AUTUMN BECKONS
During school years and for a while after, when I was a teacher, September was for getting excited about new stationery. Now, for me, September is about making the most of the last of the summer produce and getting excited about autumn fruits. There’s a bounty of produce to keep us busy in the kitchen: beetroot, cabbage, salad leaves, spinach, figs and raspberries are all in season.
In the garden of my first-ever flat, I had a tiny Victoria plum tree. After going away one summer and leaving the fruit to go uneaten, my neighbour gave me a good telling off and warned me that if I were to ever do that again, she would pick them herself. Rightly so. Now, I’m keen to make the most of them in puddings such as my plum upside-down cake on page
