Spring is in the air!

Spring is slowly finding its way to the UK. For most of the last week the weather was pleasant enough that I wasn't miserable about leaving the sun in California the week before. However, as I write this, it is pretty gross outside. It's isn't raining so much as it is grey. So I decided not to leave the house today and spend it in the kitchen.

One of the nice treats in the shops coming back home was the appearance of this season's Jersey Royal new potatoes. The gorgeous little potatoes have such a great taste and a fab story behind it that I get really excited when I see them in shops or on a restaurant menu this time of year. Jersey Royals are only found in Jersey and were discovered in the late 19th century by a farmer and were first called Jersey Royal Fluke. It is the growing conditions that make this potato. The slope of the island allows extra sunlight to hit the growing fields in season. Locally collected seaweed is used as fertislier and much of it is dug up by hand.

In the end I decided to boil and crush mine with the rosemary and lemon Chiara sent me in EBBP4. I didn't think that The Boy would be very fond of lemons with his potatoes but he gave them a thumbs up. The leftovers will be used in a salad for lunch tomorrow.

Crushed New Potatoes with Lemon and Rosemary

Serves 2-3
Ingredients:

500g Jersey Royal new potatoes
2 tbsp. olive oil
zest and juice of 1 lemon
3 sprigs of rosemary, chopped

Clean and scrub the potatoes and boil in salted water for 15-20 minutes (or until cooked). Once the potatoes are cooked, drain and put to one side.

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the lemon zest and chopped rosemary and fry for 30 seconds.

Add the potatoes and lightly crush with a fork or masher. Add the lemon juice and fry for5 minutes. Don't over stir the pan or the potatoes will crumble; the idea is to get a light crust on the potatoes.

Sprinkle with sea salt for an extra crunch before serving.