Jane Scotter can summarise her passions in life more neatly than most. “I like food,” the Fern Verrow founder tells me over the phone from her 16-acre biodynamic holding in Hertfordshire. “I like beautiful things. And I like very hard work.” Lucky, then, that she’s built a career combining all three, acting as both the primary supplier of Skye Gyngell’s Spring in London and the head market gardener at Heckfield Place in Hampshire, where Gyngell oversees the menus at on-site restaurants Hearth and Marle.
Together, the two are known for masterminding elegant yet unfussy plates built around hyper-seasonal, gloriously colorful produce and flowers: think spring radishes in every shade of purple, artfully arranged next to a pile of cod’s roe and salted butter; bowls of peaches and gooseberry ice cream garlanded with rose geraniums; and leaves of blush-toned radicchio piled on TooGood plates and anointed with a spritz of winter citrus juice. “The visual is just so important to us as women,” Jane reflects 10 years into her relationship with Skye. “Plates that look and taste gorgeous without feeling too ‘done’: that’s the true meaning of a feast.”
It’s a thesis Scotter and Gyngell have been backing up all summer long at Heckfield Place with a series of events marking the 100-year anniversary of biodynamic farming, culminating this September in a special Sunday lunch themed around the harvest’s bounty and held on their Home Farm. “When it comes down to it,” Jane tells me, “there’s really no other way forward besides biodynamic farming for our planet. It’s tricky and exhausting, yes—but it’s also a joy in every sense.”
Tickets for the event on 22 September are available now, with the menu set to be paired with ciders courtesy of Two Orchards, Find Foster, and Naughton Cider. And for those of us who can’t make it to Hampshire? Find three recipes for a late summer feast courtesy of Skye, below.
Tomatoes with Eggs and Miso Mayonnaise
Feeds 4 as a starter
- 400g tomatoes, mixed varieties
- 6 eggs
- 100ml extra virgin olive oil
- 100ml rapeseed oil
- 2 tablespoons of white miso (or whichever variety you can get your hands on)
- Juice of half a lemon and half a lime (possibly more or less, to taste)
- Red wine vinegar, to taste
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Bring a small pot of water to a gentle boil with a container of ice water next to it. Cook 4 of the eggs in the boiling water for 7 ½ minutes and, as soon as the time is up, drain them before transferring to the ice water. Leave them to cool (at least 3 or 4 minutes) before carefully peeling and setting aside.
In the meantime, start working on your mayonnaise. Add the remaining 2 egg yolks to a food processor along with the miso and half of the lemon and lime juice (keep the egg whites for other recipes, such as meringues). Blend for a few seconds on a slow-to-medium speed and then, with the motor still running, slowly add the combined oils until an emulsion is formed. Take your time; if you add too much, too quickly, the mayonnaise will split. Once you’re happy with the consistency, check the seasoning. Add the remaining citrus if you think it wants it and a pinch of salt if required (miso is naturally salted, so it may not be). Set aside.
Slice the tomatoes into different shapes and sizes, and dress them with a good splash of extra virgin olive oil, a little red wine vinegar, salt, and pepper. Carefully slice the peeled eggs in half and season them with salt and a little pepper, too. (As always, taste as you go.) When you’re ready to serve, spread the miso mayonnaise on the bottom of the plate, before arranging the eggs and tomatoes on top. Finish the dish with plenty of soft herbs (either coriander, green and purple basil or a mix of chervil, dill, and tarragon works really well).
Creamed Corn with Green Chilli, Honeycomb, and Spenwood
Serves 10 to 12
- 10 heads of corn
- ½ bunch of coriander stalks
- 2 green chillies, deseeded
- 1 head of garlic, cut in half
- Salt, lime juice, and sugar to taste
Strip the kernels from the cobs and set them aside, keeping the cobs. Place the cobs in a large pan with the coriander stalks, green chilies, and garlic. Fill the pan with water until the cobs are just covered. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 to 45 minutes. Strain the stock, reserving the coriander stalks, green chilies, and garlic, and bring the liquid back to the boil.
Add the corn kernels to the stock and cook until tender. Remove the corn and blend with the reserved coriander stalks, green chilies, and garlic, along with a ladle of stock, until smooth and creamy. Finish with salt and lime to taste. If the corn isn’t sweet enough, add a spoonful of sugar. Pass through a fine sieve, and set aside.
- 5 heads of corn
- A few tablespoons of honey butter
- 5 green chillies, finely diced
- ½ bunch of coriander leaves, picked
- 1 lime
Grill the corn in the husk until the outside is charred and the inner corn kernels are tender. Peel away the charred husk, brush the corn with melted honey butter and grill until lightly charred (but not dried). Strip the kernels from the cob and set aside. Just before serving, warm the corn kernels in a teaspoon of honey butter, a pinch of diced green chilli, chopped coriander and a generous squeeze of lime juice.
