
The objectives of the RHS campaign echo the food philosophy of the participating chefs who actively source, whenever possible, local seasonal produce and thus minimise food miles.
“My philosophy is very simple when it comes to vegetables,” says Peter Weeden. “The less time it spends between the soil and the plate, the better it is. I like to use vegetables in season and look forward to my favourites appearing, whether it’s peas, broad beans, the first Jersey Royals or purple sprouting broccoli.”
Many of the chefs are enthusiastic vegetable growers so they understand the satisfaction and pride of eating something grown by themselves. “My wife and I grow chillis, carrots, runner beans, tomatoes and various herbs in our back garden. Next year will be our second crop - I would say that we’re keen novices and any results always end up on the butcher’s block”, comments James Walker.
For a chance to sample these dishes, visit the featured restaurants from Spring onwards, where sets of recipe cards will be available to customers upon request.
For more information visit www.conran-restaurants.co.uk
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