Lettuce

[ardcarp]

Yesterday's news led us to believe there was a crisis of Trump/Brexit proportions.

(a) In my youth we somehow survived without lettuce in the winter. And I'm not sure such exotics as Iceberg were available at any season

(b) Mrs A reports that Tescos was brimming with lettuce of all varieties this morning.

Perhaps this was 'fake news'.

[ahinton]

Yesterday's news led us to believe there was a crisis of Trump/Brexit proportions.

(a) In my youth we somehow survived without lettuce in the winter. And I'm not sure such exotics as Iceberg were available at any season

(b) Mrs A reports that Tescos was brimming with lettuce of all varieties this morning.

Perhaps this was 'fake news'.

Not entirely. The weather in parts of Spain has been quite unusually bad and has accordingly affected their. produce

[teamsaint]

Yesterday's news led us to believe there was a crisis of Trump/Brexit proportions.

(a) In my youth we somehow survived without lettuce in the winter. And I'm not sure such exotics as Iceberg were available at any season

(b) Mrs A reports that Tescos was brimming with lettuce of all varieties this morning.

Perhaps this was 'fake news'.

well there's fake news and fake news.

here's some more " news" from 2010.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/over-ten-million-people-to-live-to-100

which of course isn't news at all, but the mainstream media swallow this stuff, and the alternative media respond in kind. IMO.

Pity the BBC don't focus a bit more on some of the less palatable stuff going on round the globe, or UK homelessness, or whatever.

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

On a less frivolous note, Spain is a country that has an issue with water supply, yet they export a significant amount to the UK by selling us fruit and veg like lettuce and tomatoes, that have a very high water content.

[Richard Tarleton]

Our local Tesco has not had aubergines (or courgettes) for a few weeks now. I managed to track aubergines down to a local greengrocer in order to do our favourite aubergine and lentil bake (recipe on request) and was staggered to be charged £3.46 for two medium sized ones. Fortunately the recipe is a two-nighter.

[ardcarp]

Yum! Recipe please.

[teamsaint]

no probs with aubergines here, so all good for Aubergine and chickpea curry, but no courgettes around here for weeks.

( although our nearest supermarket puts aubergines singly in a plastic bag.....)

[Dave2002]

No signs of aubergines or courgettes round here, though I did manage to get some broccoli despite the Daily Wail suggesting I couldn't.

Butternut squashes there are aplenty, however.

[teamsaint]

No signs of aubergines or courgettes round here, though I did manage to get some broccoli despite the Daily Wail suggesting I couldn't.

Butternut squashes there are aplenty, however.

I've got one, yours for a fiver Dave.

Edit: I'll throw in a butternut squash....

[Richard Tarleton]

Yum! Recipe please.

Preheat oven to 180C/350F/Gas mark 4

(This is a 2-nighter for 2 people, 1 night for 4 )

Slice 2 aubergines lengthways into thin slices. Brush with olive oil, bake for 15 minutes or so on oven tray. Set aside.

Cook your lentils (about a large cupful for 2 people) - green or Puy for preference

Stir fry 1 onion and 1 red pepper, 2-3 garlic cloves, chopped

Layer ½ the lentils and ½ the aubergine slices in a baking dish, pour on ½ the onion and pepper mixture with ½ tin of chopped tomatoes or passata, some chopped sun-dried tomatoes, herbs, repeat layers.

Top with mixture of breadcrumbs and grated Cheddar, bake for 45 minutes. Serve with salad (that's if you can find any )

[oddoneout]

On a less frivolous note, Spain is a country that has an issue with water supply, yet they export a significant amount to the UK by selling us fruit and veg like lettuce and tomatoes, that have a very high water content.

And the production of such veg is also destroying the soil, so areas of land have to be abandoned as no longer suitable for (modern) production.

[vinteuil]

.

Richard T - very many thanks for your # 10.

I hope we will be trying this out next week...

[oddoneout]

(a) In my youth we somehow survived without lettuce in the winter. And I'm not sure such exotics as Iceberg were available at any season:

There were and still are many varieties of winter hardy lettuce which can be grown in this country, several well over 100 years old and still going strong. Some can be grown outside with little cosseting other than keeping the birds off, some appreciate an unheated polytunnel or greenhouse. I used to grow 'Winter Density'( circa 1800) for the family's salads and we all agreed it was probably the best lettuce for taste and texture bar none.
Webb's Wonderful was the pre-Iceberg alternative, and still has much to recommend it, but as is often the way Iceberg is better for commercial production, not least for denser heads and more compact plants.Supermarket demands and the cost of fuel make for difficulties in this country with large scale winter lettuce production, but for the amateur or small local grower there is no reason why homegrown shouldn't be possible, and the old varieties often do better than the modern ones. A glasshouse trial some years ago saw commercial kinds soundly trounced in terms of disease resistance, cold tolerance and flavour by several 'heritage' ones.

[jayne lee wilson]

Courgettes missing here, some tomato varieties, otherwise OK.....
I need raw veg nearly every day so buy lots of crunchy salad foods, but lettuce isn't usually one of them - prefer butterhead, rocket, pea shoots or cress along with radishes, cucumber, antipasti, sliced yellow peppers and so on. I'm gluten-free and have salad with almost every meal. If ever the fresh supplies were seriously interrupted I would be in trouble...

[ahinton]

Courgettes missing here, some tomato varieties, otherwise OK.....
I need raw veg nearly every day so buy lots of crunchy salad foods, but lettuce isn't usually one of them - prefer butterhead, rocket, pea shoots or cress along with radishes, cucumber, antipasti, sliced yellow peppers and so on. I'm gluten-free and have salad with almost every meal. If ever the fresh supplies were seriously interrupted I would be in trouble...

Apart from the absence of aubergines and problems trying to source tomatoes with any appreciable flavour, no problems around this neck of the woods. Salad stuffs are a big deal for me throughout the year as well, although I'm not on a gluten-free diet and am not a veggie per se.