- Spenwood cheese
- Honeycomb
- Coriander flowers
Fill a soup bowl to the halfway point with purée. Top generously with the grilled corn until the purée is completely covered. Add five small pieces of fresh honeycomb, distributed evenly across the bowl. Cover with a grating of Spenwood cheese and a sprinkling of coriander flowers.
Apple, Lemon, and Vanilla Tart with Apple Ice Cream
- 250g plain flour
- ¾ tsp fine sea salt
- 1 ½ tsp caster sugar
- 125g unsalted butter, cold and diced
- 1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of a food processor, pulsing the machine briefly to distribute them evenly. Add the cold butter and pulse a few seconds at a time, until the butter is ground into the consistency of breadcrumbs. With the motor running, add the egg and egg yolks and blend until the mixture comes together, just before a dough forms. Tip the dough out onto a surface and gently knead together into a disc. Wrap tightly in baking paper and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Grease and line the base of a 30cm tart pan with baking paper. On a clean and lightly floured surface, roll the pastry to a 35cm round, approximately 4mm thick. Carefully line the tart tin, pressing into the edges where the base meets the sides. Trim any excess pastry, using the edges of the tin as a guide. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or preferably overnight.
To blind bake, remove the tart shell from the fridge. Line the pastry with a large sheet of scrunched-up baking paper. Fill the paper with baking beans or rice to weigh the pastry down. Bake at 170 degrees Celsius on the lowest shelf of a fan-assisted oven for 25 minutes. Once the edges of the crust are beginning to turn golden, carefully remove the baking paper with the beans or rice and move to a bowl.
Using a little scrap of pastry dough, carefully patch any cracks in the shell. Place the tart case back in the oven and bake until deeply golden, for another 15 to 20 minutes. Finally, brush the inside of the crust with beaten egg, to fill in any small cracks and preserve the crispness of the pastry. Dry in the oven for 2 minutes, then set aside to cool completely.
- 225g double cream
- 175g whole milk
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 60g caster sugar (1st)
- 60g egg yolks
- 700g apple juice, freshly juiced
- 50g caster sugar (2nd)
Set a fine sieve over a large container and set aside.
Add the cream, milk, salt, and first measure of sugar to a heavy based pot and place over a gentle heat, until steaming. Meanwhile, gently whisk the egg yolks in a large bowl to break up. Slowly ladle the hot cream mix into the egg mixture, stirring as you do so.
Return the custard to the saucepan and place over a low heat. Using a flexible spatula, stir the custard continuously using a figure-of-eight motion until the custard is thick enough to coat the back of the spoon (between 76 and 78 degrees Celsius on a thermometer). Remove from the heat, and immediately pour through the sieve. Continue to stir gently. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.
The following day, add 400g of custard to a large bowl along with the apple juice and remaining sugar. Whisk until well combined, then taste for seasoning. It may need a little more sugar or a squeeze of lemon juice.
Churn in an ice cream maker as per the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to a container, cover, and freeze for at least 2 hours before serving.
- 8 medium eating apples
- 160g blanched almonds
- 1 vanilla bean, finely chopped
- 40g plain flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 2 lemons, finely zested
- 2 large eggs
- 300g caster sugar
- 115g butter, gently melted
- 180g whole milk
Peel the apples, then cut into quarters and carefully core each one. If you wish, reserve the skins and cores to make a little sauce. Slice the apples into 3 to 4mm thick slices and set aside on a chopping board while making the filling.
In the bowl of a food processor, add the almonds, vanilla, flour, baking powder and zest. Pulse the machine until the almonds are finely ground. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and the sugar together until most of the sugar has dissolved. Add the melted butter and milk to the eggs and whisk to combine. Finally, add the dry ingredients to the batter and mix with a flexible spatula until well incorporated.
Begin arranging the apples in a concentric circle, beginning from the outer edge, barely overlapping, apple core facing down. Repeat with all the apples until you’ve reached the centre of the tart case. Now give the filling a light stir, then pour over the apples slowly, leaving it to sink in between the slices, until the shell is filled to the brim.
Decrease the oven temperature to 160 degrees Celsius. Carefully transfer the tart to the oven and bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until the apples feel tender when pierced with a sharp knife. Rotate halfway through if necessary. Remove, and leave to cool completely on a wire rack.
If you are making the sauce, add the skins and cores to a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a simmer and cook for 45 minutes until the liquid is flavourful and slightly viscous. Strain through a sieve, add back into the pot, along with a third of the stock weight in sugar, and heat until bubbling. Boil for a few minutes, then leave to cool completely.
To serve, slice the tart carefully with a long serrated knife. Serve with a small pillow of lightly whipped cream, a drizzle of apple sauce (if using), and a scoop of apple ice cream.