Five ways to cook with fennel this September

The flowering herb is part of the carrot family and is often used as a vegetable, but leaves few sitting on the fence due to its strong aniseed flavour

Fennel and radicchio salad

Radicchio is a firm favourite on the farm; we grow it for a small spell every year. It has a dark, bitter taste and needs to be balanced with some sourness, sweetness and saltiness. Mix the fennel separately to keep the white-green colour from being dulled by the lentils and balsamic. It tends to start browning when cut, so the acidic orange dressing is perfect to combat this.

1 large or 2 smaller fennel bulbs
1 orange, zested and juiced
½ tsp ground fennel
Olive oil
1 radicchio​
1 tin dark lentils, drained and rinsed
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 shallot, finely sliced
1 tsp light brown sugar
60g green olives, halved
60g toasted walnut pieces
125g ricotta cheese
Handful parsley, roughly chopped
Salt and pepper

Trim the stalk tops from the fennel, reserving any green fronds, and cut into quarters. Remove the tough core from each piece with a small V-shaped cut. Thinly slice each quarter, lengthways. Put the fennel into a bowl and dress with half the orange juice, the ground fennel, a pinch of salt and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Mix together well and set to one side.

Remove the root end of the radicchio and break it into separate leaves. Tear the larger leaves into manageable pieces. Keep the smaller ones whole. Radicchio can be quite large so you may only need half or so. Add the radicchio and drained lentils to another bowl. Dress with the vinegar, shallot, sugar, 2 tablespoons olive oil and some salt and pepper. Mix well, taste, adjust the seasoning accordingly and set to one side.

Roughly chop any fennel fronds you may have. Drain the olives and slice them in half. Break any large pieces of walnuts up. Divide the radicchio and lentil mix between 2 plates. Scatter the sliced fennel artfully amongst the leaves. Spoon some of the fennel dressing across the plates.

Crumble over the ricotta and scatter the parsley, walnuts, olives, orange zest and any fennel fronds across the top.

Recipe from Riverford.co.uk

(Riverford)

Aubergine parmigiana with watercress and fennel salad

Clearly Italian in origin, this dish is a staple in almost every pub and bar in Australia, much like our treatment of lasagne. They often make it with chicken but the veggie option is always with aubergines (or eggplants down under). It’s a more authentic version and more likely to be the true source of the dish. Although versions range from the scandalous to the sublime, it is relatively simple in its essence and relies more on good ingredients than it does culinary craftsmanship.

2 aubergines
1 red onion
1 garlic clove
Olive oil
400g passata​
2 tomatoes
1 ball mozzarella
25g Italian style cheese
40g breadcrumbs
2 tbsp pesto
1 lemon
50g watercress
1 fennel bulb
Salt and pepper

Remove and discard the green tops from the aubergines. Slice them widthways into 1cm thick discs. Season them lightly with salt and keep to one side. Peel and finely slice the red onion. Peel and finely slice or crush the garlic clove. Warm 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a saucepan. Gently fry the onion for about 10 minutes until starting to soften. Meanwhile heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a frying pan.

Lay in as many aubergine slices as you can. Fry until coloured on both sides, 4-5 minutes. Put to one side and repeat in batches until they are all cooked. Aubergines like to soak up olive oil so you’ll need to add a little more to the pan as you go to keep them frying. Add the garlic to the onions. Cook for a further 2 minutes before adding the passata. Simmer for 2-3 minutes to heat the passata. Check the seasoning, adjust with salt and pepper to taste. Preheat your oven to 200C/gas mark 6.

