In this week’s episode, Neil talks to medlar expert Jane Steward. Jane has done sterling work in the area of medlar awareness, and now the medlar is not the forgotten fruit it once was. She has a medlar orchard and associated business Eastgate Larder selling a whole range of medlar products, and is the author of Medlars: Growing & Cooking, published by Prospect Books.

We discuss how Jane discovered the fruit and made a business out of it, the domesticated varieties and wild fruits, growing medlar trees, the importance of medlars in the past, medlars in the kitchen, the subtleties of making medlar jelly and much more.

Follow Jane on Instagram and Twitter @eastgatelarder

The Eastgate Larder website: www.eastgatelarder.co.uk

Jane’s book Medlars: Cooking & Eating: https://prospectbooks.co.uk/products-page/new-and-forthcoming-titles/medlars-growing-cooking/

There are 3 Easter eggs associated with this episode, to access them start a monthly £3 subscription.

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Read Neil’s work on the medlar:

Forgotten Foods #7: Openarses (also available as part of the mini-season on the Easter Eggs page of the website) https://britishfoodhistory.com/2017/11/12/forgotten-foods-7-openarses/

How to Make Medlar Jelly: https://britishfoodhistory.com/2017/11/17/how-to-make-medlar-or-quince-or-crab-apple-jelly/

Medlar Tart: https://britishfoodhistory.com/2018/11/19/medlar-tart/

That Shakespeare Life ‘Medlars’ episode: https://open.spotify.com/episode/2w7xGGBye93jvO39IuntTO?si=395c4f240f7d4f5d

Other bits:

Neil’s blogs:

‘British Food: a History’ http://britishfoodhistory.com

‘Neil Cooks Grigson’ http://neilcooksgrigson.com

Buy Before Mrs Beeton: Elizabeth Raffald, England’s Most Influential Housekeeper at your favourite bookshop, or from the publisher Pen & Sword History: www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Before-Mrs-Beeton-Hardback/p/22437

Neil’s other book A Dark History of Sugar is available now from all bookshops as well as from the publisher Pen & Sword: https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/A-Dark-History-of-Sugar-Hardback/p/20481

Don’t forget there will be postbag episodes, so if you have any questions or queries about today’s episode, or indeed any episode, or have a question about the history of British food please email Neil at [email protected], or find me on twitter @neilbuttery, or Instagram dr_neil_buttery my DMs are open.

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