By Caroline Young

What a pleasure it is to find so many homegrown fruits and vegetables on the supermarket shelves and know they haven’t travelled hundreds of miles to reach our kitchens! I just cannot resist all the berries, fruits, herbs and salad vegetables now available and enjoy cooking them (or serving them raw) in delicious summer recipes. I hope you enjoy some of my favourites.

Penne pasta with asparagus and plum tomatoes Serves 2

Cover 3 ripe plum tomatoes with boiling water and leave to stand 4-5 min. Drain, cut out the stem ends and slip off the skins. Cut into quarters and scoop out and discard the seeds. Cut off any woody tough ends from 225g English asparagus then cut stems into 5cm pieces. Cook 175g penne pasta in a large pan of salted boiling water until just tender.

Meanwhile, using a large frying pan bring 300ml chicken or vegetable stock just to the boil, add the asparagus and cook over medium heat for 4 min. Add the tomatoes and continue to cook for about 3 min or until the asparagus is just tender. Drain the pasta and tip into a large, warmed bowl. Using a slotted spoon, add the asparagus and tomatoes. Cover and keep warm.

Add 2tbs dry white vermouth to the stock and bring to the boil, stirring. Allow to boil for about 2 min or until slightly reduced then season to taste. Add the sauce, 15g roughly torn basil leaves and 2tbsp grated Parmesan cheese to the bowl, gently toss to combine then serve immediately.