Cut each tomato into 6 slices. Drain the mozzarella and tear the ball into 12 chunks. Mix the breadcrumbs with 25g of Italian style cheese and 1 tablespoon of oil. Lay half of the aubergines into the dish. Dot half of the pesto across the aubergines, followed by half of the sliced tomatoes, half the mozzarella and half the tomato sauce. Repeat the layering process to fill the tray. Top with the cheese and breadcrumb mix.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until the top is golden and bubbling. Meanwhile wash and dry the watercress. Trim away the tops from the fennel. Cut it in half and cut away the bottom root core with a small V-shaped cut. Slice each half as thinly as you can lengthways. Dress the watercress and fennel with a squeeze of lemon and a little olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe from Riverford.co.uk

(Farmdrop)

Warm spelt salad with roasted fennel and butternut squash

This wholesome autumnal salad is rich in colour and comforting in flavour. Spelt grain is the star of the show and works beautifully with the caramelised roasted vegetables.

Time: 45 minutes
Serves 4

250g spelt grain
1 butternut squash
1 fennel
1 red onion
100ml olive oil
50ml sherry vinegar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp chilli flakes
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 180C/gas 4. Put a pan of salted water on to boil with a tablespoon of stock powder. Cut the butternut squash in half widthways, then cut each half lengthways into 1cm-wide strips.

Trim the top of the fennel and remove the root end, then slice lengthways. Cut the onion in half, without removing the skin, then cut each half into 4 wedges. Put the fennel, squash and onion into a roasting tin. Add olive oil, salt and chilli flakes, shake around, then roast for 30 minutes.

Pour the spelt grain into the pan of boiling water and cook on a medium heat for 30 minutes; it will still have bite when cooked. Drain the spelt and dress with the mustard, oil and vinegar, adding salt and pepper to taste. When the veg is cooked and caramelised, take out of the oven. Remove the skins from the onions and and break the petals apart.

Combine the roasted vegetables with the spelt, taste and season, then serve.

Recipe from Farmdrop.com

(Farmdrop)

Pulled pork buns and fennel slaw

What meat eater doesn’t love sweet and smokey pulled pork? Before you dismiss this as something you’d never bother to make at home, just look at how simple this recipe is, using minimal ingredients (not a sniff of liquid smoke) with maximum results.

Serves 6
Time: 6 hours 30 mins

For the pork

2 onions
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp dark muscovado sugar
2 tbsp smoked sea salt
2 tbsp fennel seeds
2kg pork shoulder
250ml South Carolina BBQ sauce
4 sourdough buns

For the slaw

1 fennel bulb
2 celery stalks
A handful of dill
1 lemon
150g crème fraîche
Salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 140C. Peel and quarter onions and place in a deep baking tray around double the size of the pork with the bay leaves. For the rub, combine the sugar, salt and fennel seeds in a pestle and mortar. Bash together for a minute then rub into the pork, making sure you get into all the crevices.

Place the pork on a wire rack on top of the onions in the baking tray. Pour one pint of water into the tray then cover the whole thing tightly with foil (this will prevent the meat from drying out). Cook in the oven for 6 hours or until the pork pulls apart in easy chunks, topping up the tray with water halfway through cooking if it dries out.

For the slaw, remove any scruffy fronds from the fennel. Either using a sharp knife or a mandolin, slice the fennel bulb and celery stalks super thin and place in a bowl. Finely chop the dill and add to the bowl along with the juice from the lemon, the crème fraîche, salt and pepper. Chill until needed.

After 6 hours, remove the pork from the oven. Pop the tray on top of the stove, fishing out the bay leaves. Pour in the BBQ sauce, bring to the boil then simmer for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, pull the meat apart into bite-sized chunks using two forks. Tip into the BBQ sauce warm and mix with a fork.

To serve, toast the buns in a griddle pan or pop in the toaster. Fill the buns generously with pulled pork and the fennel slaw and serve.

Recipe from Farmdrop.com

​

Fennel apple juice

Spike your usual apple juice with fennel, pear and lashings of ice for a virtuous yet refreshing drink.

Serves 1-2
Time: 10 mins

2 apples
1 pear
Half bulb fennel
Juice of one lemon

Remove the skin from the lemon. Thoroughly wash all the fruit and fennel and roughly chop to fit into your juicer.

Push all ingredients through your juicer. Serve with lots of ice and slices of fennel and pear. Drink immediately or keep in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Recipe from Farmdrop.com