Julius Roberts

'A heart-warming and uplifting book. The recipes are utterly gorgeous.' NIGEL SLATER

First-generation farmer and chef Julius Roberts runs a smallholding in deepest Dorset with herds of Hebridean sheep, hand reared goats and chickens. You can often catch him cooking in his greenhouse among the beehives sharing honest tales of farming life and his gentle, thoughtful dishes. This modern-day Laurie Lee has also shared his first summer on the smallholding in Channel 5 's A Taste of the Country.

Now, with a glorious debut cookbook, The Farm Table Julius visits us here in Bath to cook in the bookshop and share his love of the most simple ingredients that help us reconnect to nature and the seasons.

The chapters run seasonally with wintery tastes like elegant, fuss-free dinner of roast pumpkin, mozzarella, hazelnuts and sage, and a hearty sausage stew. Spring brings us baked fish with herbs and asparagus, chicken roasted over lemon, fennel and potatoes, and a lamb stew with pearl barley
How about a courgette pasta, a ratatouille galette, and a steamed apricot sponge for summer. And lovely
autumnal smoked haddock and leek rarebit and pan-fried trout with mash and spinach sauce.

Passionate about seasonality, Julius shows us how to make the most of produce, from crisp, crunchy apples in autumn, pink rhubarb in winter, asparagus in spring and the first summer strawberries.

Julius is on a mission to live a self-sufficient life down on his family smallholding in Dorset, whilst also cultivating the finest ingredients, and cooking and eating the very best food.