May in Gozo

Malta

It’s all going on in May…. bigger fish, vegetables come to life… and the sun hints at better things to come.

Broad bean or Ful I think I would probably have my Maltese citizenship revoked if i didn’t mention the Broad bean in May. It’s most certainly the month for legumes, when I lived on the Mgarr, Manikata border in Malta, quite often id see fresh chickpea plants and shell remnants, but sadly that’s quickly disappearing, luckily the broad bean is alive and well… as well as ubiquitous. Nothing beats picking them when they are young, tender, sweet and green and of course snacking on them whilst picking always helps.

Caper Wherever you look in the Mediterranean, your never very far from the Garrigue, the cliffs surrounding Gozo offer a wealth of promise with the ‘ever giving’ Caper plant, if its not berries, its beautiful flowering shrubs, after which my favourite the Caper berry makes an appearance, the leaves even make it to the table in some parts of the Mediterranean.

Celeriac We say goodbye to the unsung hero of many a restaurant plate, people often ask me ‘What is a celeriac’ well here it is in all its knobbly, unprocessed beauty, it’s the root of the celery plant ! Its not been trendy for that long and a lot of that has to do with Mr Ottolenghi and his wonderful writings, If you ask any veg supplier he will tell you its available all year round, what he won’t tell you is that its at its best from September to May. However, saying that it is a truly delicious vegetable and a great meat substitute for those ‘meat free’ Mondays.

Peas we take peas for granted, obviously, there is always a bag at the bottom of your freezer, but if you have never podded peas with your elders, well… Some of the best Pastizzi I’ve tried used a mixture of fresh peas and ful, which elevates this every day, greasy snack food to the next level.

Fresh peas start in May and go all the way through till November. As with any type of legume, they are best eaten when just-picked and your grandmother is supervising!

Rhubarb According to the people that know these things Rhubarb isn’t exactly a fruit, it’s a vegetable – a herbaceous perennial plant ! Normally its imported into Gozo, however I have seen a few pods around the island although on private land. They are usually imported from Italy between January and July. Originally cultivated for its medicinal properties, Rhubarb is very low in calories, cholesterol free, low in fat, and quite high in fibre, providing you don’t put too much sugar and custard on it !

Whatever you do please don’t eat the leaves as they are toxic and contain a substance called ‘Oxalic acid’. Which is pretty nasty stuff.

Gilthead Seabream or Awrata: Dorada in Spain, Orata in Italy, Amber Sea Bream in Greece, In Tunisia, it is known as Dorate and there are many more names around the Mediterranean, generally it is regarded as the most flavoursome of the Sea Bream family, although generally caught by line there are many aquaculture areas within the Mediterranean where it has reproduced successfully using intensive rearing systems. Gilt head seabream, has become one of European aquaculture’s main fish species.. However If possible I would always buy the wild creature.

Line caught fish is becoming more scarce as time goes on and while it is the most sustainable way to buy the fish, farmed Sea Bream are always available. I have to say im not a fan of farmed fish as it has consequences of choice, its not great for the environment and whilst it produces specimens on an annual basis, there is a cost attached, one that isn’t being addressed locally. So choose carefully.

“fish for tomorrow suggests that you Eat in Moderation as it is predominantly farmed. While aquaculture eases pressure on the wild stocks of Gilthead Seabream, it has other environmental implications.”

https://www.fishfortomorrow.com/quickfish/gilthead-seabream

Meat: The garden is recovering from its winter slumber, the hens rediscover the compost heap, digging and pecking around looking for insects and other consumables, the extra light of the day brings them to life, and they start to lay more regularly. The term ‘Spring Chicken’ didn’t just appear from nowhere… as we enter spring and our thoughts turn to lighter meals, young chicken in the Spring Months is an obvious choice, it’s a great protein, lighter in flavour that what we have been eating for the last few months and enormously versatile.