Pumpkin is a versatile food with many traditional, warming recipes ideal for autumn and winter. Here are recipes for Pumpkin Pie and Pumpkin Soup.

Midsummer's Day. What better time for the archetypal summer treat, home-made Summer Pudding with clotted cream. I salivate just thinking about it.

What do you do when your garden is heaving with rocket, just about to flower and bolt into seed? The answer is Rocket Pesto, a way of conserving this lovely taste of summer for six months or so.

It was in April 07 that I read in the Sunday Times about the fantastically tasty potatoes on the Ile de Batz, near Roscoff on the coast of Brittany. The article described how the islanders grow potatoes in seaweed.

It felt like the first touch of autumn today and my mind turned to getting in some wood for the winter. On the way up the hill I noticed there were many windfall hazel nuts on the ground and picked up a few to take home for later as my teeth aren't up to cracking them any more.

There are thousands of varieties of apples, from small, sweet and crisp to large fluffy and sour. Herbalists have long used apples in the treatment of digestive disorders.

Recipes  for wild food lovers! This coming year, plan ahead for a special  dinner party made from wild food collected from the countryside and  from 'local'  suppliers.

A bumper crop this year and I picked a lot in a couple of hours with the thought of making wild blackberry and apple crumble.

In this age of Viagra it hardly seems worth mentioning the awesome power of pure  food in provoking and promoting enjoyable sex, but both food and sex share  one important attribute in common; they are activities that employ all of  the senses.  Explore recipe ideas here for an Epicurean 'erotic meal', one  that can stimulate both the capacity and the desire for sexual activity.  Let food seduce you!

NETTLE SOUP (Urtica Dioica). Weather-wise it was the first day of spring in Cornwall, with warm sun and a brisk wind from the west. I set off in search of fresh nettles for some of my favourite soup.

YARROW TEA (Achillea Millefolium). Yarrow has an ancient history. The generic name comes from Achilles who saved the lives of his warriors by healing their wounds with yarrow leaves.

TAYBERRY AND STRAWBERRY JAM. These berries are rich in vitamin C and provide a recognised boost to the immune system. The fresh berries are rich in bioflavonoids, fibre and folate.  The leaves and roots are also a valuable herb that can help to control diarrhoea. The chewing of  blackberry leaves for bleeding gums goes back at least 2000 years.

ROWAN JELLY RECIPE. The Rowan was such a sacred tree to the Celts that many churchyards in Wales still include the tree, not unlike the Yew tree in English churchyards. The berries were much used by the Celts for brewing wine, spirit, flavouring mead, ale, perry and cider. Try squeezing some of the fresh berry juice and putting it into a gin and tonic - it makes a convincing alternative to Angostura bitters.

ROSEMARY FLOWER CANDIES (Rosemarinus Officinalis). Rosemary has long been recognised as a valuable heart and liver tonic and its use can help to reduce high blood pressure. It has been used in the treatment of nervous complaints, digestive disorders and menstrual pains.

EARTHNUTS or PIGNUTS (Conopodium Majus). Although these tasty tubers are beloved of pigs (hence the  name) they are a most unusual and rewarding woodland snack and there was a time when they were a popular nibble for country children on their way to and from school. Real hunter-gatherer food for free !

Watercress soup is warming when hot and a refreshing summer soup when served cold. Watercress is part of the Nasturtium  family whose peppery leaves are well known for their nutraceutical value. You can store it in the freezer for all-year-round use.