Easter is all about the chance to share the table with family and friends at the same time that the season has some of my favourite produce on offer. Pomegranates, figs, eggplant, fennel, pumpkin, quince and new season’s olive oil make for some inspired cooking with the chance to let the produce shine rather than rely on any fancy techniques - that’s my style of cooking! For any family gathering I always come back to the kinds of dishes that can find their way to the middle of the table with very little fuss beyond a final flourish of olive oil and a handful of freshly chopped herbs. One of my favourites for Easter is Hare with Pine Nuts, Lemon and Sultanas - a great dish for sharing. I love serving it with parsnips, but for Easter perhaps it should be Carrots in Verjuice? Whenever I have a large gathering to cook for I always call on help for those last minute jobs; herb picking and chopping, salad washing, carrot peeling or topping up drinks are the kinds of things that allow everyone to be involved in creating the meal and help to relieve the host of any stress. My other essential when entertaining is music. I always make sure to have music - at volume - to really encourage everyone to feel at home from the moment they arrive. Once a drink has been placed in their hand the rest seems to take care of itself.
