A growing trend towards our fresh fruit and veg.

Byline: Gavin Castle

THIS summer at the Examiner office we''ve had courgettes, beetroot, potatoes, tomatoes, onions, rhubarb and blackberries flying around.

People are growing fruit and veg like never before and they've been put to very good use!

Whether it's the credit crunch or just this year's new hobby, it''s more than welcome to people who love food and cooking.

I say 'new' in the loosest of senses, as people have had allotments around the area for years but people seem to be really catching the bug in recent months.

It''s great that people are sharing their produce too, it''s like going back in time.

A fantastic courgette -the size of a marrow -was brought in by a friend. I''d never seen one as big as that before!

I took it home hollowed it out and fried the flesh with some onion, garlic, chorizo sausage and red pepper.

I mixed that in with some cooked cous cous, added lemon juice and parsley and shoved it back in the casing, sprinkled it with grated parmesan cheese and whacked it in the oven for ten minutes at 180 degrees. It was gorgeous. Thank you, Karen!

Another colleague brought in a bag of the sweetest tasting cherry tomatoes I''ve ever had.

He says he never has to buy any through the summer just picks them off his plants.

The ones that survived the day at work were put to good use, I made a tart base using ready made puff pastry, and added the halved tomatoes, some onion that had been fried with a dash of balsamic vinegar for 10 minutes, and pieces of goat''s cheese.

These were baked for twenty minutes (180 degrees) and a few sprigs of basil added on top and they were fantastic. Cheers Dave!

My mum also made one of her fantastic rhubarb crumbles with the help of some more home-grown produce.

If I told you the recipe for that I''d have to kill you!

I''ve vowed to grow my own potatoes when the next time to sow them comes, you can do them in a bucket or bin by all accounts and although I''ve had limited success growing my own garlic and chillies, I''m pretty confident I''ll end up with a bumper crop.

Reckon it''s something in the air (or should I say soil).

Following on from my last piece about making the most out of cheap cuts of meat, here's a dead easy cheats recipe for an impressive tea or, if done in bigger portions, a great alternative to a chilli or lasagne on a party night or even the rapidly approaching Halloween and Bonfire nights. Cumberland or Sainsbury's Italian sausage are excellent and the butter beans add a creaminess to the stew and also fill you up somewhat, you could also use chickpeas.

Gavin's spicy meatballs with butter beans divide into small pieces and roll into balls.

Add the tinned tomatoes and stock to the onion mix and (you can add a glass of red wine if you want - to the pan, not you) let that cook and thicken over a low heat for a good 1/2 of an hour.

SPICY MEATBALLS WITH BUTTER BEANS Eight herby sausages Tin of chopped tomatoes 2 cloves of garlic chopped 1 red chilli chopped (seeds as well if you like it spicy) 1 large onion chopped 1 red pepper chopped 1 tbspoon of fennel seeds 1 tspoon of cumin 2 tins of butter beans 500 mls of chicken stock Fry the garlic and chilli in a little olive oil, then add the chopped onion and red pepper, cumin, fennel seeds and plenty of black pepper, cook for ten mins till the onion has softened.

Drop the meatballs into the mixture and cook for another ten minutes before adding the butter beans. Again let this cook for ten minutes. Add salt, pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice to taste.

Serve in big bowls topped with fresh basil and grated parmesan if you want, but definitely have plenty of garlic bread to mop the sauce up!

Take the skin off the sausages and

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* CHEAT TREAT: Quick and easy spicy meatballs with butter beans is an impressive tea or a great alternative to chilli or lasagne