July
Generally
"The only acceptable British circumstance for a picnic, as far as I am concerned, is whelks with vinegar and pepper in the car parked on the seafront somewhere, with headscarves on and the windows rolled down."
Vegetables
Commentary
Over-abundant salads and mediterranean vegetables are at their best.
Shopping List
Beetroot, broad beans, broccoli, carrots, cauliflowers, celery, Chinese leaves, courgettes, cucumbers, green beans, garlic, herbs generally, lettuce, mange-tout, okra, peas, peppers, potatoes (new), radishes, spring onions, tomatoes, sweetcorn, watercress.
Fruit and Nuts
Commentary
Summer pudding is good now. Soft fruits should be at their best.
Marinate excess raspberries in vinegar and sugar; strain and boil the lot to make a thick sauce to be bottled and used throughout winter (on Yorkshire pudding?!).
Shopping List
Apricots, bilberries, blackberries, blackcurrants, gooseberries (if you can find them), melons, nectarines, peaches, raspberries, strawberries.
Fish and Seafood
Commentary
Very good at present.
Shopping List
Dover sole, grey mullet, grilse, gurnard, haddock, hake, halibut, herring, lobster, plaince, prawns, red mullet, salmon, sardines, shrimps, squid, whelks, whitebait.
Meat, Poultry and Game
Commentary
Don't bother, especially when the fish is so good.
Shopping List
Beef, chicken, guinea-fowl, lamb.
Cheese
Commentary
Not much going on here.