Pick Your Own

This weekend I spent a happy, bright Sunday afternoon picking my own fruit and vegetables for the week from a Pick Your Own in Worthing, West Sussex with my family. Our intention was just to pick strawberries for jam making, but with fresh peas, broad beans and onions ready for harvesting, it was impossible to walk away. Searching through the tumbling pea plants for pods plump with peas, I secretly popped some. My first experience of freshly picked peas was a massive surprise, their sweetness never experienced before... and one to be repeated before the season is out. Making our way from the fields, laden with an abundance of strawberries, peas, spinach, and onions I spotted a sign for rhubarb. It's the only polarising food in our house, but I love rhubarb and could not miss the opportunity pick it straight from the field. Pulling the long red stalks from the plant, the popping sound gave an indication of how stringy it could be. A thoroughly satisfying time resulted in a more bountiful crop than planned prooving a somewhat over ambitious amount for breakfast. So, I am currently planning the next trip to a PYO to coincide with some of my seasonal favourites, and I am particularly looking forward to the blackcurrants coming later this month!